YYZ: new Nexus lane at T1 security!

Woohoo, finally an expedited security lane in T1 at YYZ (Toronto) for Nexus (US/Canada trusted traveler program). It was empty. (asdie: T3 has had one for a while).

Gives me more time in the nice Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge (Star Gold access), which is better than United Clubs – real food like soup, salad and humus, plus serve your own beverages (even alcoholic). Nice.

Oh, did I mention I got a status upgrade on both flights today, even though they were booked using United frequent flyer miles. Sweet.

Maui: funky Holy Ghost Portuguese church in Kula

Trippy little details at this Holy Ghost Portuguese church, including the Last Supper (with a woman next to JC, as per Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code), statue of Mary on a snake, and the dedication plaque referring to the creation of the world 6681 years ago (really?)…

Maui: Sun Yat-Sen park (father of Taiwan)

Apparently Sun Yat-Sen went to school in Hawaii, and his relatives lived in upcountry Maui (near Kula). He even planned some of the Chinese revolution from here.
There is a park with a new statue of him, with a great view of the ocean.

Seoul: final misc notes (inc. laundry)

  • Laundry is generally free at hostels in Seoul.
    However, it is cold water and hung dry.
    Which means it could take a long time to dry (and as eco-friendly as hung-dry is, even in the tropical sun, laundry comes out feeling much less soft).
  • No hard sell, even in markets (in stark contrast to Istanbul)

Also, I recently added photos to previous blog entries: metro (subway) notes and DMZ

Seoul: food items and photos

Some typical food items:

  • kimchi: pickled spicy cabbage (served with every meal)
  • banchan: side dishes that accompany meals (inc. in price; excludes the soup, kimchi and sauces)
  • bibimbap: rice (bap) bowl with colourful veggies, meat (or seafood) and egg on top (can be ordered without meat/seafood)
  • dolsot bibimbap: bibimbap served in a stone hotpot (keeps the food warm longer, and you get some crispy rice at the bottom)
  • gochujang: spicy red pepper paste
  • galbi: beef ribs (I didn’t eat any, but including for semi-completeness)
  • bulgogi: thin slices of beef (or pork)
  • samgyeopsal: streaky pork belly
  • jjigae: like a stew, usually orange-coloured and served in a stone hotpot
  • jeon: savoury wheat pancakes
  • bindaetteok: savoury mung bean pancakes (heavier than jeon)

Notes:

  • Meals usually include kimchi, soup and several banchan (how many of the latter depends on how fancy the resto is)
  • Taxes are included in the prices (or there are no taxes?)
  • Tipping is not expected (and would be insulting), though apparently some high end restos add a service charge
  • Water is served free (it was always safe in Seoul) or is available self-serve from a water filter machine; sometimes tea is served
  • Chopsticks are usually stainless steel (and rectangular at the narrow end, instead of round, which also helps grip food a little)
  • It’s hard to get truly vegetarian meals (except at Buddhist temples/restos) as most meals include some kind of meat, and even kimchi is often made with fish sauce

Here are a few photos of food and meals I had around Seoul (I pretty much enjoyed all of them!):

Misc interesting notes from Dec United Hemispheres magazine

Interesting notes from the Dec issue of United’s Hemispheres inflight magazine (appeared early on Nov 30):

  • Samoa is going to move the date line from its western border (moved there in 1892 to facilitate trade with the US) to its eastern border (to facilitate trade with Asia) on Dec 29, essentially skipping an entire day!
    Side note: last year they adopted daylight saving time, which is odd in a tropical location
    Side note: in 2009 they switched from right-handed to left-handed drive roads.
  • There’s a private collector’s museum in Anniston, Alabama that includes items like Hitler’s tea set, a diamond-encrusted scimitar from Persia (owned by Catherine the Great), family photos from Benito Mussolini and the bust of Alexander the Great that Napoleon carried around with him
  • Re LeBron James: “Given all of LeBron’s flaws – ego, hubris, a receding hairline… his talents… would abandon him in some of the most important moments of his basketball life offered glorious schadenfreude.” (sorry, that’s just a great German word)
  • Describing a kangaroo: “Take a T.rex, shrink it to about 6 feet, cover it in fur and give it a deer’s head…”
  • China’s Hainan island is aiming to be the “Hawaii of the East.”
  • In the capital city of Hainan is the 2nd largest golf resort in the world (Mission Hills Haikou) with TWELVE golf course (and 150 hot spring mineral baths inspired by different countries’ bathing rituals). Say what?

Tokyo airport lounges

I experienced 2 very different airport lounges in Tokyo, one in each direction, as a Star Alliance gold member).

  • Going east, I used the Asiana lounge, which was modern (apparently renovated after the earthquake earlier this year), and full of surprises: self-sever sake bar, cooked-to-order noodle resto, a good variety of food and drinks (alcoholic and non)
  • Going west, I used the United Club, which, while large, wasn’t much different than a United Club on American soil: a small selection of self-serve alcohol, limited food selection (some maki sushi, soup, cheese and crackers)

Frankly, I was disappointed that I didn’t get to go back to the Asiana lounge on my 6 hour layover coming back westbound.