Posts Tagged With: market

Temple festival to a night market… What a day!

Even though there’s no secret pass word or handshake to get through the entrance, I was still honored to partake in this day at a festival in a temple. If I was traveling without a local, I would of been a bit hesitant to shuffle on in and check it out, but after being invited, I was all in!

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On the outside is where you purchase they special made Poa that you bring into the temple to pray with.

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Before entering, you’re senses are taken over by the amount of insence that is being burned. Each participate has their own bundle in which they carry around to each pot for prayer and distribute them amongst the different statues. These are just some of the sights outside of the temple.

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Time to go in and lay out your offerings, light your incense, and begin prayer.

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I wish I could read this:

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After this eye opening experience, Kuldip surprised me with the perfect ending to our day…. A night market!

Similar to the morning market, there are several vendors with stalls prepared for whatever you desire. Fruit, veggies, hot meals, and sweet treats. This isn’t including all of the clothes, shoes, bags, tools, and other random objects that are displayed to grab your attention.

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If you read my last post, “A ray of green light in Malaysia”, under the edibles page, you’ll find the struggle I’ve been having with the amount of fried, grease soaked and sugar based choices here in Malaysia. Tonight didn’t fall short of some prime examples.

Will start with some treats. The photos I didn’t capture this evening were the cakes, pastries, fried sugar, and fresh fruit that was soaking in sugar water. However, I did snag a few I hadn’t seen so far in Malaysia.

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This is a fresh soy milk stand. They pour it directly into a bag then puncture it with a straw… Viola, a drink!

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Before you see the next stall, I suggest you stand up and do a few jumping jacks first to get your cardiovascular system pumping.

This is a deep fry station. Already prepared for you on a stick is a variety of veggies, egg, tofu, fish or other kind of meats. You pick your sticks then drop them in the deep fryer. When you think they’re done, you pull them out and follow with the spicy cream sauce provided. Although this is not my ideal “snack” I just wanted to play! I snagged a green leaf stick that had a piece of fish on the end. Well… At least I tried it right?

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Ok, maybe you should get down and rack out a set of push ups before this next one. A Chinese hamburger. A fried egg, cheese, deli ham with spicy sauce held together between two pancakes. I should of asked what the “chicken floss” was…

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Here is a range of other offered items along the markets path. (Baby not for sale in the last photo).

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Wait… What’s this?! A thin wrap lined with a non creamy spicy sauce, layered with fresh lettuce, raw jicama and cucumber, complimented with sprouts, and your choice of a vegetarian or fish mix… I found dinner!

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Categories: Edibles!, Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

White Coffee and Egg tarts in Ipoh, Malaysia!

Within just a few kilometers out of the city, the earth of Malaysia is starting to expose itself. A few pics of the road trip from Kuala Lumpur to Ipoh.

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We follow a few cozy streets that lead us to her families home. Shoes off at the door before entering (they have an amazing ability to step out of slippers without missing a beat) to find a warm kitchen with food on the table. Homemade chicken bone soup, rice noodles and veggies. I also got a sneak peak of Poa, a slightly sweet, very soft dumplings (reminds me of wonder white bread) that’s filled with either a curry meet, veggies or a sweet delight.

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Here, it’s typical to literally wake up and go to the street market to collect your food for the day. What’s for breakfast? I don’t know yet, we’ll see what the vendors brought this morning and what seems to be the freshest!

Who doesn’t get dressed up to head to the market?! Meet Kuldip’s niece, a sparkling firecracker of energy with a sugary little smile. First lip stick, a wardrobe change and then a hair piece to match the bedazzling!

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Off we go!

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Fruit (I purchased two new ones that I had never seen before, it’s like opening a present!) and veggies…
I got to watch this woman, clean, cut and basket the fresh veggies to sell (not comparable to the pre-washed plastic bagged salads you get from the supermarket).

