In celebration of ...

J's birthday and my new found Mongolian heritage, yes, apparently my dad is a direct descendant of Genghis Khan (according to a DNA test), as are like 500 million other Asian males...guess I have a few competition in my claims to the Mongolian throne. Anyhoo, I disgress... so in celebration of J's bday and the new discovery that I am a Mongolian Princess, we went to Little Sheep Mongolian style hot pot restaurant in Hacienda Heights. It was so yummy! And here is the aftermath of the Mongolian invasion ... Not much damage other than $200 US dollars.

Taoyuan Night Market

Lo and behold, at 3:30AM sharp, my eyes went boing and were wide open... jetlag, thou art so lovely...anyhoo, let's rewind, last night J and I went on a quick stroll to Taoyuan Tourist Night Market. There were so many scooters and the exhaust fume... cough cough, still trying to clear my throat.

The market is much smaller in scale than Shilin Night Market...

Ruwei (or marinated flavor) vendor...

Sausage vendor...

Here is what I came for, Chia Yi Er Ai Zian, or oyster pancakes... I found this place on my pre-trip night market food reconnaissance on Youtube.

As for the oyster pancake, I am not a fan of the toxic looking pink sauce on top. I would've preferred it to be more crispy and more gooey... a little disappointed after watching the rave review on youtube.

Here is inside the restaurant, as mom and pop as you can get... I liked the vibe.

Panda and Me

In Taipei now... when I entered my hotel room, this giant panda (no pun intended) greeted me... at least I'll have someone to cuddle up with tonight :)

Off to Taiwan...

Stinky tofu here I come :)

Yabu

Oh such delicious noodles and broth and... oh, this is not my bowl, but our guest blogger HY's. Unfortunately your dearest kitty was too busy slurping down the delicious bowl of Kamo Nanban (noodles with duck meat) to take pics. After I was done, I looked up, and everybody still had like half a bowl left (cuz we had a dozen or so appetizers to stuff ourselves), and yet, I still finished mine until the last noodle. *Blush* :P

Photo courtesy of HY

Creme de la Crepe

Savory Crepe...

Sweet Crepe...

Manhattan Beach sunset.