Mai Thai Wandering's Favorite Photos of 2023

On this New Year's Eve, we take a look back at some favorite images that we took and/or posted in the blog this year.

Last summer's road trip, from Tennessee to Montreal with stops in Ottawa (Canada), New York City, Cape Cod (Massachusetts), and Ogunquit (Maine), was the inspiration for several blog posts. We took countless photos, culled lots and posted a select few in the blog. These are our 2023 favorites.

 In Ottawa, the fascinating Rideau Canal mesmerized us for hours (24 hours in Ottawa, Canada).

This photo is quintessential Cape Cod scenery on a hot summer day, posted in Falling for New England: Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

It was fun watching the wooden Perkins Cove Drawbridge in action at Ogunquit (Falling for New England: York and Ogunquit, Maine)

We jostled with tourists to take this picture of Brooklyn Bridge, posted in A walk down memory lane in New York City

In May, we visited Louisville, Kentucky for the first time. The gigantic baseball bat, at 120 feet long, awaits baseball fans at the Slugger Museum.

In June, our guest blogger discovered hiking in the Canadian Rockies, and took some amazing photos of Spray Lake atop Little Lougheed. 

We never tire of the beautiful view of the Tennessee River at  Lake Nickajack. This particular day, we anchored out with some friends and enjoyed Korean BBQ ribs aboard.

We love exploring our adopted city of Chattanooga. With a new inflatable kayak, we are able to go further to explore other areas of the Tennessee River. Two favorite images were posted in Falling for the South: Chattanooga, TN.

Tennessee River Gorge at Raccoon Mountain

Market St Bridge in Chattanooga

A friend did a guest post of the incredible foliage in her new hometown of Eau Claire (Fall foliage in Eau Claire, WI).

December found us in Portugal, where we savored lots of delicious egg custard tarts (Foods of Portugal)

We close 2023 with an image of Mai Thai, anchored at St Augustine, Florida one winter. The city was listed as one of The South's Best Places to Retire.

Mai Thai anchored off Castillo de San Marcos National Monument

Despite the ups and downs and the challenges of 2023, we are thankful for all the beauty in this world. We wish you a peaceful, healthy and happy new year!

This post is shared on Image-in-ing and Elizabeth's blog Altered Book Lover and Skywatch Friday.

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Foods of Portugal

Years ago, a Portuguese friend took me to his favorite restaurant, and that lunch spoiled my memory of Portuguese food. So I wasn't expecting much when we visited Portugal earlier this month, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Our first stop was Porto. Images of pastel de Nata (the famous egg custard tart), pastel de bacalhau (salt cod fritter) and sardines greeted us everywhere we turned. 

Pastel de nata is virtually offered in every café. Our favorite is at Mantegaria in Porto. Having one right out of the oven is to die for. Flaky and crispy on the outside, soft and creamy in the center; it is melt-in-your mouth delicious. 

We sampled the pastel de bacalhau (salt cod fritter) at Casa Portuguesa. Located by the Clerigos Church and Tower, it is a neat place to stop in for the iconic Portuguese snack. The open kitchen shows  someone demonstrating how the bacalhau is made. The second floor features a library with a dazzling decor and clean, free-of-charge restrooms.

Bacalhau at Pica Pau

We love canned sardines and eat them often. You can find the ubiquitous sardine in restaurants, stores and markets. We purchased some canned sardines from the Bolhão Market and had them for lunch at our airbnb. These Portuguese canned sardines, available in many flavors, are hands down the best we've ever tasted.

Some signature Portuguese dishes we had to try included the octopus, cod fish, grilled sea bream, stewed pork cheeks, and the multi-meat sandwich called Francesinha. Everything was fabulous; the sandwich not so much.

Cod and octopus

Grilled sea bream (dourada)

pork cheek stew

Francesinha, a multi-meat sandwich with gravy over it

We were thrilled to see a couple of Christmas markets in Lisbon. They were very festive, but the food - paella and suckling pig sandwich - were disappointing. The sangria and gulhwein were ok. This time of year, a lot of street vendors were selling roasted chestnuts. Dusted with salt, they were soft and tender.

