Did you know?

Did you know that Gwyneth Paltrow has a blog? She does and it is called GOOP, and she has recently blogged about my two favorite cities..New Orleans and Hong Kong!

All about her recent trip to HK..Click here to read it!
And here for the NOLA one!

A New View

We moved into a new apartment on Saturday, same area of Discovery Bay, just new apartment block. We are on the top floor and can see straight into Hong Kong and Kowloon.
The land jetting out on the left is HK Disney and we can see the fireworks show every night.


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Lost in Translation

Sometimes things just don't translate very well, although I get the point here for sure!






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Starting From Scratch

Starting from scratch again. Hong Kong is our second city abroad to live and second location to start furnishing a home from scratch. IKEA is the first stop on our list, it is constant in our ever changing ex-pat world!

Here are a few items we will be picking up for our new apartment. Don't dismiss IKEA! I am looking forward to adding my own touches to some drab pieces we were able to buy second hand as well.





























































Clean, crisp and shabby are the words that best describe my taste and it can be done on budget with IKEA! However, I still love a few things that cannot be found at IKEA that will cost more. (another post...another day) but, I think mixing the less expensive items with pieces we love help make a functional and beautiful home where husband and wife both win.

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A Love Affair with Tea Towels

This is a fabulous chair recovered with vintage tea towels. I may not be able to cover a chair, but I am going to have some throw pillows made from some of my many tea towels. This chair is at Lane Crawford for $44,000 HK.



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Umm Hello SAKS!!!

Did you know???


Saks.com now offers international shipping to 90 countries.



Omg. Watch out!



The Fine Print:


Easily shop saks.com in 41 currencies, listed below
View the order total (including shipping fees, customs tariffs and taxes) at checkout
Be assured the total is guaranteed at the exchange rate set when order is placed
Be certain no additional payment will be required upon delivery of your order
Please note: Not all products sold on saks.com can be shipped internationally and order total cannot exceed U.S. $2500
Please select the country you would like to ship to and the currency you would like to shop in, then click Save & Continue Shopping. If you'd like to ship to other countries not listed here, dial toll-free 1.877.551.SAKS (7257) if calling from within the USA or Canada. If you are calling from other locations, please dial toll-free 1.800.7257.7257. If you are unable to connect with our toll-free numbers above, please dial 1.601.592.2860. (International long distance charges will apply to this call). Please note, when dialing our international toll-free number or toll line from outside the USA or Canada, you must first enter an international access code.



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Shrimp and Grits

What's for dinner? Shrimp and grits.
I started with bacon grease and onions. Cooked it well, past the translucent stage, brow, but not burned. Add lemon juice.





The grits in my case is actually polenta. I use a ton of crystal hot sauce in my grits and it makes all the difference.


Add shrimp to base and cook until pink. Sprinkle cooked bacon, a little more lemon juice and serve with grits.


I sprinkle a bit of onion and cheese on top.

Served with a lettuce and marinated avocado salad.


I made the marinade in the empty crystal bottle with olive oil and salt and pepper and a splash of vinegar. Yummm.

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Mardi Gras..there is an App for that

A little tracker will be placed on the lead tractor of several parades, letting those with the app follow the progress (or lack of progress) of the parade on its route. No more wondering what happened..why is so late..do I have time to go to the bathroom...where is a bathroom....and even better, negotiating road closures and traffic after the final street sweeper rolls by.


From the article on nola.com:


The free app, called Experience Mardi Gras, is in its early stages but still will allow parade-goers and those hoping to avoid parade traffic to track up to one parade every day starting with Muses on March 3 and ending with Zulu on Fat Tuesday. The app also features a post-parade events section and live streaming video of select parades.

http://www.nola.com/mardigras/index.ssf/2011/02/new_mardi_gras_app_will_help_m.html#incart_mce

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3 Month Wait

We will be celebrating Valentine's at a very popular new Hong Kong restaurant, Bloom. We booked this in November with friends and are looking forward to it! I will let you know how it goes! TIme Out voted it Best New Restaurant in HK, we will see if it lives up to the hype.





