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<h1><a href="/">malrase dot com</a></h1>
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<div class="blog-index unit four-of-five">
<article>
<header>
<h1 class="entry-title"><a href="/blog/2016/06/19/game-of-thrones-cocktails/">Game of Thrones Cocktails</a></h1>
<p class="meta">
<time class='entry-date' datetime='2016-06-19T14:14:36-07:00'><span class='date'><span class='date-month'>Jun</span> <span class='date-day'>19</span><span class='date-suffix'>th</span>, <span class='date-year'>2016</span></span> <span class='time'>2:14 pm</span></time>
</p>
</header>
<div class="entry-content"><p>If you’ve been following <a href="https://twitter.com/malrase">my Twitter</a> over the past few Sundays, you might have noticed I post a Game of Thrones themed cocktail. Some are better than others, and some I put more effort into (the Blood on the Snow is basically a G&T – I was on beach vacation for that one).</p>
<p>Some people said they’d be interested in seeing a list with recipes. So here you go: my Game of Thrones cocktails.</p>
<h2>Mother Of Dragons</h2>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/got/mother-of-dragons.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/got/mother-of-dragons.jpg">
</a>
</div>
<ul>
<li>2oz Del Vida mezcal</li>
<li>4oz blood orange soda</li>
<li>Juice from half a lime</li>
</ul>
<p>Serve in a Tom Collins glass over ice. Garnish with a lemon peel.</p>
<h2>White Walker</h2>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/got/white-walker.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/got/white-walker.jpg">
</a>
</div>
<ul>
<li>2oz gin (New Amsterdam or similar)</li>
<li>0.75oz lemon juice</li>
<li>0.75oz Cointreau</li>
<li>Dash of blue curaçao</li>
</ul>
<p>Shake over ice and serve up.</p>
<h2>Dothraki Blood</h2>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/got/dothraki-blood.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/got/dothraki-blood.jpg">
</a>
</div>
<ul>
<li>2oz Bulleit bourbon</li>
<li>0.75oz Carpano Antica sweet vermouth</li>
<li>0.5oz Cynar</li>
<li>Two dashes of blood orange bitters</li>
</ul>
<p>Stir with ice and serve up. Garnish with an orange peel.</p>
<h2>Blood on the Snow</h2>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/got/blood-on-the-snow.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/got/blood-on-the-snow.jpg">
</a>
</div>
<ul>
<li>2oz St Augustine gin</li>
<li>2oz tonic</li>
<li>Splash of lime</li>
</ul>
<p>Serve in an Old Fashioned glass over ice. Garnish with two drops of Peychaud’s bitters.</p>
<h2>Lord of Light</h2>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/got/lord-of-light.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/got/lord-of-light.jpg">
</a>
</div>
<ul>
<li>1.5oz Del Vida mezcal</li>
<li>1.5oz Carpano Antica sweet vermouth</li>
<li>1oz Averna amaro</li>
<li>Two dashes of Reagan’s bitters.</li>
</ul>
<p>Stir over ice and serve in an Old Fashioned glass over a big cube. Garnish with a burnt orange peel.</p>
<h2>The Waif</h2>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/got/the-waif.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/got/the-waif.jpg">
</a>
</div>
<ul>
<li>2oz resposado tequila</li>
<li>0.75oz elderflower liqueur</li>
<li>0.5oz lemon juice</li>
<li>1 egg white</li>
<li>Dash of grapefruit juice</li>
</ul>
<p>Dry shake the lemon, grapefruit, egg white, and elderflower. Add the tequila and shake over ice. Serve up with a dash of grapefruit bitters on the foam.</p>
<h2>The Battle of the Bastards</h2>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/got/battle-of-the-bastards.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/got/battle-of-the-bastards.jpg">
</a>
</div>
<ul>
<li>0.75oz Diplomatico rum</li>
<li>0.75oz Mt Gay rum</li>
<li>1.5oz dry vermouth</li>
<li>0.5oz Cointreau</li>
<li>Dash of Angostoura bitters</li>
</ul>
<p>Stir over ice, and serve over a large cube. Garnish with a lemon peel.</p>
</div>
</article>
<article>
<header>
<h1 class="entry-title"><a href="/blog/2016/04/09/japan-trip-tourists-in-tokyo-part-2/">Japan Trip: Tourists in Tokyo (Part 2)</a></h1>
<p class="meta">
<time class='entry-date' datetime='2016-04-09T09:29:53-07:00'><span class='date'><span class='date-month'>Apr</span> <span class='date-day'>9</span><span class='date-suffix'>th</span>, <span class='date-year'>2016</span></span> <span class='time'>9:29 am</span></time>
</p>
</header>
<div class="entry-content"><p>After our day of exploring by ourselves, Mike and Melissa showed up to help us navigate all the cool things to do. It’s incredibly useful visiting with people who’ve been to Japan a lot – explaining all the customs and phrases, knowing which areas to go to, and so on.</p>
<p>The first thing we did was go to Disney, but I’m going to put all the Disney stuff in one post. But later that evening, we went to what became Hampton and my favourite chain of izakaya: <a href="https://www.torikizoku.co.jp/">Torikizoku</a>. They’re dotted around Tokyo and you can easily spot their distinctive yellow-and-red <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seal_script">seal script</a> logo. The best thing about them? All menu items are 280¥ (~$2.60). Even drinks! It’s nice knowing you can eat your fill of delicious yakitori for under $20. That was a great thing about Japan – you can get really good food for really cheap.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/torikizoku.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/torikizoku.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">A selection of our food at Torikizoku</div>
</div>
