Posts tagged Natalie Webb
Fondue Fountain
Just due it. Fondue it. And I can assure you it will be one of the best eating experiences of your life.
Everybody’s got to love a chocolate fountain, right? Even if you may not be the world’s biggest chocolate lover, you can still respect the culinary ingenuity of a flowing fountain of chocolatey goodness. Being the connoisseur of it that I am, I stopped dead in my tracks at the sight of the 3-tiered chocolate lava flow from a Swiss restaurant window.
The chocolate freak in me had to investigate the scene.
I detour inside the quaint and colorful eatery only to find that Team Nat Kat had just stumbled across one of Zurich’s best fondue restaurants in all of Old Town! Of course it’s the best… they have a chocolate fountain window display. Restaurant WIN.
The popular place attracts such a crowd that we wait 3 hours to taste test the award-winning fondue.
As the clock tower strikes 9 and our stomach levels approach empty, we are seated at a romantic table for two with multicolored sets of fondue sticks. Kathryn and I both agree that the restaurant has the feel of a Swiss ski lodge and Cracker Barrel hybrid with smells of melted cheese and toasted bread mingling in the air.
At last, our kind waitress brings on the edible goods as pots are plugged in, lit, and the cheese melting ensues. Bottomless bread slices dipped in the flavorful raclette cheese have never tasted so delicious.
We stabbed.
We dipped.
We ate.
And just when we thought we could handle no more, we made way for the infamous chocolate fondue. I’m positive this is what heaven tastes like.
So here’s to you, chocolate fountain that brought the masses. Because of you and the 3 hour wait that expanded our stomachs, we could fully enjoy every ounce of our meal! Thanks. You are the best.
When in Rome…
Learn how to make gelato. This essential culinary skill will skyrocket your awesomeness and take you far in life. Everybody wants to be friends with a gelato maker. And Team Nat-Kat managed to befriend Amadeo, a gelato chef extraordinaire who works at one of Rome’s most famous gelaterias near the Colosseum.
This jolly old Italian shared with us his infatuation with the frozen food and allowed us to taste test the plethora of flavors (a big shout out to Nutella Birthday Cake for taking my love of gelato into the realms of obsession).
After consuming 5 cones of gelato in one sitting and practically wanting to bathe in the heavenly dessert because it’s so good, we ask Amadeo what the secret is. What is the magic trick behind creating such an exquisite treat?
Well whip out your cook books my friends. Here’s a recipe that is sure to become a family legend:
Ingredients
2 cups milk… preferably from Roman cows
1 cup heavy cream… preferably from Roman cows
4 egg yolks… preferably from Roman chickens
1/2 cup sugar
Directions
1. In a medium saucepan, mix milk and cream. Warm until foam forms around the edges. Remove from heat.
2. Beat the egg yolks and sugar until frothy in a large bowl. Gradually pour the warm milk into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Return mixture to saucepan; cook over medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon until the mixture gels slightly and coats the back of the spoon.
3. Pour the mixture through a fine strainer into a bowl. Cover and chill overnight.
4. Pour the mixture into a Compacta 3003 RTX (Italian ice cream maker), and freeze for several hours. Transfer to a sealed container, and freeze until firm.
OR
5. Just come to Rome, eat at Gelato Giolitti and tell Amadeo he is the “uomo,” or man in Italian.
Walking Like the Egyptians
You’ve heard the 80′s song. Maybe even danced the dance. But have you ever actually walked like an Egyptian and crossed 8 lanes of traffic in downtown Cairo? Though some may liken it to nothing short of a death sentence, I prefer to think of it as one of the best adrenaline rushes this side of the pyramids.
With a population of 21 million, Cairo makes Manhattan look like a ghost town. Whirring and humming with falafel vendors, camel owners, and shouts of Arabic, this capital city breathes with a tenacious energy. You also may breathe in a bit of hot desert dust while you’re there, but just blow your nose and keep inhaling the exotic culture around you. It’s not every day you get to watch real life bumper car battles unfold before your eyes.
Yes. Bumper cars. That’s how they roll in Egypt. No lane markers, no cross walks, no traffic lights. Nothing. Just automobiles of every shape and size with a survival-of-the-fittest attitude, giving “love taps” to those who get in their way. It’s incredible.
So when dinner time rolls around, you’re craving some shawarma, and the only places to eat are across the street, what do you do?
Well let me let you in on a little secret. Looking both ways won’t cut it in Egypt. Trust me, Kathryn and I tried that for about 15 minutes.
