W'suP?

Serenity is going on a road trip to Virginia (8/29-9/1). Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown & Yorktown, here we come!

Exploring New Paltz's Historic Huguenot Street


Daylight hours are gradually becoming shorter. Yes, Labor Day is coming soon and fall is just round the corner. What better way to enjoy the remains of summer than to visit the Historic Huguenot Street in New Paltz! We continue our fascination with all things historic; especially old houses on a nice and warm Sunday afternoon. Just perfect!

We started off our 1.5 hour tour at the Fort (Dubois House). Well, technically this fort painted in bright yellow never saw any action but it was a fort nevertheless and even boasted several port holes (see the little square hole in the photo below). We learnt that Dubois House has some very interesting "occupants" that love to move chairs and slam/fling open doors as they pleased. They're not shy and would even boldly demonstrate their presence in front of visitors.

Dubois House and 1799 House

Jean Hasbrouck House

Inside Jean Hasbrouck House

Belvier-Elting House

Deyo House - another interesting house with "presence" from the owner's socialite daughter - we didn't go into this house, though. Noticed that all the blinds are drawn in this house. Hmm...perhaps to avoid a special appearance by the late Miss Deyo by the window? Who knows?!

More old houses along the street. Below: 1717 French Church which eventually grew into the current Stone Church.

Time to chow...

After taking in the houses in Huguenot Street and a French burying ground, we stopped by the Village Tearoom for dinner. New Paltz is a very pretty town with lots of students from the neighboring State University of NY.

A quaint, Zagat-rated restaurant in a house-setting with plenty to offer! Adrian had the pork chop while I ordered the Shepherd's Pie.

With coffee, honey cake and bread pudding to top it off - EXCELLENT!

Once Upon a Time...


My colleagues and I were reminiscing about childhood TV shows over lunch a few days ago and this led to a very candid discussion about it. The list of shows is endless but if you were born in the 70s, this should ring a bell. Let's take a look at some of the defunct ones.

Electric Company



You've got the power. Yeah! But, what about Morgan Freeman, huh?!


Daktari



I bet Malaysian kids who watched this show religiously in the afternoons (including yours truly) didn't realize that they've just learned a Swahili word. LOL!


Hogan's Heroes



My first exposure to World War II Germany. LOL!


Western series were a bit hit in my family. My Dad and Grandfather were huge, huge fans and it naturally rubbed on us kids.


Bonanza



Lorne Greene and Michael Landon were the two stars that I remembered the most. The latter starred in the famed "Little House on the Prairie" and the former as Commander Adama in the original "Battlestar Galactica", with the likes of Captain Apollo and Lt. Starbuck.


High Chaparral



Manolito Montoya was my brother's favorite character in High Chaparral. I supposed he identified with his happy-go-lucky attitude.

I could go on forever but it'll get tedious after a while, but let this be a "trigger" for you to think about past TV shows that may have influenced your preference for certain genres. Being a kid in Malaysia during the 70s and 80s meant growing up watching old, black & white series. Colored TV existed rather late for us but we gradually moved on to better series like Stephen J. Cannell's productions ;)

From Upstate to Harlem and Into Our Bellies


Ken & Javier, my fellow foodie colleagues introduced me to this great BBQ place last month. I should have blogged about it then but I didn't have my trusty camera with me. I went back a couple of weeks later and now I'm ready to talk about Dinosaur BBQ.

Dinosaur BBQ as the website said is a genuine honky tonk rib joint. I am not really a rib person but their Hot Wango Tango wings is the BEST! It's so good that I ended up buying the marinade for our little BBQ session :)


Address: 646 W 131st St., New York, NY 10027. Tel.: 212-694-1777

Subway directions: Take the #1 train and get off at 125 Street, walk pass the Cotton Club under the Riverside Drive Bridge and make a right at the corner of 131 Street & 12 Avenue.


Since I had tried the meat dishes the last time I was here, I decided to order the Drunken Shrimp Boil Platter instead (recommended by my boss). I really like the Syracuse Style Salt Potatoes side. Adrian ordered the Tres Hombre - brisket, pulled pork & ribs.

New Jersey State Fair - Sussex County Farm & Horse Show


With the high price of gas these days, it's good to find something interesting to do within an hour's drive from Bergen County. I've never been to a state fair in Jersey. When I saw the advertisement for Sussex County's Farm & Horse Show, I thought it might be fun to check it out.


Gave the carnival area a quick pass and headed straight towards the animals. After all, I'm here to see some farm "friends".


Don't you love the alpaca's funky hairdo. There were camel rides, elephant rides, petting zoo, etc.


More animals in the petting zoo. Don't forget to wash your hands!


Racing pigs and some swimming ones too! An interesting race and the pigs have amusing names like Hillary Rod-HAM Clinton, Britney SPARE-RIBS, etc.


Farm animals do shower. The camel actually "multi-tasked" in this photo. He was pee-ing while waiting for folks to feed him.


I love these photos. Don't you love the KKK looking sheep and his lycra fitted friends?


Prime steak or pork chop, anyone? Yum! Of course, they don't smell appetizing here.


Kountry K-9 Show from Florida - the white Poodle's b**** were so visible when Adrian captured this shot. LOL!

Guess What?!!


Our favorite Thai restaurant Wondee's also serves...(drum roll please!)

KUAY CHAP!

Woo-hoo!!! We haven't eaten Kuay Chap for almost 2 years and what a "shocker" to discover that our favorite Thai restaurant is capable of whooping up this famous dish - a favorite amongst people from Kuching i.e. people like us - shamelessly obvious. Wondee's kuay chap is passable and similar to what we would eat in Kuching. The best thing? It is also called Kuay Chap :) Thank you Wondee. You are a superb cook!

Clockwise from top: Yen Ta Four and Stewed Pork Shoulder (next to it is a "Hainanese-chicken-rice" type ginger chili sauce that goes very well with the stewed meat!)

Apart from Kuay Chap, Wondee also makes other delicious dishes to cater to the typical Asian palate. Let me tell you, she cooks a mean, yummy stewed pork shoulder and a Thai seafood noodle soup called Yen Ta Fo :)

Wondee's is a great Thai place for those who appreciate home-cooked food. Their main menu is just as great but these days, we are sticking by their Thai menu. In other words, the silent menu :). Sometimes, it pays to be adventurous. You'll never know what you'll discover. You just have to ask, or in this case, we have a very nice friend who works there and he has been very good at recommending their "specials".

Kuay Chap in New Jersey...I'll be smiling in my sleep tonight.