I have often uttered these words while trying to get a handle on what I needed to accomplish at work, or in an effort to sort through the To Do list of life.

But yesterday’s excursion to a Korean restaurant literally left me asking, “No, really… what’s on my plate?”

During the past few months, I’ve become accustomed to not understanding the local language.  And sadly, no one seems shocked that an American can’t speak the native tongue.  But in Korea, it’s a little different — because I look like I’m supposed to know what I’m doing.

When I was in Seoul a few years ago, I stopped into a convenience store to buy a drink.  As I stood at the cash register trying to convert Korean won to US dollars, the man behind the counter started yapping on and on about something.  I was too busy wondering what they could possibly add to bottled water that would justify a price of $27 to pay attention — until my travel companion gave me an elbow to the ribs.

Ohhhhh… you’re talking to ME.
How do I say, “my bad” in Korean?

That was 2006, and 4 years later, I’m not any better.  As a result, I somehow ordered over a dozen different dishes — most of which I couldn’t pronounce or identify.  Some of it was delicious.  Some was downright disgusting.  But I can say this: none of it was boring.

Christchurch, NZ: Ready to tackle challenge of driving on the left side of the road.  Armed with a Toyota & a comprehensive insurance policy.

Today, I had just enough time to take the bus into Seoul, grab a quick meal at Byeokje Galbi (the restaurant you selected in the C.Y.O.A. poll), and get back to the airport in time for my flight.

Eating authentic Korean is always an entertaining experience, so I took some video — which I’ll post when I get to New Zealand.

Speaking of New Zealand, that’s my next destination.  So here’s a new Choose Your Own Adventure Poll. Voting closes at noon CST on the 15th (you get a little more time for this one!)

UPDATE:  Poll removed by the interwebs.  I have no idea why, but you all must have done something offensive.  Can’t say I’m surprised…

After three fast and furious days in Singapore, I’m off to New Zealand — by way of Seoul and Sydney.  Unfortunately, my flight pattern never seems to follow a logical geographic path.

I had a great time in Singapore (even though I didn’t visit the “Four Floors of Whores,” as was kindly recommended to me).  But I did learn how to make a mean curry, thanks to your Choose Your Own Adventure selection: “Learn about the Local Food.”

Yesterday, I managed to sneak into an Indian cooking class taught by a woman named Ruqxana.  (Obviously, I’m not IN India, but there’s a heavy Indian influence in Singapore, so I’m calling it close enough.)  Ruqxana specializes in Gujarati-style cooking, which comes from the Gujarat region along the Eastern coast.  She hosted the class in her home kitchen, a tiny but bright space where I felt like I was witnessing the real deal.

She started out by making a chutney — which was more like a basic paste or pesto, rather than the sweet version we’re accustomed to.  It was very simple: coriander/cilantro leaves, mint, green chilies, garlic, and ginger.  Easy peasy.

Then came the interesting part: she added more ingredients, one by one, to show us how the flavor profile changed and took on more depth.  First salt, then pepper and cumin, sugar, lime juice, natural yogurt, finely ground/grated almonds, and spring onions.  After each item, we took a taste and were treated to a completely different experience.  I’ve never built a sauce like that before, but it was fascinating.

She then sauteed curry leaves with onions, and added some coriander, the chutney, chicken, tomatoes, and a little water.  And voilà: Chutney Murghi — Coriander and Mint Chicken Curry.  A seemingly complex dish that, in reality, wasn’t very difficult to prepare.

After the murghi, she showed us one of her favorite sides called Masala Sem (green beens with cumin and fennel).  There’s a video clip of her demonstration below.  She starts by picking a few fresh curry leaves from the yard, and then once again creates a robust base of flavors — one ingredient at a time.

I could eat this.  Which I might just do.  Purely because it is the best menu description for a plate of fried chicken ‘n french fries ever.

of my dinner options this evening.  Jealous?

And it looks like I’m taking a cooking class – either that, or I have to figure out how to get into a kitchen somewhere.  Stay tuned.

Speaking of food, that’s all that was noteworthy from yesterday.  I am now 6 hours ahead of Africa/Europe, and +13 hours from the US central time zone.

Jetlag + Overnight Flights = Sleeping until Noon on Monday, so all I really did was get up in time to email and eat.

Even though skipping Thailand and India was the right decision, I’m bummed about missing the culinary experience.  So, I sought out a Thai restaurant and had my favorite dishes: fried basil and chilies with chicken (sometimes called Thai Basil or Holy Basil) and Tom Yum (which is a hot and sour soup made with chili peppers, lemon grass, and lime – among other things).

The food was terrific, but it’s always a little weird eating something spicy when it’s BLAZING HOT outside.  Scratch that.  It’s HIDEOUSLY HUMID.

I guess that shouldn’t surprise me, because Singapore is only about 1 degree from the Equator.  But it’s occurred to me that this is the closest I’ve ever been to the center of the planet, with the exception of Kenya (which doesn’t count because I was only in the airport).

