I am so behind on updating this so there will probably be a lot of posts coming up. What I did today will probably not show up until the end of the week at this rate.

Anyway, I had mentioned earlier that Milly and I met up for brunch last Sunday before heading up to the Medieval Festival. We met at the Rocking Horse Cafe, which I had heard about previously and meant to check out at some point. It was pretty cute and uplifting inside, considering it was raining outside.

Every table got a plate of nachos and salsa, which was quite good. We went through quite a bit of it before and during the rest of the meal.

I ended up ordering the omelette, with was stuffed with wild mushrooms, roasted poblanos, apple wood smoked bacon and drizzled with salsa verde. It was supposed to contain cheese as well but I can't stand cheese on anything but pizza.

There was also a side of jalapeño hash browns which was quite good. I ate all of it.

Milly ordered the pancakes, which they called "Panqueques", which were buttermilk-corn meal griddle cakes, topped with peaches, plums and bacon. And the maple syrup was spiced with a bit of ancho chiles.

Both of us loved the food. It was filling without completely overstuffing us. Also as part of brunch, there were drinks included. She had a mimosa and I had fresh squeezed grapefruit juice. The juice was good but a bit fizzy. I suspect it was mixed with something that tasted somewhat like champagne. Hmm.

At any rate, it was a lovely place and it got noisier as the time passed. Probably because people were finally waking up. One of the drinks on the menu was a frozen margarita which looked tempting but seemed rather odd for breakfast or brunch. Nevertheless I did see that a few people had ordered it. Hehe.

Rocking Horse Cafe
182 Eighth Avenue (at 19th Street)
New York, NY 10011

Finally, finally we are now truly experience autumn. Up until this past Wednesday, the days have been rainy, cloudy and disgustingly humid. Perhaps more like English weather but it just didn't fit with the end of September. The worst part was the humidity since the air conditioner has already been retired to storage and we were getting frighteningly frequent visits from mosquitoes. There should be none of those pests by now, but yet here they were depriving us all of sleep.

But yesterday and especially today has been most glorious so far. There are still clouds in the sky but also bits of blue peeking out among them as I walked to the train station this morning. The wind was refreshingly cold and crisp. And I have been breaking in my new coat during these bouts of chilly mornings.

While I love spring for the simple fact that nature is blooming once more, I also love this time of the year also. The beautiful changing colors of foliage and a nice breather from the hot weather of summer. In the past I used to despise the shortening of daylight but so far it hasn't really bothered me this year. Maybe because I've been distracted by other things, and lately all I'd rather have is a bit more sleep. Last night was quite restful with the cool air blowing in and snuggling deep under the blankets.

And it's also partly because I am indeed a child of Autumn, so I can't help but love this month and this time of year. I'll be enjoying my first real vacation time since January in a few weeks even though I'll still be in the city and part of me will be worried about work. So anyone wishing to meet up on a weekday, let me know since my hours will be flexible for a scant week. Heh.

Now, I'll leave you with this quote I came upon and thought it lovely and fitting for the day:

It was one of those perfect English autumnal days which occur more frequently in memory than in life.
– P.D. James

My Lords, my Ladies, and other Honourable patrons of this site, I bid thee good day.

It is with great pleasure that I shall regale you with the story of my most remarkable adventure that took place yesternoon in the great city of New York. For I and my friend, the Lady Milly traveled forth from our villages of Brooklyn and Queens and ventured north to the quaint hamlet of Inwood to partake in a grand festival held there.

But first, we feasted admirably at one of the many fine dining establishments the great city had to offer. During that time, foul weather greeted us in the morn and continued afterwards, with rain pouring steadily down as we descended to take the great riding carriages that would take us northward. Fortunately, we stepped outside about three quarters of an hour later and were met with just cloudy skies and damp roads. It appeared that the rain had stopped just moments before our arrival.

There were many other people who also made the trip up and my heart was glad that the festival had not been postponed to the following Sunday after all, for I had made plans with other ladies of noble birth and would therefore be unable to attend then.

The faire has been held annually at Fort Tryon Park during the last Sunday of September. I believe this is my third trip to this great festival. As we walked along the main thoroughfare, we were greeted with such delightful scenes the deeper we went. There were minstrels gathered at various points, all with a variety of instruments.

