I often write about markets, perhaps because as a a child, my imagination was fired up by stories about exotic markets with fluttering fabrics and adventures down narrow alleyways. The result is that, in every city I visit, I visit the market. The great market of Cairo, Khan el-Khalili, is extremely touristy, but maybe I should have appreciated getting away from the traffic.
I think I prefer the one in Istanbul. When I lived in Colombia, one of my favorite places in Bogota was the Paloquemao market.
In Peru, I went regularly on field trips to explore the markets. One thing I recall is that they always had a bathroom. I went to a couple of “dicey” ones including the fabric market near Sodom, Gamarra. When I visited the fish market, it seemed like it would be something from a Tarantino film but the reality was more late night shopping channel.
Another surreal place was the market in Caracas. There was an abundance of food but no one could afford it.
When I moved to Bangladesh, I had no idea what the markets would be like.
Another market that I return to all the time is Torvehallerne in Copenhagen.
No water. No soaking. Just straight filing. Like sandpapering.
As it is the new year, I was thinking about trends. The “Russian” style manicure or pedicure technique is emerging as a trend. It is also called an “efile” or “dry” manicure. Read about it here. Basically, it is a technique of using almost no water and using an electric file to do the removal and sanding of the hands and feet. There is no water bath for your feet or hands. To read more about American, French, or Russian manicures, read here.
The electric file.
When I went to New York City, I looked up a place to have this style of mani-pedi. There were at least ten places that showed up on Google maps when I typed in ‘Russian mani’ — impressive as in the Washington, DC, area, there are none.
There seems to be controversy about it. My friend who lived in central Asia for many years and encountered this technique there says that she prefers this technique because there is less shoving and pulling on the cuticles. Plus the nails come out buffed and shiny even without shellack. The Russian technique is more expensive than the conventional technique. (After a few weeks, I’m of two minds. I like the efiling but I also like getting my feet soaked.)
With acetone and a buffer, my nails came out shiny like they had been lacquered.
The conventional method with water (and often done by Asians, specifically Vietnamese) in the US is a result of Tippi Hedren (Melanie Griffith’s mother). She should get more credit. From the BBC article:
“Aside from flying in her personal manicurist, Hedren recruited a local beauty school to help teach the women. When they graduated, Hedren helped get them jobs all over Southern California.“
To read a history of the manicure, read here. As this article points out, this method is called “Russian” not because it was invented in Russia but because the method is popular in many Russian speaking countries including Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and the other stans. Due to world events, manicure technique is once again a way for refugees to find work and make a life for themselves in America. Who knew it would be so deep?
If you find yourself in Asheville, North Carolina, I recommend going on a food and history tour with Asheville Food Tours. It is a walking and sitting tour that includes food and drink (non-alcoholic can be requested).
Shit on a shingle at Isa’s.
In two hours, you will learn about history and try some of the foods of Asheville. The locations change so no guarantee that you will go to the same places I went.
Grilled cheese and fried okra at Blackbird.
Our tour guide, Sita (as in mamasita — which she told us to call her if we wished), was a font of interesting facts and history of Asheville. This tour is good for those who like fashion, food, drinks, and history.
Sita in front of an image of a tall building.
We had Southern food, learned about fashion history, drank pink cocktails, found out about pensioner history, ate biscuits, heard about famous people history, and something about the hill and tallest building (I was not listening).
A display at the mini fashion museum at Isa’s.
The tour costs $105 (I think) and is a great way to get to see Asheville. For example, Asheville has an old fashioned Woolworth’s. It has a community garden.
Cheerwine. It’s southern thing.
Of the places we went, two of the places were “foreign” and with the other folks on the tour — they were from South Carolina, I would have foregone the taco shop or the Indian stop (the restaurant put on a mini buffet for us so we got out dinner done on the tour!) for a barbecue or second dessert stop like a pie place. That is my recommendation. Seeing the reaction of the blonde faces and how brave they were trying the Indian food… the taco place was too much.
