Trendy Doughnuts

 What kind of sweet treats do you enjoy and what do you crave when you get a longing for a sweet treat?  Is it  cup cakes, macaroons, a creamy creme brûlée? Cupcakes were the huge trend for a few years but now another sweet crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside  dessert has replaced it as the new trendy sweet food! I have always loved doughnuts but felt a bit guilty when eating them.

Churros

Last summer though I was at a country style wedding in North Carolina and the dessert of choice was doughnuts! I was quite surprised by this turn of events but doughnuts seem to be  the trendy choice of dessert lovers and dessert makers everywhere these days. Even though people are very health conscious there seem to be a few exceptions to the rules that people set for themselves.

 When I was planning a wedding shower at a posh restaurant in Boston I was surprised again to see that doughnuts were the choice dessert! Another occasion I went to an upscale restaurant in Phoenix Arizona and  yet again they were serving very light doughnuts with 3 different sauces.  There was a light fruit sauce, chocolate sauce and a heavier caramel sauce. Not only in the posh restaurants but pastry shops and dessert makers are "including doughnuts in their inventory" according to an article by Joe Stanton in article called "Hmm Doughnuts -Todays Trends in Doughnut Shops."

Traditional doughnut

Paczki

Doughnuts are loved and eaten in many countries. The history of the doughnut goes back to ancient times and there are many recipes and variations. Polish Paczkies, German Berliners, Greek Lokmades, Indian Gulabjamon, Jalebi in the Arab world, Balushahi in Nepal and Pakistan, Olliebollen in the Netherlands, Bombolone in Tuscany, Churros in Spain, Tulumba in Turkey and Moroccan Sfenj, Beignets in New Orleans and Youtaio in China are just a few of the different versions of doughnuts eaten in different parts of the world. Almost every country has it's own variety and flavors.

Doughnuts come in all different shapes and flavors, from thick and filled to thin and stick shaped.  They are  commonly made with yeast, eggs, butter and flour or yoghurt, some with cream, some with eggs, flour and water and the common way to cook it is deep frying. Some are filled with cream or jam, some are filled with custard. They may be covered in sugar, icing , glazed or maybe chocolate. Some are flaky, crumbly, and other are crisp on the outside and soft inside. Most are eaten with tea or coffee and some are dunked in chocolate or as the Chinese version is slightly salty and is eaten with rice porridge.

Doughnuts with cream and rhubarb

Glazed doughnut

Doughnuts were introduced to the USA by the Dutch and have risen to be some of the
most common snack foods available. Chains like Dunkin' Doughnuts and Krispy Creme are some of the most popular purveyors of Doughnuts and millions of doughnuts are consumed all over the world every day.

So this once humble doughnut has suddenly become very hip and is served as part of the menu in some of the finest restaurants! How did this happen and why is the doughnut now regarded so highly by dessert connoisseurs? They are now on the fanciest pastry shop menus in places like NYC and now people seem to be trying out different versions in their own kitchens.

 Even Whole foods Market in the USA is coming up with vegan versions and it's "Posh Vegan Donuts" are flavored with chocolate, chocolate peanut, maple, maple coconut, sugar crumb and plain cake. The reviews of these alternatives are mixed as the lack of dairy products are apparent in the texture and taste of the doughnut.

Decorated doughnuts in all flavors!

The Guardian's Homa Khaleeli in an article called "Rich Cravings:the rise of posh doughnuts" writes, "Makeover sees once humble fried dough turned into a gourmet experience-with fancy prices to match". A trend that started with a fried dough ball has now spread from the USA.  The demand for "classy doughnuts"has spread so far that even Harrods and Selfridges are selling them now and something that cost less than 50p each can now cost over 20.00 for "a box of nine!"
The doughnut has proved to be a dessert that can stand the test of time and can be recreated by  people in so many ways! It can be made at home or given a trendy makeover and sold by the poshest venues in town all over the world!

