Singapore Sling

"No gum? Then, I'm not going." My daughter huffed and sat cross legged at my feet as I threw a swimsuit into a backpack. That is exactly how my most recent Saturday morning began. 

After hearing that we were taking a quick "vacation" to Singapore and learning about the country's strict "no gum allowed anywhere" rule, my four year old decided that this was not the type of vacation she wanted to participate in.

Chewing gum is a new thing in our family and exclusively used for enticing young children onto various modes of transportation. (It began with an innocent enough two hour flight to California and has found its way into their mouths during difficult flights and tricky Bangkok Skytrain rides since.) Mentally smacking my hand upside my head and attempting to limit an eye roll, on this particular Saturday morning, I wish I could have taken back every nibble of gum I have given. And, so our quick dash for Singapore began. 

While my husband's passport had been stamped many times since our initial entry into Thailand, the kids and I needed an update. So, it was off for a quick stay in Singapore where we would be granted, upon return to Thailand, shiny new stamps in our passports allowing us to continue our adventure in Bangkok.

After a fairly uneventful flight and a few train rides on yet another world-class public transportation system (why don't these exist everywhere?), we threw ourselves down into an open air cafe sporting huge green awnings and bearing the famous siren's logo. Sipping blissful refreshment, we soaked up cafe culture, Singapore style, and surveyed the scene. 

The sidewalks alone were enough to make my mind spin. Having grown used to Bangkok's crumbling pathways, I was shocked to remember that smooth, wide, easy to navigate ones exist in other places. And, after our elevated train ride into the heart of the city, I would not be shocked to learn someday that yoga really is practiced, or at least sold, on every corner of Singapore and that the papayas growing in the trees beside the tracks are among the largest in the world.

As for the anti-gum upset? My daughter completely forgot about her protests when she laid eyes on the slide leading into our hotel's cool, blue swimming pool.

Cooking in Thailand, entry no. 20:

Fried Bee Hoon

I tried this Singapore noodle dish at breakfast yesterday (in Singapore!). I loved it so much that I came home and created the following recipe so I could replicate the dish in my own kitchen. A yummy alternative to fried rice, it makes for a complete meal at any time of the day.

Ingredients:

1 package thin rice vermicelli noodles (bee hoon)

5 dried mushrooms 

3 cloves of garlic, finely diced

4 tablespoons soy sauce

4 tablespoons oyster sauce

1/2 cup chicken stock

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

1-2 bird's eye chilies (optional, to taste, chopped into rounds)

pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon veggie oil

vegetables of your choice, cut into thin strips (carrots, cabbage, bean sprouts, etc.)

meat of your choice, cut into thin strips (or extra firm tofu, cubed)

egg, cooked omelette style and cut into thin strips

Method:

Reconstitute vermicelli by soaking in warm water for about 15 minutes, strain and set aside. Reconstitute dried mushrooms by soaking in 1/2 cup of warm water for about 15 minutes, then cut mushrooms into thin strips and reserve water. In a bowl, mix soy sauce, oyster sauce, reserved mushroom liquid, sesame oil, bird's eye chilies, pepper, salt and chicken stock. Set aside. Heat a large wok, add vegetable oil. Stir fry garlic, mushrooms and vegetables until tender. Add meat or tofu and toss until cooked and seared. Add vermicelli and just enough of the sauce mixture to coat the bottom of the pan. The sauce should sizzle and evaporate. Toss well and add a bit more stock. Continue this process until the noodles won't soak up anymore sauce. You want the pan to remain fairly dry to achieve a toasted flavor (you don't want the noodles soaking in sauce, they should be dry and "fried" a bit crispy on the edges when done). Serve and garnish with egg strips and extra sesame oil, if desired.

Serenity is here

Serenity is here: lush tropical foliage, golden wats (Thai temples), inviting swimming pools, deliciously scented wafts from street side food stalls, and peaceful looking, fabric swathed monks are all common place. But, that being said, Bangkok is also anything but serene. Bangkok is hip and trendy and fast and colorful and LOUD: a complete sensory overload. 