Funny children’s menu…
The tour started well with cocktails and “shit on a shingle” which is sausage gravy on a biscuit. The stop with the fried okra and fancy schmancy grilled cheese sandwich was also great.
The fancy mall, Grove Arcade, has apartments upstairs.
Well it would be for me if I lived in Asheville, North Carolina. But I am a city person so I would not want to live in a cottage in the woods. But Asheville has it all. I can see why this is an attractive place to live. Go on a food tour with Asheville Food Tours to find out more about this city. The Grove Arcade is on the national register for historic places.
A view of the main street.
The airport is expanding too so I have a feeling this place will grow quickly. Asheville was Cherokee land until 500 years ago. There is a lot of history in this town, but as a tourist destination, there is also more than history.
A memorial to where the drovers would take their animals to market.
I had heard about this local diner in Hendersonville, North Carolina, the Dixie Diner. I wanted to go for breakfast. They are open every day except Christmas day. I heard it from the waitress so it must be true, despite what Google maps tells me. I heard that it was the kind of place where people go regularly. A true diner.
The counter.
The Dixie Diner is in the South and the word, ‘dixie’ is associated with the American South. To read some theories about this, click on this link. Driving to North Carolina, I saw at least three gigantic confederate flags. In many cities, the confederate names and monuments have been changed or removed.
The Dixie Diner.
When we entered the diner, there was no confederate flag, but there were American flags. There were other signs of the South but the decor was not too pimped out for tourists. There was one table of regular customers sitting there and they quickly got up and left when we entered. I think they could see that we would be rowdy out-of-towners.
Typical diner chairs.
The diner had a change in ownership in 2022 as the previous owner/long time waitress was murdered. We did not know about the dramatic history of this diner when we went there.
Typical chairs but clearly new.
We were greeted warmly by a waitress holding a pot of hot but weak coffee (American coffee is notoriously weak). The bowl in the middle of the table was brimming with small containers of jam, jelly, butter, and coffee creamer. We asked for milk. The other waitress skulked around pulling her face up whenever I smiled at her. Maybe she is shy.
Biscuit, sausage, home fries, gravy with sausage, bacon, corned beef hash, and eggs.
As we were in the South, we tried all the Southern specialties such as grits, corned beef hash, and biscuits. When I asked about the corned beef hash, I was told that the cook was very proud of his hash and that he had been up since 4 am making that. I asked about the home fried potatoes and asked if they were deep fried (which is what most city diners do these days) and was reassured that the cook was also proud of his potatoes and only fries them on the flat top. Phew.
Grits are made from treated maize.
The diner is quite large and apparently they also have a buffet. We ordered a la carte. We had a complicated order so it was good that there were no other customers. The food came out and it was typical diner food. Nothing grand and not piping hot but fine.
Corned beef hash made from corned beef.
By the time we were on coffee refills, other customers came in. As we took photos, one of the customers told us that we should meet the guy who’s photo was on the wall.
Famous local guy.
When we left, we were no longer hungry. It was an interesting experience eating at a local diner even if the prices were big city prices, with an omelet costing $9.95 and a short stack of pancakes costing $6.95. The breakfast platters were between $7-15 while a side of bacon cost $3.95.
It has been ten years since I left Bangladesh, but luckily I can once again taste the taste of home cooked authentic Bangladeshi food. Mahmuda is an excellent cook and she sells food from her home. You can also go to her place to experience a home cooked meal and learn about Bangladeshi culture. Mahmuda has a huge personality and speaks English with a feisty animated volume.
Bangladeshi food is spiced but not spicy as in hot on the Scoville scale. There is a lot of clove, cardamom, cinnamon, and mustard seed. There is regional food in Bangladesh and a whole type of cuisine, bhorta, that is sort of like “small plates, mezze, tapas, dim sum…” as in you get many small dishes and pay for what you eat. I hope that Mahmuda will make some of these in the future.
Shrimp in a coconut curry.
