Suckling Pig with Chickpea cream, savoy cabbage and scallop
We had arrived in Milan from Singapore on the 1st of December morning, and judging that we would have been jet lagged and requiring an early night I managed to change the date for the dinner to the 2nd of December - much to my wife's delight.
In the post above, I had put the piece de la resistance the Tartufo pasta which was heavenly.
The other dish which was exceptional was the grilled blue lobster with leek and matcha tea. Testament to the fusion creativity of the chef Antonio.
The above dish was also done 9 out of 10 ; Suckling pig wrapped with savoy cabbage, and scallop slices beneath and topped with small garlic (?).
Al dente pasta Fusillero with turnips and mackerel
This pasta above is one which my wife likes, al dente which has a certain 'bite' or chewiness to it. Altogether superb dish and a feast for the senses. I recall eating all my dishes with interest and soaking up the superb ambience inside the restaurant on that rather drab and drizzly evening.
Crown of Cockerel
This dish I can never appreciate. It is the crown combs of the cockerel and I believe there is loads of collagen in this soup !
Fabulous Dinner only the 2 of us at the waterside ; Surreal feeling
5 * dining
One of the serendipitous experiences of our Italian trip in Dec 2023 was visiting the small town of Peschiera del Garda which literally means Peschiera by Garda lake. It is a pretty 10,000 inhabitant Garda lakeside town which can be accessible off the main train lines between Como and Verona, about 1.5 hours from Venice.
15 minutes by train due West from Verona and about 1 hour due East from lake Como
It is along the same latitude as Lake Como and since it is not so well known, the prices of everything ranging from food, tour guide services and accomodation are easily 30% or more cheaper than what one would pay for a major tourist destination such as Milan or Venice.
We stayed at the service apartments called C Rooms Lake House along the pier.The scenery is picture postcard perfect. Antonella, our tour guide gave us a good overview over 2.5 hours walking tour of the town and the history goes a bit like this :
Peschiera is a small town which was originally run by prominent Italian family - like most towns and cities. Romans then occupied it followed by the Venetiens in the late 16th -17th century. There was a period when the Austrians ruled the town and created a moat around it to protect it from invaders.The French led by the indominatble Napoleon Bonaparte conquered it around mid 1840s.
The French were overthrown when the Italian Repulblic was formed in 1861.
We walked through the barracks, as well as the armoury and the small museum, and ended up at the tourist information in the centre of the town. There are cruise ships plying Lake Garda most times from late Spring till Autumn each year and they are moored at the big port at the top end of the town.
By the waterside at night
View of the small pier from our room
Raffilu at C House
The dinner we had (see video at top) was splendid. For a fraction of the price we paid for the 2 star dinner (about EUR 550) at Seta Milan, we had for EUR 90 the time of our lives.The dishes we had till our hearts content :
- Seafood platter for sharing (pastrami done with some fish)
- Al dente Bigoli (larger form of spaghetti)
- Octopus and cream.
- a glass of Sauvignon Blanc
There was a portrait of President Obama, who apparently made a visit here way back in 2017.
A lovely gem of a town, so full of beauty and warm people.
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Accelerated Aging in ChamberReal Life Test in Chamber
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www.qra.com.sg
Email : 1. qrasales@qra.com.sg
2. mark@qra.com.sg
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Human Performance Chamber for 4 athletes with Solar Lamps - First in Asia
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O2 Control to 9000 m altitude Temperature Humidity and Wind Speed Control
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With cousins Dr Rose, her hubby Prof Satku, Ms. Noor Quek, yours truly and Jacintha
29th March 2024.It was a very special evening of Jazz. The lobby lounge of the InterContinental was booked from 8 till 10.30 pm for a virtuoso performance by my cousin Jacintha. The place was packed and there were about 50 people in attendance.
She has a super smooth vocal range and her music, backed by an excellent 3 piece band, was in top form.
She sang favourites from her album Here's to Ben and Autumn Leaves. I had my request for Summertime which was done superbly and it really made my day.
Ja, you are one awesome and super talented lady and I feel so privileged to watch you perform in person.
The audience was awe struck by the perfection of the songs sung by you and the ambience was truly exceptional.
Last Sunday's karate training emphasises the athlete's desire to cross train. This way the different sets of muscles are stressed and given a workout way beyond what ordinary long distance running can achieve.
That and fact that the interplay between the muscles and bones structure help my body to maintain its flexibility and strength means that I will be pracitising and participating in karate sessions for the forseeable future.
I was fortunate to be given the tremendous opportunity to go to Greece and London when my father took me for 2 weeks (if I recall correctly) in the school holidays period of June 1974. That is 50 years ago !
This is a picture of pudgy me in front of Tower Bridge in a red sweater and Nana Mousskouri glasses. I had and still have bad myopia and have been short-sighted since I was 9 years old.
My memories of my first trip to London was that the climate was cold (maybe high teens) and dry so much so that my lips cracked after a few days upon arrival.
