happy new year – make a wish!

wishing you all the best for a happy new year. 2008 promises to be a lucky year – afterall it contains the number 8 for luck in chinese culture, and for those of us “rats” in the chinese zodiac, it is also year of the rat.  i did a bit of math – this auspicious combination of 8 appearing in the calendar year coinciding with year of the rat will not recur in our lifetime, so make the best of this year.  but whatever your belief, make this year a great one. buy a daruma doll (pictured above), and in the tradition of japan, make a wish and fill one eye, and when it comes true fill in the other eye and burn the doll….

H A P P Y   N E W   Y E A R

the shinkansen, more than a train ride

 top:        shinkansen passes by mt fuji
bottom:  a shinkansen lineup in tokyo

if you’re thinking of going to japan, do not leave home without a japanrail (jr) pass. passes come in 7, 14 and 21 day versions, and provide the holder with unlimited rail travel on the entire japan rail network. passes are only available outside of japan, and only for non japanese nationals. i love travel by rail, and japan seems to have perfected the science, making it a smooth and exciting exprience. schedules are flawlessly synchronized, on time, and well organized. navigating some of the train stations, however, like tokyo station, can be more than overwhelming for the uninitiated – allow some time when you get to the train station to find your platform. top on my train list, is riding the shinkansen, otherwise referred to as the bullet train. it may not be the fastest train in the world, but the entire rail network is the most sophisticated in the world. and if you are a train junkie like me, you will get hooked on the shinkansen, especially the fastest one, the nozomi. on one of my trips, i bought a 7 day pass, and got more than my money’s worth – i went north to hot springs in akita, then back down to osaka and kyoto, then back to tokyo. you’ll get hooked on the entire experience: fast dining in the train station, the bells and seeming chaos, the speed, the buzz.

for more on jr passes: http://www.japanrail.com/JR_japanrailpass.html
for more on shinkanse: http://www.japanrail.com/JR_shinkansen.html

tonki for the best tonkatsu

 a must stop on my annual pilgrimage to tokyo – a city that i could claim twice as my home – is a favorite eatery called tonki.  i have been going there since 2000. like many japanese dining establishements, tonki specializes in one dish: the traditional tonkatsu, a deep friend pork cutlet. it is not unusual to have to wait close to an hour for a seat at the counter. the restaurant is family owned and run. on entry you are greeted by an often smiling family members who immediately asks for your order and makes a mental note of when you arrived. when your turn comes, you will be signaled to your seat at the counter where you will be served first with the miso soup (traditional soy bean paste soup), followed by the main dish which is made up of the deep friend pork cutlets, rice, and shredded cabbage. best time to go is in the winter – make sure you ask for warm sake to start. oh, i forgot to mention, pace yourself eating the pork cutlets, your meal price includes unlimited helping of the miso soup, rice and cabbage.

tonki 1-1-2 shimo-meguro, meguro-ku, tokyo, Japan 

phone +81.3.3491.9928

diving…go south!

scuba diving has been my activity of choice during the holiday season.  i got my diving license in the cayman islands a few years back.  but having been on a sea safari in egypt off the red sea coast of the deep south, i noted that the reef formations there are far superior to those of the caymans. there were seven of us on a brand new 8-cabin boat – i had a cabin to myself. we spent a few days sailing, setting anchor at otherwise unnoticeable locations in the middle of the red sea between the coasts of egypt and saudi arabia, and indulging in our chef’s culinary creations three times a day. at US$120 inclusive of room, board, diving gear and all the diving you can do, this is a great bargain.  if you scuba dive, i highly recommend the deep south on the red sea coast in egypt – avoid the more popular sharm el sheikh altogether.  there may be better dives in sharm but its popularity has made the dive sites overrun with divers which defeats the whole purpose, for me at least, of finding serenity and tranquility under water.

kyoto temples in winter

singapore airlines could not confirm my return seat from perth where I had planned to spend new year’s with friends sailing in the ocean. so i find myself in dubai for new year’s reflecting on some of the more interesting winter destinations i have been to over the years. by far one of my favorites is visiting the temples in kyoto.  with snow on the ground and on the trees, the scenes are nearly as magical as when all of japan is in full bloom during the cherry blossom season in early april.  especially spectacular is the ginkaku-ji, or temple of the silver pavilion.  my favorite, however, is sanjusangendo, “the temple hall with 33 bays” – 33 being a sacred number in buddhism which houses 1,001 statues of kannon, the goddess of mercy.  Caution: don’t do this in winter; a walk around the interior -100 meters of it – barefoot on the wooden plank floors left my feet painfully numb from the cold.

bastaflea – the flea market that could be

i missed the inaugural of “bastaflea”, the proposed flea market to be held in bastakiyya, dubai – perhaps my most favorite area in dubai.  the second flea market was disappointing – in fact, when i went yesterday, it was non existent!  which i thought is truly unfortunate.  bastakiyya is a restored historic area in dubai where some of the first settlers made it home. it also perhaps one of the best kept secrets in the city – many who have lived here for years do not even know it exists!  bastakiyya is an antidote to the flashy malls and hotels, a refuge from the noise, and the only reclusive experience from the hustle and bustle just outside its walls.  located on the creek in bur dubai, it has the feel of an old middle eastern mud walled city.  with its narrow lanes, boutique restaurant and art galleries, it has the potential of being a great destination – unfortunately, traffic is a big issue, and if you have lived in dubai, you know this is a big deal. Bastakiyya suffers from being in the wrong place and, just when you want to go there after work, also the wrong time. even if bastaflea were not to materialize or sustain its energy, i highly recommend bastakiyya to anyone in dubai or going there.