In Bangladesh, one eats with one’s right hand. I am not so good at that so I eat with a knife and fork. But you can try eating with your right hand if you want to. A meal at Mahmuda’s includes a starter, main, and dessert even though Bangladeshi food does not follow this concept.
The rice being cooked.
The curries in Bangladesh are not as soupy as they are in Britain or the US. Many of the Indian restaurants in the UK and the US are actually run by Bangladeshis. The Brits list curry —chicken tikka masala as their national dish. The first Indian cooks in the UK were from Sylhet in Bangladesh, in what was India. British curry with the heavy use of tomato puree and cream is an invention, probably in Glasgow, that helped adapt to the British love of gravy.
Dal, lentils.
I am not sure what the prices are but with a group, a meal was around $50 per person. One can also order food for pickup.
Oshwya Ghor translates to “home kitchen” in the local dialect of Barishal.
There was also dessert. The Bangladeshis love sweets but these were not too sweet. One was a rice pudding and the other a sort of blondie.
See the contrast between this restaurant and the stark white hallway.
One of the special things about living in the Washington, DC, area is Eden Center. Located about seven miles from DC, this shopping mall is like stepping into a whole different world. It is mainly Vietnamese restaurants, bubble tea shops, grocery stores, jewelers, banks, travel agents, and other businesses catering to the Vietnamese American community. Drive in under the red arch and the open strip mall stretches out on three sides.
In the shops, there are many wondrous things to try.
Most people stick to the restaurants, bakeries, bubble shops, and nail salons on surrounding the parking lot. But, go inside and wander down the hallways to find a travel to another time and place. No English spoken.
The game changer — mini crepe.
That said, Truong Tien, 6763 Wilson Boulevard, #6d, Falls Church, Ca 22044, the new restaurant may have changed all that. They have decorated their place to look like in old Saigon. Or at least in the mind’s eye. A Disney style Saigon.
A standard crepe served with utensils for you to cut and assemble.
A video about them went viral and now the gringos are flocking to them. The food is from Hue. They do have noodle soup but not pho. Even more of a game changer is that they make the classic crepe into three small taco style crepes. This is how this dish will become super popular and I imagine many other places will start to copy them.
Chillaxing at the club and charging the phone.
Another place that will get copied soon is TeaDM Plus, a boba shop located out on the parking lot. They have turned their place into a hangar disco club. The vibe is going out but it is safe for families and during the daytime. I can see many places changing to look like this place. It’s another alternative to hanging at a bar. Like a coffee shop but cooler. I foresee that non-alcoholic drinks will trend in 2024.
In a nod to Chinese/Asian new year (February 10, 2024), this article is about a Chinatown. The largest Chinatown is in Flushing, Queens, New York.
A sign in the dim sum house.
We went to eat good Chinese food and we went to Flushing to find it. It is a mere Subway ride (take the 7 from Midtown — also, you can pay by credit card at the Subway turnstile! No need for a ticket.) and get off at the Flushing-Main Street stop. Just down the street to Roosevelt and Prince streets, you will feel and hear the Chinatown atmosphere. Actually, the minute we got above ground, we heard people talking loudly in Mandarin Chinese. The smells made us realize that we were near some dumplings.
After doing some research, we decided (also because it was all last minute) to make our own food tour. There is a new mall called Tangram at the modern fancy end and then “hole in the wall” types of places like the famous White Bear. We headed for White Bear. The dumplings were good but can be had at other places for equal quality. The sauce was not spicy. Also, I felt a bit sad for the staff as they did not seem happy to have gained such fame.
White Bear is only take away. Dumplings with spicy sauce from White Bear.
We were only there for a short while and only had so many stomachs to fill so we ONLY managed to eat at four places in as many hours. After White Bear, we headed to a dim sum place called Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao (as seen in the first photo at the top of the article). This place had the legit dumplings included their famous soup dumplings (xiao long bao).