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I’d like to think that I have a fairly strong stomach considering back in my coaching days, I’ve set broken bones, bandaged open wounds and literally caught vomit in my hands.
Well folks, today as we were strolling along I heard the sound of a chicken. As I gazed over and focused in on what what my ears had noticed, I felt my stomach hit my throat.
Take notice to the lid of fresh feathers on the left and the pile of feet to the right. Enough said.

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On a lighter note… some random local treats!

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Finished up with baggies of breakfast and we head back to indulge. People who own a vehicle here typically have hooks behind their seats to hold the bags up-right.

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The drink above is something I had never seen before. It’s slightly sweetened soy milk with grass jelly and red beans over ice. It…is…delicious!

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As if this morning wasn’t amazing enough, we head through some city streets for a well known pastry and the famous Ipoh White Coffee. “White”, not meaning a mocha or fancy flavored coffee, but a the name is actually referring to the way the bean is roasted.
Traditionally, Malaysian style “black” coffee is produced by roasting the beans with sugar, margarine and wheat. “White” coffee is produced with only margarine and without any sugar, resulting in a less dark roast. They add a splash of condensed milk and serve it hot or cold. Scrumptious!

Below is some pics from the journey there, a glass of chilled white coffee and the local pastry that we patiently stood in line for. People were crowding closer behind me as these velvety, custard filled, flaky warm crusted delights emptied from the tray (I actually got the last one!). Apparently “Ipoh’s Egg Tarts” are the most popular dessert item here and of course Kuldip knew of the best place to get them!

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Although this can be a popular destination for locals to host weddings or other celebrations, it’s hardly known to the public eye and certainly not on the front page of any tour brochures. Thank you Kuldip!

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Categories: Accommodations, Edibles!, Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Vienna to the border patrol in Hungary

After the 8 minute hike from the last post, we buckled up and headed farther east to our next destination of Vienna. A place I’ve heard beautiful things about and also the location of my next reunion!

We kept looking for “Vienna” signs…turns out they spell it “Wien”.

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Like responsible travelers we are, we take it easy our night in Vienna looking forward to the early rise bike ride. Since we only have half a day before we drive to Budapest, we thought a set of wheels would be our best bet. This decision was agreed upon with our new friend Michael. He’s another smiling, easy to talk to, ready for action traveler from New Zealand.

The bike ride was a little bitter-sweet for me. It was so nice to see everything, however with limited time there wasn’t much room for photos, cafe breaks or small street exploring. I dare not complain though, it’s a gorgeous place with many massive buildings holding rich character. A few pics from the ride.

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This is our first stop, the famous Schönbrunn Palace!
(click here for the details of this magnificent Palace) .
Although the grounds stretch beyond our exploration, the gardens we did see were amazing!

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Handstand pic!

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More through the city on our way to reunite with my friend.

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Last February I was lucky to have met this spirited one named Gypsy. He was one of my haircut clients in the hostel we were staying at. After great conversation, we spoke of meeting again somewhere, someday in the near future. The first pic was in New Zealand with a group of travelers and the following photo is us here in Vienna! So glad I got to see your smile in person, cheers till next time!

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On our path back to the car, we make time to check out the local market. Although we’re in the middle of Austria, it was what seemed like to be a Turkish market. Again with the non complaining as it was still nice to wander through fresh fruit, herbs, spices, clothes, bags and more. The boys didn’t pass up the oppurtunutiy to start off with a doner kabob!

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We got back to the car in time to say farewell to Michael and head on our way to Budapest!

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This is when I would usually end the post and cheers to our next adventure. Not this time.
So were cruising along, jammin to some Beastie Boys…

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…when we come to the border leaving Austria entering Hungary. The patrol officer was just waving everyone through with ease until we approach… His arm holding a wand of authority slams down as he points us to the side of the road. I can only assume he’s not pulling us over to complement our dance moves.

