Food - Travels with Verne and Roy

Eating out in Singapore, 17 July to 2 Aug: Part 1

Eating out in Singapore; same old bleat about winter and a change of scenery; avo-smuggling and avo-PTSD; small, sweet sins; real food – Taiwanese dim sum, French rustic at Le Bistrot du Sommelier, superb Sri Lankan, Indian tandoori and more; cheap eggs and coffee; decadent Sunday champagne brunch

As I like to remind my husband and anyone else who will listen, I was never supposed to do winter. Roy and I were in tropical Singapore for 16 years, until he retired from shipping in 2016 and we embarked on travels that ensured we’d always be in the appropriate hemisphere to benefit from eternal summer. (If you have a moment, click here, here and here for some of my earlier blog posts.)

Peckish in Perth: Eating out in the CBD, June 2023

Eating out in Perth WA often means heading into the city. Our northern coastal suburbs offer wonderful beaches, lots of fresh air and a healthy lifestyle, but not much in the way of good restaurants.

Sometimes, we’ll even pack our bags and do a dirty stop-out for a night or two – like we did on the first weekend of June. It just so happened that our great friends Lynn and Kim (based between Yallingup WA and Singapore), were enjoying a touristy stay-cay in the city, complete with a walking tour and a cruise to Fremantle.

A touristy weekend – but mercifully stopping short of boarding this topless bus

They would be at The Citadines. So Roy went online and booked us a studio apartment there too. It’s conveniently located at 185 St Georges Terrace. (Is it just me*, or are you wondering about the road name? I’d be surprised to learn that there were multiple saints with the same moniker. Ah… seems the Terrace was named after St George’s Cathedral, but the apostrophe simply became too hard.)

[*Roy: Yes, dear. It’s just you.]

French Triangle Part 3: Dordogne, Carcassonne and Provence

Travel in France: Post-Plague family reunion in Saint-Geniès; dining in the Dordogne; Death Row dinner; tricked into being side-tracked to Montech for lunch, poor Roy!; canal-side in Carcassonne, and why we seldom eat steak in France; Hotel Renaissance at Aix-en-Provence; murals and Ricard at La-Seyne-sur-Mer; cliffs and calanques at Cassis; flagrant disregard of cycle-path etiquette in La Ciotat; homeward bound, with a lot of excess baggage!

Three nights in the Dordogne

As a reminder, this is the first leg of our French triangle: from St Jean-de-Losne in Burgundy to the Dordogne. (NB: There will be a test.)

The heavier line, heading southwest from SJDL to the Dordogne

French Triangle Part 2: Beautiful Burgundy – Esbarres, Dole and Dijon

Before reading about beautiful Burgundy, please check out French Triangle Part One, where we said goodbye to our boat, Karanja; gorgeous gîte in Esbarres, near St Jean-de-Losne; homage to crossing the Channel on Karanja with David; flashback to cassoulet in Carcassonne; lamb shank and lavish scenery in Dole; by train to Dijon for lunch at Le Gourmand; onward to the Dordogne!

So, when we weren’t busy tearfully clearing our personal possessions off Karanja, prior to handing her over to her new owners at the St Jean-de-Losne Salon Fluviale, what were we doing? Exploring beautiful Burgundy while drowning our sorrows in duck-fat and Chablis, it would seem.

St Jean-de-Losne, Piper barge, travels with Verne and Roy

French Triangle Part 1: Farewell to Karanja, 20-30 April

Goodbye to boating in France; dirty minds and a pretty map; shamelessly nostalgic Karanja flashback; 18 Pipers piping; celebratory sake with Masako and Yoshi; apéro, gorgeously Gorgonzola-ey pizzas and Toshi’s sushi; sterling beef tartare, and whitebait with too many eyes

For any dirty minds out there, no – this French triangle of which I speak is nothing nearly as exciting as a ménage á trois in a French farce. In fact, it’s mostly about the breaking up of the triangle that was Roy, me and our Dutch barge Karanja.

In addition, it roughly describes the route from St Jean-de-Losne in Bourgogne, where we said goodbye to Karanja; southwest to the Dordogne to visit Roy’s sister Lyndsay and brother-in-law John; down to daughter Wendy in Provence; and back to Bourgogne.

One Week in Phuket, 2nd Part: Patong and Kata Beach, 7-12 Feb

One week in Phuket is barely an introduction to this lovely Thai island. After two tremendous nights in Phuket Old Town (see 1st Part), Roy and I spent five fabulous days on the popular west coast of Phuket – a good balance of gorgeous beaches, copious cocktails, Soi Banglah girly-bar sleaze, and pukkah Royal Thai cuisine.