Bamboo steamers.Multicolor dumplings are a modern take.
Luckily we got there before noon (yes, we already had the dumplings above before noon) so we only had to wait a few minutes for a table. This restaurant offered warm fresh soy milk which is apparently an authentic thing to have for breakfast. Warm soy milk and a cruller (deep fried dough).
Warm fresh soy milk and crullers is breakfast.The famous soup dumplings.
The soup dumplings were excellent although a touch too big for the spoon so there was no room on the spoon for the soup that ran out of the dumplings when poked with a chop stick. In some places in the world, the soup dumpling is so big that it is served with a straw. This is a gimmick. It is an amateur move to try and put the whole dumpling in one’s mouth. This is steamed dumpling and if you bite into it whole, it will explode like a magma filled volcano. I poked my dumpling over a bowl and drank the soup from there. There is a soy and ginger sauce for the soup dumpling but I loved the dumpling as it was. Inside was a lovely pork meatball juicy with soup.
Even here at Nan Xiang, there was some concession to being in the US. There were colorful dumplings made to please the eye, vegetarian dumplings, the scallion pancake made too sweet, and the cucumber salad not smashed (apparently the way I like Chinese cucumber salad is too garlicky — which is not authentic).
Notice our order ticket taped to our table?
As we ordered dishes, our ticket was taped to our table. Once we stopped ordering and had paid, we were told, gently, to leave, as there were long lines of people waiting for our table. So we left. But then went on to have dessert soup. I wrote about that in my article about my spirit starch. After a walk around Tangram mall, we went and had Peking Duck at Jiang Nan. Read about that in my article about that. It had gold leaf on it.
We ended our self made food tour of Mandarin Chinatown Flushing and headed back to Midtown New York. I do not think we ate anymore that day.
Oh, I tell a lie. We had boba tea. Which is a meal in of itself. More on that in another article.
Just as I wrote about official paid holidays in America, I will now go over some other unofficial “big days” in America.
Chinese New Year, changes depending on the moon but between January 20-February 20. This year, the year of the dragon, it is February 10, 2024. The Chinese calendar is a 12-year cycle. Chinese New Year is also celebrated by the Koreans, Vietnamese, and other Asians. In the United States, it involves lion dances, fireworks, parades, boat races, giving of red envelopes, and lanterns. It is a religious festival celebrating the beginning of spring. It is a 15-day festival in China. In the United States, the first Chinese immigrants arrived in San Francisco in the 19th century. In 2022, California made the Chinese lunar new year an official state holiday. The largest chinatowns in the US are in New York City but the first Chinese New Year celebrated in the United States was in San Francisco in 1851. For tourists to the USA, it is fun to enjoy Chinese American culture during this time.
Super Bowl, February 11, 2024 (second Sunday in February). This is season LVIII in Roman/Latin numerals (58 in Arabic numbers). Held on the second Sunday in February from now on (in the past it was on a Sunday in January-February). The Super Bowl is the final game of the American National Football League (NFL). It has been called the Super Bowl since 1969. It is the most watched television event in the United States. The cost of the commercials is a eye popping million or more per minute/30 seconds. The food consumption on Super Bowl Sunday, or Super Sunday, is second only to Thanksgiving. Barbecue wings, chips, dips, snack foods, and food decorated to look like a football are popular foods for the event. It is a day to join a viewing party.
Mardi Gras (almost only in New Orleans) is the carnival celebration leading up to Lent in the Christian calendar. This year it falls on February 13, 2024. Carnival starts after Three Kings (which is the 12th day after Christmas) and culminates in festivities including “fat food” on Shrove Tuesday or in French “mardi gras” (fat Tuesday). This is the day before Ash Wednesday when Lent begins and Catholics start 40 days of fasting. This event is biggest in the United States in New Orleans, Louisiana, where it has been celebrated since 1833. The celebrations involve floats, costumes, and baring of chests in exchange for beads. And of course, lots of drinking.