<p>We then went wandering through <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shibuya">Shibuya</a>, and Hampton stumbled upon this guy selling street oysters.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/street-oysters.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/street-oysters.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Street oysters were really tasty</div>
</div>
<p></p>
<p>Hampton loves oysters, so we had to stop. I’m usually extremely cautious of street meat, and street <em>seafood</em> is even sketchier, but this guy had a crowd of people eating his oysters – so we had one. It was good and we didn’t die of food poisoning, so that’s a win.</p>
<p>Next we went to a place where you ordered on a tablet:</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/tablet-orders.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/tablet-orders.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Minimal human interaction = win</div>
</div>
<p>It was awesome except for the dangerously drunk group behind us. I was very worried someone was going to fall into me, but they didn’t.</p>
<p>Then we spent the rest of the night playing games in an arcade. These arcades are everywhere and usually involve a mix of computer games and UFO catchers.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/drumming.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/drumming.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">The drumming game was the best game</div>
</div>
<p></p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/ufo.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/ufo.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Mike looks pretty suspicious</div>
</div>
<p>The next day Mike and Melissa had booked us all a sushi lunch in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ginza">Ginza</a>. (PS: if you have an AmEx card, you should definitely use their concierge to book restaurants.)</p>
<p>The place was called <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g1066444-d6069493-Reviews-Sushi_Iwa-Chuo_Tokyo_Tokyo_Prefecture_Kanto.html">Sushi Iwa</a>, and was down a side alley. It was across the street from where it was supposed to be, due to some renovation work.</p>
<p>Inside, there were six (!) seats at a bar. There were four of us, and for the first hour of the meal it was just us in the restaurant.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-bar.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-bar.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Corner of the sushi bar</div>
</div>
<p>The chef was lovely – he prepped all the food right there in front of us.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-chef.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-chef.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">The chef!</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-plate.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-plate.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Place setting</div>
</div>
<p>We opted for the longer menu, which came to about $80 per person. The chef would get out the fish at appropriate times to ensure it was at the correct temperature when we ate it. He’d call for a top-up of rice when necessary.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-fish.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-fish.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Cutting the fish</div>
</div>
<p>It was amazing to watch him work. Once he’d made the sushi, he’d reach over and place it on our plates. Then, we ate each piece with our hands. And the final products… wow. They were absolutely incredible.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-tuna.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/sushi-iwa-tuna.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Seriously, can you believe the colour on that tuna?</div>
</div>
<p>The chef would name each fish in English (but also had a handy book to point at things that we weren’t familiar with). It was (naturally) the best sushi I’ve ever had. I won’t bore you with all the pictures I took of each piece.</p>
<p>Sadly, the meal had to come to an end. We decided to take the train to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harajuku">Harajuku</a>/<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meiji_Shrine">Meiji Shrine</a>.</p>
<p>Meiji Shrine is dedicated to the old Emperor, so it’s super-popular and important. It’s beautiful inside and we saw a shinto wedding one time we were there.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/meiji.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/meiji.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">The front of Meiji Shrine</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/wishes-meiji.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/wishes-meiji.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">You can write hopes/wishes on these cards</div>
</div>
<p>We popped into <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoyogi_Park">Yoyogi Park</a>, which wasn’t as easy to get to as you might imagine from Meiji Shrine. They’re right next to each other geographically, but there’s no connecting gates.</p>
<p>We did see some ume blossoms (although they’re inferior to sakura, OBVIOUSLY).</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/yoyogi.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/yoyogi.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Ume blossoms bloom early, apparently</div>
</div>
<p>Then we wandered down the main street of Harajuku, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takeshita_Street">Takeshita street</a>. It was a Sunday afternoon and it was a beautiful day out, so of course it was packed.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/takeshita.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/takeshita.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">かわいい!!!!</div>
