Chap Chae!

This is chap chae, a type of Korean noodle dish. It consists of glass noodles and various veggies and mushrooms and perhaps shrimps and meats. IT'S SO YUMMY! Hyobin and I decided to try to make it.

Ingredients needed: glass noodles, salt, sugar, mushrooms, sesame oil, carrots, spinach, and not pictured: onions and soy sauce

Soak the noodles.

After boiling in hot water, rinse with cold water and then let drain.

Chop up all your veggies. Eww look at that onion.

Saute veggies.

Make the sauce- sugar, soy sauce and sesame oil.

Pour!

Mix mix!

Then eat. It's so simple.

Next time I put in napa/chinese cabbage. You can put in meat or seafood but I like it without. We made like 10 servings! It's so hard to cook proportionally for 1 or 2 ppl.

Norcal Folks

I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by friends and family on my trip!


My fellow travelers. It was one crazy car ride. My little cousin gave me a lesson in Pokemon powers, and his mom and I had a heated debate on immigration reform. It was pretty intense...she even apologized to me later that night for yelling at me, hehe.

My cousin Simon graduated from HS! Despite being super busy with graduation stuff he still managed to take us on a tour of the grounds and teach me how to solve a Rubik's cube. (More on that later.) I'm so friggin' proud of him!

Nick was such an awesome host! He wouldn't let me pay for dinner, insisted that I take his bed while he slept on the floor (I would have gladly slept ANYWHERE as long as there was a roof over my head!), supplied me meds for my cat allergies, and even made me hot dark chocolate in the morning! Yay for Nick!

Amy came from SF State to be my tour guide for the entire day! We explored Golden Gate Park, shop-hopped around Union Square, chatted at the Ferry Building, then walked along the Embarcadero all the way to Fisherman's Wharf. I really appreciated her taking the time to hang out with me, especially when nowadays people are so busy to even give you an hour of their day! I've been guilty of that as well due to my random work schedule. :(

Trinh and her mom took time out of their itinerary (her mom was visiting her) to eat dinner with me and Amy. Her mom seemed surprised that I spoke Vietnamese, hehe.

Josephine drove from Salinas to SF to pick me up! It's 100+ miles each way. Then guess what...the next day she drove me back to LA! She is one crazy friend, I can't believe she'd drive nearly 600 miles in one day.

Norcal Foodage

No SF trip is complete without the sourdough clam chowder bowl from Fisherman's Wharf!


Veggie dumplings- tasty!

Veggie noodles- tasty and satisfying!

Xiao long bao- pretty good but nothing compares to J&J restaurant in Prospect Plaza
Shanghai Dumpling King
3319 Balboa St.
San Francisco, CA 94121

The lights were cute...I want them for the apartment!



The drinks were delicious!
Yummie House
6903 Geary Blvd
San Francisco, CA 94121


Such a cute place! I want to go back and just relax here with a book, newspaper, and friends.

Simple Pleasures Cafe
3434 Balboa St.
San Francisco, CA 94121

When you walk into this restaurant it's PURPLE. Really purple, but I liked the decor!

Pad Thai- very fresh and "kicky"

Chicken peanut curry- chicken was not as tender but the peanut curry was rich and delicious
King of Thai Noodle House
420 Geary St.
San Francisco, CA 94102


Amy and I both love the garlicky shrimp! Mmm!

The potatoes were yummy!

Too much fried stuff. I can only eat this like twice a year!

Bubba Gumps off Peir 39


My favorite breakfast food is eggs benedict. They put too much hollandaise sauce so my english muffins was soggy. :(

Turkey dill crepe. They definitely don't go cheap on their crepes.

I like sitting at the counter. It's fun!

First Awakenings
171 Main St.
Salinas, CA 93901

Seriously, the best part of any trip is the food!

The Stacks Get Higher

Can I finish a dozen of these works by June 17? (Yes I still frequent my local library, and that's when most of the books are due.) If you haven't noticed I'm on a Marian Keyes kick right now. Every so often I discover an author whose works I enjoy so much that I make it my mission to read everything published by him/her. In elementary school it was Beverly Cleary, Judy Delton, Patricia Reilly-Giff, Lois Lowry, Carolyn Keene, Roald Dahl etc, in middle school it was Judy Blume, Paula Danziger etc, in high school it was Olivia Goldsmith, Agatha Christie, Jane Austen, etc, and in college I took a hiatus, haha.

