Melbourne: Australia
Please excuse my lack of photo-tation… the ducklings found themselves on a trip to Melbourne just over two weeks ago. Have only just gotten round to uploading these pics, in the midst of the various other shoots that I’ve been doing.
Melbourne is a city of sophistication mixed in with the rough, and I had an amazing time sampling good food and shopping throughout my explorations of the city.
So without further ado, hop onto the back of my vespa and sit back as I take you on a small sample of what Melbourne has to offer :)
First stop: Rose Street Artist Market, Fitzroy. Home of amazing independent art and design.
We’ll lose ourselves in one of Melbourne’s many laneways, filled with an array of bars, restaurants, boutiques and galleries.
We’ll spend the rest of the night at The Suzuki Night Markets, Queen Victoria Markets. These markets feature a vast array of food stalls, bars, shopping and free entertainment. Every Wednesday night during summer (until 24 February 2010).
The next morning we’ll head to Degraves Street, a popular site for a quick coffee and feed.
The Quarter (Degraves Street) – hands down one of the best places in Melbourne for coffee (and a delicious breakfast!)
Lunch is served at HuTong Dumpling Bar. Their xiao long baos are to die for!!!
Finally, we’ll put our feet up and listen to the piano man on Bourke Street, as we savor in more of the sights, sounds and tastes of Melbourne.
Mizuya Japanese restaurant and karaoke
I’m a sucker for all things Japanese. Especially what Sydney has to offer in terms of Japanese food.
After an afternoon of belting out some tunes with the karaoke crew, me and J head to Mizuya Japanese restaurant and karaoke (basement, 614 George Street Sydney). We’ve walked past this place a few times while it was being built, so now we finally had the chance to see what it was like. As the name suggests, Mizuya has an adjacent karaoke lounge, and offers dining and karaoke packages from $198.
Unfortunately I only had my phone with me, so the pictures aren’t good. But the food was :)
I’m sure by now you’ve heard about Wagaya. Mizuya is similar to Wagaya in terms of floor layout, ambience, its menu and the touch screen ordering system. However, we found the ordering screen less responsive to Wagaya’s and needed to press the icons a few times for it to register.
First up we order ox tongue kushiyaki. This is usually a standard order whenever we go to Wagaya, and was on par in taste. Only negative was the small sized portion (2 sticks) at $5.80.
Next up was the assorted kushiage 5 piece set ($11.80), consisting of tomato, prawn, chicken, sausage and squid. Fried to perfection :)
Soft shell crab salad ($9.80). Lacked in dressing, so we needed to ask for more.
Sake steamed clam ($14.80) – my favourite for the night :)
Final dish for the night – dried flounder ($15.80).
Finished up at about 80% full, but overall I think its one of the places that I’ll return to in the near future. It’s a contender to the always busy Wagaya, so will be interesting to see if this place takes off.
Japan: Tokyo
Just over two hours north of Kyoto by shinkansen is Tokyo.
What I love about Japan is how Kyoto and Osaka differs from Tokyo. Tokyo is the hub of Japan, 34 million people packed in one exciting city, soaring skyscrapers, maid cafes, fancy dress, and electronics galore.
There’s never a moment where you don’t see crowds of people, Shinjuku…
except maybe at 4am, Asakusa
The buying and selling of frozen tuna begins at 5:20am, Tsukiji fish markets
We head to the streets of Akihabara, filled with electronics, anime, otaku goods and maid cafes
The popular Harajuku
Pitt stop at the yakitori alley, Shinjuku
The magnificent Senso-ji temple, Asakusa
It isn’t all glitz and glamour in Tokyo, with an increasing number of homeless
Let’s give them something to eat
Japan: Kyoto
We continue our journey onto city number 2: Kyoto. Osaka can be viewed here.
Formerly the imperial city of Japan, Kyoto exhibits her beautiful history and culture with the 21st century: temples, geisha and astro boy.
