Food, Glorious Food

When I first came to London, more than 20 years ago, it was difficult to eat a great meal unless you went to a Michelin starred restaurant – or cooked it yourself.  Much has changed since then and this city has turned into such a foodie heaven, and haven, that we are spoiled for choice.

In my family, we generally like to eat out in ethnic restaurants, and we have a particular passion for Asian food.  Of course we have our favourite local haunts where we are recognised at the door and that are easy to get to.  But since it was

Chinese New Year, we decided to look outside our neighbourhood and try something new. Some friends recommended A. Wong in Victoria.

We went for lunch on a weekday,
and hadn't booked in advance. Upon arrival there were only seats at the bar, so we took them. It turned out to be a great spot because I had a bird’s eye view of the kitchen. We ordered dim sum, and I was pleased to watch as they added the finishing touches manually to each and every dumpling and sesame ball that was ordered. We had a wide variety, including  63 degree ‘tea egg’ with shredded filo accompanied by a smoking piece of cinnamon bark; foie gras sticky sesame dumplings; Shanghai steamed dumplings with ginger infused vinegar; clear shrimp dumplings, sweet chilli sauce, citrus
foam; and many others which were divine. While I don't usually order desert in a Chinese restaurant, there was something very appealing about the Snow ball meringue, lychee granita, mango puree and lime sorbet that called out to me – and did not disappoint!

To continue on our Asian food theme, one of my sons loves to cook and came across a recipe on a site called Manila Spoon to make Filipino spring rolls.  Most of the ingredients were easy enough to find in our local super market, but we made a trip to a specialty market to find the ‘lumpia’ or pastry for the rolls. While time consuming, because you have to prepare the ingredients in stages, it was relatively simple to do, and the results turned out to be delicious! 

As I have recently learned from my Malaysian colleague, Chinese New Year celebrations last over 15 days. To ensure that we at FOCUS didn’t miss out on the celebrations, Irene arranged a New Year’s feast for lunch on Monday.  We were all instructed to bring a coin and to know the animal of the year of our birth. The room was decorated in red with paper lanterns and the infamous red envelopes. There was a magnificent feast on the table, including crispy duck, dim sum, Singapore noodles and other delicacies, lovingly prepared by Dragon 
Palace in Earl's Court. Irene entertained us with stories

of Chinese New Year traditions, and at the end we each read our horoscopes. 

It may have been a starving Oliver Twist who sang about food, glorious food; but little did he
know what would be available in London in the future!      

Written by Eva Stock. Eva is Director of Sponsors Relations at FOCUS.

For more information about FOCUS visit:  www.focus-info.org



Should you wish to share your expat experiences in the UK, please contact us: office@focus-info.org

                                  

GONG XI FA CAI!

Over the past 2 weeks, spring cleaning my flat was my top agenda item as Chinese New Year is approaching. It is imperative to have a spotless house especially in the kitchen, as the Kitchen God returns to Heaven to make his report on humans to the Jade Emperor. Thus many Chinese households have to ensure its cleanliness to ensure that the Jade Emperor will bestow good fortune and luck upon them for the coming year. It is also believed that cleaning sweeps away the bad luck and makes way for good luck to arrive. All brooms and other cleaning utensils are then put away as not to sweep away the good luck on the first day.

This year is the Year of the Goat or Sheep, and falls on 19th February 2015. There are 12 zodiac animals - Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig, and 5 elements Earth, Wind, Metal, Fire and Water. Each element with an animal occurs once in 60 years, and this forms the basis for the person born in the year’s character.

I can remember my mother buying us new clothes before every Chinese New Year, and they had to be red as it the colour of good luck, and wards off evil spirits. It was important to be dressed from head to toe in new clothes as it symbolises the beginning of a new year. She also used to insist that we got our hair cut and chooses an auspicious day for us all to visit the hairdressers. On New Year’s Eve, we would gather with all our relatives for a reunion dinner, lighting firecrackers to usher in the Year, and ask for forgiveness from our elders for all the wrong doings or for being naughty the past year.

Our house would be filled with lots of different types of cookies, prawn crackers, oranges, tangerines and lots of scrumptious cooked food, ready to be served to our guests on New Year’s Day.

The giving of ‘red envelopes’ which contain money from our elders and married relatives makes it a very ‘profitable’ time for the children. It is customary and polite for children to wish elders a happy new year and a year of happiness, health and good fortune before accepting the red envelope. When we visited other relatives or friends, we would also take a packet of oranges/tangerine to their house as both words mean wealth and

luck. We would also wish them 'Xin Nian Kuai Le', Happy New Year in Mandarin, or "San Nin Faai Lok" in Cantonese.

Our New Year celebrations last for 15 days, and the Chinese Community in London will be celebrating by having festivities in 
Trafalgar Square, Chinatown and Shaftesbury Avenue.

Highlights on the event include a lively parade and a main stage in Trafalgar Square on 22nd February from 10am until 6pm. The day kicks off with the parade from Duncannon Street to Shaftesbury Avenue with floats, Chinese lion and dragon teams and more. Performances from local artists and traditional food and craft stalls can be found in various locations throughout the day. Follow these web-links below for more activities throughout the celebrations. Join in to celebrate and have a great weekend out.

GONG XI FA CAI- HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

http://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/chinese-new-year-in-london
http://www.chinatownlondon.org





To find out your animal year check the table below with the year of your birth.
 