Now it's Marian Keyes. Oh hell, I also read everything and anything nowadays. But I haven't quite forgotten the writers of works that I loved to read growing up- Yoshiko Uchida, Roald Dahl, and of course, Nancy Drew (although they are of course ghostwriters now). I want to be retired and still read Nancy Drew books, hehe.

El Colmao

Tuca Frita fried yuca (It was like a stringy but crunchy oil stick, ehh.)

1/2 Pollo Al Jerez 1/2 chicken sauteed in wine and onions (The chicken wasn't tender enough and you all know how I feel about onions.)

Pescado Halibut Frito fried halibut (Mine was grilled, not fried. It was overcooked, fish should be flaky, not "meaty".)

Cascos De Guayaba Con Queso guava shells with cream cheese (Way too sweet for my taste buds! Blech.)

Flan egg custard (Again, way too sweet.)
And the winners:

Frijoles Negros black beans (Pretty yummy with the rice that I forgot to take a picture of.)

Pan Con Bistec steak sandwich (Get medium rare. It was yummy!)

Paella Don Edurdo (a La Chorrera O Seca) arroz, langosta, calamares, almeja, pescado, camarones, cangrejo y pollo. puella, maist or dry rice, lobster, squid, clams, fish, shrimps, crab & chicken (The best selection! Call in the order, takes 45 min.)
I'd just come back for the white rice & beans, paella and steak sandwiches. The rest of the food was just okay. I forgot to get plantains. I really wanted oxtail but they ran out! :( I think I need to try other Cuban restaurants b/c there's no way that Versailles can be the best Cuban experience that I've had so far!) Any suggestions?

El Colmao
2328 W Pico Blvd (near Pico and Vermont)
Los Angeles, CA
90006-4002
(213) 386-6131

Major Fooding

With my parents gone for the last few weeks I thought that I'd finally get a chance to cook for myself! I even went grocery shopping twice. But as the dining gods would have it, I ate out practically every day! Too bad I didn't have my camera, it would make my restaurant reviews easier since photos do all the talking for me, hehe.

Regent Cafe (1411 S. Garfield Ave., Alhambra): my Thai tea was too watered down, Ann's sizzling udon dish was pretty yummy but my porridge was a bit bland. If you want something from the breakfast menu go before 11am! I generally go for their HK style breakfast but we missed it by 30 min, darn.

Original Pancake House (1756 S. Pacific Coast Hwy., Redondo Beach): YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY! The pecan pancakes were moist, fluffy, and flavorful. The marmalade was fresh and zesty and not overbearingly sweet. We also got eggs Benedict and potato pancakes, which were equally delicious. Everyone, your goal this summer is to make it out to the Original Pancake House at least once!

Shin Jung (3450 6th St., LA): I actually went here twice, once with Hyobin and again with Susan. Get the spicy cold noodle here! It's the BEST COLD NOODLE EVER. It's not really spicy, so don't worry. If I can handle it, you all can. The bi bim bap here is really good as well. And as always, great selection of banchan.

JJ Hong Kong Cafe (447 W Garvey Ave., Monterey Park): I had the curry noodle soup, Christina had Hainan chicken soup. I actually enjoyed mine! You can pick any 3 items to put in your soup- I chose tripe, fish balls, and vegetables. I dunno how Christina's dish tasted but I think she ate most of it so it was probably not so shabby.

Hong Kong Cafe (162 W Garvey Ave., Monterey Park): Korean Susan and I actually chose this restaurant on a whim. I originally wanted to go to Heavy Noodling BUT THEY SHUT DOWN, BOO. So we decided to drive down Garvey and see where else we could go besides JJ HK Cafe. I had the Chicken Hainan noodle soup. The dipping sauce was yummy. Susan had the chicken stir fried noodle. Now, that chicken was GOOD! I'd come back for that chicken. Our red date tea was refreshing as well.