The Great Immigration Debate

A child cries as his family wait in line in order to get into a reception center for refugees in Opatovac, Croatia

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/refugee-crisis-european-leaders-warned-that-greatest-tide-of-migrants-is-yet-to-come-10515085.html

Immigration, migration and the movement of people across the globe is a topic that is very much in the news right now with hundreds of thousands of immigrants coming out of war-torn Syria, parts of India and Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Lybia to name a few.


Surfing the internet recently I saw a heading that said" the US will take Rohingya Boat People" and another one referencing the same subject headed "Nope, nope, nope Tony Abbott says Australia will take no Rohingya Refugees". These headings and articles made me think about this subject of migration across the globe and how it is used and viewed by people and governments.

I am an immigrant twice over. In 1967, I moved from Bangladesh to England with my family and grew up, was educated and lived there till I moved to America with my British husband in 1987. I am now a dual British citizen and US citizen. I feel extremely lucky to have these two passports because I can travel between the two countries with no problem. Recently I moved back briefly to the UK and almost everyday immigration was being discussed on the news. 

I want to examine the way migration is viewed in the USA, Germany and the UK in particular and how it is also viewed around the world, particularly in Eastern Europe. While listening to a discussion about immigration on Public Radio in Arizona and I heard some very interesting arguments about the subject and it made me think of some of the anti-immigration arguments.  


In the United Kingdom and around Europe now there are  thousands of immigrants coming every day from war-torn countries such as Syria, Afghanistan and Libya. The migrants want a safe haven to call home and are "attracted by Europe's relative peace and prosperity". There is a great article in the Guardian called "10 truths about Europe"s migrant crisis". The United Kingdom says they will take 20,000 over 4 years with Germany and some of the other Western European countries willing to take more Syrian migrants in a shorter space of time. 

Other countries, particularly in Eastern Europe such as Hungary, Poland, Serbia and Croatia have been less welcoming.  In an article in the US News and Word Report called "Tension Between Eastern and Western Europe is complicating the response to an influx of migrants." I see this reaction from Eastern Europe as massive hypocrisy when I know thousands of Eastern Europeans  have emigrated to countries like the UK to better their own lives economically. When these countries joined the European Union they pledged to support "European values" such as xenophobia, open markets, open borders, transparent press and media, cultural diversity, open-mindedness, protection of minorities. 

In reality, these Eastern European governments have done nothing of the sort and their societies are full of corruption, oligarchs, cronyism, no freedom of the press. Many people such as in Poland don't think they can share anything with the migrants. They also do not accept racial and ethnic diversity. A September 12th New York Times article by Rick Lyman says "Unlike countries in Western Europe, which have a long history of accepting immigrants  from diverse cultures, former communist states tend to be highly homogeneous, Poland for example, is 98% white and 94% catholic.  

Germany has welcomed the migrants and pledged to take around 800,000 of them, pledging to send $6.7 billion on dealing with them. Austria and Sweden, Denmark have also been welcoming. Rallies in Denmark and Germany have shown support for accepting migrants in large numbers. Why is it that there is such a divide in the attitude of the Eastern and western Europeans?

They conclude that "Eastern Europeans think they are the ones to be helped that was a promise of the unification( of the European Union). Being poorer than western Europe they point out, how can anyone expect solidarity from us?"  The Eastern Europeans feel threatened by the Arab migrants and see them as an Islamic threat to Christian Europe. "There is a general anxiety over the unfamiliar." While Germany sees migrants as a possible boon to their future economic power countries like Hungary see them a massive Islamic threat.

“The countries that have very little diversity are the most virulent against refugees." said Andrew Strohlein, European media director forHuman Rights Watch.
Since the fall of communism, these Eastern European countries have not seen great changes in their economic prosperity. Also unlike the Western Europeans these countries have no colonial past and do not feel any obligation to migrants coming from Muslim countries. 


Today the Pope addressed the issue of immigrants. The Wall Street Journal sums it up "The Pope addressed immigration in a less confrontational way than he has done in Europe, where he has denounced indifference to the fate of migrants who have drowned trying to cross the Mediterranean. He instead appealed to the foreign heritage of most of his listeners, identifying himself as the “son of immigrants, knowing that so many of you are also descended from immigrants.”

