This melange of turmeric root, shallots, lemongrass, galangal, garlic, and chili would soon become the spice paste in our fish amok. The burnt-orange turmeric root is responsible for giving the amok its distinct creamy amber hue. But it also leaves…
How to do Thanksgiving in Shanghai
It’s not Thanksgiving in China until you bring the turkey legs you bought online to the butcher shop across the street, because they do not fit in the slow-cooker. It’s not really Thanksgiving until the lady in the butcher shop…
Cold beer and Korean BBQ
I get off the train of Hongkik University and the first thing I notice is how good it smells. Seriously, there’s an entire two block stretch that smells like sweet buttermilk biscuits, Cajun fries, and fried chicken. There’s a small…
When it rains..
This weekend, it poured. It didn’t just pour, it typhooned. I got caught in a massive rainstorm running errands on Saturday and hid out under an awning on Changle Lu while the rain came down in sheets and other people…
Wet Hot Shanghai Summer
I have no idea how to start writing this blog post, because I’m drenched in sweat and that’s all I can think about. We’re currently in a Heatmaggedon (if CNN made Snowmaggedon a thing, I can call this Heatmaggedon). It’s…
Crawfish boils aka how to trick people into thinking you’re glistening, not sweating
The roar of the cicadas in the summer is deafening. The past few weeks have been deafening, sweltering, and muggy. Seriously, Shanghai is a stifling oven cracked all the way up to broil. Actually, no, not an oven. That’s not…
Shanghai and the art of letting go
The first time it happens, you rarely notice it. First it’s your favorite Hong Kong Milk Tea kiosk replaced by metal shutters. Then, it’s a laptop repair kiosk torn apart overnight, used USB cables dangling amongst newly-drying racks of giant…
The courage to eat with a spoon
Learning to use chopsticks in China is easy. Learning when not to use them is hard. Dinner in Shanghai – my home for the past two years – is rarely eaten alone. A dinner is the sort of grand occasion…
Leaving WordPress
I’ve done it. I’m self-hosting my blog! This feels like a big step, because Skipping Customs (first called Pasta Republic) is something I started over three years ago and over the three years it’s become a place where I’ve been able to openly…
I got stung by a jellyfish in Malaysia
twelve mai tais Happy Hour is from 11am to 5pm and it just seems irresponsible not to order four at once. Mai Tais in hand, we walk up and down wet sand part of the white beach. We each take…
Christmas in Vietnam
We made our flight by four minutes. We survived death by motorcycle-related homicide in Ho Chi Minh city. And now we’re spending Christmas on the beach. Happy holidays, wherever in the world you may be!
What is a normal Shanghai experience?
I can never really put my finger on what it means to live in Shanghai. And I mean, live in Shanghai, to get the most out of this city, while still remaining honest to my identity outside of it. A few friends came…