In an ideal situation, a local Egyptian angel will appear out of nowhere, grab your hand, show you when to sprint, and tell you to never walk backwards because the cars will drive around you, and you’re dead if you hesitate. At least that is how Team Nat Kat made it to dinner. Bless that kind man’s soul.
However, if the angels don’t grace you with their presence, I highly recommend the strategy of lingering behind an Egyptian woman and children who are about to dodge the traffic and stay right in sync with them. You are guaranteed a safe crossing. And when you get to the other side, you’ll feel like you have just beaten the hardest obstacle course from Legends of the Hidden Temple. Congratulations.
Visiting the Turkish Baths
There’s a Turkish man by the tub. And he is ready to thoroughly scrub down any and everyone who comes his way.
Hamams, also known as the Turkish baths, are not your average bath time. I don’t know what I was expecting but definitely nowhere near the full body, full contact exfoliation I received.
With visions of relaxing Thai massages still dancing in our heads, Kathryn and I eagerly make our way to one of the oldest bath houses in Kusadasi. At the doorway, an elderly and shirtless all-male staff greets us. Not exactly the gentle female masseuses I was thinking.
They throw us a towel, we strip down to our swim suits, and enter into what feels like the world’s largest steam room. As we adjust to the overpoweringly thick air, we join other bathers sprawled out on a massive marble heat rock waiting their turn for the baths.
Finally, last in line to go, Ahmet nods at me and loudly spanks the slab with his exfoliating mitt and grunts, “Up!”
Here we go…
So I obediently hop up onto the counter and tense with anticipation. My bath boy sloughs off about 9 layers of skin with that soapy sandpaper mitten of his. And let’s just say, the Turks aren’t afraid to get friendly with the scrubbing strokes. Hello Ahmet. I’m glad we are such intimate friends now.
After a solid 15 minutes of the skin peel, I head to round 2 of bath time: the “massage.”
Another giant, towel-only-clad Turk beckons me to the marble. He douses me with a thick layer of bubbles and digs his thumbs into every muscular tissue I have. He then proceeds to bend and twist my limbs into quite the pretzel… a shape you should really only see at circuses.
At the end of the massage, he let’s out a loud chuckle and gets on the tiny slab with me. Yes. Me in my bikini pressed against my round, shirtless human pretzel maker. He smiles for the camera, gives me a squeeze, and dumps a cold bucket of water over us to clean off the soap.
Now, while this may not sound like a restful day at the spa, I will say that afterward I felt surprisingly relaxed and refreshed!
So if you ever stop by Turkey and you’re into extreme adventure sport bathing, I highly suggest you give the hamams a whirl. Be sure to tell Ahmet I said hello.
Under the Sea
Down where it’s wetter, that’s where it’s better… Take it from Sebastian, the charming crab in the The Little Mermaid. That guy really knew what he was talking about.
Clearly Sebastian must have snorkeled through the infamous Koh Tao waters like we did because this island’s remarkable sea scapes were better than any I have seen!
While Kathryn lives for “Shark Week” and will forever be jealous of the 2009 WTI dive with the Great Whites, I was more than okay to frolic with the clown fish in non-shark infested waters. If that lowers my hardcore-ness level in your eyes, I completely understand. But watching Jaws 1, 2, and 3 as a 4th grader can scar a person. Unless your name is Kathryn Berk.
So we climbed into our 8 a.m. long boat shuttle and rode our way to the snorkeling yacht. We circled the island stopping numerous times to throw on our masks and flippers and perused the aquatic life below.
It was breathtaking to witness the vibrant world of color that exists beneath the waves. Kathryn and I would often squeal at each other through our masks underwater and point to schools of needle nose fish that looked strikingly similar to lethal barracudas. We also stumbled across this stunning lighthouse coral that looked like it had been doused in yellow highlighter ink.
Throughout the day, I was determined to pet a Nemo or Flounder look-alike (mission accomplished. No big deal.) And then Kathryn continued on her shark hunt.
We ended our snorkel fest of fun with a refreshing glass of chilled coconut water, which may have helped take the sting out of the brutal sun burns on our backs that proceeded to peel off like snake skin in the days to come. Yikes. We will leave those photos off the Flickr account. You can thank us for that later.
Note to our WTI selves: Apply 75 SPF every 10 minutes while snorkeling in the beautiful Koh Tao sea to avoid turning the color of Sebastian.
