Vienna 1

City of music, UNESCO world heritage site, run through by river Danube and capital city of the Republic of Austria, I finally set my foot on the world famous city - Vienna. A city rich with Baroque, Gothic & Romanic architecture; quiet & tranquil parks; breathtakingly beautiful castles and is filled with art & music in the air.

My Vienna trip was short, very short indeed. It's meant to be a weekend trip from Friday until Monday but I was sick, spending most of the time in hotel room, so it's really really a short trip. All the 'master plans'? Ruin. Besides, the weather hasn't been 'lovely' in Vienna, it was flooded just a few days before my trip and was raining quite a lot when I was there.

Anyway, manage to pull myself together for some sight seeing time on Satuday afternoon and took a lot of pictures. As you'll notice, most of buildings are not in full view. Reason being the buildings are huge and my camera has reach its limitation (despite my brilliant skill). Of course under normal circumstances, I'd run across the streets to try to take a full view but I wasn't really up to it when I was sick. My 'friendly' travel companion 'kindly' remind me that I JUST need a wide angle camera and was showing off his camera's ability in this situations, ishh!!!

Some pictures to share but no stories to tell because I haven't have time / energy to really visit any one of these famous tourist attractions.

Pic: City town hall, seat of the mayor

Pic: Statue - goddess - monument

Pic: The magnificent parliament (with beautiful fountain) and statues on a park's fence opposite

Pic: The national libraries and lots & lots of tourist on different mode of tourist 'bus' / carriage

Pic: Mozart kugel - the famous Austria chocolate, you won't miss it. Can also get it at the airport :)

Pic: The state opera house - only the left wing...sorry

Pic: City street view - where old & new buildings co-exist

Walking the streets of Vienna, one needs to pay attention to the two-way bicycle traffic. In Copenhagen, most of the bicycle lanes are one way so I was nearly 'hit' when crossing the bicycle way...and they're not so friendly when a stupid sick tourist obstruct their way :(

Vienna is a well planned city with the old part being nicely maintained. Trees of greens intercepts between opera houses, theaters, goverment buildings, churches, streets and there's no lack of parks.

Being a famous city, one can only expect a lot of tourists, taking different mode of transports to explore the city. It's train / subway system is an easy one even if you don't speak German (under normal circumstances) and you'll be surprise to see the frequents of tourist carriages roaming Vienna's streets, providing a different way of city experience to tourists while the 'driver' will also serve as basic tour guide.

Pic: Found Goethe, notice his golden left shoe tip? Too many 'touchy' tourists

Pic: Also spotted Beethoven resting in the park

Pic: Albertina - 50,000 art pieces were moved from their basement due to flood before we arrive

Pic: Imperial Court Theater, again only one side view :s

Never had a chance to dine in a Michelin starred restaurant yet and it costs too much to do that in Copenhagen, I finally have the chance in Vienna where Restaurant Le Ciel provided the chance. I made a reservation even before my arrival and was treated with top class service. A slight dissapointment though, the food is not top class in my personal taste.

I went for a 3 course meal with lobster wonton in chilled lime yoghurt soup as starter, grilled veal with brown sauce (I change the parmigiano sauce away) for main; and a rose white chocolate ice cream with wild berries as dessert. There're chef's complimentary entré; pre-dessert & 10 pieces of fine chocolates in between.

Despite I find it satisfactory, I must give supreme high compliments to the veal, it was PERFECT. Menu changes frequently, wonder when I'll get to taste such heavenly veal again, sigh... More about my short Vienna trip in next blog.

Sankt Hans Again

23-June is one of the most colorful festive in Denmark, also in Northern Europe. Commonly known as Mid-summer festival or Sankt Hans. Not a public holiday this day but Danes will gathered to embrace the longest day of the year. Northen Europe 'suffer' the long dark night during winter, so the longest day of the year always has special meaning. Every evening on the 23rd of June, Danes will go to seaside, build up high wood stacks for bon fire and placed a 'witch' (a symbolic one of course, I've seen witch drawings & witch dolls) on top; the witch symbolize darkness and evil.

Approximately around 9 o'clock, the fire will be lit on, raging flame towering to the sky. People will dance around the fire, singing old ancient songs...that's what I was told it's suppose to be. I've witness it twice, all they do is just drinking beer & chatting around the bon fire, well, guess time change a lot of things :) I went to the seaside last year during Sankt Hans. The bon fires one after another along the seaside was really impressive.

This year, I choose to go to the lakes in Copenhagen (there're 5 conjuctioned lakes), wanting to see something different. I was told that the bon fires will be lit on in the middle of each lakes, and that it'll be nice to walk along the lakes. I was there early and even have time to observe swans, dissapointed to find out that only one lake has bon fire.


