Author: cia
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We arrived in Tunis-Carthage airport after a connection in Paris minus the Dr.’s backpack. We originally planned to start our drive to the north of the country without stopping in Tunis, but this setback, although minor, was still annoying. We took care of everything first: filed a claim for lost luggage, exchanged our dollars to…
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Got some smoked salmon? This is one of my favorite appetizers to serve while I prepare the rest of our dinner. Served with a glass of white wine, it will keep the hungry from bothering you in the kitchen. Ingredients: smoked salmon 1 bunch of watercress, washed throughly, torn in smaller pieces 2 garlic cloves,…
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What to do with potatoes before leaving for vacation? I always feel bad when there’s still a lot of produce in the kitchen before I go away. I hate wasting food and I wanted to use the herbs I also had sitting on the counter. I was too busy packing, so I wanted to cook…
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After biking from Glencolumbkille to Maghera Beach, we drove to the small town of Ardara to take a break. Nancy’s is the ultimate Irish pub because it has been around for several generations. Its namesake is the great-grandmother of its current owner. There are hundreds of trinkets hanging around the pub, and each piece looked…
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Teach Barnai, or Barney’s House, is a family-run restaurant with an impressive menu. It feels like somebody’s home, especially when you sit by the fireplace downstairs for a pint while waiting to be seated. We were seated in the more intimate space on the second floor, and it felt like we were having our own…
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At first I doubted that my body could do a second bike tour–cold and wet while fighting strong winds and pedaling downhill. When I saw the itinerary—fifteen miles from Glencolumbkille to Maghera Beach, passing through Glengesh Pass—I was prepared to accept the helpful van rides along the bike route. But it was probably our guide…
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I’ve always been turned off by tour guides because from what I’ve experienced, they talk like broken records and they really just do it because it’s their job. Enter Sean Mullan of Walking and Talking in Ireland. He has been walking the walk and talking the talk for about five years, and it showed. Tours…
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I was craving Chinese take-out for some reason–the bad, oily and saucy kind–and so my mouth watered when I read this recipe in the Sunday Times. I bought a large eggplant on my way home because our neighborhood supermarket doesn’t carry the small and thinner Asian kind. The large ones have darker and tougher purple…
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We spent our first night in Ballycastle. During dinner, Ian from Irish Cycle Tours stopped by to introduce himself. The next morning, after my first Irish “brekkie” of bacon, eggs, grilled tomatoes, and black and white pudding, we biked from Ballycastle to Portballintrae and made our first stop at the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge off Ballintoy.…
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In Memories of Philippine Kitchens, Amy Besa and Romy Dorotan say that if you have to master a Filipino recipe, it has to be adobo. Adobo in Spanish-speaking countries refers to the oil, garlic and vinegar flavor. Each country has added its own touch to it, whether they be black peppercorns, marjoram or bay leaves,…
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After a couple of hours of sleep in a hotel in Dublin, we set off for the Mourne Mountains in Newcastle. Martin McGuigan met us for tea and sandwiches to talk to us about Walk on the Wild Side and to tell us about the day’s itinerary. He has been running his company for about…
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I’m going to be away for two weeks, so I thought I’d pickle again so that it’s ready when I return. At Fairway, they had some fresh Israeli cucumbers for sale. They were small enough to fit an old pickling jar I kept, so I picked up nine pieces with some dill and mustard seeds.…