Valentine’s Day, February 14 every year. Saint Valentine is a Catholic saint who was martyred in 273 CE (AD). During the middle ages, the notion of “courtly love” arose and the British may have continued this tradition through the centuries. There is a book from 1797 assisting young men with writing their “Valentine.” The British were the first to celebrate romantic Valentine’s cards in the 18th century. The reduction in postal rates and the ease of printing due to the industrial revolution may have contributed to this. In the United States, first mass-produced Valentines were produced and sold shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland of Massachusetts. According to the American Greeting Card association, 190 million Valentine’s cards are sent each year, half of them to romantic partners. For the tourist in America, this day means that it may be hard to find a dinner reservation that day.
Saint Patrick’s, March 17 every year. March 17 is the death day in 461 CE (AD) of Saint Patrick. Saint Patrick is the national saint of Ireland. The large Irish diaspora in the United States made this day a celebration. In the United States, it is associated with wearing green and shamrocks (three leaf clover), festivals, singing, dancing, parades, and celebrating being Irish. This was a bigger celebration in America than in Ireland until the end of the 20th century. Now, Saint Paddy’s day is associated with drinking heavily, wearing green, and gathering in bars or pubs. Saint Patrick’s day is now celebration of being Irish, and it has been since 1600, long before there was a United States. The first official celebration was in 1771. Today, many buildings are lit green for the day and famously the Chicago river is dyed green for the day. The White House fountain has been dyed green every year since 2009. As a tourist, it can be fun to join in the fun. Wear green so you do not get pinched.
Cinco de Mayo, May 5 every year. This is a bigger celebration in the United States than in Mexico. May 5, 1862 is the date of the Battle of Pueblo in Mexico’s war with France. In the United States Cinco de Mayo began as a celebration of Mexican-American heritage. It began in 1862 in Columbia, California. The day became popular as a marketing idea in the 1980s and the Cinco de Mayo beer sales equal the beer sales on Super Bowl Sunday. As a tourist in America, this is just another reason to enjoy chips and salsa. America loves their own version of Mexican, Tex-Mex, and this day is just another day when lots of burritos and tacos are consumed.
Mother’s Day in the United States is the second Sunday in May. It was started by Anna Jarvis in 1907 after her mother died in 1905. She tried to have it made into an official holiday which it is in some places, such as her native West Virginia. Anna Jarvis did not want the holiday to become commercialized and she had started it as a day to hold special prayers for mothers. The official Mother’s Day Shrine is in West Virginia. In England, Mothering Sunday is in March. In England, the idea is that you celebrate the church who mothered you. But that is lost in the commercialization of current times. In other countries, International Women’s Day is celebrated rather than mother’s day. Today, mother’s day means that one cannot get a brunch reservation on that weekend. Also, many children will make and serve their mother’s breakfast in bed.
Father’s Day, third Sunday of June. Founded in 1910 by Sonora Smart Dodd when she learned that Mother’s Day had been established. Sonora Smart helped her father raise her younger siblings after her mother died giving birth to her sixth child. For tourists, this means that it can be hard to find a lunch reservation on that weekend or that children may be making breakfast for their fathers. It is less of a celebration than Mother’s Day.
Turnips and pumpkin squash.
Halloween, October 31 every year. Traditionally it was a religious holiday marking the beginning of the celebration of the dead and spirits. November 1 is “all saints” and has been for 1,200 years. Wearing masks and costumes grew out of disguising oneself against vengeful spirits. The famous pumpkin was originally a turnip/swede/rutabaga. The Halloween tradition was brought to the American South by Anglicans colonists. The Puritans of New England opposed it. With the mass migration of Scottish and Irish peoples in the 19th century, Halloween became an American tradition. The tradition of trick or treating came from the British isles where children would take a scooped out turnip and ask for candy or food. The adults would sing away the evil spirits. Once this traditional got to America, the pumpkin which grows larger than a turnip became the new symbol. The Halloween tradition has now been exported back out to the rest of the world. Americans spend $12 billion on Halloween or which $3 billion is on house decorations alone.
