Asahiyama Zoo, Ashikawa (Hokkaido, Japan)

Hello from sunny California! Our family is on vacation for the next week or so in the US, so expect blog updates to be scarce until I get back home. I promise to share photos of our California trip, but for now, here are some photos of snowy Japan from our trip last month to Hokkaido. After a few days of skiing and snowboarding in Furano, we headed north to Asahikawa to visit the famous Asahiyama Zoo. This is Japan's northernmost zoo, and it is most well-known for the daily Penguin Walk during the winter season (twice a day from December to February, and once daily during March). We were there to see the arctic animals, and we were quite surprised to see emus (yes, the Aussie birds!) on exhibition out in the snow! They seemed to cope as well as the other winter animals, so it didn't seem cruel (the tropical animals were housed indoors under appropriately warm conditions).

Finally get to see a real live tanuki (Japanese raccoon dog), many years after I first heard about this legendary animal:

Elegant Japanese cranes:

A young doe:

A snowy owl that was very well-camouflaged in the snow, and it did take us awhile to spot it:

The Penguin Walk! It was the main event that most visitors to the zoo wanted to see:

Apparently, the Penguin Walk is a measure to keep obesity at bay during the winter months when the penguins are not so active. Really cute to see them waddle down the pathway out of their enclosure:

One of the polar bears at the zoo:

Family photo fun:

Brunch date @ Oolaa Petite, Hong Kong

The other Saturday, hubby and I snuck in a brunch date while the 6-year-old was in his Lego and Putonghua classes (conveniently back-to-back) and the baby was being looked after by the nanny during her nap. We chose to meet at Oolaa Petite as it was quite close to where the boy was taking his classes. I went straight from my BJJ class at the MMA gym I recently joined to meet hubby, and I was hungry for my second breakfast. This was my second visit to Oolaa Petite, though this is my first time at this location (the café that took over the original space was also pretty good, offering a similar menu). I liked the layout and the atmosphere of the new location better, and service was also more friendly and attentive. The quality of food was great and reasonably priced, and the coffee was excellent. The following photos were taken with the camera on my phone.

My Mocha (HK$45) which was tasty and not too sweet (unlike some places that do mocha cloyingly sweet). I had taken a sip before realising I meant to take a shot:

Hubby's Cappuccino (HK$45) was also good enough without sugar:

Hubby's Breakfast Bruschetta (HK$100), with diced tomato, avocado, red onion and basil on toasted sour dough, and topped with smoked bacon, two poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. Hearty brunch option that hubby relished:

My Smoked Salmon Rosti Stack (HK$95) - avocado, baby spinach and smoked salmon layered on a lightly fried potato rösti and topped with a poached egg and citrus hollandaise (served on the side as requested). So good, and a nice change from my usual eggs-benedict-with-salmon brunch order:

We indulged in the French Toast (HK$95) which came topped with sliced banana and mixed berries, and the maple syrup and whipped cream were served on the side:

We had a really nice date, and have agreed to make brunch dates happen more often. I have a feeling we will be coming here regularly for brunch dates.

[The prices quoted above do not include the 10% service charge.]

Oolaa Petite
Shop 2 Tower 2 Starcrest
9 Star Street
Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Tel. +852 2529 3823

Jumbo sushi @ Fukuzushi, Furano (Hokkaido, Japan)

Japan is the land of delicious sushi, so it was only natural to enjoy delicious sushi during our ski/snowboard trip last month to Japan. The sushi at Fukuzushi goes one step further to offer the option of upgrading (for free) to 'jumbo size', though this just means extra sushi rice and the protein portion remains the same as the regular size. However, to the Japanese, sushi is all about the rice, so this sushi-ya is rather popular with both the Japanese and the foreigners for whom the word 'jumbo-sized sushi' (for free!) appears to be the draw. Hubby and I focus more on the quality rather than the quantity of food, and the sushi/sashimi at Fukuzushi are excellent. All the tables on the ground floor were fully reserved when we walked in, and we were shown to one of the tatami rooms upstairs. Service was as you would expect from Japanese people - polite and helpful - and Fukuzushi caters well to English-speaking foreigners by providing an English menu. As we communicated with staff in (broken) Japanese, I cannot comment on their English speaking ability, but I am sure there is at least one staff who can communicate in English well. We ordered our usual favourites, and enjoyed them all!

We were the first ones in this tatami room, but the other two tables were filled by the time we left:

Oyakodon (864yen) for the kids to share. Always a good choice for the young ones:

Unaju (1404yen), or unadon (eel rice bowl) served in a jubako (lacquered food boxes). We also ordered this for the kids but hubby ate most of it as unagi is one of his favourite Japanese food:

Hubby's Extra Special Sushi Set (3456yen), jumbo-sized. There was double the usual amount of rice, and the serving size of the toppings was generous too. Included ikura (salmon roe), uni (sea urchin), shrimp, hotate (scallop), kani (crab), akagai (ark shell clam), crunchy kazunoko (herring roe) and chuutoro (medium fatty tuna belly):

My Premium Chirashi (1944yen), with similar toppings to hubby's Extra Special Sushi Set but with salmon, tobiko (flying fish roe) and tamagoyaki (egg omelet). Delicious!

