Obviously this was quite a while back. And I'm too ashamed to mention how old this trip is else it would make the subsequent posts smell like rotten cheese.
Like every other Europe travellers these days, the cheapest way to get to Europe is to fly to London first via our trusty budget airline AA and then head on to other countries located in the West.
Since I have relatives living in London itself, it only made all the more sense to pay a visit to them first to share a couple of long-missed meals.
Though in the end I spent the first few days jet-lagged. Sleeping at 5pm and waking up at midnight. Sigh.
No, to be exact. I spent TWO WEEKS jet-lagging all the way from London to Barcelona (where my first stop of Europe was). It was such a shitty experience.
It was also the first time I have jet-lag issue, ever. And it was the first of many. Sigh, I hate aging.
Anyway, a day before my flight off to Europe, I took the train down to London to meet up with my reader, Andrew, for a tour around London.
Did all the typical things when a tourist landed in London.
mail post's my height!
Wanted to see St Paul's Cathedral but it cost 11 quid, so decided against it.
Though I did pay and visit the place after returning from Europe. heh.
Saw some mimes in front of the monumental building.
Took the underground to Westminister to see Big Ben.
Ironically,I've never seen Big Ben up close even though I stayed in UK for more than 8 months once. But I've seen London's eye and it's technically just opposite Big Ben, like diagonally across the river.
If you can see part of the palace was under construction, else this would have been a great photo. Dang it.
My cousin Joanna was studying in London at that time so we decided to meet up to have dinner at China town.
Together with Andrew and another reader of mine, Tuang (who was the sponsor of my Canon wide angle lens 10-22mm ^^).
Now I need to brag about the food I've come to know and love during my stay in the UK. And after five years of absence, it was the only thing I miss MOST about London, apart from Boxing Day.
Aromatic Duck.
It's sort of an evolution from the Peking Duck, found mainly in China town here. But instead of eating just the crispy skin with pancake like how Peking Ducks are served, Aromatic Duck is a dish served whole, shredded flesh and skin with bones taken out.
GOSH it's so heavenly. I could never get enough of it.
This is how you eat it.
First they will serve you a couple of other things: steamed pancakes, hoi sin sauce, shallots, shredded cabbages, carrots and cucumbers.
You take one slice of pancake and place it on your plate, slab a teaspoon of hoi sin sauce in the centre, place some shallots, cucumbers (etc), and finally grab some aromatic duck, flesh and skin, and spread horizontally on it.
Then you roll it up like a spring roll, and eat it.
YUMZ.
I could single-handedly eat 10 rolls. Nothing else.
We also ordered a serving for roast duck as it's a popular dish in London China Town too.
I've tasted better.
I also ordered one dish I missed most about England. Their "fake" sweet sour pork.
SO GOOD.
I don't care what anyone say about Western Chinese food are weird and not the real stuff, I love their version of sweet and sour pork. Oddly big chucks packed with all meat with little crisp, and that gooey "fake" tomato sauce; oh gosh, SO GOOOOOD.
Nom nom nom.
(I know I'm eating a choi sum in the photo)
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