Turns out you need to stop prior to the line we crossed and get a fancy little sticker that says you’ve payed to drive on their highway. It usually runs 12-20 Euros. Well that’s easy:

Marshall- “Sorry sir, we didn’t know. Where can we get a sticker?”
Officer- “Well there are signs everywhere telling you the rules”. (As he points to a bunch of letters smeared on a sign).
Marshall- “Oh, I don’t read German that well. So may we pay back there?”
Officer- “You pay me 120 Euros.”
Marshall- “Uhh, there’s no way to go back and pay?”
Officer- “How long are you staying in Hungary?”
Marshall- “Only 2 nights”.
Officer- “You’ve got two options” (this is when a slight sense of relief comes, I like options!)
Officer continues- “You can pay me 120 Euros in cash or with a card, your choice”.

Here’s our view during this whole conversation.

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All said and done, 120 Euros later and a sense of slight highway robbery we continue on our way.
I will say Marshall and I are fantastic at destroying negative energy with a positive attitude and blasting more road trip tunes! There’s now a different level excitement in the car knowing that we get to reunite with Niki, the adorable girl we connected with in Salzburg. Friends in Hungary, here we come!

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What do you get when you mix 4 Germans, 2 Dutch and me?

A party in Amsterdam!

Quick recap: I met Carina and Florian, years ago at Oktoberfest who introduced me to Julia and Sebastian this year. Denise and I met while studying in Spain last year and just met Ioni in Argentina this March. Since I know all 6 of these incredible people I felt more than than driven to connect us all at once. Success!

We met up early in the day to wander the streets before heading out on the town. I got to take them to one of my favorite open markets!

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I honestly couldn’t figure out if this was a real man. He didn’t budge or blink for the awkward moments I just stood there… I’m still not sure.

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We were extremely tempted to purchase snow suits and wear them out as a huge group, next time!

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Most vendors have some sort of design on the outside of their closed shed. Gotta love the one and only Bob Marley!

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After snooping through bags, books, clothes, tools, posters, jewelry, plants, and still trying to figure out if that guy was alive or not… we head to Dam Square to meet up with the rest of the bunch.

While waiting, I offered to take a picture of a group of lovely ladies that ended up being so sweet! Besides the great conversation with these intelligent girls, I now have a place to stay in Indonesia!

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Who took the group photo of us? Italy on my right and Spain on my left!

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All right, time to dance! Amsterdam is full of bars, clubs and offers a variety of entertainment every night of the week. We didn’t have any specific plans which led us on a walk to see what we could find.

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A crazy disco club? A loud sports bar? A classy cocktail lounge? Nope. An old school bar in which we were the youth by a solid 35 years… priceless! All eyes peered over in curiosity as we bounced through the entry way. I wonder what they were all thinking?

After only minutes I saw this woman ever so slightly shaking her hips to the tunes and that was my cue… That girl wants to dance!

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…and this was the beginning to our self-made dance party with new friends. I hope the locals will look back and smile remembering the enthusiasm we brought and the energy we left with.

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The first photo is the owner playing bottles of liquor with two sticks making them chime to some crazy Dutch song. Then naturally Carina and I end up behind the bar pouring drinks. We both agree that these taps poor differently than back home.

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As the evening wrapped up, we handed my camera to one of our new pals for a group photo.
Judging from the pictures, he wasn’t sober. Here’s what we ended up with! (In the exact order they were taken).

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The closing to the night was finding a solution to the growling tummy’s of my dear buddy’s.

What’s this? For those of you in the dark like I was, this is a form of fast food vending machine style! Instead of a bag of nuts or skittles, you have your choice of hamburgers, chicken strips, friend cheese, hotdogs and so on. This smile says it all!

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Carina, Florian, Julia, Sebastian, Denise and Ioni… I hope you stay connected as this evening should be the first of many! I’ve got to be the luckiest “tourist” around these parts, thanks for joining me! Doei and Tschuss!

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