And it wasn't strange to see those of noble birth mingling with lowly peasants and other citizens of our fair country. Even some of the commoners were dressed in their best finery, eager to make conversation with those of higher stations than themselves.

There were also several marketplaces set up where merchants sold such goods as armour and weaponry for those wishing to become a knight. And jewelers and tailors selling their fine wares for ladies who wished to be as grandly adorned as the Ladies of the Court. And lest we not forget, one cannot be celebrating without food and drink! Revelers were treated to feasts of meat pies, turkey drumsticks, mash, ale and other interesting delights. One in particular that I was unable to sample was something called "fried dough". It was remarkably similar to that dish called pizza in that it was a piece of dough that was fried and garnished with a variety of toppings such as cinnamon, sugar and fruits (apples and strawberries).

The best part was of course the great tourney held in the faire's honour. There were knights and squires milling around and for a short time, the good citizens were treated to a grand display of military showmanship. As the Knights were preparing for battle, a single man appeared on the field and entertained the crowds with his tricks of spinning a plate constantly as he moved around as well as juggling sticks of fire. Tis a dangerous profession, it would seem!

And the knights came out eventually. Sadly, it was quite noisy to hear the herald making the introductions so I cannot share you with the names of these brave Sirs who fought bravely. We were witness to them battling each other with axes, jousting atop beautiful horses, and watching several sword fights. Sadly, one of the knights resorted to dirty tactics and won unfairly. For shame! Such cowardly and base actions that are quite unbecoming for a Knight. Those seated in my section booed the cheater for he was our knight's opponent it seemed.

Afterwards, we even arrived at the great Cloisters that stood at the end of the road, atop the cliff. 'Tis a lovely place and by your leave, I shall share the story of our visit there at another date.

But suffice it to say that the Lady Milly and I enjoyed the faire spectacularly. As did the other townsfolk for there were many more people there later in the day. I suspect it was due to the improvement of the weather. But oh! It would have been even more marvelous if the sun had graced us with its presence instead.

I think all of the interesting things that have gone on these past 7-8 ways have centered one way or another around food.

Last Saturday: A family friend was holding a banquet to celebrate their one month old daughter. It's some sort of Chinese tradition to have a feast after the first 30 days. I don't think it was exactly 30 days but in the general area of it. Not sure where this custom originated but it is celebrated by Chinese around the world.

It was one of those lavish multi-course meals: noodles, rice, chicken, lobster, soup, and a ton of other dishes. A general large Chinese banquet. There were also hard-boiled eggs at the table, the shells dyed red (part of the tradition, I assume).

On Wednesday, I went out for dinner and drinks with some co-workers. This should be transcribed as a momentous occasion since I never attend functions with my direct peers (we're all under the same manager). The past year or so, I have started to go to a few events with the In Style team, since I work with them closely and can relate to those people more than within my own group.

The main reason I agreed to go this time was that a few of us were meeting (not the whole group either) up with a former co-worker and with no managers hovering about, we could talk freely and gossip without fear of being overheard. I think this is one of the main reasons I never go to any of the other afterwork functions. Besides being one who doesn't much like alcohol, there's no way to really talk about the more interesting topics.

We met up at El Centro and spent a lovely 2 hours catching up over a good Mexican meal. Sadly, the restaurant seems to be a bit too loud to hear people talk and we had to practically shout to make ourselves heard. But it was good night to meet up. The restaurant had all the windows open and I could watch the clear skies darken as night came (it was truly beautiful, I wish I had taken a photo). I think we need to pick a quieter place next time though.

And today, Milly went with me to Mitsuwa. It was her first time to go there, and I wanted to partake of their annual Hokkaido food fair. We met up early (10am) at the bus stop because I know how the queues get when it's a festival weekend. And I went wild with the food shopping.

But first we grabbed an early lunch. The ramen special this weekend was "Asameshi MaedaShoyu Ramen." And with the cool autumn-like weather (since fall doesn't officially start for another two days), a nice hot bowl of noodles did nicely. The only thing that wasn't fun was that it was quite salty since it's a soy sauce-based broth. But it was indeed tasty. Milly also bought a curry pan as well and ended up getting quite full between the two.