“On this continent, too, thousands of persons are led to travel north in search of a better life,” he said. “Is this not what we want for our own children?”

I am not an expert in this field and wrote this article to provoke some discussion and thoughts on the ever poignant subject which is in the news. We just need to examine how we would feel if we were in the shoes of those in the migrants themselves.

Various ways with chili.

Chili is a dish that can be cooked many different ways.  It can be made with a wide variety of meats, beans and vegetables. Gone are the days of plain old "chili con carne".
There are still the traditional ones with beef and beans but there are also versions now with chicken, white beans, barbecue sauce and soupier versions.
Here are 4 of my favorites.

Traditional meat chili

1 lb of lean ground beef

I large onion chopped

4large cloves of garlic minced

1 large can of kidney beans drained
I large can chopped tomatoes
8oz of water

2tsp chili powder
1 tsp chili flakes

2 tsp cumin

2 tsp coriander powder

1 green bell pepper chopped.
2 large serrano or jalapeño peppers.
2 tablespoons of cooking oil.
Salt and pepper to taste.
2oz chopped fresh cilantro

Method

Fry the onions and garlic, making sure they don't brown. Add the beef to the mixture and sauté for a few minutes till the meat is seared and add the spices, stirring constantly.

Add the drained beans and tomatoes after about 5 minutes and then the water. Turn up the heat and let it come to a boil but stir occasionally to make sure the mixture is not sticking to the bottom of the pan. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
Cook on high to bring to a boil band then reduce heat to simmer for about and hour. Add the serrano or jalapeño for added heat and cook for a further 15 minutes.
Add chopped cilantro just before serving in individual bowls and freshly grated cheddar and serve with sour cream and rice if desired.

Smokey White bean chicken Chili

In this recipe you add some smokey barbecue flavor to the chicken by adding barbecue sauce. 

2 large chicken breasts chopped into medium cubes 

1 medium sized onion chopped 

4 large cloves of garlic minced

1 large can of white haricot or navy beans drained
I large can chopped tomatoes
8oz of chicken stock
8 oz water

2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander powder

1 red bell pepper chopped.
2 large serrano or jalapeño peppers.
2 tablespoons of cooking oil.
2oz of barbecue sauce
Salt and pepper to taste.
2 oz chopped fresh cilantro.
8 oz grated cheese.

Method

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onions and garlic and diced red peppers.
Turn the heat down so the onions and garlic don't brown. Add the chicken and sauté and add the spices and stir constantly. Take the chicken out of the pan and set aside.
Add the drained beans and tomatoes to the pan after about 5 minutes and then the chicken stock, barbecue sauce & water. Turn up the heat and let it come to a boil. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
Cook on high to bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer for about and hour until the liquid is about half of what it was originally. Make sure to stir periodically and don't let it burn. Add the serrano or jalapeño for added heat and add the chicken back in the pan and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Add chopped cilantro just before serving in individual bowls and freshly grated cheddar and serve with rice if desired.

White chicken chili

Vegetarian Chili

1 medium sized onion chopped 

4 large cloves of garlic minced
I cup chopped mushrooms

1 large can each of pinto beans and black beans drained and a white bean like navy beans if desired.
I cup of corn
I large can chopped tomatoes
8oz of chicken or vegetable stock
8 oz water

2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander powder

1 Large green & large red bell pepper chopped.
2 large serrano or jalapeño peppers.
3 tablespoons of cooking oil.
Salt and pepper to taste.
2 oz chopped fresh cilantro.
8 oz grated cheese.

Method

 Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onions, garlic, mushrooms and diced peppers. Turn the heat down so the onions and garlic don't brown. Add both cans of beans and sauté, add the spices and stir constantly.
Add the tomatoes after about 5 minutes and then the water and stock. Turn up the heat and let it come to a boil. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
Cook on high to bring to a boil, stir and then reduce heat to simmer for about and hour till the mixture is thick but chunky. Add the serrano or jalapeño for added heat and cook for a further 15 minutes. Stir part way through to make sure it is not sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Add chopped cilantro just before serving in individual bowls and freshly grated cheddar and serve with corn bread, corn chips or rice if desired.