Street vendors roasting chestnuts on an open fire

In Lisbon, we stayed at Residencial Florescente, across from a concert hall on a street dotted with restaurants. Armed with menu, the touts will try to lure us into their establishments every time we walked by. Our hotel has its own restaurant. Bistro 99 serves an amazing breakfast, with a great variety of items, from fresh fruits and yogurt, to parma ham and cheeses, along with the usual scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage and sauteed vegetables. Not to mention baked goods - pastel de nata, pain au chocolate, croissant, cakes, and wonderful American-style coffee! The food was so good we ate lunch there one rainy afternoon. We had tapas and everything was superb! It was arguably our best meal in Portugal.

Prawns with garlic and chili

Grilled oyster mushrooms with aioli

Octopus in olive oil over new potatoes

This trip definitely changed my outlook on Portuguese food. The next time I bite into an egg custard tart or a canned sardine, I will be thinking about the time I spent in Portugal.

This post is shared on Image-in-ing and Elizabeth's blog Altered Book Lover.

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What To Do with 50 Pounds of Chestnuts

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Jack Frost nipping at your nose. Sounds familiar? They are the lyrics to the famous "The Christmas Song" sung by Nat King Cole. 

Vendors roasting chestnuts at street corners around the holidays is a common scene in Europe. In the U.S., not so much, as the American chestnut trees were wiped out by the fungal disease called chestnut blight a century ago. Once called "the Redwood of the East," the gigantic American chestnut tree was an amazing food source for wildlife and people. Some trees survived. Our first encounter with fresh chestnuts was in Maryland, and recently in Tennessee. 

Chestnut vendor at Piazza di Spagna (Spanish Steps) in Rome

Last month, our gracious neighbors delighted us with 50 pounds of chestnuts. The husband had to compete with the deer to get to these delicious nuts :-) Thank you Derwood and Georgia!

50 lbs of chestnuts

The majestic chestnut tree on a lovely fall day

We shared some with friends. We roasted them and ate them as snacks. They were sweet.

We boiled the chestnuts, and cook them with rice and oatmeal.

Chestnut in oatmeal

We made chestnut paste, using the recipe from Chestnut cookies aka Calzoni Di Castagne. Instead of making the dough, we used store-bought puff pastry, and baked them instead of frying. Great with a cup of coffee.

Delicious puff pastry with chestnut chocolate filling.

Ahh! Glazed chestnuts. Somehow, we could never get this right. We followed the recipe in How to make Marrons Glacés (Candied Chestnuts), made it twice and still could not get the chestnuts to be soft enough. The hot and dry summer could have something to do with it. Chestnut connoisseur relatives who got the bulk of the chestnuts concurred. 

Marrons Glacés (Candied Chestnuts)

We will be making Thanksgiving dinner with chestnut stuffing. Have a great Thanksgiving, y'all!

Do you like chestnuts? What are your experiences with them?

This post is shared on Image-in-ing, Elizabeth's blog Altered Book Lover and Skywatch Friday.

Check out these websites for more information on chestnuts:
The Story behind the Christmas Song

A Chestnut primer from Red Fern Farm in Iowa

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Fall foliage in Eau Claire, WI

 Please welcome Ji Grinsel, our guest blogger for this post. Ji was a student in my ESL class at Chattanooga State Community College. She is a fantastic cook, and we actually had a food blog at one time, doing culinary tours to Atlanta and offering cooking lessons. She shares the beautiful foliage in Eau Claire, where she and her husband currently live.

One of Eau Claire's most popular location is the historical and beautiful Carson Park. We love to go there to immerse ourselves with nature's beauty, and enjoy the peace and quiet. It is just two miles from our house. Last month, we enjoyed the magnificent fall colors at the park. 

Aside from being the top location to watch the Fourth of July Fireworks, Carson Park is also the perfect place to have a picnic, watch a baseball game, fish, kayak and ride a replica train that meanders through scenic woods by Half Moon Lake. History buffs will enjoy learning the history of Eau Claire at the Chippewa Valley Museum.

In the winter, various events such as ice fishing, skating, cross-country skiing, etc. are held here. On this particular day there were people fishing and kayaking, and some taking pictures like me. The colors are no more as we've already had snow. Enjoy the beauty! 

This post is shared on Image-in-ing. Little Things Thursday and Skywatch Friday.

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