Many Moons of Koh
What do these Thai islands have in common besides the first name Koh? Turquoise water, beachside masseuses, and islanders who love celebrating the many stages of the moon.
As Kathryn and I hopped through the islands of Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, and Koh Tao, we realized why so many people flock to these places. They are little pockets of inexpensive paradise with food that will make your mouth water and massages that will make your muscles melt.
While the two of us soaked up some sun outside our honeymoon villa and gazed over our toes toward the sea foam lapping up the sand, I truly felt like I had just jumped into a postcard I had seen at Bangkok airport.
The sun slid past the horizon and we watched the islanders light torches lining the quaint restaurants and set the mood for the night life ahead of us. We satisfied our taste buds with meals of pad thai, downed some Red Bull, and headed to the infamous moon party.
Now let me just say, these people are probably the moon’s biggest fans. They celebrate the full moon, the half moon, the fourth moon, the black moon… possibly even the eighth and sixteenth moon. It’s crazy. And we happened to be there for the black moon party. AKA no moon party, and the beaches were buzzing with people.
So, in Team Nat Kat fashion, we donned our faces with matching war paint and danced our way into the heart of the crowds. While busting moves to the classically epic sounds of Gaga, we began noticing bubbles surrounding us. Yes. Of course the dance floor had turned into a foam party. So we swam out of the growing bubble ameba to protect our dear cameras, only to behold Thai men swinging a 30 ft jump rope… on fire… that people who had temporarily misplaced their brains were jumping into.
Fire juggling, fire eating, and fire limbo commenced throughout the evening as well. Team Nat Kat took part in the latter and may have left with some barely singed eyebrows.
All in all the island dance party and fire rave united the Thai people and backpackers from all over the world with one common philosophy: Every night’s a good night to celebrate the moon.
Japan, How Do I Love Thee?
Japan, how do I love thee?
Let me count the ways.
1) I love how a strong nod or bow will get you far in this country.
2) I love that the Japanese are all about some lucky numbers. Especially the number 5. And lucky animals: owls and turtles.
3) I love how some characters in the Japanese alphabet look like smiley faces.
4) I love your melt-in-your-mouth sashimi and fried udon noodle dishes.
5) I love you have skyscrapers dedicated solely to karaoke rooms.
6) I love your architecture, your rock gardens, your ponds, your bridges, your lily pads, and most importantly your coy fish.
7) I love how hand sanitizer is the primary center piece for all tables, hotel desks, and cashier counters.
8 ) I love that your toilets play sounds of rushing water to encourage the relieving process. I really just love everything about your toilets (see bathroom humor blog for details).
9) I love that you have brought back the parasol and made this simple umbrella such a must-have accessory in the bright sun.
10) I love that the Japanese live 10 years longer than Americans due to their diet and constant consumption of green tea.
11) I love that surgical masks are the new headband. Fashionable and health-conscious. Double threat. Well done.
12) I love that the Japanese never fail to say the phrase, “Thank you for waiting,” even when it’s only been 2 seconds.
13) I love Tokyo Disneyland. And that I can still feel the magic of what Mickey is saying even though it’s in Japanese.
14) I love your bullet trains.
15) I love how your people impress me countless times with such an exceptional level of kindness and hospitality. The Japanese take great pride in doing everything with care; from walking you to your train car to make sure you don’t get on the wrong bullet train, to cleaning hotel rooms until they sparkle, to making the perfect cafe latte. You amaze me.
*A special thanks to Richie Ura, Shiho Akai and Tiffany Kurokawa from the STA Tokyo branch for being the best host and hostesses through Tokyo I could have ever asked for!*
The Golden Temple
Step aside Willy Wonka. I found the Golden Temple, and I hate to break it to you, but it’s way cooler than your golden tickets.
I forcefully blink my eyes open and glance at my watch- 7:29 am. A minute early and right on time for Japan. To my delight, the fabulous Tokyo Prince Hotel was hosting a Kimono Convention. No joke. Spectacular Japanese traditional attire everywhere I turned.
Right then, a lovely 4’9” tour guide approached me and snapped me out of my Kimono trance.
“Sunrise tour?”
“Hi!” I respond.
Side note: Hi in Japanese means “yes,” not the friendly greeting that my American self is used to. This got rather confusing when I stepped off the plane in Tokyo and kept waving and saying hello back to everyone. Whoops. Lost in Translation moment #1.
So I hopped onto the yellow sunrise bus and the sight-seeing commenced.
