by Kelly on December 5, 2012
photo credit: astrangelyisolatedplace
This is a guest post from our friend David Elliott and travelindochina.com
For many, the word “Vietnam” still carries strong echoes of war, but as many visitors are discovering for themselves there’s a whole lot more to this captivating country than memories of traumatic TV news footage from the 1960s and 1970s.
Vietnam has recovered and reverted back to what it always has been – a country of stunning natural beauty and an ancient culture equal to any in the world. Its lush tropical rainforests and highland regions, gem-like offshore islands, fabulous sandy beaches, fine cuisine and majestic ruins make it one of the most attractive countries in SE Asia to visit. If you want to experience culture on vacation in Vietnam it’s hardly hidden away, and in every town and city you’ll find it in the stately pagodas, museums, colonial architecture and undaunted cheerfulness of the people.
Vietnam’s long struggle for autonomy stretches back through centuries. The Chinese ruled here with varying success for close to 1,000 years, leaving pagodas and palaces in their wake until they were finally ejected in the 9th Century. In the 19th Century the French moved in and imposed a colonial rule that can still be seen in the old boulevards and mansions of the capital, Hanoi. More recently the Japanese invaded and were in their turn ousted by the Communist Viet Minh. The ensuing French Indochina War only ended in 1954, leaving the country divided between the anti-Communists in the south and the Communists in the north, and then tensions mounted until the Vietnam War (or the American War as the Vietnamese call it) exploded through the country.
Vietnam has only started to properly recover from its age-old ordeals since full diplomatic relations were re-established with the US in 1995. The Vietnamese people have been through some tough times, but they remain indefatigably cheerful and hang on to their old traditions and ways of life, happy to forgive if not entirely to forget.
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by Kelly on November 26, 2012
Ahh, Buenos Aires. When you’ve been traveling non-stop for three months, sometimes it’s a huge relief to return to a place you’ve seen many, many times. For me, that port was Buenos Aires.
I love this city and this country so much, but more than anything, I love the food. The thought of sweet treats like medialunas and dulce de leche kept me going on the 10 days at sea it took to get here from South Africa and the first thing I sank my teeth into when we arrived was a big ole’ carne empanada.
I know you can’t be here to taste all of this goodness with me, but I thought I’d rub it in a little more by doing a post on my favorite foods of Argentina. Mmmm!
photo credit: Kai Hendry
Dulce de Leche
Also known as Argentine crack. I can’t get enough dulce de leche, despite the fact that I spent several days in country eating dulce de leche empanadas, pastries, cookies, cakes, you name it–if it had dulce de leche in it, it was promptly in my mouth.
I love it so much I’ve already started googling recipes to make it for myself when I finally get home.
photo credit: culinarycara
Empanadas
It’s easy to eat on the cheap in Argentina, if you stick to eating empanadas. These little puppies fill you up quickly, and are stuffed with meat, chicken, fish, vegetables, and sweet things too. My favorite are las salteñas, made with finely chopped steak, cubed potatoes, and chili peppers.
photo credit: longhorndave
Choripan
A choripan is a sandwich stuffed with delicious grilled sausages. I typically add chimichurri, a sauce that’s made with parsley, olive oil, garlic, oregano and vinegar, but some people add ketchup or mayo. It is known pretty widely as a poor man’s food, but this poor (wo)man just loves it.
What’s your favorite Argentine treat?
by Kelly on November 16, 2012
There are some things you just can’t not do in certain countries. In Cape Town South Africa, that includes a 2-hour drive south to the most southern part of the Africa: Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope.
Theoretically, Cape Point is the area in which the Indian and the Atlantic ocean’s intersect and the Cape of Good Hope is the most southern tip of Africa. Geographically, that point is actually Cape Agulhas, which you can’t reach as it’s in the middle of the ocean off the coast of Cape Point, but, we’re hungry tourists so we’re rounding up.
There are a couple of ways you can get to the Cape of Good Hope. You can take a tour, look into rental cars, or take a train, and then take a tour– you can’t simply walk to the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Point, as they’re located in a nature reserve far away from any main towns. We wanted to rent a car because I love a good road trip, but in the end realized we didn’t have enough time in the country to really enjoy it.
So, we took the train.