Bangkok is truly a city of unbelievable contrasts. Prior to departure, I read similar phrases in travel journal after travel journal. But, never did I grasp exactly what that phrase meant. I am now beginning to comprehend and understanding that the contrasts exist makes everyday life a bit easier to navigate.

Bangkok is both dirty and dusty, while also sparkling and pristine. It is deliciously scented, at times, and horribly stinky at others. It is full of traditional open air markets and sleek, modern, glassed-in mega centers. And, birds chirp, foliage waves in the morning heat, all the while giant construction sites are full of pounding and sawing. And, while pickups full of produce and meats display their goods in a movable feast of sorts, the Skytrain zooms overhead and cars stacked sometimes six or seven rows deep (on streets built for three or four lanes!) honk and idle in the sun. 

It is an amazing experience for your brain to take in all at once. Today was a perfect example of the city's contrast and how it affects us. 

T started breakfast at the other end of the house, while the kids and I stretched slowly out of bed this morning, waking up to 'mama's bird'. Yes, I now have a bird named after me. It's the little bird that sings 'Woo-Hoo!' when the sun rises and when the sun sets. And, like every other day so far in Bangkok, the kids opened their eyes and said 'Mama, it's your bird!' I am convinced that this little bird was created to shout 'woo hoo' purely for my enjoyment because I can't help but smile when I hear it calling out. I love that little bird. 

After stretching a moment more, we made it to the dining room and were treated to a flavorful concoction of fresh, local ingredients. If I didn't already know it, I do now... T is a genius. His spin on French toast was absolutely delectable and one that you should treat your family to this weekend (see below).

After what was a completely peaceful weekend morning, we loaded up our day pack (which mainly consisted of water and our son!) and were off to Skytrain. The quiet, fresh tropical morning of our neighborhood sub sois (side streets) was gone and we entered the dusty, humid, noisy intersection where we ascended high above the traffic to catch the sky train. Just as our cheeks start to grow red in the heat, ahhh... the train arrived, we entered and were greeted by blasts of air conditioning. Zoom... we are off to Siam Paragon, a mega, mega, mega shopping complex that is all glass and glitz and manufactured water falls (a relatively short distance in miles, but a long ways away from the look of our neighborly sub sois!). And, much to the kids excitement, home to Siam Oceanworld. This is our second visit to what is the best aquarium I have ever visited.

After rendezvousing with the gargantuan sea turtles, staying far away from the Python (that our daughter enjoyed petting!), seeing a giant fish that can actually survive a draught (by crawling into a hole and breathing air), and wondering why nutria (the giant rats... i mean rodents... really they look like giant rats... and people were all gathered around for their feeding time... hmmm... I'm obviously missing something because I don't get it) exhibit even exists, we went in search of lunch. 

Bangkok's sensory overload was completely apparent over lunch. Sitting in a food court type environment where at least 5o different restaurants sit side by side, music pounds, light shows flare across the walls, giant fish tanks and media screens compete for your attention while a loud speaker announcement requests your attention please (to something that I'm sure was important, but I couldn't hear it!). While trying to have a good (scream) conversation, I started to laugh and realized that this was what Bangkok is currently all about... preserving the serenity of past cultures, while attempting to also develop into a modern, competitive world. Sometimes it's hard to feel at home in both environments, but when I can learn to transition between the two, I think serenity will be mine.

p.s. The picture above is of the view from our home towards the our neighborhood Skytrain station. The station is towards the back of the picture. The foliage covers our sub sois that lead us to the station.

Cooking in Thailand, entry no 3:

Thai Toast

Today, T woke up early and concocted this dish for our family. It is delicious and is sure to be repeated again and again and again.