Green Tea Ice Cream (378yen), a safe choice for dessert:

Shiratama Zenzai (sweet rice balls with anko (red bean paste), 378yen). A delicious and light dessert:

Fukuzushi gets our thumbs ups!

Fukuzushi
1-24 Asahimachi,
Furano, Hokkaido
Japan 076-0026
Tel. +81 167-23-2617

Anzac Biscuits for school fair

My boy's school held its annual school fair last Saturday, and I was asked to contribute some baked goods for the Western Stall. I decided to contribute an Aussie item, the Anzac biscuits, to introduce it to people in Hong Kong (locals and non-Aussie expats) who have not encountered it before. It is said that these biscuits originated around the time of World War I, when wives, girlfriends, mothers and children would bake nutritious biscuits and send them in food parcels to the Australian troops overseas. The biscuits were first called the Soldiers' Biscuits, but people started calling them Anzac Biscuits after the landing on Gallipoli, in honour of the brave fighting soldiers, the ANZACS (Australia and New Zealand Army Corps). There are no eggs in Anzac biscuits because eggs were scarce during the war, and this also meant that the biscuits would remain edible for long periods of time. I chose a well-reviewed recipe on taste.com.au, and I stayed relatively true to the recipe, resisting the urge to reduce the sugar. The resulting biscuits were too sweet for me, however I have a more sensitive tastebuds than most people, and hubby said that my biscuits were just the right amount of sweet. I baked two batches, and it all sold out, evidence that the recipe is good for the masses. I used wholewheat flour because that was what I had in my pantry, and it worked fine - the biscuits are quite textured with the rolled oats anyway, so the wholewheat flour barely made a difference.

Anzac Biscuits

Ingredients
150g (1 cup) wholewheat flour
90g (1 cup) rolled oats
85g (1 cup) desiccated coconut
155g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
125g butter
2 tablespoons golden syrup
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Line 2 baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
2. Combine flour, oats, coconut and sugar in a large bowl.
3. Stir the butter, golden syrup and water in a small saucepan over medium heat until the butter melts and the
mixture is smooth. Stir in the baking powder. Add to the oat mixture and stir until well combined.
4. Roll level tablespoonfuls of the oat mixture into balls and place, about 5cm apart, on the prepared trays.
Flatten until about 1cm thick. Bake, swapping trays halfway through cooking, for 15 minutes or until light
golden. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool slightly before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Anzac biccies all packed and ready for sale:

I also baked a batch of brownies, because brownies are always popular, and it was one of the first items to sold out at the stall:

The Western Stall set up at the school fair. There were also other stalls selling Japanese, Korean, Chinese and Filipino food, representing the different nationalities of the students in the school. The stalls were organised by the PTA and food donated by parents. There was also a pizza stall with pizzas provided by an actual pizza shop. The fair was a success:

Izakaya dinner @ Kitaguni, New Furano Prince Hotel (Hokkaido, Japan)

On our recent ski/snowboard trip in Japan, hubby and I tried skiing for the first time, doing a lesson together with our 6-year-old. Skiing is very different to snowboarding, and I found skiing is not so hard on the body and joints like snowboarding is. At the end of our first day on the slopes, we had an early dinner at another restaurant in the hotel, this time a casual izakaya at the basement. Kitaguni was a popular one, fully booked on our arrival day, so I made an advanced booking for the following evening. We were given a private tatami room, which was a real nice treat because our two kids can be noisy and rowdy (I'm sure the fact we had two kids on our booking was most probably the reason why we were given a private room!). Service was friendly, and once again staff showed good consideration after being told of our boy's allergies, even coming into the room several times to triple-check with us. The menu offered a large variety of dishes, and affordably priced. For the sake of ease and simplicity, hubby and I opted for the two dinner set courses (named Kitaguni (5200yen) and Furano (2980yen), and ordered a dish for the boy. The food was delicious and well-prepared with choice ingredients.

Kitaguni features an open kitchen:

Getting comfortable in our tatami room (kids were crawling all over, hence no one in the shot):

Hubby and I both had yuzu (a type of citrus) drinks - yuzu shu (liquer) for him, and yuzu sour (a cocktail):

Both the dinner sets were supposed to come with an appetiser, but it appears that we were never served our appetisers - something I only noticed while working on the photos. We were pretty satisfied with what we had, and didn't even know we were missing any courses!

The sashimi course on the Kitaguni set included a shrimp:

The Furano set sashimi course - sweet scallops, yellowtail and some kind of mochi-like discs that was quite nice:

Broiled Chicken and Potato with Cheese (890yen) for the boy. This was quite a rich dish with all that cheese, and delicious:

Both the Kitaguni and Furano courses included Broiled Atka Mackerel (half hokke), with a slightly sweet soy sauce glazing:

The hot dish in the Kitaguni course was Salt-steamed Pork from Kamifurano. Very tender and almost melt-in-the-mouth texture:

The Furano set's hot dish was a mini version of the Broiled Chicken and Potato with Cheese:

The more pricy Kitaguni set included Steamed Taraba Crab...