When it comes to choosing accommodation, it’s tricky to advise anyone where to stay on their first visit to Phuket. That said, I think you’d be safe choosing any of the western or southern coast beaches.

Phuket accommodation and restaurants, Patong Beach — Patong Beach, Phuket west coast

But which one? – Kalim, Patong, Karon, Kata, Kata Noi? And which hotel? Here’s a map of just the Patong hotels – the choice is mind-boggling.

Kalim Beach, closest beach to Indochine Resort & Villas where we spent three nights

One Week in Phuket, 1st Part: Phuket Old Town, 5-7 February

With just one week in Phuket, here’s where to eat and stay – starting with two nights in the fabulous culinary melting-pot of Phuket Old Town

“I get my kicks above the waistline, Sunshine.” Me too, but not that far above the waistline. Right in the region of the stomach, actually.

Travel doesn’t have to be all about food – but for us it often turns out that way. Phuket is no exception: Southern Thai is a melting pot of Thai, Malay, Burmese and Chinese cultures, and Phuket was named “Thailand City of Gastronomy” by Unesco in 2017.

Roy and I visited Phuket at least half-a-dozen times during our Singapore years (2001-2016), but never spent any time in Phuket Old Town. I hadn’t been to Phuket since around 2014. For Roy, it had been even longer. Thailand is our favourite Southeast-Asian country – apart from Singapore of course. I was itching to get back.

Green papaya salad, laced with slivers of fiery fresh chillies

Though it pains my dearest to take time off from watching our new house in Iluka WA not being built (here and here), he agreed to a fortnight away from Perth. It helps that spicy green papaya salad (above) is one of his favourite dishes ever. We’d have a week in Singapore, plus a week-long side trip to Phuket.

Amaroo Retreat & Spa, Perth Hills, 17-18 January 2023

Roy has always appreciated a surprise birthday treat, and now it seems that I do too. After all, what’s not to like about a WA Midlands getaway complete with Moët, spa bath, massage and attendant kangaroos?

My man had been obdurately tight-lipped about whether we’d be going somewhere on Tuesday, 17 January. But it was fairly obvious that we were – I’d been advised against making any plans for the next morning (the 18th), and he’d suggested that I move my birthday hair appointment back to 9am.

Once the birthday earrings had been unwrapped and it was time to rise, shine and carpe diem, he had to crack. Yes, we are going somewhere. Yes, you need to pack a nice dress for dinner. No, we weren’t going anywhere near the sea; but yes, there might be water, so pack a swimsuit.

Hmm… Crown Casino, where I still want to try a couple of restaurants? Or somewhere inland, like the Swan Valley? We had a lovely stay at Mandoon Estate once, courtesy of vouchers from the offspring. (Here’s my blog post about Mandoon.)

And so it came to pass that I found myself in the passenger seat of the Volvo CX40, heading – as far as I could tell – for the Perth Hills. Hurrah! – though I was better packed for a fancy night at Crown, I never mind being overdressed. (Here’s my blog post about our anniversary celebration at Crown last year.)

Across Australia, Part Two: Days 4 to 6, 17-19 September

Across Australia, Part Two: World’s rarest coffee; Eucla, a tale of rabbits and sand; the Nullarbor Nymph – the myth and the restaurant; distressingly rum do’s at the Eucla Motor Hotel bar; over the border to South Australia; nasty Nundroo; forbidden fruit confiscation; oysters at Ceduna; Kimba – halfway across Australia; Port Augusta; a most surprising billboard

For Part One, Days 1 to 3, click here.

DAY 4: Cocklebiddy to Eucla (280km)

To recap Part 1, we’re driving from Perth WA to Brisbane QLD. That pink bit on the map below is the Nullabor Plain, which we’re taking three days to cross.

Norseman to Ceduna – the Nullarbor Plain: all those place names are just roadhouses, not towns

Crown Perth Vintage Celebration, 25-26 August 2022

Crown Perth for a vintage celebration; our Keg & Thistle origin story; say “Crown”, not “The Crown”; checking in, then and now; the great bathroom quandary; High Tea vs High Cheese – cheese, please; ocean vs pool – no contest; singing the casino blues; Oyster Bar EQ diversion; Nobu bento box diversion; review: Rockpool Bar & Grill

Where does a vintage couple like us go to celebrate? – why, Crown of course! This time, it was to mark our 30^th anniversary of meeting.

Roy and I met in a bar in Florida Road, Durban, on 25 August 1992. Four years later to the day, he proposed to me in the same bar: the Keg & Thistle, now long gone. And so we make a point of having a drink in a bar every 25 August to celebrate… well… ourselves.

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Three nights in the Dordogne

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DAY 4: Cocklebiddy to Eucla (280km)

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