So, I am off into the tropical heat to do some cooking.  Yesterday, the only thing that saved me from spontaneously combusting was an ice-cold Thai beer (a Singha to be exact – which we all refer to as “sing-HA,” but I’ve just learned it’s supposed to be pronounced “SING.”)

I have no idea what’s going to keep me cool today.  Where’s my Antarctic ice when I need it?

So far, I’ve only had 1 suggestion for how to spend my time in Singapore: “Chew gum.  Toss it carelessly on sidewalk.  Then enjoy your insider’s tour of their prison system.”  Courtesy of my good (and often wildly inappropriate) friend, Greg.

Although that sounds like fun — and who knows, maybe I’ll still do it anyway — I’ve managed to find some other options as well.  There’s a new poll below.  Voting closes May 10 at 8pm.  Have at it.

And of course, I have to send a special shout out to all the mothers in my life: my mom, my sisters and friends who are moms, and all the people who are “moms” to me.

You are the women who make things happen — many times without recognition, and often with food hurled at you (that’s directed at my friends with small children, not something I’ve done… lately).  But I hope you know that it’s always appreciated.  And there are never enough ways to say thank you.  Have a great day — you deserve it.

I am back in the Paris airport.  And I have to say, I am really starting to love the Air France lounge.  They have basically served me dinner this evening — offering a smorgasbord of broccoli soup, grilled veggie sandwiches, frommage and bread, chips ‘n snacks ‘n cookies ‘n drinks.

In about 15 minutes, I’m boarding a plane for Singapore.  After all the flying I’ve done, I’m now completely desensitized to long flights.  This will be my 2nd overnight flight in 3 days, and I have another 2 later in the week.  I’m not sure how long it is, and I don’t really care.  All I want is an aisle seat (which I have, yeehaw) and a good selection of movies.

Oh, and for the person who sits next to me not to smell.
See?  I’m very low-maintenance.

Before coming to the airport, I spent a few hours in Paris visiting several more museums, eating the world’s largest crepe, and learning the intricacies of the French postal system.  I think I managed to ship a package home, but I’m not all that confident.  I asked to send it via the cheapest method possible, to which the guy at the counter replied, “there’s only one way.”

Right.  Then I guess that’s how I’ll ship it.

I haven’t posted a Choose Your Own Adventure poll for Singapore yet because I haven’t had time to figure out what there is to do in Singapore.  So, I’m opening this one WAY up and taking your suggestions.

So throw them out — let’s see whatcha got.

This is essentially an extended layover for me, so I don’t have much time. But since the result of the CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE poll was “take a walking tour of the city,” that’s what I did.

I started near the National Opera (Opera Garnier), which dates back to 1875.  There’s quite an eclectic mix of performances currently on stage: the Billy Budd opera, an Homage to Jerome Robbins, and John Malkovich — a little song, a little dance, and a little crazy.

After that, I wandered down the aptly named “Avenue de Opera” towards the Louvre, which houses one of the most impressive art collections in the world.  There are over 35,000 pieces ranging from antiquities and sculptures to paintings and drawings — but its most famous resident is the Mona Lisa.

From there, I cheated and took the metro (Paris is a big city, people) over to the Arc de Triomphe, where I stumbled onto the Publicis Groupe building.  Since I was in the neighborhood, I decided to drop in and say a quick hello to my friend Lachlan, who used to work with me in Minneapolis (before he left for the much sexier Paris office — where he has a view of both the Arc and the Eiffel Tower from his desk.)

Must be rough.

Stopping by was a completely last minute thing, and I didn’t know if he’d be in.  But by some miracle he was there, so we spent a few minutes catching up.

I continued down the famous Champs-Elysees.  The tree-lined avenue is filled with designer shops and cafes, and has the prestigious honor of being Europe’s most expensive strip of real estate.  I didn’t have time to explore very much, but I did poke my head into Louis Vuitton for a few minutes and flipped through a fabulous book of photos that Douglas Kirkland shot of Coco Chanel in the early 60’s.  Coco, you are so French.

Then, I was off to the Marmottan Museum (which is much further to the west — at least, I’m assuming it’s west because it’s on the left side of my map).  The Marmottan boasts the largest collection of Monets on the planet, although many are lesser known than those in the Musee de L’Orangerie (which, based on the poll, you didn’t appear to be very interested in… ho hum) and Musee D’Orsay.

There were about 20 of Monet’s paintings exhibited together on the lower level.  When you see so many of them at once, you really get a sense for the way his work evolved as he aged.  In his younger years, his brush strokes were much more intricate, evenly distributed, and in some cases, flirting with uniformity.  But as he got older and his eyesight started to deteriorate, his technique became more bold and haphazard (that’s when he did most of his painting in the garden at Giverny).

Of course, no trek through Paris would be complete without a visit to the Eiffel Tower, so that was my last stop.  Originally erected in the late 1800’s, it’s still the tallest building in the city.  Although the Tower was quite a sight, I must admit that I was more intrigued by its restaurant: Alain Ducasse’s “Jules Verne.”  That will definitely be on my list of things to do the next time I’m in Paris.

Tomorrow, I get to spend a few more hours in the city, and then I board an overnight flight to Singapore. Here’s hoping for an aisle or window seat…