Vegetarian chili

Chili and Corn Soup

1 medium sized onion chopped 

4 large cloves of garlic minced

1 large can each of pinto and white beans drained
2 cups of corn
I large can chopped tomatoes
12 oz of chicken or vegetable stock
8 oz water

2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander powder

1 green, red & orange  bell pepper chopped.
1 large serrano and jalapeño peppers.
3 tablespoons of cooking oil.
Salt and pepper to taste.
2 oz chopped fresh cilantro.
8 oz grated cheese.

Method 

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onions, garlic, corn & diced peppers. Turn the heat down so the onions and garlic don't brown. Add both cans of beans and sauté, add the spices and stir constantly.
Add the tomatoes after about 5 minutes and then the water and stock. Turn up the heat and let it come to a boil. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
Cook on high to bring to a boil band then reduce heat to simmer for about and hour till the mixture is thick. Add extra chicken stock if desired to make it runnier.
Add the serrano or jalapeño for added heat, stir and cook for a further 15 minutes.
Add chopped cilantro just before serving in individual bowls and fresh;y grated cheddar and serve with  corn chips or rice if desired.

All of these recipes are adaptable and you can vary the spices according to your taste and add the accompaniments like rice, tacos, chips, chopped cilantro and green or red chills if you desire.

Grandparents as parents.

While I write this I am aware that every family is different and all cases vary. As the cost of living has gone up and more and more women have gone out to work Grandparents have taken over the job of primary carer of the children. There are many reasons why a grand parent may be raising a child as opposed to the parents. The most extreme reasons could be death of the parents, other reasons could be a lack of parenting ability or neglect on the part of the parent for reasons such as drug and alcohol  abuse, parents may be incarcerated, ill or in the military and the most popular reason would be just to babysit so the parents are able to go to work. Grand parents provide the stability  and security of home for their families.

In the UK according to an article by the TUC in 2013 nearly 7 million grandparents were looking after their grand children in one way or another. According to the 2010 US census 4.9 million children under the age of 18 lived with Grand parents. I want to explore what influence grand parents have on their grand children and why in my opinion if you can spend more quality time with your child you must make that an absolute priority even if you have a busy job.

My focus will be on the children whose parents go to work to further their careers or just to support their family and leave their children in the care of grandparents. Not long ago a friend of mine told me that she didn't want her 4 year old daughter in the care of her mother in law any more while she went to her work as a Pharmacist because the little girl was beginning to speak exactly the way her grand mother spoke! The grand mother was from India so spoke English with an Indian accent and the child was mimicking the grand mother's speech. My friend was lucky as her husband had a good job so she cut down her work hours so she could spend more time with her daughter. She also put her in a playgroup so the child could become more socialized with her peers.

For  all the love our parents bestow on us and our children the love of a grand parent is different than the love of a parent. Grand parents grew up in a different era than the parents and what shaped their beliefs and personalities will of course be completely different than the parents. I have closely observed children who are brought up primarily by parents and brought by grand parents. Parents tend to discipline children more than grand parents who tend to indulge their grand children and let things slide which should receive attention.

 I remember a friend's teen aged son was living with his grand mother because she didn't want to leave her elderly mother alone. The arrangement was consensual between all three members of the family and my friend lived alone as she was separated from her husband. So every Monday this boy would decide to have a sick day from school. Now I am not saying that kind of thing doesn't happen when a child lives with his parents because it occasionally happened at my house when my son would decide he was sick and have a day off school. However my friend's son would take a sick day every Monday until finally the school called the grand mother and she had to have a word with her daughter who then spoke to her son and they decided he was being sick too often!
 This friend also comes home late on many evenings and told her Mother that she is working late. When she comes home to eat her evening meal she will be dressed in evening wear which means she's had an evening put with her friends and not working late.

 You would think that this person would want to be with her child at the weekends right? Well guess what? Neither parent is anywhere near the child at the weekends and he is to be found just loafing around his grand mother's house. When he would go out and not come home for any reason the grand mother would be distressed and worried about him. Is that the elderly grand mother's job or is the parent's job. Why should an elderly person be worried because a teenager is staying out too late?

