Vignettes of the World
Where there is no time and nothing matters. We were slow to start, because the spring-like atmosphere was very pleasing to our senses. The Cradle Mountain’s snowy heights glimmered under the gentle sunlight. The scene was absorbing, and we took our time. We also made …
With excitement I rose early on the second day in Launceston. We were heading to the Cradle Mountain, and I wondered if I would come close to anything like an adventure. My bent for history has guided my research on Tasmania, particularly Port Arthur. As …
Tasmania was probably best known for two things: its beer and its apples. Tasmania’s local beers are well-known in all of Australia, and some of the product lines are available only in Tasmania. There are two major rivals, James Boag in Launceston and Cascade in Hobart. I could not wait to see the James Boag (pronounced BALG) Beer Lovers’ Center.
With beautiful Victorian Era interior, the building preserved the spirit of its times in 1881. I stopped at the bar for a chat with the bartender there. Beer was always a theoretical matter for me.
The James Boag’s XXX ALE is brewed and sold exclusively in Tasmania. According to the brochure, “the longest continually brewed beer at Boag’s Brewery is characterized by a light golden colour and a hint of toffee.” My aunt and I shared one bottle, short and sweet.
Supper was a far walk away at Pasta Merchant. On our way we passed by the Prince’s Square, itself a heritage park. At Pasta Merchant we ordered $10 and yummy pasta, deli-styled.
All good and well, our first day in Launceston, Tasmania.
The convicts could have never imagined Tasmania today. But then again, even with the wonderfully preserved historic sites, we can hardly imagine Tasmania back then. On our arrival in Launceston we checked into the Batman Fawkner Inn. I had not known that the Batman Fawkner …
Perhaps many travelers would agree with me on this. When one explores a new destination, there is that inkling in the heart, a soft voice inside wondering: could I live here? The older that I get, the more it is that I look at the …
The epicureans of the world know that there are eight great styles in Chinese cuisine. These great styles are categorized according to the geographical regions in China. Each of these eight styles differs in its cooking methods, selection of ingredients, the use of spices, and the emphases on flavors. Their respective features depend on the culture, climate and produce of the geographical region.
For example, Cantonese cuisine is mostly cooked by steaming and wok-frying. It tends to emphasize on the natural freshness of the ingredients and a preference for sweetness. Finally, seafood is a key ingredient as Canton is in the southern coast of China.
Nanjing food belongs to the Jinling family of Chinese cuisine. Even as early as the Qin Dynasty, Jinling cuisine has made its name amongst the elites. Its long history culminated in the early 20th century, when Nanjing became the capital of the Republic of China. The food of Nanjing garnered a national following then, and the famous chefs of the time came up with even more innovative varieties. In this period, Nanjing food was also known as Republican Cuisine.
Jinling Cuisine draws on simmering and pressure-cooking as its preeminent cooking methods. Presentation is a key feature of Jinling food, especially in the dark colors coming from the heavy use of soy sauce. Yellow rice wine is also a common marinate in Jinling food. River catch is a key feature in Jinling Cuisine due to Nanjing and Jiangsu Province’s extensive fresh waterways.
Particularly worthy of mention are the well-known “eight best foods of Qinhuai.” This refer to a large variety of Nanjing street food that the locals favor. To name them, there are the tea-cooked eggs, the top scholar beans, the sesame flatbread, shredded chicken noodles, spring onion pancakes, beef pan-fried dumplings, xiaolong bao (steamed dumplings), and assorted desserts, including all kinds of steamed sweet rollups.
As Cantonese, I did wonder about food in Nanjing before my trip. I did my research and found out that a major street food in Nanjing was duck blood soup noodles. As I do not eat blood products, I was worried. I thought I would have to eat tangbao (steamed dumplings that are a close relative of xiaolong bao) for every meal in my days there.
As it turned out, I had a wonderful foodie adventure in Nanjing. The planning was well worth the effort. Here comes the long-awaited food diary:
Yin’s Dumplings is very famous for its tangbao (steamed dumplings). However, I must warn readers that the branch at the Lion Bridge Food Street was not very good. I heard that serious diners should head over to Xinjiekou’s flagship store for a real taste of good tangbao.
There is a safe way of eating these dumplings. Put the dumpling into your spoon, make an opening on the skin and suck the soup carefully. Wait a bit for it to cool down and then eat the whole dumpling. The boiling soup from the dumplings could splash and cause blisters in the mouth.
See also below a picture of the stinky tofu at the Lion Bridge Food Street. I observed that the cook fried the stinky tofu twice before pouring over a tasty warm soup with parsley to give it flavor. The soup also softened the inner texture and the temperature of the tofu. I do not know why the tofu was black. It was very yummy though.
Since Liji is an Islamic restaurant, it does not serve pork on its premises. Visitors would be drawn to the skewers stand there, but I think the traditional selection was better. The beef fried dumplings were a must. I ordered a plain noodle and one serving of beef fried dumplings that day. For one person, that was plenty. Eat the dumplings carefully as you would with the steamed dumplings, as hot soup will splash.
Beware that you must first pay for the food at the counter, get your ticket, then queue up on the very long line to get your dumplings. Other food, such as beef buns, have shorter lines.