Right before sunset, some men paddle a small boat to the middle of the lake and lit on the wood stacks that marks the beginning of Sankt Hans celebration.
Well, honestly speaking, the bon fire is a bit too small for such big lake & big crowd. So if you are interested in seeing a real Sankt Hans celebration, go to the beach.

Ayam Masak Merah

Ayam masak merah (in Malay) which literally translate to 'red cook chicken' is one of the first dish that I learn in cooking way back to high school period. I've never cook it since then. Not that I don't like it, on the contrary, I love it..but it's so easily available at any Malay food stall / shop and often taste good, why bother all the hardwork??
I cannot find Malay restaurant in Copenhagen, well, it probably won't have a lot of customer even if it really exist since there're not many crazy Malaysian like me around..and almost all my Danish colleagues don't like Malay food (which kind of represent the vast majority of Danes liking). I've been reading the Ayam Masak Merah recipe a lot of times but always stopped by the complication in preparation.

After battling with my craving for 1 year and never had a chance to eat it when I travel back to Penang, I can't take it anymore!! I must eat ayam masak merah. So I find the easiest possible recipe (without too much compromising) and finally cooked it. Didn't manage to get star anise & cardamom so mine was some ingredients less. Nevertheless, I still love the end result.
The only problem I had was the 'splashing' oil during deep frying. My little kitchen was covered with a layer of oil after the cooking, not to mention the pain when the oil came to contact with my skin, sob sob... It took me almost the same time to clean up as the cooking preparation time. I'll try to sustain my crave for ayam masak merah for another year (fingers crossed) unless I can find a way to fried chicken without having 'splashing oil'. Maybe I should fried with cover? hmm...

Oh...I must stop writing & stop looking at the chicken's pictures, else my crave will start again.

Tour Guiding

Friends from Berlin in town couple of weeks ago. Knowing Copenhagen a little bit more than them, I have to take up the tour guide responsibility. After spending 4 days 3 nights in Copenhagen, their comment is: Denmark has a complicated public transport ticketing system (the zones are confusing to them).

Well, I was thrilled to have visiting friends and also thanks to their presence, I get a chance to see more of the city I live in now. Normally I just won't walk into tourist spots even though I haven't been there. Weird isn't it? When you're living in the city, you tend to know it visit it less (at least the tourist attractions).

So this round, spending day 2 (well, day 1, they arrive at night, doesn't count) in the city centre, typical Langeline walk from Little Mermaid to Amelianborg, Nyhavn and then Strøget. Little detour to the romantic Rosenborg Castle & Botanical Garden. Had a nice coffee break on top floor of the post musuem and end with Korean bulgogi dinner.

Pic: Round tower view from the Post Musuem Café

Day 3, we up north to Helsingør to Kronborg Castle (the Hamlet's Castle) where the nearest point to Sweden is only 4km. Met with the famous Holger Danske, the guardian of Denmark and toured around the castle. Spent a quiet late Danish smørrebrød lunch in Helsingør before coming back to Copenhagen. Tried new smooth-tea in Baresso Coffee and surprisingly bump into a Ferrari owner gathering in town before going for Japanese sukiyaki dinner, and that's the end of day 3.

Pic: Kronborg castle, 1 km away...

Pic: Ferrari, Ferrari, Ferrari

Day 4, which, unfortunately is a Sunday where activities are minumal in Copenhagen, was spent on the Carlsberg Ny Glyptotek. I never know there's such nice collection in town. Considering the fact that the Glyptotek was initially just a personal collection, the amount of work pieces is actually pretty impressive. Admission is 50DKK but free on Sunday :)

Took some pictures during these few days but too lazy to select & publish them. You can have a look if you're interested at the album.

Home Cook Thai Dinner

My love for tomyam expanded when I moved to Copenhagen. Never knew I like it so much until I realize apparently I miss tomyam soup (even just after 2 days having one). Luckily, it's not hard to make with ready-made tomyam paste. There're also a lot of Thai shop selling thai products so I have no concern in finding more authentic ingredients (of course I have to pay more though).

Tomyam soup is easy but I can't bring myself to just having soup without any 'more decent' main course so this round, I settled to chicken cashew nut. American-Chinese dish but fairly easy to make. I can't find 'raw' cashew nut but the salted ones will work fine and they're available almost everywhere.