Simply Wholesome (4508 W Slauson Ave., LA): I went here twice. I've actually been there a couple times before so I wasn't all that thrilled. But there were some items on the menu that I wanted to try since I was there. You can't go wrong with the curry chicken patty ($2.40ish) but after a while you get bored of it. The second time, we shared a breakfast combo. Ok, so I stuck my fork in something that could only be described as a super long and rectangular tortilla chip. Guess what that was? MEATLESS BACON. Yes...bacon. Personally I think they took the tortilla chip and dipped it in diluted bacon grease. I'd rather have the real thing, thank you very much. Definitely not going back there for breakfast!

California Pizza Kitchen (207 S Beverly Dr., Beverly Hills): My favorite pizza isn't on the menu anymore! It was the peking duck. I know it's weird to have duck on your pizza but it was such an awesome combo. Instead I got the Thai Crunch salad which was not so shabby for a salad. Mmm I love their berry lemonades, I don't care how much sugar is in there!!

Noodle House (46 W. Las Tunas Dr., Arcadia): Okay remember how I really really wanted to try the crab at Noodle House? So Susan finally makes her way back to LA and we go. But guess what! You have to pre-order it! AHHHH I was so sad. Instead we got some sub par overcooked not-so-fresh shrimp dish with nian gao instead. :( Don't get that dish!

Sushi Gallery (16436 Norwalk Blvd., Cerritos): We come here so often the lady recognizes us, hehe. All their rolls are pretty yummy. The beef teriyaki is ehhh but the pork cutlet isn't so shabby for a Korean owned Japanese restaurant. Btw, you have to pay $0.50 extra for miso soup if you get your order to-go!

India Restaurant (17824 Pioneer Blvd., Artesia): I've had prior bad experiences with Indian food (westside and Berkeley) but I decided to give it another try. It was pretty good! We shared an appetizer platter (where everything is fried though) and the chicken tiki masala. We were the only Chinese/Vietnamese/Korean people there though, which I suppose is a good sign. Everyone else was Indian!

I prolly forgot a couple places on this list but oh well. I also ate at 3 of my cousins' houses as well as at Ann's house. I ended up only cooking like 4 times! Sigh. I'm kind of tired of eating out now. I'm picking up my parents tonight so that means homecooked food tomorrow! =D

I'M IN BABY!!!

Dear Ms. Nguyen:
On behalf of UCLA, it is my pleasure to extend to you an official offer of admission to the Graduate Division. Our graduate programs attract an exceptionally qualified and talented group of applicants and the selection process is rigorous and highly competitive. Your selection for admission is a recognition of your academic accomplishments and potential for advanced scholarship. I wish to add my personal congratulations to those of your family and friends.

Sincerely,
Vice Head Honcho at the Graduate Division

Ok, I'm kidding about the last part. But really, I'm in! Even though I was recommended for admission back in Feb, the official notice took more than 4 months because of UCLA bureaucracy! But now, I can breathe many sighs of relief. I'M IN BABY!

Wow, I'm going to be a grad student. That is so cool! I'm so excited! (I'm not going to think about all the studying/memorizing/papering I have to do until September! I'm also not going to think about leaving my CP team :/) Instead, I'm going to celebrate with every friend and family member that was there to help, encourage, and support me. They know who they are. <3

To the next phase of my career, cheers!

Fish Canyon Falls 2

Ann is literally inches away from the waterfall! We decided to venture to the other side of the pool this time.

Best-friend switched her Frap-land shift so we could go back this weekend. Since I had a full battery, I was able to spend more time taking pictures- mostly of flowers. It had only been a week since I was there and already there were some significant changes!

Last week there was water flowing underneath this log! Today it looked like no water had ever been there at all.
There seemed to be less flowers this time around. You could really tell things were drying up.











We got a clear shot of this cute little pool before a bunch of ppl got in the way and started swimming. The upper falls were not as crowded this time around but then again, we did get an earlier start. We didn't get to find Darlin' Donna Falls so that will hafta wait until next spring! Hopefully we'll get some good rain this winter, that makes for such a pretty and lush spring.


I wear nearly the same outfit every time! At least my hat is different.