Imperial palace grounds, Kyoto
Kinkakuji temple
Ryoanji temple
Kiyomizudera temple
Philosopher’s Walk
Reflections
Pontocho, Kamo river
Downtown Kyoto, Shijo
Kyoto station interchange
The daily grind home
Preparing the evening meal, Kitaoji
Round and round we go, kaiten sushi
Sleeping out tonight
Astro boy, Kyoto station
Japan: Osaka
Japan is a land rich in culture, soaring skyscrapers, delicious food & vending machines on every street corner. This was my second visit to Japan, and it was even more interesting than the first.
Four cities, two weeks, land of the rising sun.
To begin with: Osaka.
Stay tuned for more pictures coming up from traditional Kyoto, busy Tokyo, and beautiful Sapporo :)
Flying over the Pacific Ocean en route to Osaka
Delicious takoyaki upon arrival. Osaka is known for its takoyaki :)
Walking through an empty arcade in Dobutsuen-mae
Waking up the next morning to the city skyline
Elderly woman running a food store in downtown Dotonbori
Which one shall we buy?
Received a dining recommendation from locals in Shinsaibashi… they weren’t wrong – the food was absolutely delicious!
The menu, takoyaki and horse sushi :)
Stayed the night in a capsule hotel. It was quite the experience!
Finally some night shots around Shinsaibashi to finish this set – the Glico man, neon lights, beautifully decorated roller shutters, some fun outside the Apple store, and a taxi waiting for the next customer.
seldomsydney
i absolutely love Sydney. no matter how many times you visit the same spot, there’s another picture to be found. the night lights, the city skyline, cloudy or bring days, its pretty cool seeing how many variations of a picture you can take simply by changing the angle or going at different times of the year.
end of time
Sydney’s put on some amazing sunsets recently, so here’s one of my favourites! I am constantly amazed by God’s incredible creation!! :)
Taken Friday 7 August 2009, straight from the camera. No editing done to this pic – apart from adding the frame. I promise! :)
a set from Japan
I love Japan – its delicious food, beautiful people, amazing culture. I finally had a chance to go through pictures of my travels in Japan (a year on!), so here’s a few of my favourites taken over 3 months around Sapporo and Tokyo, Japan.
cabramatta
Not many people know that I grew up in South-Western Sydney. Cabramatta, Liverpool and Fairfield were my playground, my aunts and uncles lived either next door or down the street, and its where you could get fresh, exotic fruits like no where else. Sure, it had its fair share of negative attention (the kids I went to school with after moving across Sydney only knew the place by what was shown on the news – bad stuff happened, you could get drugs, people went and killed each other, and so thus I was one as well), but since then it has massively evolved and shaped up to what it is today.
So let me introduce you to a place I love for its vibrant colours, fresh food and lively characters, which make Cabramatta truly a place for Asian experiences.
The gateway to Cabramatta – Freedom Plaza
Hold my hand and don’t get lost…
Considering here’s what’s about to come…
An array of variety stores…
And a lasting reminder of the world we live in.
huong huong restaurant
Located on Marrickville Road is Huong Huong – a bustling Vietnamese restaurant with a unique range of beautiful paintings and photographs aligned on pink coloured walls.
Image courtesy of Huong Huong
Huong Huong seems to be popular with locals, with most of its seats over two levels filled by 8pm. And why wouldn’t it – this place boasts a massive array of Chinese and South-East Asian favourites (mains cost from $6-$20) including crocodile, emu and kangaroo – a total 372 dishes in fact!
Tonight, we’re just going for the favourites:
Vietnamese beef noodle soup – this massive bowl of beef, flat rice noodles, basil, bean sprouts in a hearty beef broth is always popular.
Did I say it was massive? :)
Salt and pepper squid – crispy pieces of squid, not too salty and not too oily. Absolutely delicious and highly recommended! :)
Combination rice was a treat – delicious pieces of vegetables, beef, and seafood stir fried with rice.
Braised beef with tofu – tender pieces of beef combined with fried tofu pieces, fresh vegetables and rice.