Ingredient (as shown in picture): cashew nut, chicken (I cut them in cube, marinated in some soy sauce, oyster sauce & some corn starch for 20mins), bell pepper (optional, I just like the colour combination), onion (sliced), spring onion (cut into about 2" length), garlic (sliced) and some red chilies (to add the omphh). Some recipe calls for the chicken to be coated with corn starch/flour & fried first but I'm a lazy cook with low requirement, so...


My way: Heat a tablespoon oil in wok, throw in 50g of cashew nut (I love cashew nut hence I use more, the amount can always be adjusted to personal liking), fried until fragrant (not burnt). Then put the garlic + onion in, stir for ~2minutes. Add bell pepper in (I like mine softer, if you prefer it crunchy, then add in after chicken), quick stir for a minute & add in the chicken. Stir fried for a minute & add in 2 tablespoon of sherry/rice wine & a tablespoon of soy sauce. Stir-fry the dish for about another 2 minutes. Add 2 tablespoon of water if it gets too dry. If you don't like raw spring onions (like me), you can add them to the dish at this time. Otherwise, remove the dish from wok, garnish with spring onions, and serve.


Now if you have pay sufficient notice to the 'ingredient' picture, you'd notice the existence of prawn which was never used in the chicken cashew nut. So why is it there? Remember the whole purpose of my dinner -- tomyam soup? Well, the prawn find its place in the soup which is made simply by adding 2 tablespoon of tomyam paste into a 2 cups water (plus some chicken stock & few drops of fish sauce).

I baked some frozen 'european style' spring roll and serve all with white rice as dinner. My friend has no complain about the meal at all despite being forced to wash dishes after meal, so I guess the food turn out fine to others as well :p

Braised Tofu

I like tofu, and they're vastly available in various preparation / style in Malaysia. The luxury of going out to order a nice tofu meal is not so easy (tofu in restaurants here are usually too dry) in Denmark. In fact, getting tofu was not so convenient for one often can only get it in Asian shop. I have one of those powder type that I can make into tofu cube but I've never try it yet.

Nevertheless, my desire for tofu is made easy when a local chain supermarket (Føtex) begins to put tetra pack tofu on their 'Exotic' food section. Not cheap but definitely convenient. To remove the soft tofu nicely from the box without any damage, simply cut the box opening per instruction & run a slim line of water through all 4 side gaps. Flip the box around, the water will 'wash' the tofu out, nice & square :)

Now what do I do with the tofu? Well, I found a nice one - Braised Tofu in Wine Sauce

Ingredient:-
500g firm tofu
3 tbsp vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
6 slices ginger
green spring onion cut into 2.5cm pieces (volume per personal preference)

Sauce
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp chinese rice wine
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp sugar
salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
slurry made from 1tsp cornstartch & ½ cup water

Method:-
1. Cut tofu into 5cm square x 1cm thick slices. Drain on paper towels.
2. Mix together teh sauce ingredients while the tofu is being dried.
3. Heat oil over medium heat in a non-stick pan. When oil is hot, add tofu & pan fry until golden brown on one side, then turn tofu over & fry the other side. Remove tofu from the pan.
** Tofu contains a lot of water in them & can easily cause a lot of splashes. Keep the heat moderate and use long long long spatula :)
4. Add garlic, ginger & green onions to the pan and fry till fragrant (there should be about a tablespoon oil left in pan after the frying).
5. Add sauce in & stir well to combine.
6. Add the tofu back into the pan & 'submerge' the blocks into the sauce.
7. Cover the pan & lower the heat. Braise for 3-5minutes. Serve.

Media License Fee

Being 'the proud owner' of a 14" donated small TV, I am now required to pay a media license fee of DKK 1100 every 6 months. On top of a TV, if a person owns a radio / a mobile phone with radio function / a personal computer with more than 256kbs Internet access rate, he/she has to pay the same amount of media license fee as well.

It's not that I cannot afford the money but I just don't feel like I should be paying, not at all! I do have high speed internet at home but I don't have any personal computer, so the term: personal computer with more than 256kbs... does not apply on me. And I just have to return the TV to the kind donor when he's available (while becareful of not opening my door too wide to prevent peeping eyes) and I'll no longer be liable.

Consider these as cost saving acts, I've just save myself DKK2200 per year, hooray!!!

Bornholm Day Trip

Ever fly in a 6/70 years old plane? The Douglas DC3, regard as the one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made are maintained by the Roskilde DC3 club & offers programmes yearly, flying to nearby attractions. I took the propelling flying experience this summer & went to Bornholm.

In flight details:-

1. Music - natural propeller sound, loud & clear

2. Entertainment - take pictures at pilot's cockpit

3. Lavatory - the original plane doesn't have one, it's newly added on this DC3 but try to use ground toilet before boarding.

