Monday, February 06, 2006
Happy People's Day 很愉快的人日
Saturday was the 7th day of the Chinese New Year--年初七 (lin4 cho1 chat1)--commonly known as 人日 (yan4 yat6) people's day. Driving into Oakland Chinatown on Saturday morning, I wasn't aware that it was a special day. But as I parked the car and started to walk to the restaurant, I noticed that Chinatown was more crowded than usual and many people were dressed up. Within a few minutes, I heard the popping sound of 炮杖 (paau3 jeung2) firecrackers and saw several 舞獅團 (mou5 si1 tun4) lion dance troupes with their drums and gongs. 真係好熱鬧! The little kids were especially cute dressed in colorful New Year's clothing. What a happy, festive occasion.
My first destination on Saturday was Cafe 88, a Hong Kong-style 茶餐廳 (cha4 chaan1 teng1) cafe. I wanted to give their 早餐 (jou2 chaan1) breakfast a try and was planning to order 粥 (juk1) congee. But by the time I got there, breakfast was over, so I decided to 叫餸 (giu3 song6) order some dishes with rice. I picked 清真羊片 (ching1 jan1 yeung4 pin2) lamb slices stir-fried with leeks and 蒜蓉芥蘭 (sun3 yung4 gaai3 laan2) Chinese broccoli stir-fried with minced garlic. And as I was sitting at the table waiting for the food to arrive, I noticed someone pushing a cart of 滷水鴨 (lou2 seui2 ngaap3) brine-marinated duck out of the kitchen. So I quickly added a plate of that to my order. After lunch, I went next door to 甜甜屋 Sweet Booth for one of my favorite treats--薑汁撞奶 (geong1 jap1 jong3 laai2) ginger juice custard. They have the best 薑汁撞奶 that I have tasted in the Bay Area, especially when the 老品 (lou5 baan2) boss makes it himself. It will be interesting to see how HK 薑汁撞奶 compares.
Leaving Oakland Chinatown, my next stop was across the bay in San Francisco. Lately, we have had a lot of rain, and the ground is very muddy. That's when I like to go on urban hikes, which are done mainly on pavement. With San Francisco's steep hills, that's a good way to get good exercise and spectacular views without getting your feet muddy. My favorite urban hikes actually are like a treasure hunt. You print up the directions online and then follow them step by step. The cool thing about this is it takes you to some beautiful but out-of-the-way places in the city that you otherwise would never know about. It never ceases to amaze me how many hidden gardens, stairways,and alleys San Francisco has.
Walking through North Beach, I passed by two or three clubs that had cool, live music. One of them--Savoy Tivoli on Grant Street--had a band playing Dixieland jazz (see photos). They sounded hot and started to draw a big crowd, including a professional photographer. I could have stayed there for hours drinking and enjoying the music, but I had to get on with the hike.
After the hike, I celebrated my birthday by eating dinner at Maykadeh, an elegant Persian restaurant. An Iranian friend had recommended Maykadeh to me, and I had been wanting to try it for a long time. My companion ordered Khoresht Bademjan (lamb shank, baby eggplant braised with tomato, saffron, sun dried lime, Basmati rice), and I ordered Chelo-kebab Koobideh (skewered ground beef & lamb, onion, Persian spices, Basmati rice). The food was excellent--juicy, perfectly seasoned, large quantity--with a taste quite different from the food that I normally eat. The service and decor were elegant, too. What a memorable meal!
While driving and hiking around on Saturday, I learned a few new Cantonese words:
動機 (dong6 gei1) motive
關鍵 (gwaan1 gin6) crucial factor
口供 (hau2 gung1) testimony
千方百計 (chin1 fong1 baak3 gai3) to try every way possible
志同道合 (ji6 tong4 dou6 hap6) on the same path or wavelength ¶ 9:00 PM
Saturday was the 7th day of the Chinese New Year--年初七 (lin4 cho1 chat1)--commonly known as 人日 (yan4 yat6) people's day. Driving into Oakland Chinatown on Saturday morning, I wasn't aware that it was a special day. But as I parked the car and started to walk to the restaurant, I noticed that Chinatown was more crowded than usual and many people were dressed up. Within a few minutes, I heard the popping sound of 炮杖 (paau3 jeung2) firecrackers and saw several 舞獅團 (mou5 si1 tun4) lion dance troupes with their drums and gongs. 真係好熱鬧! The little kids were especially cute dressed in colorful New Year's clothing. What a happy, festive occasion.
My first destination on Saturday was Cafe 88, a Hong Kong-style 茶餐廳 (cha4 chaan1 teng1) cafe. I wanted to give their 早餐 (jou2 chaan1) breakfast a try and was planning to order 粥 (juk1) congee. But by the time I got there, breakfast was over, so I decided to 叫餸 (giu3 song6) order some dishes with rice. I picked 清真羊片 (ching1 jan1 yeung4 pin2) lamb slices stir-fried with leeks and 蒜蓉芥蘭 (sun3 yung4 gaai3 laan2) Chinese broccoli stir-fried with minced garlic. And as I was sitting at the table waiting for the food to arrive, I noticed someone pushing a cart of 滷水鴨 (lou2 seui2 ngaap3) brine-marinated duck out of the kitchen. So I quickly added a plate of that to my order. After lunch, I went next door to 甜甜屋 Sweet Booth for one of my favorite treats--薑汁撞奶 (geong1 jap1 jong3 laai2) ginger juice custard. They have the best 薑汁撞奶 that I have tasted in the Bay Area, especially when the 老品 (lou5 baan2) boss makes it himself. It will be interesting to see how HK 薑汁撞奶 compares.
Leaving Oakland Chinatown, my next stop was across the bay in San Francisco. Lately, we have had a lot of rain, and the ground is very muddy. That's when I like to go on urban hikes, which are done mainly on pavement. With San Francisco's steep hills, that's a good way to get good exercise and spectacular views without getting your feet muddy. My favorite urban hikes actually are like a treasure hunt. You print up the directions online and then follow them step by step. The cool thing about this is it takes you to some beautiful but out-of-the-way places in the city that you otherwise would never know about. It never ceases to amaze me how many hidden gardens, stairways,and alleys San Francisco has.
Walking through North Beach, I passed by two or three clubs that had cool, live music. One of them--Savoy Tivoli on Grant Street--had a band playing Dixieland jazz (see photos). They sounded hot and started to draw a big crowd, including a professional photographer. I could have stayed there for hours drinking and enjoying the music, but I had to get on with the hike.
After the hike, I celebrated my birthday by eating dinner at Maykadeh, an elegant Persian restaurant. An Iranian friend had recommended Maykadeh to me, and I had been wanting to try it for a long time. My companion ordered Khoresht Bademjan (lamb shank, baby eggplant braised with tomato, saffron, sun dried lime, Basmati rice), and I ordered Chelo-kebab Koobideh (skewered ground beef & lamb, onion, Persian spices, Basmati rice). The food was excellent--juicy, perfectly seasoned, large quantity--with a taste quite different from the food that I normally eat. The service and decor were elegant, too. What a memorable meal!
While driving and hiking around on Saturday, I learned a few new Cantonese words:
動機 (dong6 gei1) motive
關鍵 (gwaan1 gin6) crucial factor
口供 (hau2 gung1) testimony
千方百計 (chin1 fong1 baak3 gai3) to try every way possible
志同道合 (ji6 tong4 dou6 hap6) on the same path or wavelength ¶ 9:00 PM