Crispy skin chicken and tomato rice – ever since I was introduced to this deliciously delightful dish back in my high school days its always been one of my must try whenever I go to Vietnamese restaurants. I can easily say that this has been the best crispy skin chicken and tomato rice dishes I’ve ever had in Sydney. Abundance of tender chicken, the delicious crispy skin (I think my cholestoral level’s gone up from tonight’s feed!), combined with a piece of tomato, cucumber and lettuce sides.
Pleasantly surprised to have fresh fruit provided at the end of the meal :)
Huong Huong Restaurant
228 Marrickville Road, Marrickville
02 9568 5522
Bookings essential
The food is tasty, the service is fast and helpful, not bad value for money – I’m definitely going back to try something else on their 372 dish menu! :)
I’ll finish this post with a delicious berries dessert – something that my lovely J put together this morning. Yum! :)
time for a little something different…
I just had to post this beautiful video of the wedding entrance of Jill and Kevin (thanks to my photography friends who tweeted about this). It is so unexpected, out of the norm, and definitely something that will make you smile (and possibly even tears!) :)
For those reading this from RSS feed, click this link to view the video: HERE
in memory of Poh… and a chicken.
Disappointed that Poh didn’t win masterchef last night. But anyway, since the mX published an adapted receipe for Hainanese chicken rice guess what was on the menu tonight?
Ok, so it looks nothing like this,
but you’ve just gotta use what you have at home.
daily telegraph FAIL (oh, and masterchef winner)
The Daily Telegraph has done it again, with this article written by Erin McWhirter (TV Editor). It was at 8:57pm that this article was published telling readers that Poh Ling Yeow had become Australia’s first masterchef (article can be viewed here).
EDIT: link was taken down, but it still can be found here (courtesy of chocolatesuze)
Here’s what was written, advising the world of the masterchef victory:
“Using her cultural connection of her upbringing in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur and the traditional influences her parents Christina and Steven have taught her over the years, Ling Yeow was stunned with the verdict but happy to embrace it.”
“After pocking the $100,000 cash prize and a cookbook deal Ling Yeow says she’s excited about launching her book Food From Mars.”
“Disappointed but humble, [Julie] Goodwin praised her feisty opponent for her success.”Poh’s a very deserving winner,” she said. “I’m proud of her, she’s a good friend and I wish her every success in the world.”"
Nice work, Daily Telegraph. First, it was publised at 8:57pm, ahead of the conclusion of the show (materchef on twitter tweets the winner just after 10pm), and secondly, it isn’t even right!
Erin McWhirter – you’re fired.
Maybe I’m just being too harsh. Should the media be allowed to ‘announce’ results before the finale results are even released, and what about it even being wrong? Let me know your thoughts.
the art of mie goreng…
Well, its not really an art. But I’m amazed at the number of people that cook mie goreng the wrong way (or they can’t read instructions on packets :p )
Anyway, I’m not going to bore you and go through the pack opening, water boiling steps, but here’s the most crucial steps:
1. Empty the sachets into a bowl (while your water is boiling / noodles are being cooked). Add as little or as much as you like, but obviously for a greater array of flavours add more! The contents of the sachets are soup base (salt, sugar, garlic, onion); oil (palm oil, onion); sweet soy sauce; chilli sauce; fried onion.
2. Mix it up before you put in the noodles. You’ll probably see it clumps up, but don’t worry – it’ll be fixed up once the noodles are in.
3. Completely drain your noodles, then place them in your bowl. Mix thoroughly, you’ll be able to see the beautiful textures coming together and smell the sweet aroma of the noodles mixed with the garlic, onion, palm oil, sweet soy sauce and chilli sauce. Mmm… impeccable. Enjoy! :)
Now that I’ve shown you the proper way of cooking mie goreng, how do you cook yours? ;)
“by 1961, Sydney’s trams had become part of history…”
I love abandoned buildings. There’s just something that makes it so interesting, the history and a story that explains why these places become derelict.