</div>
<p>After that exhausting day of shopping, we went to a seafood izakaya place called <a href="http://tabelog.com/en/tokyo/A1307/A130701/13025693/">魚真 乃木坂店</a>. It was over near Roppongi, which is a sketchy/clubby area we were told to avoid. But this place was great, and we ate lots of uni and other delicious things. And drank lots of <em>nama biiru</em> (draft beer).</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/biiru.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/biiru.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">I learnt how to order beer and I stuck with it</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/uni.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/uni.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Piles of uni and tuna</div>
</div>
<p>To round the night off, we went to McDonalds for something I’d been excited about trying for a while: <a href="http://news.mcdonalds.com/Corporate/Feature-Stories-Articles/2016/McDonald-s-Japan-Puts-a-Sweet-Spin-on-a-Golden-Arc">McChoco Potato</a>.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/mcchoco.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/mcchoco.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">McChoco Potato, y u so good?</div>
</div>
<p>It’s basically McDonalds fries with milk and white chocolate sauce on them. They were so good and my stomach is rumbling right now with the thought of them.</p>
<p>Next up: we take the shinkansen to Osaka!</p>
</div>
</article>
<article>
<header>
<h1 class="entry-title"><a href="/blog/2016/02/21/japan-trip-tourists-in-tokyo/">Japan Trip: Tourists in Tokyo (Part 1)</a></h1>
<p class="meta">
<time class='entry-date' datetime='2016-02-21T19:58:22-08:00'><span class='date'><span class='date-month'>Feb</span> <span class='date-day'>21</span><span class='date-suffix'>st</span>, <span class='date-year'>2016</span></span> <span class='time'>7:58 pm</span></time>
</p>
</header>
<div class="entry-content"><p>We landed late on a Thursday, and managed to catch the <a href="http://www.keisei.co.jp/keisei/tetudou/skyliner/us/ae_outline/index.php">Keisei Skyliner</a> to our first hotel. We were staying in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akihabara">Akihabara</a>, the electronics district. It was overwhelming when we first arrived.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/akihabara.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/akihabara.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Nighttime in Akihabara</div>
</div>
<p>I had an idea of what Tokyo would be like, and this was it turned up to 11. Neon signs were attached to every building. Video screens were selling you products or pop bands. People were shouting on the street for you to come into their bar/arcade/store. It was a sensory overload&emdash;not helped by just having taken a 10 hour flight on which I didn’t sleep. We went to bed pretty soon after arriving.</p>
<p>The next day, we headed over to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsukiji_fish_market">Tsukiji</a> fish market. It’s a slightly cliché first-day-in-Tokyo thing to do, but it’s apparently being moved to somewhere else in the Autumn, so we wanted to do it at least once. It’s a labyrinth of small restaurants, fishmongers, and other shops selling knives/chopsticks/etc.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/tsukiji.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/tsukiji.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">In the narrow streets of Tsukiji</div>
</div>
<p>But the best part is the cheap, amazing fresh sushi you get find in the area. We picked a place at random, opting for a sushi bar that looked reasonably packed but without too much of a wait.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/tsukiji-sushi.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/tsukiji-sushi.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Sushi bar!</div>
</div>
<p>I’m not going to try to describe the ensuing bounty. The fish was cold and tender, the rice warm and sticky. It was probably the best sushi I’d ever had (until a couple of days later, but that’s for a different post).</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/tsukiji-breakfast.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/tsukiji-breakfast.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Freshest fish I’ll eat, probably</div>
</div>
<p>Just looking at this makes me want to eat it again. The best piece was the fatty tuna, on the top-left of the board. Delicious.</p>
<p>After the market, we headed over to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ueno_Park">Ueno Park</a>, an urban park with a number of shrines and museums. Unfortunately, the National Museum of Western Art was closed, so we ended up going to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokyo_National_Museum">Tokyo National Museum</a> instead.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/tokyo-met.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/tokyo-met.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Hanging out with the TNM mascots</div>
</div>
<p>It provided a nice overview, for ignorant people such as myself, to the broad history of Tokyo (and, to some extent, Japan). There was also a special exhibition on&emdash;some of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracotta_Army">Terracotta Army</a> were on display. So we spent a little more and got entrance to that, too.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/warriors.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/warriors.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Some (fake) terracotta warriors… we weren’t allowed to take pictures of the real ones</div>