My research in Nanjing food included a book written and illustrated by a Nanjing native. The Taste of Nanjing shows readers a systematic way of appreciating local food, organized by the seasons. It is a pity that I was not able to locate many of the restaurants featured in the book. Yet Qifang Ge is still there in the Fuzimiao (Confucius Temple) area.
The high quality of the salt water duck was a pleasant surprise. At first glance, the duck did not seem appealing to me. It looked plain, almost as if it were raw. Yet when I ate it, there was not one trace of the usual gamey taste of ducks. The meat was soft, but also retained its texture. The taste was the right balance of savory and freshness. It was very flavorful. I learned from the Taste of Nanjing that the secret to good salt water duck was the soup base, which in many restaurants was a secret recipe.
The Changshu Poured Fried Noodle was the most local restaurant I visited on this trip. Everybody was there for the cheap and common eat. It offered many choices, most of which were fried poured noodles (fried noodles with a soup base), but I opted for a pork chop with soup noodles. This below shows the hearty portion.
I visited the Nanjing Da Paidang at the Lion Bridge Food Street on my last evening in Nanjing. I went all out and ordered every food on my wish list. They were all very tasty.
In a place like Nanjing, many foods come with wonderful stories. This following is a local dessert, the Meihua Gao (Plum Blossom Cake). When Qing emperor Qianlong came to Nanjing for a southern tour, he saw this dessert on the street. Its colors and shape reminded him of the plum blossom and so he named it the Plum Blossom Cake.
Finally, I must mention the wonderful Meiling Porridge. The story goes like this: there was one time that Soong Meiling lost her appetite for months. Her chef made her this porridge, and it restored Soong Meiling’s appetite and her mood. The recipe for this porridge slowly circulated amongst the locals and now everyone is able to get a taste of the Meiling Porridge. It has a sweet-base with a smooth and lightly gluey texture.
It seemed to me that Nanjing food was a cross between Taiwanese and Shanghainese food. While it was certainly less delicate than Shanghainese food, Nanjing food had a character of its own. Its flavors bolder, its textures fuller, its presentation slightly earthier. On the other hand, it shared the same historical roots with Taiwan as the Republic of China. The similarities are the most notable in their desserts.
Works Cited:
Ah Mei, The Taste of Nanjing (2016).
“Are there cameras here? Quickly!” I was sitting in the backseat, watching the cab driver communicate with another driver on the phone. He was desperately trying to find his way to the airport bus stop. I felt bad, because my destination was actually the airport …
The afternoon heat was waning. I debated whether to see just one more site in the Zhongshan National Park before heading back to the hotel. I felt like I have seen what I wanted to see in terms of history. Yet I told myself to …
Once described as the First Villa of the Far East, the Former Residence of the Chairman of the Republican Government provides an intimate glimpse into the lives of Chiang Kai-shek and his wife Soong Meiling. Nanjing called it fondly as the Soong Meiling Villa, as Chiang Kai-shek’s expression of love for his third wife.
The pleasing sight of a stately black Buick greeted visitors at the door. This was the original car that served the then Chinese president Chiang Kai-shek of the Nationalist Government. The villa stood gracefully, its Chinese glazed tile roof presenting the first impression of an oriental architecture. Yet the French windows that lined the upper floors added a nice Western touch. Perhaps it was just enough to convey the spirit of the times in which the villa was built. In 1931, China was at the crossroads. A new era adopting ideas of western democracy has yet to take root in Chinese soil.
Once inside the villa, however, visitors would see an unmistakable preference for western-styled interior. Most of the rooms in the Villa were open for exhibition. From the kitchen in the basement to the chapel and the office on the upper floors, one could observe a thoughtful effort to convey, if not preserve, the lifestyle of simple elegance in the modern era.
Certainly, these rooms spoke amply to the life of the First Lady. I learned an interesting fact in the bathroom. Soong Meiling used to take milk bath, but not due to a penchant for queen-like, luxurious living. She suffered from a skin ailment and milk baths would alleviate the discomfort.
In the main hall visitors would come upon a standard exhibition on Soong Meiling’s life. I thought the descriptions were fair. In some of the previous exhibitions I saw on this trip, I sensed a general distaste toward Chiang Kai-shek. Soong Meiling, however, seemed to be well-respected and admired in China, her work as the first lady was recognized and lauded.
The stairs leading to the basement showed visitors a small but significant collection of Soong Meiling’s paintings. While Soong has been known in the world for her gifts in language, history, politics and diplomacy, her love for painting was not as well known. As her paintings showed, she was an accomplished painter especially in water color.
Finally, as to the expression of love in building this villa, Chiang Kai-shek planted rows and rows of Chinese parasols surrounding the villa. At blooming season, the trees with their flowers would form a beautiful shape of a necklace. The villa showed itself within a tear-drop pendant. Pictures taken aerially showed this exceptional view of the full bloom, as if each year the flowers would speak the message of love once again as an eternal testimony.
Alright, I was a bit carried away here. The idea of Chiang Kai-shek being romantic does not quite fit his profile as a military ruler.
The Soong Meiling Villa, however, shall forever stand witness to the short-lived Republican period in Chinese history.
The Ming Filial Tomb (Ming Xiaoling) had historical significance on China’s imperial burial rites. The architecture and formalities of the Ming emperor mausoleums preserved some features of their predecessors. Yet in breaking many new grounds, the Ming Filial Tomb established itself as a milestone development …