Constructed in 1904, The Rozelle Tram Depot was a large tram depot in Glebe that has stood effectively empty since the 1960s. There are about half a dozen trams (some dating back to the 1930s) and an old coach on this site, which have now unfortunately been vandalised and covered with graffiti. Since then, its been used in filming episodes for All Saints, Make Me A Supermodel and even Nikki Webster’s newest music video.
The atmosphere in this place is absolutely incredible. The shed is littered with aerosol canisters, beer cans, broken glass and other rubbish, and its definitely something I’ve never experienced before. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
EDIT: as you will see from these pictures, these trams & sheds are subject to neglect and vandalism. There needs to be urgent action undertaken to halt further damage. Please join the Save the Glebe Trams group on facebook and find out how you can help in saving these trams from further damage!
More pictures can be found on my flickr set here.
first taste restaurant
I’m not a big fan of the traditional Chinese herby soups (I wouldn’t go near them but mum swears by them so the house is usually overflowing with the aroma of ginseng and other assorted herbs), so when I first found out about First Taste and their vast menu of stewed herb soups I wasn’t too keen on going.
But since my actual first taste to First Taste, I’ve actually been back a few times. Mind you, not for the soup, but rather for something a little bit different – rice in hot pot. This is probably something that is similar to shabu shabu, sukiyaki, or Korean Stone bowl rice, where rice is served in the pot with assorted toppings, and stays warm until you finish the meal. Make sure you mix the rice with the toppings immediately as soon as you receive it, as the rice at the bottom of the pot hardens as the pot cools!
First Taste burst into the restaurant scene in Melbourne (Springvale, Footscray and Box Hill), and now it’s Sydney’s turn. The restaurant’s pretty new, having opened in the beginning of 2009. Since then, its become a hit with local Hurstville residents and incredibly popular for lunch and dinner. However, the service and staff are very efficient, and the average time I’ve had to wait for a table has been roughly 5 – 10 mins for a table on most occasions.
The menu consists of stewed herb soups (buddha’s favourite soup tops the list at $58!), rice in hot pot (range includes chicken & mushroom with rice, black bean sauce spare ribs with rice, x.o. sauce fish fillet with rice), vermicelli noodle soups (including dumpling soup, hot & sour chicken with vermicelli noodle soup), and finally desserts (durian, black sesame, mango desserts), but for tonight, it was time for the trusty rice in hot pot which was excellent on cold winters night.
First up – beef with rice. Beef was slightly a little too hard for my liking and a little too salty.
Next – seafood combination with rice. Pieces of seafood extender, prawn balls, fish fillets and a scallop or two. Quite an enjoyable dish.
Finally – quail with rice. I always seem to order this dish whenever I come, has got to be one of my favourites here. Two or three pieces of tender quail leg and thigh and soy sauce. Delicious!
I’m yet to conquer my dislike of herbal soups, but that will come in another post. If you’d like experience the joys of having a hot pot meal on a cold winter’s night then First Taste is the place to be.
First Taste Restaurant
316 Forest Road Hurstville
02 8065 2178
The Morepth Pie Man
Over the weekend, I went to Morepth (located approximately 2 hours north of Sydney in the Hunter Valley). This little quiet town has become contrastingly different what it was like in the 1820s, as it was used as a busy trading river port before the railway link from Newcastle to Sydney was completed. Today, it is littered with beautiful cafes, craft, antiques & lolly shops and old historic buildings.
While wondering around we came across The Morepth Pie Man (cnr Green & Close St Morepth – you’d find him at the back of the hut with the green frog at the front!). I’m a sucker for tasting home made pies whenever I travel outside of Sydney, so this was no exception. The assortment of pies included duck & mushroom, curry chicken, chunky beef, lamb fry & bacon, vegetarian, steak & kidney and lamb shank.
The pie was absolutely amazing! I had a chunky beef pie with peas and gravy, at $7 it wasn’t exactly the cheapest meal for lunch but it was definitely worth it. Absolutely beautiful on a cool winter’s day.