...as well as a few fried foods - Octopus Fries and Skewered Fries:

The Kitaguni course finished up with Pressed Salmon Sushi and miso soup:

The Furano set concluded with a Salmon Roe Rice bowl and miso soup:

This izakaya located on the basement of the New Furano Prince Hotel is a good affordable option for hotel dining.

Kitaguni
B1 Level
New Furano Prince Hotel
Nakagoryo
Furano, Hokkaido
Japan 076-8511
Hotel Tel.: +81 (0)167-23-8915

Hot Chocolate and Gelato @ Holly Brown [Stanley Street, Central], Hong Kong

In such a busy lifestyle like we have in Hong Kong, it is easy to lose sight of the important things. Especially when life involves two young kids, and it becomes a real juggle to create a good balance between work, family, and our own physical and mental well-being. Hubby and I are getting better at making time for each other, going out on short dates, and even training together at the mixed martial arts gym that I recently signed up to (hubby and son began doing MMA almost two years ago when I was still pregnant with #2). Coffee appreciation is something that we recently took an interest in (it's hard to believe I used to detest coffee, that is until my son was born six years ago and sleep deprivation became the norm), and we enjoy seeking out a good cup of coffee. A few years ago, a friend from my engineering days at uni came to Hong Kong for a short 1-year stint, and he introduced us to Holly Brown. It was darn good coffee, perhaps the best tasting coffee we ever had in Hong Kong (the espresso we had in Rome remains epic in our memories). We often go to Holly Brown for quick coffee dates, though that has dwindled somewhat since hubby got me a Nespresso machine for my birthday a few months ago. A few Fridays ago, hubby and I found ourselves in Central on date night, wondering where to go to spend the next hour or so. Hot chocolate at Holly Brown came up, and since it was a chilly night, that mug of hot chocolate seemed much more appealing than going to a bar. And it was tastier and cheaper than alcohol too! Though Holly Brown has expanded to ten branches all over Hong Kong, the coffee at the original store in Central remains my favourite.

We enjoyed a Hot Mint Chocolate drink and a slice of Chocolate Tart with a warming cup of Ginger and Lemongrass Tea (both non-caffeinated drink due to the late hour):

We went to Holly Brown last week for lunch after a Muay Thai class, and along with a good cappuccino and a delicious mocha, we indulged in one of Holly Brown's gelato creations.

This was the mocha one (I forget the exact title) - coffee gelato with crushed bits of Oreos and chocolate sauce. I loved the crunchy biscuits with the smooth creamy gelato:

Holly Brown [Stanley Street, Central]
Ground Floor,
22 Stanley Street
Central, Hong Kong
Tel. +85 2 2869 9008

Delicious Vietnamese @ BT & Friends Vietnamese Restaurant, Joondalup (WA, Australia)

This is the final post from our trip to Australia a few months ago. I always try to get through my photos from a trip before going on the next, but it looks like I will be lagging behind because I barely started on our ski/snowboard trip to Japan, and yet we will be off again in a few weeks to California for a wedding. I recently began going to classes at the same mixed martial arts centre that hubby and son has been going to for the past two years, and it is not cheap so I try to go at least four classes a week - in addition to my twice-weekly weight training regime! This is certainly working to increase my cardio fitness and improve my coordination, but it also takes up a significant amount of my free time. It also doesn't help much that I also recently committed to going back to substitute teaching work as well as signed the littlest one up for toddler gym classes, but I hope to settle into a good workable routine soon.

Getting back on topic, on the evening prior to our red-eye long-haul flight back to Hong Kong, we had dinner with my brother and his family after he came home from work. They suggested a nearby Vietnamese restaurant that they often ate at, BT & Friends Vietnamese Restaurant, a small diner located a short walk from Joondalup train station and Lakeside Shopping Centre. The decor was simple and the interior was clean. The staff were friendly and helpful with our allergy requests, and there was a surprisingly large variety of dishes available on the menu - more than 160 dishes! The prices were reasonable, and the serving sizes were generous. Every dish we ordered was delicious, with good and fresh ingredients.

Small and simple but clean:

The entrance and counter where patrons can place their take-away orders:

A favourite of my bro's family - Fried Rice with Salted Fish, large size (AU$16). Very tasty, and our request for "less salt" resulted in a perfectly seasoned fried rice:

Stir-fried Fish with Snow Peas (AU$17) - soft flesh of the fish contrasted nicely with the crunchy snow peas. I appreciated the generous amount of carrots, mushrooms and cauliflower too:

Salt and Pepper Fried Pork Spare Ribs (AU$17.50) - one of my brother's favourite dishes. Lovely crunchy coating and flavoursome, but not the healthiest dish on the menu:

The 6-year-old wanted noodles, so we ordered Seafood Pad Thai (AU$15), with peanuts on the side. It was a large serving, so the boy needed some help with the noodles. Delicious choice:

We had a good experience at BT & Friends, and it was a good meal to fare us well on our return flight back home.

BT & Friends Vietnamese Restaurant
2/39 Central Walk
Joondalup WA 6027
Australia
Tel. +61 8 9300 9949
Closed Mondays