the hopper – a must eat

for those who know me, they know i love to eat. and while i will eat just about anything, i am not easily impressed. but in sri lanka, i experienced the hopper on my first morning at the galle face hotel, and life would not be the same after that. it is sort of a crepe prepared in a very hot steel bowl about 6 inches (15 cm) in diameter. think of the hopper as a crepe bowl. you get one hopper, put rice, lentil curry, and prawn curry all mixed in inside it and eat the whole thing. i like the concept of eating the “bowl” that you put your food in – and yes, it is a breakfast dish.  i was so anamored of the hopper, i think i stayed at breakfast at the fortress hotel (see below) one time for nearly 3 hours – with my friends david and jessica. jessica, after going back to perth, started practicing making hpppers – hoppers are addictive!  for more advanced diners – it only takes about one day to become one - you move on from plain hoppers to egg hoppers – they place an egg in the bottom of the pot, and remove the hopper when the egg is over easy. now add your curries, and chilies, and fried onions…. trust me, you’ll go back for more.

cool and boutique hotels in sri lanka

  

kani lanka   kalutara

on the drive down from colombo to galle, near the town of kalutara (2 hour drive from colombo), is a gem of a hotel tucked away on a small land mass surrounded on 3 sides by the indian ocean and the kalu ganga river.the setting is idyllic almost magical with coconut groves all around. to get to the hotel a small sign no bigger than a folded newspaper announces the turn off the main road, which takes you onto a narrow dirt road wide enough for one car. when you get to the hotel, what i find interesting is the design of the hotel which was recently remodeled by the world renowned sri lankan critical regionalist architect geoffrey bawa. the design is simple, clear, combining the use of local materials in a modern way, and yet one can’t help but feel that one is unmistakably in sri lanka. such is the power of bawa’s designs. the hotel is a must visit for anyone looking for tranquility, beauty, or simply getting away from it all and having their favorite cocktail and good food.

  

galle fort hotel  galle

this boutique hotel is the perfect setting for an intimate cocktail party. it is located in the galle fort, an old dutch garrison on the indian ocean, complete with narrow lanes and quaint shops – it is about a 3-4 hour drive from colombo on the south west coast.the hotel exterior is unassumingly colonial, and so is the interior. the small cozy lobby opens onto the main hall of the hotel, a perfectly proportioned room with a high ceiling. through a set of doors, one is led to a small central courtyard with a small swimming pool – all hotel rooms overlook this central space.

  

amangalla  galle

just as you enter the galle fort, make a left and immediately on your right is the amangalla, and, if you have been to any aman resort, you already know what you are in for – an exclusive and personal hospitality experience. except that in sri lanka it also comes with a perfectly affordable price tag. everything about the hotel is just perfect – no ocean views, only a great introspective and reclusive experience, and with the design of the rooms and a well stocked bar, why would you want to go anywhere. when we were getting ready to go to the amangalla for my friend’s bachelor party, i was not sure what to expect. but true to the atmosphere, the event proceeded to be a great old boy classy party complete with great wines from their cellar and montecristo cigars.

  

fortress  koggala

you would not know it by the look of the hotel that it is only a year old  located in koggala on the south west coast on a strip among some of the badly hit areas during the tsunami of 2004.. the design is very handsomely done to feel every little bit sri lankan, which is in stark contrast to the rooms which are over the top modern with every possible amenity you will need – and please do listen carefully and take notes to the description they give when they take you to the room on how to use the light switches, the bose entertainment system, and especially the coffee machine. i stayed in the hotel for 5 days, only venturing outside when i absolutely had to for some of my friend kashani’s wedding functions.

traffic jam? rent a “tuk tuk”..

 

tuk tuk’s are unique Asian motorcycle-cum-taxi vehicles – a motorcyle fitted with 2 rear wheels and a rear seat to fit 2 comfortably (or 3 if you are really have to), with adequate cover from the elements. with a very small turning radius and a size to fit in the narrowest of places, traffic jams are no longer an excuse for being late…. if you don’t mind arriving smelling like car exhaust, that is.   a ride on a tuk tuk, i had almost forgotten, is quite a thrill, and at times hairraising, as the drivers weave their way through stalled traffic. a slight nudge from the bus inches next to you would not be terribly pleasant.   for 4 days in koggala, sri lanka, i used tuk tuk service by chaminda, a pleasant young entrepreneurial tuk tuk driver with a business card, a mobile phone and a yahoo email address to boot. every time i needed his service, i would sms him! he drove me to places otherwise not reachable by regular cars. we even went to galle (30 minutes), nearby excursions into the jungle (usually 10-15 minutes each). a whole day ride came in at under 1,000 rupees.

getting started. taking a break..

i had to start some time…this has been a long time in the making… so, yes, i do manage to travel quite a bit. and many friends have been insisting i share some my of stories with others…. and it was finally a fellow recent blogger who unknowingly gave me the nudge…. i have just recently returned from a friend’s wedding in sri lanka and have lots to talk about. it was my first vacation in a long time. you see, work gets me to travel quite a bit, so i manage to do a fair bit of sight seeing and experiencing of other cultures. i almost seem to forget to travel on my own terms. and so comes along sri lanka. i was very impressed by what i saw. i will be adding a few entries about my experiences there, fun stuff, do’s and don’ts….