Apparently, our visit to Langkawi took place in the dry season. The wet season must be one degree of wetness away from Atlantis I guess. Isn’t that always the way with beach vacations? Rain, rain, rain. But let’s back up a minute. I was really out of sorts getting ready for the trip, just not…
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Low Expectations Yield High Results
I said I wouldn’t be caught dead there, and it is the most unlikely place we would have ended up watching the opener of the World Cup 2010 but there we were in seats suited for VIP at the Hard Rock Cafe. Some things are simply meant to be. Our first choice of venue, Bayernhaus,…
If MSG doesn’t kill me, it will make me stronger: Penang Day 2
1. We wake up, we get a caffeine injection. At about 11AM we walk about twenty minutes down the road to a nondescript one-way street because we have a solid tip on the town’s best white curry mee: noodles in coconut milk broth with the chili paste served on the side. On the way we…
The Good Thing About Chinese Food is that You’re Hungry Again Two Hours Later: Penang, Day 1
From Penang Ah, Penang. Where wafts of Chinese temple incense mingle with the stench of the nation’s best durians. Penang. Where curry mee comes white and you have to add your own chili paste to make the rich broth turn a sinister red. Penang. Where they throw fruit and squid together in a bowl, drizzle…
Ikan bilis = ikan bliss
Ikan bilis, the magical little dried fishes of my dreams. Ikan bilis is one of the best things about eating in Malaysia. The Malays add ikan bilis to nearly everything here, adding salt, crunch and some fine briney umami to the dish. At lunch on weekdays, the local row of hawker stalls has a buffet,…
Visitor Shows Up to Brewery Wearing Shorts
An opportunity to laugh at the incident at GAB: Things got hairy at the Guinness-Anchor-Berhad (GAB) Brewery near Kuala Lumpur Thursday, when a foreigner named Joshua Oakes showed up for a GAB Brewery tour wearing a T-shirt, shorts, and mandles–men’s sandals. The rest of his group was all wearing appropriate attire. “I don’t know, I…
Josh Oakes Apprehended by Guinness Fashion Police; Free Beer Palliates
The Guinness-Anchor-Berhad (GAB) Brewery is the size of a automobile manufacturing plant, in the suburban styx of Kuala Lumpur. Kennhyn Ang of BeerBeer arranged a brewery tour for the two of us, and about half a dozen others. The BeerBeer crew gave us a ride from the nearest metro stop–which is the eponymous end of…
The Other Oakes Just Isn’t As Cool as Ours…
A quick search on WebMii.com revealed this Other Josh Oakes. I particularly liked this part at the bottom: Everybody loves a beer writer! Television fishing program hosts, on the other hand… I thought it funny though, that Draft Magazine is asking “Who’s Your Favorite Beer Blogger?” and Oakes is not mentioned. Personally I think he’s…
Breaking down Malaysia’s Beer Barriers
Breaking down Malaysia’s Beer Barriers Yesterday we had the honor of hanging out with Kennhyn Ang, who heads up the premier Malaysia beer blog BeerBeer. He also introduced us to Chong Wai Lun, owner of Bottles and Bottles (Web site under construction). Over a few choice bottles at Bottles and Bottles, we had a pithy…
Living in a Cave
Cappadocia is the kind of place people dream about. One look at the photos and you’re hooked. A few travelers we met planned their Cappadocia trip years in advance, and Josh and I were lucky enough to spend 8 nights in this fascinating region. People come not just the undulating and phallic rock formations, but…
Cappadocia part 1
Underground cities, fairy chimneys and the troglodyte lifestyle – what’s not to love about Cappadocia? The last leg of our Turkish experience has us in a fantasy land – a heavily touristed fantasy land but a fantasy land nonetheless. We only got a hint of this when pulled into the regional hub of Nevsehir. Soon,…
Konya: No Alcohol, No Problem!
Alcohol isn’t legally banned in Konya, but it might as well be. Only a few stores sell it, and only a handful of restaurants serve it. We found no purveyors (and you all know we tried!), but supposedly they do exist. In spite of its proud conservatism, Konya manages to feel lighthearted and even open-minded….
Love and Barley 