Enormous pumpkins in Lima. The numbers indicate weight in kilos.Pumpkin decorating is a fun pastime in the fall in the United States.
Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving. Now it seems to have spread to other commercial days, like Cyber Monday. America is about shopping, shopping, and more shopping.
While there are official holidays in the United States, there is no mandatory vacation time. These are the federal (national government) holidays (paid days off) from the US government site, OPM:
Monday, January 01
New Year’s Day (since 1870)
Monday, January 15
Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. (observed since 1986 but only by all states since 2000)
Monday, February 19 *
Washington’s Birthday (since 1879 on February 22 but became the third Monday from 1968)
Monday, May 27
Memorial Day (since 1888 as Decoration Day)
Wednesday, June 19
Juneteenth National Independence Day (since 2021)
Thursday, July 04
Independence Day (since 1870)
Monday, September 02
Labor Day (since 1894)
Monday, October 14
Columbus Day (since 1968)
Monday, November 11
Veterans Day (since 1938 as Armistice Day to commemorate the cessation of fighting on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month)
Thursday, November 28
Thanksgiving Day (since 1941)
Wednesday, December 25
Christmas Day (since 1870)
*This holiday is designated as “Washington’s Birthday” in section 6103(a) of title 5 of the United States Code, which is the law that specifies holidays for Federal employees. Though other institutions such as state and local governments and private businesses may use other names, it is our policy to always refer to holidays by the names designated in the law.
If the holiday is on a Saturday, then the holiday is on the Friday before and if the holiday is on Sunday, then the holiday is observed on the Monday following. Oddly for the past many years, most holidays on the weekend have been on Sundays. The only holidays that do not change date are New Year’s, Juneteenth, July 4, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The others are considered “floating.”
In some countries like Italy or Peru, a “bridge” weekend would be when people take the day off between the holiday and the weekend. I think in the US, it is called a long weekend. For example, I can predict that because July 4 falls on a Thursday, many people will take vacation on Friday, July 5 to make a long weekend, just as many do on the Friday after Thanksgiving.
There are two holidays for the armed forces, Memorial Day and Veterans Day. Memorial Day is for those who died in while serving in the armed forces and Veterans is for those who served in the armed forces. As of 2018, there 18 million veterans in the United States, seven percent of the adult population.
These are the country-wide official government holidays but some states have their own holidays as well. Every four years, Inauguration day is a federal holiday when the new president is sworn in. 
The only days when almost everything is closed (for half a day sometimes) are Thanksgiving and Christmas day. On those days, the airports are open and Chinese restaurants are especially busy. For many Americans who work for the private sector, they have to choose between certain days off such as Columbus Day.
Ronald Reagan National Airport
For many, Memorial Day and Labor Day mark the beginning and ending of summer. In some states, outdoor pools may be only open during this season. And some people only where white slacks during this season. Or is it white shoes?
As I did in Dhaka, Bogota, Lima, and Rome, I will write a couple of articles about the good and not so good things about living in the Washington, DC, area. First, some of the good things.
Free drinking water. You can drink the tap water.
High speed internet.
International cuisine. I will write more about this later, but in the DC area, one can get good Vietnamese, Ethiopian, Korean, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Salvadoran, Japanese… you get the idea.
International people. Many embassies are located here.
Public transportation. Between the train, bus, and light rail, you can get many places for 3-10 dollars.
Availability of things – Amazon is sometimes delivered the next day or faster, and some shops are open 24-7.
Free museums, free concerts, free meetings, and free libraries. The Smithsonian is a collection of 21 museums and almost all (I think only the one in New York charges an entrance fee) are free to enter.
National Airport (DCA). Having an airport on a metro line and within a mile of DC is gold. Dulles is also on the metro but 25 miles away.
People like dogs. Oh, wait, that’s not just here. But I still think it’s a good thing about being here.