I'm not saying you should never go out with friends and have a life which in part is outside your family.   Also the grand mother is very willing to look after the child. However if you are capable and your children are still impressionable and vulnerable you should spend quality time with them. Just because you know your elderly mother can and will be there for your son it doesn't mean you should ignore him day after day! When this child child grows up who will he remember as his primary care giver? Will he remember his mother or his grand mother? In my opinion he will remember his grand mother and she will get the credit for bringing him up!

In my own case my children have seen their grand parents every summer and have a great bond and sense of loyalty with them. They see their grandparents with affection, respect and love. I was lucky that I didn't need to go to work outside the home and never really had to leave my kids with anyone outside the home unless I felt like it. However when I did I made sure I spent time on my children when I could at every given opportunity.

Although I think each person is an individual in my role as a Mother I always wanted to help mold my children. To this day my kids remember little details of things they did with me and relish seer little memories of their childhood with their family and friends. I felt every minute I spent with each of my kids was a gift to me and the child. It did not mean I for got that my child needed friends their own age and needed to socialize and it didn't mean I didn't have friends of my own who I enjoyed spending time with. I will reiterate that I wanted to be the primary influence on my child. I didn't want them to form their opinions from other people. However that is just how I felt and obviously isn't what everyone else feels. Of course now my kids are older they are fiercely independent and want to make their own decisions without my input and I am proud of that.

There are many benefits of the child interacting with it's grand parents and of course I am not against grand parents helping to bring up grandchildren and supporting their own child by providing day care. However  I can't condone people who relinquish the care of their children to their own mother or father because it's convenient however willing the grandparents are to get involved. Grand parents should remain just what the name implies and no more unless there are extreme circumstances!

Haters gonna Hate!

I'm sure everyone has heard of Taylor Swift's huge hit song "Shake it off". I absolutely love this song because I truly believe in it's message as it reminds me of some incidents I have encountered in my life and what people have to do to "shake it off". However sometimes when you can't  just "Shake it off" there has to be intervention if things get beyond a certain point and this story shows how "Haters" some times have to be dealt with.

Work place bullying is present in a lot of places and many people have to put up being bullied in their daily lives. Many people are taunted, teased, harassed, and called names and can be a bit irritating but perhaps not enough to report the incidents as abuse. I read that almost half of workers in the US say they encounter some form of bullying in their jobs but it is not reported or dealt with.Bullying can lead to people feeling stressed, insecure and intimidated. There are many ways to deal with it ad the first is to  try to resolve it privately but when that doesn't work the employer or  senior management has a huge responsibility to do some thing about it so it doesn't get out of hand.

A few years ago I was working at an office in Michigan and I encountered what jealousy and hatred can do to people and how it can ruin people if you allow it to get out of hand. The environment I worked in was one where the whole room, and actually the whole organization, was full of women doing clerical and administrative work for a large public company. A number of the workers  had been together in the same jobs in this department for many years and without realizing they felt a "right" to these jobs and resented anyone who was new in their "space". So I was new and a couple of other women were transferred from other parts of the company. The management of the company had no idea but our lives were going to be made hellish because of their decisions and the employees who had been there previously.

One of my colleagues was a very innocent right winged Republican, Christian lady around the same age as me. She believed what she believed and was incredulous when anyone came up with new ideas or thought differently from her. She was a devout church goer and believed that everything she was told by her pastor in his sermons every Sunday. Her lack of experience led her to believe that everyone who had a different faith just had to be converted to her religion, then they would be just fine but other than that she was a complete sweetheart!

However she was kind, a loving person and a dear sweet friend and we enjoyed one another's company but sometimes she was so off track I couldn't believe it. I was talking to a young intern one day about Dan Brown's best seller The Da Vinci Code and she came in and said to the intern "Don't read that book!It's about Satanism!" I said "Well if it is, it's up to him if he wants to read it and then he can decide for himself as he's an intelligent young man." When I said I was doing yoga at the gym her reply was I will never do yoga and when asked why she said it was like praying! Yoga has caught o like wild fire in the USA and there's a yoga studio in every town and main street in America now so a lot of people in the USA must be praying!