Rat: 2008, 1996, 1984, 1972, 1960
Ox: 2009, 1997, 1985, 1973, 1961
Tiger: 2010, 1998, 1986, 1974, 1962
Rabbit: 2011, 1999, 1987, 1975, 1963
Dragon: 2012, 2000, 1988, 1976, 1964
Snake: 2013, 2001, 1989, 1977, 1965
Horse: 2014, 2002, 1990, 1978, 1966
Goat: 2015, 2003, 1991, 1979, 1967
Monkey: 2016, 2004, 1992, 1980, 1968
Rooster: 2017, 2005, 1993, 1981, 1969
Dog: 2018, 2006, 1994, 1982, 1970
Pig: 2019, 2007, 1995, 1983, 1971


Written by Irene Kuan. Irene is Director of Finance at FOCUS.

For more information about FOCUS visit:  www.focus-info.org

Should you wish to share your expat experiences in the UK, please contact us: office@focus-info.org

Roof Top Tipple

I must admit I am lucky to receive invitations to many unique events as part of my role here at FOCUS. However, when faced with my third night out this week I was thinking how nice it would be to kick back at home with my two teens and husband and savour a nice family meal. This of course is a bit of an exaggeration, did I mention teens? And a husband home in time for dinner? Okay, you know what I mean.

While even the real picture seemed tempting, I was reminded of the advice from Adrian  Cassidy's Resilience seminar on Monday evening 

that everyone should have at least five networks
and, more importantly, that meeting new people is a key factor to being a resilient individual. With this in mind I put on my party shoes, some much needed cover up and I headed down the block from the FOCUS office.

Now prepped and ready for a sociable evening, I arrived at The Roof Gardens, a hidden treasure not visible from Kensington High Street, which has an amazing garden spanning 1.5 acres with majestic views of London.

The building originally housed the department store Derry and Toms until 1973, and then Biba until 1975. The Gardens were listed as a Grade II site by the English Heritage in 1978. There are in fact three roof gardens including a Spanish garden, a Tudor style garden and an English woodland garden complete with four flamingos named Bill, Ben, Splosh and Pecks! If the spectacular gardens are not enough of an attraction, the 6th floor houses a glamorous private members club and on the 7th floor inside the gardens is the elegant Babylon restaurant.

Having greeted our FOCUS members we headed up the express lift to the 7th floor and were graciously escorted to the beautiful garden terrace where the most divine warm cocktails adorned with a stem of currents awaited us. Taking in the view towards the London Eye I had to stop for a moment and reflect on just how fabulous a city London is and all the unexpected and unique experiences I continue to have even after 18 years of living here. Having paused for reflection and having been warmed by the first sip of my cocktail I was then consumed by the lively conversation amongst our 25 guests.

While there were several conversations in Greek, Spanish, Italian and French that I was not able to participate in, I am quite sure from their animated faces and volume of chatter that everyone was sharing experiences, their stories of what brought them to London, favourite discoveries and more. What was crystal clear is that bonds were being formed and friendships were in the making.

Just when we all thought things couldn’t get better out came inviting plates of baked cheese accompanied by a selection of artisan breads. Making our way to the various offerings gave us another excuse to move around and meet those we had not already. The evening continued with wine, adorable wire baskets of gourmet chips and continuous conversation!

Occasionally I stepped back to again take in the spectacular view of the skyline and listen to the happy chatter of the members around me and realised that even the serene family dinner of my dreams was no comparison to the fabulous evening at the Roof Gardens with an amazing group of talented expats all happy to be experiencing London!

Written by Nancy Dickinson.  Nancy is Deputy Executive Director at FOCUS.

For more information please visit www.focus-info.org

Should you wish to share your expat experiences in the UK, please contact us: office@focus-info.org

‘En garde! Prêts? Allez!’

When I received an invitation to an international fencing competition at the Copper Box Arena in London, I did not have an hesitation: I love fencing which, despite its modern sophistication, remains one of the most ancient and complete physical exercises in the world. And this event was going to be THE opportunity to discover the first Olympic venue to have opened its doors at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park: The Copper Box Arena!

For those who do not know the Copper Box Arena, it was London’s newest 7,000 capacity venue that hosted
handball and modern pentathlon fencing during the 2012 Olympic Games, as well as goalball during the Paralympics. Located close to Hackney Wick station, the Copper Box Arena, despite its bland and boxy-looking exterior, is considered as one of the Olympic Park’s greenest initiatives. Far from being a 'box', it is a terrific space for sport: the four outer walls of this square building are covered in recycled copper cladding which will change colour and get green as it ages; natural light pipes in the room illuminate the interior, reducing the need for artificial light; rainwater pipes recycle water. The interior is fitted with multi-coloured retractable seats which give the place a vibrant feel. The competition area, in the centre of the building, is covered with a state-of-the-art sprung wood floor which makes the place stylish and modern. Since the Olympic Games, the Copper Box has been transformed into a venue for a wide range of indoor sports as well as cultural and business events.

As a matter of fact, the Copper Box Arena was very well suited for the peculiarities of an international two-day sabre fencing competition. Perfectly organised by the British Fencing Federation and Camden Fencing Club, this competition welcomed teams and supporters from all over the world. No worry about fencing supporters! You will never hear shouts or see signs of over-enthousiam! Fencing is a combination of speed, agility, concentration and strategy. Timing is key in fencing; therefore it does not leave any room for supporters’ burstings! Supporters know it and behave!

This 2-day challenge was a real treat in a perfectly suited environment. The Copper Box Arena always brings brand new, top international events to London. If you do not know it yet, check their website: you will not be disappointed!

Written by Florence Tilkens. Florence is Social Media & Marketing Manager at FOCUS.




For more information, please visit www.focus-info.org 

Should you wish to share your expat experiences in the UK, please contact us: office@focus-info.org