We made our way around the stalls and then up and down the aisles of the supermarket. Went to some of the other shops nearby before heading back in so I could finally get what it was I really wanted. Curry pan, melon pan (for Queenie), the Yuki (snow) roll cake with strawberry, and Hokkaido cream ice cream puffs.

We also treated ourselves to some soft serve ice cream in milk and La France (pear) flavors. The milk flavor was better; it tasted like it came directly from the cows, so very fresh.

We caught the bus back into Manhattan before 2pm and I caught the train home from there. Since there was ice cream involved, I wanted to get home before it started to melt, and not jostle the roll cake around either. Milly had another event to get to (albeit fashionably late, heh) so we had split up at the Port Authority.

And that has pretty much summed up my week outside the boring world of work. And freelance gigs. And fanfiction, both reading and writing (chapter one is written, am still working on my grand outline).

Last night, went out to family/birthday dinner after work. Well, I had to trek all over to the east side and go get an ice cream cake first, drop it off at home and then head back out. Wasn't fun, and was quietly cursing my parents for the indecisiveness. (First it was yes to dinner, then no, then called me at work in the morning to say it was back on again. Ugh.)

It was to celebrate my sister's birthday. My parents like to do it on the lunar dates, which may fall either before or after the actual date. I am not one to remember such dates, and so can easily forget one's birthday that way. If we just followed normal dates, then everything would be splendid. But I digress...

So my parents (my father, mostly) wanted to go try out this Sichuan (or Szechuan, as I would normally spell it) place on Pell Street called Famous Sichuan. Yes, yes, Chinese people are so known for their creativity in coming up with original business names. We were supposed to meet with my relatives at 6:30pm but between trying to get things done at work and getting the cake, I was last to arrive at almost 7pm. Ah well. Not like they can't start without me.

By the time I sat down, they had just finished giving the order to the waitress. And it was all in Mandarin, so it was beyond me anyhow. Apparently, my sister checked the menu online and already picked out a few dishes ahead of time. So what arrived at the table were these (finally, a use for the new camera):

Clockwise from top left: Herbed Spring Bamboo Shoots, Shredded Seaweed with Garlic, and Double Sauteed Pork with Spicy Capsicum. The bamboo and the seaweed were the only dishes Queenie didn't choose. She doesn't like bamboo, and the seaweed was my mother's suggestion supposedly. The only version of double sauteed pork I like is the stuff in cans that are illegal here in the States. Bah. It's the stuff of my childhood; I love it.

Wok Roasted Lotus Roots with Pepper Spiced Salt (background) and Sauteed Pea Shoots (foreground). Everyone liked the fried lotus roots, though it was quite salty. Helps to eat it with some rice.

Camphor Tea Smoked Duck. It was okay but a bit dry... we all thought there would be some sort of sauce or condiment to go with it, but nope. Ah well. And you couldn't really taste any tea to it.

And the last dish that arrived was the Braised Whole Fish with Sichuan Chili Miso Sauce. This was the least favorite at our table. My parents and aunt and uncle all claimed the fish wasn't fresh enough, but eh. To me it was okay; I'm not a really big fan of fish. Though, you couldn't even tell there was a fish when it arrived since it was all covered in sauce. Heh.

I think we ate most of it, except my cousin who was literally trying to sleep throughout dinner. They had all just come back from Hong Kong last week and were still suffering bouts of jet lag. When Q and I were that age, it took us 2 weeks to re-adjust. I remember waking up at odd hours like 2am and 4am and turning the TV on because we couldn't fall back asleep. Though, I suppose it helps that since he has school all day, it is pushing him back to bed at more normal times.

And we skipped dessert. At most Chinatown places, they will serve some sort of dessert course after dinner as part of your meal. Usually it's a plate of oranges, or maybe bowls of a dessert soup. This place offered neither and my parents (being typical Chinese parents) were a bit miffed. Sigh. Not that it matter. There's loads of sweets at home if they so wanted to indulge. But there were desserts on the menu; we just didn't order any.

Oh, and Hot Pot is available too. There was a couple who did order that, and both Q and I thought it was a bit too warm for that though. Great in the winter, not when it's still technically summertime!

Famous Sichuan
10 Pell Street
New York, NY 10013