It was my friend's innocence and sincere belief in her own convictions that lead to witnessing one of most bizarre incidences of pure hatred and bullying in my life! So my friend would be innocently giving everyone her talk about God and Christianity and this lead to some pretty interesting behavior from some of the co workers, especially three friends who all worked together. These three truly believed that they ran and owned the whole department. They would pick on little things my friend said and did over the course of a few years and bully her about it. Petty things about the smell of her coffee, the way she did her work, what she ate for lunch, her tardiness, her family life were all targets for ridicule. Everyday there were nasty, snide comments and criticism about every action and every deed.

 It stemmed in particular from 3 good friends who had worked in the department and had been in the same jobs for about 10 years. One was the supervisor for the whole department and the other two were her best buddies who also joined in the fun against their co worker. One of these women, (call her Trixy) was particularly rude, bitter and thoughtless in her actions. She openly bullied everyone and different people had to go through periods of being bullied by her but she especially picked on my friend.

This behavior was never reprimanded by our Supervisor (call her Wilma). The third person (call her Casey) couldn't decide whether she wanted to be mean or nice and fluctuated between the two. Occasionally they would try to get other people in the office in on the action and try to get them to bully their co worker in a pack but a lot of people didn't want to get involved or condone the behavior of the bullies no matter how silly they thought my friend's beliefs were so they just got on with their work.

Gradually the behavior went all the way to the attention of management who noticed little comments and complaints made by the Gang of bullies. It was even being spread through malicious gossiping that my friend was having and affair with another male co worker and both were hauled upstairs to a high up management in the administrative department. Both my friend and the other worker were married. My friend was now feeling the full effects of the bullying and told me she felt suicidal! My heart just bled for her.

 The managers decided to do something about it when my friend started to be bullied relentlessly and some comments started being floated around the whole office very carelessly. Bullying and harassment are not to be taken lightly in the work place. If a worker is bullied and harassed and they file a complaint or sue the company then lots of people can be held accountable so the management of this firm decided to nip the behavior in the bud and put a stop to it. Thank Goodness the managers decided to do this.

There was an enquiry and investigation in to the bullying allegations. Everyone in the department had to be interviewed one by one and everything about the interviews was kept confidential.Even I had to give evidence of what I had seen and heard. No one talked about what was asked by the management and what was said to them individually. Even I was interviewed but luckily I was leaving my job to relocate to Germany so I didn't have to deal with the subsequent consequences.

The way the management dealt with Casey, Trixy and Wilma was to demote each of them and spread them apart throughout the office building away from each other. They were humiliated  but escaped being fired which I thought was really kind.  However my friend got an apology from them and I hope they are sorry to this day and not resentful towards her. I wonder if they realized the stupidity and pathetic behavior they were displaying! I also hope they learned their lesson that some one is watching and listening to bad behavior  and you are responsible for what you say that might hurt or harm others.

So just like Taylor Swift says the 'haters are gonna hate" but some times we have to just "shake it off" however if it gets out of hand and continues there has to be some other higher intervention! We owe it to ourselves as responsible adults to respect our fellow workers and mind our own businesses and get on with our work and our own lives! If you are the person being bullied then you need to stand up for yourself, go to your superior or your HR department and asked them to get involved. If nothing is done you can quit and file a claim with a lawyer if it is serious enough.No job is worth harming your mental health or peace of mind.

Hotel from Hell

 Having the the good fortune to travel all over America, Asia and Europe is not to be taken lightly or something to be taken for granted. Even before my days as an Expat I travelled all over Europe and across America. Through this time I've stayed in hostels, motels, inns and hotels. I can't remember how we booked hotels in the 80's and 90's but when I went island hopping to Greece in my student days I remember we literally got off the ferry and people were waiting  to rent us a room. 99% of the time we were lucky and got a lovely place to stay but a couple of times we would be unlucky and ended up having to sleep on a roof under the stars!

