Living in a tropical climate poses a long list of challenges, both inside and outside of the home. High heat and humidity throughout the year, monsoon rain seasons, and poor building conditions can all add up to a lot of troubles for food, books and paper items, and clothing stored inside your closets, cupboards and
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Green Papaya Salad
I was never able to successfully eat green papaya salad, or Som Tam, until I learned how to make it from May Kaidee’s sister Duan in Chiang Mai. The beauty of being able to make your own Thai food is that you can leave out any culinary offenders (in my case, the overuse of chili)
Macadamia Milk Chocolate Pudding
The first time we learned that avocadoes could be turned into a chocolate pudding, we were ecstatic…but also living in Mumbai, where we could not get any! I eventually went on a trip to Spain for a conference and brought some back in my suitcase. It was love at first blend! This pudding can also
Mastiha-Chamomile Ice Cream
Known to the Greeks for centuries as an edible anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial, the sap from the mastiha (mastic) tree, only grown on the Aegean island of Chios, has found its way into desserts, savory food, beauty products, pharmaceuticals and even chewing gum, but is for the most part little-known in Western countries. With a unique flavor that you will
Expat Survival Series: How To Prepare For An Urban Flood
First of all, if you have no idea what I am talking about, then let me catch you up to speed. In short, Thailand is under siege from a massive collection of rain water, and the word on the street is that it’s going to flood in Bangkok. Here’s a great cartoon video which explains
Planting Seeds of Compassion: In the Words of Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
This is a very atypical blog post for me for two reasons: (1) it might appear a bit lengthy at first glance, and (2) I did not write the actual content. We can just pretend it is one of those things popular blogging people call a ‘guest post,’ no? As some of you know, I am currently privileged
Summer Strawberry Macadamia Nut Milk
Nut milks take minutes to make and are an easy, dairy-free (and hormone-, antibiotic-free) alternative to cow’s milk. Making nut milk at home means you will skip out on additives such as vegetable oil and corn syrup, forgo the non-recyclable Tetra pak packaging typically used for store-bought dairy alternatives, and is often more economical, as
Expat Survival Series: House Hunting
If you are planning on spending a lot of time in your familial cave while living abroad (e.g., lady of leisure, stay-at-home mom, working virtually, tendencies toward social phobia, etc.), the physical comfort, level of productivity, happiness quotient and dare I say success on the expat assignment can depend on how satisfied you are with
Expat Survival Series: What to Bring
With the dawn of a new year on the horizon, what better time to consider a monumental, scary-yet-rewarding life change, such as selling all your furniture on Craig’s List and moving to the other side of the world?! If this is something that strikes your fancy, there are many things to consider when putting together