1st stop: Ryōan-ji Temple. The only way to describe this place is serenity in it’s simplest element. It is famous for its rock garden, and it rocked my socks off. I walked barefoot throughout the entire space and experienced the aura of its zen and relaxation.
Afterward, Kyoko, my tour guide, led us to the treasured gem of Kyoto sightseeing. We strolled along behind her through rock laden walkways garnished with lime green moss and watched swans swim through ponds full of lily pads. As we turned the corner, there it stood. Radiating from between the trees, in all its splendor: the Golden Temple. This stunning architectural feat left me awestruck.
This was one of those travel moments that you just stand there and breathe in the beauty. Also known as the Golden Pavilion, or Kinkaku-ji , it’s one of 17 World Cultural Heritage sites in Kyoto, and in my book, the best.
While it would be a lovely treat to cash in a golden ticket and tour the chocolate factory, I can say with confidence that I’d rather behold this magnificent Golden Temple any day.
Bathroom Humor
Bathrooms. Toilets. Water closets. The Loo. Porcelain thrones.
No matter what you call it, this space is universal. Everybody’s gotta use it, and the Japanese are forerunners for creating state-of-the-art restroom settings that have exceeded my highest expectations of the perfect toilet.
After landing in Tokyo at 6:30 am and breaking the code of the train tables to transport me to the Tokyo Prince Hotel, I head straight to the lobby’s toilet facility. The comforting sight of the stick figure in the dress amidst the mass of Japanese characters beckons my bladder, and I walk inside. You would have thought that I had entered into a sanctuary. Such a peace and a warmth welcomed me in.
As I close the stall door behind me and twist the modern lock, a speaker next to the toilet paper automatically starts playing sounds of rushing water.
“How nice of my Japanese friends to ease any stage fright and encourage the relieving process,” I thought.
I sit down on the sparkling white, clearly sanitized throne and am surprised to experience a delightfully warm sensation- a heated seat. Genius. Another point for Japan.
So as I sit there almost too in shock to carry out the process I came in there to do, I spot an array of multi-colored buttons to my right that I could have sworn whispered “press me” as I near them.
One red button adjusted the seat temperature, a blue button offered bidet services, a green button sanitized the seat, a yellow button was another spray feature, and the rest of the buttons I failed to decipher from the foreign wing dings.
After meeting up with some of the STA Tokyo staff later that day and inquiring about the high-tech nature of the commodes, I have come to find out that Japanese toilets are also equipped to measure your heart rate, blood pressure, and cholesterol level based on a urine sample it takes. Then a robotic from within will let you know if you are in need of a doctor’s check-up. The seats also raise, lower, and tilt depending on desired back support.
So congratulations, Japan. You have officially raised the bar and the seats for toilets around the world, and for that, I am eternally grateful.
This Is Where Rainbows Are Made
Have you ever wondered where the Lucky Charms leprechauns live?
Well Casey and I found them today. Right at the intersection of Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil.
After seeing over 14 rainbows in one sighting of the massive Iguazú waterfalls, I am convinced that this is where those leprechauns call home. I wish someone had let me in on this secret when my eight-year-old self savored the rainbow marshmallow cereal, contemplating the whereabouts of these little men.
I can truly say that seeing Mother Nature shine in all her powerful splendor today through these roaring falls proved to be one of the most soul-shaking experiences I have had to date.
I first caught a glimpse of the beautiful expanse of water through a helicopter ride from the Argentinian side. I love heights and had never ridden in a chopper before, so I guess you could say this was a big moment for me. When I hopped in the co-pilot seat with my touristy HD cam in hand, I gave my pilot an excited pat on the shoulder “hello.” Apparently this enthusiasm did not go over too well because he sneered at me with disgust and did not speak the entire flight. Maybe the shoulder pat is more offensive in this country than America. Who knows.
So up, up, and away we went, and my eyes poured over the sea of lush greenery. About five minutes after take-off, I spotted the magnificent falls. If you’ve seen Avatar and remember those floating Hallelujah Mountains with the waterfalls, that’s about what this felt like… minus the floating part.
Then we took a high-speed boat ride up to the base of the Falls and we came face-to-face with the immense beauty. We were speechless. We had never seen anything like it. As we ended the day on a walking tour through the vistas, I could have sworn I saw a short green figure dart away into the forrest out of the corner of my eye. That’s when I knew that experiencing this natural wonder will forever be more valuable to me than 14 pots of gold at the end of rainbows.