4. Reading light - er...there's a toggle switch light but don't think it's angled for reading purpose

5. Ventilation - for fresh air, please pull the air tube & fresh air from outside will be supplied :p

6. Navigation system - purely manual but still recommend to switch off mobile phone to prevent communication inteference.

7. PA system - speak loud, very loud & then all passengers can hear :)

Having used to modern planes at high altitude with compressed air & pampered with in flight entertainment, this is an absolutely new experience. Not that it's bad, on the contrary, it's exciting. The plane is not flying very high so the landscapes can be clearly seen. The tour guide said it's one of the safest plane, during taxi, it only operates on one engine.

50 minutes flight & Bornholm welcomed us with cold strong wind. Hopping on tour bus and the Bornholm journey began. First stop: Hammershus. Wait, correction: first stop, the bush outside Hammershus where I had to throw up. Apparently I'm not good in handling flight + bus trip on a rocky small country road :$.

Hammershus is the biggest fortress in Nothern Europe, marks the importance of Bornholm island, mainly due to its strategic location. Copenhagen is a relatively flat land, so finally I see some 'rocky' landscape. The fortress was built on a relatively high point & has a stair way that leads down to the seaside from its cliff. Not able to find the way down, took the bus to the seaside instead.

Having almost the only slopy landscape in Denmark, Bornholm is also the training ground for some soldiers. We drove passed the highest church in Denmark (which is located at 'only' 120m height) and head to lunch for the famous smoke fish. The warm smoked salmon came cold, was a little bit dissapointed :(

Later at a small town, Sveneka, I found the highlight of the trip: home made ice cream, hand made chocolate, caramel and some local products just by the seaside. Lovely peaceful town, friendy people, small drive way. Of course I can't go back empty handed ;)

Copenhagen for Asian (2)

Coffees / Breweries
Coffee lovers can't get luckier in Copenhagen because it offers wide range of coffee bars from world famous brewing & barista championship winners to red light coffee districts, not forgetting the traditional small coffee shops scattered city wide and also chain coffee bars, the only complaint will be: too many choices, where to start?

Well, that's easy, just start with my favourite Estate Coffee. The coffee bar has a large menu that includes both hot and cold coffee, tea and chocolate. Just go to the counter, the friendly barista will help you narrow down your selection based on your preference. The brownies are perfect companion with their coffee. Small place, always full but worth the wait. Café Europa, winner of three World Barista Championships, in my opinion, is not as good. Long waiting time & pricy. However, if you'd like to try out the barista's skill, it's located at Amagertorv.

Baresso Coffee's coffee used to make President Bill Clinton (in 1997) stopped just to grab one before get going again. The latté is proven ok (by me, haha...). If coffee is not your cup of TEA, rest assure that the city caters for tea drinkers as well. Sing Tehus, Perch's Tearoom & Tante T are the more famous ones amongst other. Tea time (doesn't necessarily means drinking tea only) with some traditional danish pastries / cakes, then don't miss La Glace, the oldest confectionary in Copenhagen.

Being a pioneer in beer production & world famed for Carlsberg & Tuborg, a brewery visit is a must. Choose from the many that the city has to offer and witness the microbrewery techniques, how about Carlsberg's Jacobsen Home Brewery??In recent years, breweries have evolved to pair beer & food as a package for visitors. One of the most popular brewpub and restaurant leading the beer/food pairing craze at the moment is Nørrebro Bryghus (this particular area is safe).

Danish Design
For decades, Danish design has win the hearts of many with its simple, creative & unique approach (despite being expensive); covering from furniture, household items to cloths & jewelleries. Normann, Bodum, Stelton, Royal Copenhagen are some of the more famous Danish design brands. Make a round of window shopping at Illums Bolighus, Illums, Inspiration or Magasin to see their display of these designer products. So cute & adorable that I to try really hard to refrain myself from buying it (partly also because it's expensive, hehe...)

Others
I won't mention in particular what to visit in Copenhagen because these info can be found on Internet and they're more comprehensive (well, typical ones include Little Mermaid, Strøget, Amelienborg, Round Tower, Kronborg Castle etc). However, I can recommend a good guide: Copenhagen this week where the June happenings in Copenhagen will be highlighted together with other Danish attractions & to-dos.

As a visitor, souvenir shopping is inevitable. Please shop last minute at the airport. The tourist souvenir shop (not the branded tax-free shops) offers similar typical merchandise (keychain, fridge magnet, t-shirts, ambers) at a lower price, so safe the trouble of being 'ripped off' at city centre. Unless you find something that you really like, then just go ahead because there's no guarantee exactly same item will be available at airport. Keep receipt after purchase. For single purchase above DKK300, 25% tax refund can be claimed back if you're non EU resident.