Mmm, the pie was piping hot, beef was definitely chunky, peas nicely cooked, and gravy, well, impeccable. It would be, considering Gary (the Morepth Pieman) won 11 awards at the Darling Harbour “Great Aussie Meat Pie” competition in 2005.
If you’re ever in the area of Morepth, definitely go in and try the pies from the pie man – I highly recommend it!
Now… can someone please tell me what this is? It sits on a chair at the back of The Morepth Pie Man’s shop…
Vivid Sydney: festival of music, light and ideas
Vivid Sydney was a festival held in Sydney that showcased various city icons and locations (Sydney Opera House, The Rocks & Circular Quay). The aim was to use light and sound to create stories that inspired and entertained people.
The festival was held over three weeks from May 26 to June 14, and I braved the Sydney winter weather on three nights to go out and take some pics. It was simply amazing, and it seemed like every Sydney camera user (and their tripod) was there!
Part of the festivities was the Light Walk: a self-guided walk which aimed at illuminating the city with low energy light art installations.
Here’s a look at what went on:
‘Lighting the Sails‘ – a performance projection of beautiful light art onto the iconic Sydney Opera House Sails, creating a living, interactive media façade on this white architectural canvass (by UK artist Brian Eno).
‘Façade – the electric canvas‘ – Museum of Contemporary Art. The images changed every 10-15 secs, and light was projected onto the face of the museum.
‘Tree and Bench‘ – park benches lit from the trees to give the impression of natural winter moonlight though the foliage, while the trees will be up lit with an artificial coloured light. Located on Observatory Hill, this was my favourite, blue lighting combined with the spotlight made it quite a romantic place to be :)
‘Rocklights‘ – art light projection re-visioning the iconic Argyle Cut in the heart of the Rocks.
‘Cycle!‘ – harnessing the power of human energy to create light and beauty, and the bikes themselves are made from recycled materials.
‘Lumenocity‘ – an abstracted energy consumption map of the Sydney CBD. The colour of the lanterns making up the miniature city correlate to the amount of energy consumed, and light pollution emitted, by a particular city block.
‘Rainbow‘ – an interactive rainbow of colours which will be projected onto the Billich Gallery wall, creating a beautiful night light creation.
‘Nothing Left to Guess‘ – The Moore stairs lighting scheme alternates between the white light of the stairs and warm purple tones.
‘Vessel of (Horti) Cultural Plenty‘ – located in First Fleet Park opposite Cadman’s Cottage, responds to changes of surrounding light. There are day and night variations.
Of cause, the night wouldn’t be complete without some beautiful shots of the iconic coathanger and Sydney Harbour!
- sam
Swap Til You Drop
Want guilt-free swapping? It’s here!
When? Sunday 28 June, 10am-3pm
Where? Crown Hotel Surry Hills
Why? Swapping to help make poverty history for the youth of East Timor
Bring in your pre-loved clothes, accessories & shoes. Everything you’ve grown out of love with? Swap it away – do your overflowing wardrobe a favour (no, you’re not alone) & give that clutch or summery dress a new life in another wardrobe.
Think: giant public closet.
For a donation of $15, bring your pre-loved clothes & accessories and give them a new lease in another wardrobe – essentially, swapping away what you don’t wear for something others will. All proceeds from ticket sales will be directly going to Timor-Leste’s Youth Livelihoods Program (through the Oaktree Foundation). This program aims at equipping Timorese youth with the vocational, business & life skills training they need to be able to establish their own business and begin generating income to support themselves & their families.
Mix up your wardrobe, while supporting a great cause at the same time! There will be bubbly, nibblies and a fashion parade afterwards to boot.
Check out the website http://swaptilyoudrop.blogspot.com/ (or if you can’t be there in person donate online at http://www.onlinegiving.com.au/pages/SwapTilYouDrop.aspx) . There’s more event details, plus background on the cause.
I’ll be there photographing on the day – hope to see you there! :)
