Seasonal Paradise

Octopus In Marsascala

Last Sunday we trekked out to Marsascala on the South East side of Malta, for octopus. They put up a fight.

Enticing Entrance to Bacchus In Mdina

Bacchus Restaurant Review

Bacchus is the best deal in Mdina. We passed by this restaurant when we took a guided tour of Malta which included Mdina, back in May 2008. It was built in 1650 but the outer walls date back 2000 years. The food was great and the house wine mediocre. The surroundings were very much in keeping with the entire feel of Mdina. Dark, old, quite and underground. We had two appetizers which were more than enough food for us, a bottle of wine and a tea and the bill came to less than 30 Euro all in.

Tatitas Restaurant Review

Tatitas is in San Lawrenz about 10 minutes walk from the Kempinski hotel in Gozo. In the summer Tatitas is swarming with people and up to 100 seats are set up outside right in the church square. Off season we were one of three sets of diners for our Sunday lunch. the manager served us directly and the service was faultless and excellent. Our guidebook ranks Lt-Tmun as superior to Tatitas but we beg to differ. Prices were comparable but the seafood was clearly better. I had the special with a local fish that I forget the name of and Irena had the calamari. Both were beyond excellent. We didn't realize calamari could taste so good. We toasted through a half bottle of Veuve Clicquot, enjoyed a dessert of home made apple pie and finished withvtwo cappacinos for a bill of 100 euro all in. Our weekend escape was almost complete after visiting Tatitas. Now on to Mdina.

Lt-Tmun Victoria Lounge Review

We took in our first Gozo island meal at the Lt-Tmun Victoria Lounge in Victoria ana Rabbat, the capital of Gozo, in the middle of the island. the service was good, the food very good and the surroundings relaxing and homely. My sea bass was a let down for being a tad bland. Irenas veal was just perfect. She later admitted to me that she had pointed at something else on the menu and that she didn't actually like veal, until this meal. Now she likes veal. All in all, four stars.

Octopus Pizza

Octupus Pizza
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

Octopus pizza in Malta's harbor at the Hilton.

Monkeying Around At a Tokyo Temple

Monkeying Around At a Tokyo Temple
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

We picked up some sweets at a stall in the street opposite the Tokyo Buddhist
temple.  They taste good, and are quite decorative as well.

Japanese Sticky Sweets

Japanese Sticky Sweets
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

Say, these sweets are really sticky.

Taking To Green Tea

Taking To Green Tea
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

Green tea just feels better then other teas.  It feels great drinking it,
especially as part of a ritual, and it leaves you feeling even better
afterwards, unlike coffee.  ...In fact Tokyo, all round, just feels better.
We love Tokyo.  The food, the people, the entire experience was as close to
utopia as we've come yet.

Cotton Candy At The Vera Beach Fair

Cotton Candy At The Vera Beach Fair
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

I haven't eaten cotton candy since I was a kid.  This was made for us right before our eyes and was the best cotton candy we have ever tasted. 

Czech Lunch

Czech Lunch
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

Lunch at Irena's parents.

Jinmao Tower Decadence

Jinmao Tower Decadence
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

If ever you're in Shanghai, treat yourself to a night at the Jinmao Tower
Hyatt Regency. It's the highest hotel in the world. Here we are on the 76th
floor. We'd planned on checking in and then hitting the clubs, but the view
was so incredible we just spent half an hour ogling out of the window, and
then decided to have dinner in the room. If ever a hotel room could offer a
life changing experience, this is it. Our favorite hotel in the world, so
far.

Hunan Cuisine

Hunan Cuisine
Originally uploaded by Mark C Brooks

Last night The Dragon Lady (Ping) treated us to a Hunan dinner. Fish, spinach (kinda, sorta), and some crunchy awesome veggie dishes. Fantastic! Hunan cuisine is spicey, but not as spicey as Szechuan.

Eat Like The Natives

Eat Like The Natives
Originally uploaded by mcbrooks71

The local Carrefour offers up great local food. This is China's equivalent

of fast food. Healthy, fast and fresh.