Groceries shops / supermarkets in Denmark usually don't provide shopping bag, so be sure to bring one with you as spare if you do not want to pay at least DKK3 for a plastic bag. If flea market is of your liking, then bring enough cash (and also a shopping bag) in case you find the 1% treasure from the 99% junks :p

I think I need to create a website on Copenhagen if I continue. Copenhagen is easy to live in & get around, however, if more info is needed, just drop a comment. I'll try my best to answer. Have a fun time in Copenhagen :)

Copenhagen for Asian (1)

This post is a product of a request from someone who'll soon visit Copenhagen and I'm really excited about it.

The one thing that every visitor should keep in mind when visiting Europe is: English is not necessarily as universal as one thought. Danish public network / system are mostly only in Danish, most of the websites have English webpages but not all. Luckily, most of Danes speak good English so just ask when in doubt & they'll help you out. As for webpage, Google translate is always handy.

Copenhagen is not a big metropolies like London / Berlin but it compensates for this with its charming & relaxed atmosphere. Its public transport system works well (under normal condition) and gets you from A-Z. Castles, museums & sights are all easily accessible. It's a relatively safe city but with recent shooting cases, I'd advise to stay off Nørrebro (not all area but at least try to avoid getting off at Nørrebro train station, Nørreport is absolutely fine).

Tranport
S-train provides comprehensive train network within Copenhagen while Metro serves the inner-city intersections. Blue colour S-bus runs between train stations & red colour A-bus runs between metro stations. Travel planning can be done online & might be essential to prevent time wasted. Just key in departure location & desired destination, a detail trip plan will be calculated.

Ordinary basic tickets can be purchased from vending machine (English available but the machine accepts only coins) at stations or ticket offices. Tickets are stamped with time, data & departure zone. Discount tickets (clip cards) are available for 10 journeys within 2 to 9 (all) zones. Try not to board a bus/train without ticket, some might sell you ticket while most might just ask you to purchase ticket before boarding. If you're caught cheating, the price is hefty DKK700 fine. Oh...the ticket is universal for all public transports, one for all :)

Taxis are really expensive in Denmark so it might be worth while to wait a little longer for public transport. Another mode that can be consider, if you can ride, is to rent a city bike and it's FREE! City bikes are availble from special stands located round town. Slot in DKK20 coins and return it at your nearest stands (doesn't have to be where you rent it) and get back your DKK20. Do bear in mind you can only ride it in city centre. Tourist guide on Danish buses & trains can perhaps gives a better picture.

Food & Drink
Dining out in Copenhagen is expensive and if you can afford the high price, the city offers 13 Michelin starred restaurants that in total houses 14 stars with Noma having 2 stars for pure culinary experience. Noma serves a modern, reinvented form of Nordic cuisine (3 course for DKK795, without drinks); Italian food in Era Ora; exquisite French and Danish cuisine in the cellar of Kong Hans Kælder; The Paul, and a newcomer Herman in Tivoli offers starred gastronomy experience in the theme park; restaurant Ensemble not far from Kongens Nytorv and many more.

What if you don't want to spend a fortune on dining out? Honestly, that'd be almost impossible unless you don't dine at restaurant. Expect no less than DKK300 bill for 2 person (if you're really watching what you eat for dinner), lunch will usually be cheaper. Asian food is not exceptionally good in Copenhagen but some are better than others. One of my favourite includes the Korean BBQ restaurant - O mo nim. Tiny little restaurant but bulgogi is good, reservation recommended.

For other Asian restaurants, right behind central station, Magasasa offers cheap Szechuan food; Sakura 22 has one of the best sukiyaki I've tried. No visit to Copenhagen is complete without trying its Danish food. There are lots of places that offers traditional Danish food. For smørrebrod (Danish open sandwich on dark rye bread), try Aamann's wide selection or at one of the oldest Danish restaurant offerring smørrebrod - Café Sorgenfri. For Danish traditional hot food, try Frk. Barners Kælder (I have never tried it but it has pretty good reviews).

Oops, I've been writing too much, think I need an extension post for the rest. Just keep in mind that shops in Copenhagen closes at 5pm, normal grocery supermarkets close at 8pm on weekday. Saturday all shops close at 5pm (some at 4pm, smaller ones at 2pm) and Sunday is not open (except the first Sunday of the month). Restaurants typically operates until 10pm in city but further outskirt, they usually close earlier. I'll continue more next post.

Blood Type

I have B type blood...