</div>
<p>They were fairly impressive, I suppose, but the exhibition was in its last few days so it was packed. You could barely move in there. But I guess I can check it off the bucket list?</p>
<p>Anyway, we went back to the hotel to relax before heading out for dinner. This was our first major meal in Tokyo, and introduced us to one of the jarring ways to deal with such density of people. In most cities I’ve been to, restaurants (and bars) have a street-level entrance. Not here. Restaurants are found on seemingly any floor of a building. In this case, we went for <a href="">yakiniku</a> on the fourth floor of a building. (<em>So, I should note, it’s important to figure out what floor a restaurant is on when you look up an address.</em>)</p>
<p>Yakiniku is basically grilled stuff. And we grilled a whole bunch-o-meat on our very own grill.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/yakiniku.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/yakiniku.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Tasty meat, pre-grilling</div>
</div>
<p>Weird cultural thing I didn’t know before going to Japan: smoking indoors is pretty much A-OK, even in restaurants. It was odd being in a kinda-fancy restaurant and having the table next to us start blowing smoke in our direction. Boo.</p>
<p>Afterwards, we went “next door” (read: across the floor) to a British-style pub. It’s part of a chain called the HUB. It was pretty fun, but it was odd because inside was smoking only… so we sat outside, right near the elevator. Odd times.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/tokyo/hub-akb.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/tokyo/hub-akb.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Chilling in a building’s elevator lobby</div>
</div>
<p>The next day, Mike and Melissa arrived! But more about that in my next post.</p>
</div>
</article>
<article>
<header>
<h1 class="entry-title"><a href="/blog/2016/02/11/japan-trip-singapore-airlines-in-business-class/">Japan Trip: Singapore Airlines SQ11 in Business Class</a></h1>
<p class="meta">
<time class='entry-date' datetime='2016-02-11T22:58:51-08:00'><span class='date'><span class='date-month'>Feb</span> <span class='date-day'>11</span><span class='date-suffix'>th</span>, <span class='date-year'>2016</span></span> <span class='time'>10:58 pm</span></time>
</p>
</header>
<div class="entry-content"><p>Our first trip of 2016, and it’s a big one: we’re heading to Japan for two weeks.</p>
<p>Japan has been top of my destinations list for a while. As <a href="http://melissadreamsofsushi.com">Melissa</a> and <a href="http://mikeferrier.com">Mike</a> booked a trip to Osaka, we decided to join in on their fun. The itinerary is roughly as follows: 4 days in Tokyo, 4 days in Osaka, 1 day in Kyoto, then back to Tokyo for 5 days.</p>
<p>But let’s start with the most interesting part: our flights there! We decided to book with [Singapore Airlines]–the LAX-NRT flight was on an A380 (yay) and we’ve heard they’re pretty nice. Plus, they have recently introduced Premium Economy… making the 11-hour flight just a little more palatable.</p>
<p>Anyway, the day before we got a phone call saying that there was no Premium Economy on the plane we were going to take. Uh-oh. The person said it would be fine, just ask at the check-in desk when we arrive.</p>
<p>Only problem is: we were flying with Virgin America from SFO to get to LAX. With a tight layover, were we going to have time to visit the Singapore Airlines check-in desk? When we arrived at SFO, the Virgin America crew couldn’t even give us the boarding pass for our second leg. That made us even more nervous. But we weren’t showing it.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/sfo.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/sfo.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Boarding our SFO flight (plus the amazing new control tower in the background)</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/virginamerica.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/virginamerica.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Virgin America SFO-LAX</div>
</div>
<p>We landed in L.A. and rushed to the International Terminal (which was thankfully just next to the terminal we landed at). We went to the check-in desk and…</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/boarding-pass.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/boarding-pass.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">SQ11 Boarding Pass</div>
</div>
<p>We were upgraded to Business Class! Holy moly! I never thought I’d fly Singapore Airlines Business Class, but there you go. Plus it was upstairs on the A380!</p>
<p>Before we got on the plane, we hung out in the Star Alliance Lounge, which was pretty nice. The best bit (aside from the free drinks) was the build-your-own-noodle-bowl bar.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/lounge-bar.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/lounge-bar.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Star Alliance Lounge at LAX</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/noodle-bar.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/noodle-bar.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Build-your-own noodle bowl!</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/noodles.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/noodles.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Nomnom, noodles</div>
