I Will Leave It To You, Just Give Me Foodgasm

So, Christmas started early for us this year. From when we put up our sad little plastic tree up to when we have our Christmas dinner.

I was delighted to learn that Christmas dinner was to be held at Sushi Kuu Hong Kong, one of our favorite restaurants, possibly one of the best restaurants in Hong Kong in my opinion.

We had Omakase, which means "I will leave it to you", thus, leaving the chef to decide what to serve you while you sit and get fed till you blow up.

Our first dish was the following - egg cooked to perfection, fish roe, sea urchin and some other delicious stuff I had no idea what they were other than that they were really fresh and the mixed taste was unbelievable!

The second dish was rather adventurous but was absolutely phenomenal - fish liver and sperm.  Yes, SPERM. I promise you, it's not what you have in mind and you WILL WANT TO HAVE IT AGAIN!

The third dish was a fresh oyster, nothing special but was still yummy.
 

The fourth dish was the DADDY!!! Japanese crab, a superb dish, possibly my favorite because it was all natural and simply delicious.  There was so much "brain" my husband and I didn't have to fight over it, and we managed to share some with my Father in law.
 

The fifth dish was a plate of colorful and exquisite sushi.  They were so fresh that they actually melted in our mouths.  The Toro was unreal by the way.
 

In between, they gave us some hand rolls and sushi which just melted in our mouths...again.

The sixth dish was ox tongue.  I don't know if it's sent from Heaven but the ox tongue melted in our mouths, I have had ox tongue before but I have never had this level of quality before in my life, it was a divine dish.

 

The seventh dish was steamed egg with black truffle sauce.  Honestly, even if you are not a fan of steam egg, you would still love the black truffle sauce.  I love the simplicity of this dish and actually ate my husband's because I liked it so much! Absolutely splendid dish.

The eighth dish was a special steam Sashimi rice.  I know it sounds strange but it tasted as good as it looks in the photo.
 

The ninth and tenth dishes were Japanese radish and soup respectively.  The eleventh dish was a beef rice burger.  I could barely eat anymore at that point.
 

The last dish / dessert was melon, really fresh and sweet.  They were prepared to feed us with more food if we weren't full but I was about to blow up at that point.

Check please and bring a stretcher! Make that 3 please!!!!


Sushi Kuu is not cheap but in my opinion, it is very good value.  It was a marvelous dinner and we had a fantastic time.  We go there on special occasions and we always receive wonderful service and absolutely magnificent food.


I can't wait to go back again.  Maybe on Valentine's Day?

Get Fat? Get Taxed.

Denmark has introduced fat food tax i.e. applying extra charge on food with more saturated fat as the government's attempt to help its people fight obesity and obviously diseases caused by obesity such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke etc.

In simple English, such fat tax applies to food like butter, cheese, bacon, meat, oil, pizza, cookies, muffins, pastries and the list goes on.

In 2010, Denmark has increased taxes on food such as chocolate, ice-cream, soft drinks etc.

I can see where the government is coming from and I know it only has good intentions for its people.  In the long run, I'm sure fat tax would also benefit the costs of public health care, improve quality of life of its people or even a small possibility of a tax reduction or rebate.

However, only 1 in 10 people in Denmark are obese, I mean, if a country was to impose such tax on its citizens, wouldn't England be right at the top with 1 in 4 Brits being obese?  Seriously, Denmark???

Further, what gives a government have the right to control what its people eat? If you are that concerned for their health, shouldn't you ban tobacco and alcohol altogether?  But you won't, because the money from the tax is nice and FAT.

Also, why should the whole country suffer because of the 10% of the population who can't control themselves?  I don't mean to sound heartless but I am sorry, if you are obese, you should take full responsibility for your own actions and hold yourself liable for the way you are today.  No one else should have to suffer because you have no self control or that you are to lazy to help yourself.

And no, I have no sympathy for obese people.  Some of my friends are overweight and they work their asses off to get healthy - this takes discipline, sweat, tears, determination and a shit load of HARD WORK.

There is no short cut to weight loss or getting fit.  You can't sit there and eat four times your body weight and blame the world for what's happening to you.  

My girlfriends run at 6am in the morning or hit the gym at noon time and they will always find time and a way to get healthy.  I don't have a gym membership but I just run and watch what I eat (or I try to).

Fat tax is just one of the most unfair things I have ever heard of.  I love junk food, I love fries, chocolate, cheese, ice-creams, cookies, muffins and so on...I would rather die full, happy and penniless than rich with an empty stomach! 

Plus, many people simply don't put on weight, no matter what they eat; alright, they may not be the most healthy people on the planet but they will never even be overweight until they turn 60.

Thank God that Hong Kong has a close to zero obese population (is anyone actually obese in Hong Kong if obese means one's BMI must be over 30kg/m²?); with its female population obsessed with weight-loss, sticks-and-bones mentality, we will never have fat tax here.

Thus, my thoughts on fat tax can be summarized into two words - DO ONE!

Some figures from BBC news and Wikipedia

London's Burning

We were at the end of our trip when the riot in England broke out.  We were actually in London just 10 days before all hell broke loose and were thankful we had moved on in time and that all our family and friends were safe.

It was chilling to watch the news and see the streets we had recently been to, being filled with looters and shops set on fire.

