Wednesday 27 February 2013

Eating our way through Alsace

As Napoleon Bonaparte famously quotes, "an army marches on its stomach",  so goes true for the big K and I as we eat our way through Alsace. 

Our week-long tour of the Alsace Wine Route in France was a wonderful experience of sampling the region's local cuisine and at the same time a great challenge trying to fit into our pants after each delicious meal. 


Saturday 16 February 2013

Germany: Prost to Oktoberfest!!!

Now where do you find a place overflowing with beer, giant pretzels, beer, hearty food and more beer? Where else but at the Oktoberfest in Munich. Or as the locals call it "The Wiesn" after the name of the fairgrounds where it is held every year. 

For a little over two weeks of each year from late September until the first Sunday of October, an open field in Munich called the Theresienwiese is transformed into a place of colossal beer worship. Or as the big K jokingly calls it, Disneyland for drunks.



Wednesday 6 February 2013

My Childhood Playground, Bohol!

Bohol, my Mom's hometown. I have been coming to this beautiful island ever since I was a little girl. Childhood summers with my siblings and cousins were spent on the beach until we were all toasty brown, days running around the corn and kinampay fields, digging up those fragrant purple yams. Or, just simply lazing around in my Mom's ancestral home.  

If you're wondering where Bohol is, it is one of the 7,000+ islands in the Philippines located in the middle part of the archipelago. More famously known as the home of the Chocolate Hills (a group of limestone hills that turn brown during the summer months) and the smallest primate with the biggest eyes this side of paradise, the Tarsier. Oh, and of course there are the white sand beaches scattered all over the islands. The once sleepy province of Bohol is fast becoming a popular tourist destination.

The province of Bohol actually consists of 70+ islands and islets (depending on the tide). The main island, Bohol, is where Tagbilaran (capital city), Chocolate Hills and the airport are located. While the second largest island, Panglao, is where the famous white sand beaches can be found. Panglao is connected to the mainland by two causeways, one as seen above (squint a little and you'll see it or better yet come closer to the screen).