Whilst living in Europe and Asia I was lucky enough to stay in some of the finest hotels in the world such as the Kempinski and Hyatt hotels. If you've been lucky then you will have experienced some of the loveliest resorts such as the Indigo Pearl Resort in Phuket which is like something out of a dream. Not only is it in a stunning location at Naiyang beach in Phuket but the accommodations, decor and service are second to none and it definitely deserves it's 5 star rating. I have also experienced 3 Star hotels in cities like Beijing, China and Krakow in Poland which were clean and adequate but reasonably priced and had everything you need for a good night's rest and good accommodation and breakfast included.

These days travel agents are not as popular as before and there are so many internet travel and leisure sites such as Travelocity, Booking.com and Expedia or Hotwire.com that you can look any hotel up before you book, see it's location, what people's experiences are  and photos before you decide whether to book the hotel Well last summer I discovered why it's so important to read the reviews and comments closely and diligently that are offered by websites because I was not paying attention to what I was doing and ended up having an experience with the hotel from Hell!

We had to go to New York to drop my daughter off at university so I set my husband and daughter on the task of getting us a hotel. Initially we were to be there for 7 days when the 3 of us would need accommodation till my daughter was settled in her dorm room. I very negligently lost track of what was going on out of laziness or maybe complacency rather than disinterest. All I knew was my daughter was off on the adventure of a lifetime living and studying in New York City and I wanted her to have the best start possible.

 On the plane I couldn't stop thinking about a comfortable bed and nice hotel that was awaiting me at the end of my journey. I kept asking my daughter if the booking was ok and sure enough she said she booked through Booking.com and  showed me a photo of our room and confirmation of the reservation. We had to have at least 2 beds because my husband was coming to join us and that's what the confirmation and reservation print out showed so that is what I expected. The other thing to remember was the university is located in one area of Manhattan and our hotel was booked on the Upper East Side. At that time I had no idea what that really meant.

Central Park

Upon our arrival we took a shuttle bus to the hotel on the Upper East Side. Immediately as we got out of the  shuttle bus the driver charged us extra money because he said we were at a private residence and I thought Oh heck! The building  where the hotel was supposed to be located looked just like a regular house on a New york City street but it was when we went in that I got a complete and utter shock! Outside on the door of the "hotel"it said the name in really small letters.

When we entered there was a small shabby office and an equally dowdy girl sitting there. We introduced ourselves and she looked at the booking confirmation and to my utmost dismay she said "We don't have that room but we have another room for you". We said that won't work and I wondered why they didn't have the room we had reserved. Wasn't the piece of paper our "confirmation"? I said "Just a minute if you book a room and promise to pay almost $2000 for 7 nights shouldn't the hotel "reserve that specific room for you"? Her reply was "No". They had clearly given our room to some one else!

I was so tired from the journey I couldn't think straight and asked her to show us the room which was on the first floor and when I saw the room I nearly had a heart attack! $2000 for a room that looked like a dirty old kitchen with a bed in it! All I could think of was "what a disaster this was!"It was already 8pm and I was about to drop from exhaustion. I went out again and tried to speak to the girl at the reception but she said we would have to speak to the Manager and gave us the phone number. We left our things  in the room and went to a local Pizza restaurant because by this time we were pretty hungry.

Whilst we were eating I called my husband and told him what a disaster it was and although we'd clearly booked a room with two double beds for 3 people as was evidenced by the  booking confirmation in our possession the hotel had given the room to someone else! We were left with one double bed in a horrible room. How could we possibly stay there and be cheated out of all our money and not get the hotel room we were promised?

Outside the New York Palace Hotel

We returned to the hotel and my daughter spoke to the manager and telling him that she had booked the double room on Booking.com. The Manager was rude, loud and threatening towards her and said we had to basically stay in the room we were given for 7 days and pay the $2000, take what we were given and would definitely not  get the room we were promised or our money back!

We phoned my husband again and this was his suggestion. He had also read the reviews for the Hotel which we will call the "Lacy Inn Hotel". He had researched it and the reviews were, not surprisingly, mostly terrible ! He told me to phone the credit card company and tell them that we were not getting what we paid for and there is a provision in the law to protect the consumer and dispute the charge if you do not get the goods you are paying for. We also called Booking.com and told them our situation. They agreed we should get what we paid for but were not up for helping us right there. I did not realize I could have actually made them help us get another hotel right then but I only found out later that this was an option.