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Peng Chau in Pictures

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Lent

Mardi Gras is around the corner and that means Lent is right behind it. Most people outside of Louisiana don't know that Mardi Gras is linked to this religious time for many Christians. Lent starts the day after Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is the last day to get in all the good food before repenting and giving up certain foods and habits for the next 40 days of Lent, hence, "Fat Tuesday."
Typically meat is not eaten on Friday during Lent and most New Orleans restaurants participate and serve delicious seafood specials each Friday. Growing up,our school cafeteria never served meat on Friday during lent. McDonald's even brings back the Fish Filet this time of year, advertising heavily. Fish frys are everywhere too, as are yummy crawfish boils.

This year, my husband and I are going a little farther than meatless Fridays...
We are going to give up meat and dairy for Lent. (seafood and eggs will not count)

Stay tuned to how we get on with this huge commitment. I will post recipes as we go and please tell me if you have a favorite meat free/ dairy free meal you love.




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Parade Time

No, not a Mardi Gras parade...a Chinese New Year Parade! We braved the crowds and headed to Kowloon to watch the highly anticipated Chinese New Year Parade.









And just when I was missing Mardi Gras and real parades.....LSU came trotting down the route!!









The golden girls came all the way, and Mike the Tiger too, to take part in the parade! I had to hold my husband back from yelling, "Roll Tide" but other than that, it was so fun to see familiar faces all the way in Hong Kong.
Learn more about how LSU ended up in Hong Kong here

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New Year, New Hair

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What's for Dinner? Wednesday

What's for dinner Wednesday is my new weekly post of what my family is having for dinner. I struggle thinking of new ideas each week, but just the other day I saw a friend's grocery list and her menu inspired me. She had things I had forgotten about and vice versa, so we swapped ideas about family dinners and hurray...What's for Dinner Wednesdays began. So, why not share my ideas with y'all and y'all can share with me. Feel to use these ideas at your own table.




Tonight: Homemade Pizza and a Green Salad

Warning! This is so easy.

I am sure many of you already do the homemade pizzas. I am a big fan of using what I already have on hand in the fridge and Pizza is the perfect way to use up leftovers. Remember, it doesn't have to be traditional. Tonight my pizza has roasted eggplant and pumpkin topped with caramelized red onions, bell peppers, deli pepperoni, cilantro, tomatoes and mozzarella.
(feta would have been better, but I did not have it on hand)

Use a store bought crust. They come in biscuit rolls, in the bread aisle and at some stores the bakery has the dough pre made and cut. In HK I found the Jiffy brand mix, but when in was at the butcher getting my pepperoni, he told me that they carry the pre made bases, I just had to ask the bakery. Ask I did and that cut down a lot of prep time and mess. I crisp mine before I add toppings.

My butcher also suggested picking up a rotisserie chicken ( half price after 7 pm), slicing and using BBQ sauce as the base, top with red onions and a nice cheese. Yumm! Save that idea....


For my green salad I used Living Lettuce. I hope you've heard of it and can get it at your local grocery. If not, let me explain this genius idea...it is a head of lettuce that is planted on a sponge and the sponge and roots are never cut, even as it is packaged, so the lettuce is still growing, still nutrient rich, crisp and delicious by the time it gets to the grocery and even as it sits in your fridge. You will not have soggy, floppy lettuce with living lettuce.

I only had a tad bit of my store bought dressing, so I used the container and added olive oil and vinegar and some salt and pepper to make enough for a few more servings. The herbs and spices that had sunk to the bottom get new life and add great flavor to the new, updated dressing. It's easy, economical and is even green, as you reuse the bottle.

A few cucumber slices, tomatoes and that's all I need for my salad. Well,I also added some toasted ramen, since we are in China! The pizza is loaded with veggies already, so this works out to be a pretty well balanced meal. (Note: I did not say low cal or low fat)

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My Chinese New Year Hair

Hair. A common topic for me and most girls. Finding a salon in Hong Kong was easy, the hard part was dealing with the ridiculous summer humidity. When the seasons change so do my hair needs. While it may still be cold in the States, it is warming up nicely in HK. For the HK summer I religiously get the Brazilian Blowout to ease the frizz. But with the nice Spring temps staying for now, I won't be needed that treatment for a while. What I do need is a haircut. Perfect timing according to the Chinese, it is good luck to get a haircut for the Chinese New Year.

The inspiration:




Check back tomorrow for how it turned out! And Happy Chinese New Year!

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