Ingredients:

1/2 inch thick slices of fresh french bread, at least two per person

1/4 cup coconut milk

the juice of one orange*

4 eggs, well beaten

salt, to taste

butter, for the skillet

mango or papaya, finely diced, and shredded coconut for garnish, optional

Method:

Mix the milk, orange juice, eggs and salt in a large shallow dish until frothy. Place the sliced bread into the mixture and flip to coat completely. Melt a couple of pats of butter in a skillet and heat until hot. Add the bread slices and cook over medium heat until lightly golden on both sides. Serve hot with desired garnishes.

* T used Thai oranges, which are slightly bitter. You could use regular oranges and add a few drops of Angostura bitters if you want to achieve a similar flavor.

Thirteen Days in Bangkok

As I start this entry, the sun is making its final descent over Bangkok's skyline and the air is still heavy and humid from today's rainstorm that threatened but never materialized. The kids are just winding down as we prep for bed and my husband is in the kitchen, happily finishing up tonight's dinner dishes. We've now been in Bangkok for 13 days and the big news is that we're still anxiously awaiting our shipment. Let me be the first one to say it... yes, life is adventurous and exhilarating as you learn how to adapt in a new environment (lots of tales to tell in future, more rested days). But, after converting the cardboard corner covers that came with our mattress delivery into pirate hats, car ramps, musical instruments, pirate hat version 2.2 (and dodging the request for mommy to please make them into a new stuffed animal), lack of belongings with two young children in tow gets old verrrry quickly. So, with each passing day we hope that our shipment arrives on our doorstep soon.

The flights went well and we are already loving our new home, feeling in a lot of ways that we belong. We're exploring the city each morning, attempting to pick up a newly needed item on our outings and then returning to relax and swim. With just a few suitcases full of odds and ends to our name, we're learning to live with our beloved rice cooker, a set of sheets, a few of the Fisher Price Little People and some paper plates! This, though, has given us plenty of opportunity to figure out public transportation, investigate our local market (they deliver!!!), and try out the few words of Thai that we know. 

We're all just exiting the jet lag that accompanied us and the week ahead will be one in which I attempt to restore the kid's pre-move routine while T begins work. The enormity of the adventure (the prep of the last several months, the good-byes and the arrival in a foreign city) is sinking in and our bodies and minds are fatigued.

Since I love to entertain and I have found myself far and away from loved ones, this blog will be my way to not only document my journey as an expat in Thailand, but also as a way to play virtual hostess. My first gift to you...

Cooking in Thailand, entry no. one: 

Snapper in Coconut Mango Cream

After living on a diet primarily consisting of steamed rice, this was one of the first new dishes I've tried using fresh, local Thai ingredients. The recipe is adapted from a leaflet at our local grocery. And to make it fun, you can attempt to cook it in the method that I like to call 'sans-shipment' and use two plastic forks to flip the fish in the lava-like poaching liquid (paper plates make for a beautiful serving platter)!

Ingredients:

2 mangos
2 green scallions
1 cup of coconut milk
1 teaspoon of red chili paste*
2 small fillets of red snapper
Rice

Method:

Place two mangos, roughly diced, and two green scallions, chopped, into a dry saute pan. Cook over medium heat until mango starts to turn golden (the consistency will grow soft as well). Turn the heat down and add one cup of coconut milk and one teaspoon of red chili paste. Simmer over low for about two minutes, stirring to combine flavors. Add two small fillets of red snapper, cover in liquid completely and slow poach until fish is opaque (you may wish to flip the fish to encourage quicker cooking, but it is not entirely necessary). Serve hot with rice.**

* The chili paste I found at my local store included ground chilies, fermented shrimp paste, ground ginger and crushed garlic. If you can't find something similar, I recommend using a bit of red pepper flakes, a touch of ground ginger, a dash of garlic powder and a tiny splash of fish sauce to recreate the flavor.

** We enjoyed Thai Black Forbidden Palace Rice with this dish, which is traditionally used to make black sticky rice pudding. Serve with your favorite steamed rice (a wild rice blend would be tasty).