I don't understand why people say Cameron is too harsh on the looters.  I agree with Cameron, if you are old enough to commit the crime, you are old enough to be held responsible for your own actions.

If the punishment is not hard enough and these looters only get a slap on the wrist, none of them would ever learn.  So many people get stabbed and the offenders get like a few months to a few years!!!  Try sentencing them to 20 years for stabbing and see if people dare to break the law again.

I don't agree with China on everything but I do agree with her that you must be able to control your people and you must be tough on law breakers.  And unfortunately, it has to be done by fear.  At the end of the day, results count. 

So I don't think Cameron or the government or the police are harsh at all.  As for evicting people from their council homes if any member within the household is found guilty, yes, it's a complicated matter; However, if your teens were running around during such time, or had participated in the riots, you as a parent or parents or family SHOULD be held liable.  If my dog bites someone, I am held liable, regardless!!!

Sitting aside and letting it all happened was no difference from joining the looters yourself.

It's one thing to attack the police or break windows, it's a total different thing when innocent people were being beaten up, homes were broken into or burnt down and the famous furniture shop which survived two World Wars was burnt to the ground!!! I mean, what the fuck is wrong with these people?

People's livelihood, childhood and families were ruined because of these dipshits who have absolutely no respect for the society, the law or human lives.

I was surprised when I heard this woman on the news saying that they didn't want to use water cannon because they didn't want to hurt the relationship between the police and community.  I was like...come again?  

What about everyone who had had their house burnt down, their shops ransacked, their family member killed and so on?  

SHOOT THE FUCKING BASTARDS!! 

Thank God, Cameron ordered the police to come down hard on the looters.

Many people, such as myself, applaud the police for their great work, countless overtime, their sacrifices and their bravery.  My heart goes out to the police and people who had sacrificed their lives in order to protect others from these looters.

It is chilling to learn that these looters included not only teenagers but also an Olympics Ambassador, ex-soldiers, college students, a primary school worker, postman, a young dad and so on.

It's a cultural and social problem and it can't be fixed overnight.  But maybe at the expense of many victims affected during the riots, the people are beginning to turn their attention onto what England has become today. 

I am glad as the day goes by, more and more looters are being captured and charged. Put them were they belong and no matter how they excuse themselves (such as how little the government was giving them..hello???), serving their time is no where near as bad as what they have put innocent people through.

Memories Can´t Be Stolen

We took an overnight bus from Arequipa to Puno which was bloody freezing.  We had no idea how cold it would be and were lucky to keep our toes!!!  Then we crossed the Bolivian border and arrived at Copacabana.

We were going to head off to Isle del Sol but while we were waiting for our ferry to go to the island, we had our bag stolen.

Clearly, we were shocked and very upset.  Initially, I thought it was the items that got stolen (our really good camera, iPad which was a gift, iPod, lenses, everything) that had upset me.  However, soon I realized it had little to do with the material of what had been stolen.

It was the emotional attachment and the fact that someone had taken something from you...stolen.  All the gagdets can be replaced and as long as my hubby and I are safe, nothing else really matters.

I was more upset over the photos we had taken during this travel...not alot, about 1,400.  But it was the sweat and effort taken to get these photos...from diving to 30m with hammerhead sharks to trekking to an altitude of 4,750m.  It was the experience, the soul and heart we have put in.

It took me TWO nights to fully recover.  The first night, I got over the material stuff.  The second night, I finally came to terms with the fact that yes, our photos were stolen, what has happened has happened and I was never going to get it back.  But one thing these bastards could never take away, was our memories.

Memories can´t be stolen. 

They will always be in our hearts.  Moreover, I received tons of twitter DMs, facebook message/comments and emails from my family and friends regarding their concern.

I was more emotional when I read these messages than when our stuff got stolen. 

People in Japan have lost their homes, EVERYTHING, so many people starve each day, sick kids never get the chance to travel and see the world etc...and here I was...worrying about a camera and some photos.

I guess only when shit happens, then you realize what you really have.  Nothing really matters, as long as you have still got your partner, family and friends. 

NOTHING ELSE MATTERS.

¨Don´t let the bastards keep you down¨- by Rihanna

They have taken little stuff and 2 days of my life and I am not going to let them take anything else from me / us.

Screw the bastards, I still hope they get run over by a bus or something and I´m not afraid to admit to my evil thoughts. 

We bought a new baby (old version, small and simple) camera yesterday and have began taking photos like a beast today!!! 

Memories can´t be stolen...it will always be in our hearts.

First Day of 2011

OK now that we are in 2011, what should we do first thing this year?

Apart from hugging and kissing and appreciating your family, how about doing some good for the less fortunate?

You must have cleared some unwanted clothes (in good condition), furniture, toys, goods etc...don't let them sit there, DO SOMETHING (www.dosomething.org)!!!

Check out:
www.crossroads.org.hk
www.salvation.org.hk
www.christian-action-eng.org and many more...

Want to help others more or volunteer more? But can't commit, too busy, don't have the time? Try Hands on HK (http://handsonhongkong.org), there are lots of one time events you can help out. Like visiting old folks, teaching minority community English and many other ways to help others.

Start your year by helping others. 2011 is going to be a FABULOUS year!