</div>
<p>Oh yeah, and this is when I started my drinking. It’s vacation time!</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/mimosa.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/mimosa.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Cheeky mimosa before the flight</div>
</div>
<p>They also had some really nice dessert “shooters,” which unfortunately couldn’t fit a spoon into them. So I ate them with a knife instead. Keeping it classy, as always.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/lounge-dessert.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/lounge-dessert.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Passion fruit and s’mores dessert shooters</div>
</div>
<p>Over the intercom, they announced that our flight was boarding. Time to go! Going up an escalator to get to the entry was awesome. I love the A380 so much.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/escalator.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/escalator.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Up an escalator to the upper deck of the A380</div>
</div>
<p>The seats you get in Business Class are amazing. They’re (faux?) leather, and you get some comfy pillows too. The craziest thing was how wide they were. I think you could fit two Michaels in one of these seats.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/seat.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/seat.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">My seat</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/seat-width.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/seat-width.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Seriously, the seat was so wide</div>
</div>
<p>Also, Business Class was really empty. No one was in the seats behind us or diagonal to us. Which came in handy when my table was broken and I had to switch seats.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/empty-rows.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/empty-rows.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">So many empty rows behind me!</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/new-seat.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/new-seat.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">My new seat (only used for eating)</div>
</div>
<p>The seat had a number of cool features. There was a little pop-down table for drinks, and a mirror. There were power sockets for regular plugs and USB! Plus a neat little compartment for putting my phone in. We got some slippers and some noise-cancelling headphones (which were actually pretty good).</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/sockets.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/sockets.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Range of plug sockets</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/phone-holder.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/phone-holder.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Tiny pocket for holding my charging phone</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/mirror-drink.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/mirror-drink.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Mirror and drink holder</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/headphones.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/headphones.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Noise-cancelling headphones (you can see there’s a neat hook to hang them on, too)</div>
</div>
<p>Now onto the food. Singapore Airlines has a thing called “Book the Cook.” Basically, it’s like pre-ordering the meal you want <em>before</em> you get on your flight. You can choose some really delicious-sounding stuff! The menu we got when we sat down also offered <em>hanakoireki</em>, which was like a bento-box thing. Hampton went for the hanakoireki, and I got the chef’s meal. It was all superb.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/lunch-layout.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/lunch-layout.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">My table layout before the meal</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/lunch-starter.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/lunch-starter.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Starter: some kind of salmon and crab mayo thing</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/lunch-main.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/lunch-main.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Main: sukiyaki!</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/lunch-dessert.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/lunch-dessert.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Dessert: chocolate ice-cream</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/lunch-cheese.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/lunch-cheese.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Finally, a cheese course– you gotta have a cheese course</div>
</div>
<p>They also had a pretty decent cocktail list. I got a Singapore Sling (duh), which was really rather good.</p>
<p>Oh, and one more thing: the bathroom was full of useful items. Razors, toothbrush/toothpaste, mouthwash… handy for a 10 hour flight.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/bathroom-1.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/bathroom-1.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">So many toiletries!</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/bathroom-2.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/bathroom-2.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Plus razors, toothbrushes, combs…</div>
</div>
<p>After eating, the lovely staff of Singapore Airlines made my seat into a lie-flat bed. It was actually pretty comfortable.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/bed.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/bed.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">My sky-bed</div>
</div>
<p>As we were waking up, we had our “dinner”. (A weird thing about long flights: the names of the meals you’re served rarely correspond to when you get them.) Yay, more yummy food!</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/dinner-starter.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/dinner-starter.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Starter: beef carpaccio with pickles</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/dinner-main.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/dinner-main.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Main: some dim sum, including lo mai gai, har gow, and shaomai (the lo mai gai, wrapped in a lotus leaf, was amazing)</div>
</div>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/japan/flights/dinner-dessert.jpg">
<img src="/images/japan/flights/dinner-dessert.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">Dessert: green tea cake</div>
</div>
<p>And then, despite my yearning for a longer flight with this amazing service and food, we landed at Narita.</p>
</div>
</article>
<article>
<header>
<h1 class="entry-title"><a href="/blog/2015/12/31/2015-in-review/">2015 in Review</a></h1>
<p class="meta">
<time class='entry-date' datetime='2015-12-31T12:00:01-08:00'><span class='date'><span class='date-month'>Dec</span> <span class='date-day'>31</span><span class='date-suffix'>st</span>, <span class='date-year'>2015</span></span> <span class='time'>12:00 pm</span></time>
</p>
</header>
<div class="entry-content"><p>This year has felt busy, but I’m not sure how/why. It’s felt like my wheels have been spinning a little. I’ve been too busy to come up with a lot of items for this list – but what exactly have I been busy doing?</p>
<h3>Films</h3>
<ol>
<li>Mad Max: Fury Road</li>
<li>Star Wars: The Force Awakens</li>
<li>Inside Out</li>
</ol>
<p>Honorable mentions for It Follows and Whiplash, which I only saw this year.</p>
<h3>TV Episodes</h3>
<ol>
<li>Mother’s Mercy (Game of Thrones, S5 E10)</li>
<li>Loplop (Fargo, S2 E8)</li>
<li>Episode 6 (The Jinx, S1 E6)</li>
</ol>
<h3>Books</h3>
<p>This year, I haven’t read nearly as much as I should have. I think maybe a handful of books have been completed on my Kindle. I’m not even sure I could do a best of. Maybe I should set myself a challenge for 2016?</p>
<h3>Songs</h3>
<ol>
<li>Flesh Without Blood – Grimes</li>
<li>Can’t Feel My Face – The Weeknd</li>
<li>The Party Line – Belle & Sebastian</li>
</ol>
<h3>Moments</h3>
<ol>
<li>Seeing parents for Christmas</li>
<li>Getting to know the Third Rail bartenders</li>
<li>No-holds-barred Walt Disney World trip</li>
<li>MaxFunCon</li>
</ol>
</div>
</article>
<article>
<header>
<h1 class="entry-title"><a href="/blog/2015/08/30/the-savoy-cocktail-book/">The Savoy Cocktail Book</a></h1>
<p class="meta">
<time class='entry-date' datetime='2015-08-30T12:47:32-07:00'><span class='date'><span class='date-month'>Aug</span> <span class='date-day'>30</span><span class='date-suffix'>th</span>, <span class='date-year'>2015</span></span> <span class='time'>12:47 pm</span></time>
</p>
</header>
<div class="entry-content"><p>It was my birthday a couple of days ago, and I got a copy of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savoy_Hotel#The_Savoy_Cocktail_Book">The Savoy Cocktail Book</a>. It’s been in publication since 1930, with over 700 recipes inside.</p>
<p>To be honest, a lot of the recipes are very similar. Most are based on whiskey, rum, or dry gin. Then, you add varying amounts of sweet and dry vermouths (called Italian and French vermouths, respectively) – plus dashes of bitters or other liqueurs.</p>
<p>The presentation is top-notch, though, with gorgeous art deco illustrations every few pages. Check out the page where the Savoy Cocktail is presented.</p>
<div class="img">
<a href="/images/cocktails/savoy-pages.jpg">
<img src="/images/cocktails/savoy-pages.jpg">
</a>
<div class="alt">R.A.C. Special Cocktail</div>
</div>
<p>You’ll notice the page doesn’t quite go to the edge. The <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Savoy-Cocktail-Book-Harry-Craddock/dp/1614274304/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1440964129&sr=8-1&keywords=savoy+cocktail+book">edition I got</a> is a scanned version of the original, and it looks a little… unprofessional. Our local bar has a much nicer copy, with feathered edges.</p>
<p>I decided to start a journey of sorts, inspired by a game Jeff, the owner of <a href="http://thirdrailbarsf.com/">Third Rail</a>, plays with other bartenders. The game is as follows: you flip to any page in the book, put your finger on a cocktail, and then make something drinkable from it.</p>
<p>It’s a tricky challenge if only because the recipes tend to be geared towards old liquors, which were less drinkable than they are now. For example, the gimlet recipe in the book states it should be ½ lime juice and ½ gin, which would be too citrus-forward even for me.</p>
<p>The other challenge for me is that some of the recipes have rather niche ingredients (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punsch">Swedish punsch</a>, anyone?) that I don’t have. Although I suppose that’s part of the fun – figuring out what you can replace certain ingredients with and still maintain the desired flavour.</p>