When we were trying to sleep in the room things just went from bad to worse. The bathroom was filthy and had human hairs all over and the bath wouldn't drain. My daughter and I sat on the bed and cried! People kept knocking on our room door all night because no one was at the reception so they thought that was the office. This was one of the worst nightmarish nights I have ever had. I did not want to be mean to my daughter but I had put a huge responsibility in the hands of an inexperienced teenaged girl so it was all my fault and I had to own up to my failure.

The next morning we went for breakfast and I called my credit card company and I will be grateful to them for the rest of my life. They said we were to go back to the hotel, pack up our luggage, go to another hotel and they would refund our money and launch a dispute because by law you have to receive the goods you were promised if you pay for something in advance! I breathed a huge sigh of relief, went back to the hotel and packed.

We went to the front desk and they were finally there and we told them we were leaving! The rude manager guy said I had to sign some papers and he had spoken to Booking.com and we would still have to pay and Booking.com thought the room was fine and that we were not getting the room from the confirmation. As I knew the credit card company and the law were on my side I very calmly signed the papers and left the hotel and taxied to another part of Manhattan.

We got another deal through Booking.com and went to a hotel called the New York Palace on Madison Avenue and 50th about 10 blocks from Central Park and across from St. Patrick's Cathedral. I wasn't aware at the time but this hotel is very famous because it was used as the residence of the main actress Blake Lively in her character as Serena Van der Woodsen or Gossip Girl. We were greeted by a fantastic employee who worked for the hotel and also happened to come from Bangladesh. It was about the same price as the "Lacy Inn Hotel"but worlds apart in location, service and the room was like heaven with two massive comfortable beds and a clean, beautiful bathroom and the views were amazing!

The rest of our trip was really smooth and when we mentioned to the hotel staff that my daughter was an NYU student we were treated like two princesses! The staff was courteous, helpful and beyond any reproach. We were able to transition our daughter comfortably in to her new university life and enjoy our stay in New York City.

After the trip was over I reviewed the two hotels on Booking .com and Trip advisor as they actually ask you to do this if they know you stayed at the hotel. I said the "Lacy Inn" was the Hotel from Hell, that is to be avoided at all cost and the New York Palace was amazing! I got a reply from the Manger of the New York Place thanking me for the review and all I can say is I don't have to lie about how well we were treated and what a great hotel it was because it speaks for itself!

 I have read online reviews of the hellish hotel on all the travel websites and out of a possible 10 points it receives a 5.5 which is pretty bad. The good hotels have rating of between 7.5 to above 8. I had to wait till November to get final word from the credit card company that my money was definitely refunded from the dispute with the "Lacy Inn" and we could keep it as they hadn't even replied to the letter from the credit card company to defend themselves!

What lesson is learned from this almost disastrous trip? I found out that in popular destinations hotels often double book rooms. Do your research before you set off and check and double check the hotel, check the booking and phone the hotel before you leave for your destination to make sure your reservation is confirmed! Also call the booking company and make sure they stand by the booking because they take your credit card number and should help you get what you are paying for. The law is on your side so you make sure you get the best deal you can and get what you paid for. I will definitely be more careful next time I book a trip and make hotel reservations!

Fusion Dinner Party

What do you do when you have friends from all over the world and as a welcoming host you want to please everyone but offend no one? In the last nine years I've lived in 4 different countries and travelled to about 25 other countries picking up food ideas and friends along the way.

Entertaining and cooking are my passions so anytime there's an opportunity for me to show off my cooking skills it's great. My husband has colleagues from all over the world and sometimes he wants to invite them for dinner and I take the opportunity to really impress them. Most of my recipes are tried and tested but I don't really have measurements or quantities and anyone who makes the following dishes should prepare them according to their wishes and their particular circumstances.

So what does a menu contain that pleases your guests who may be from several different countries including America, India, Vietnam, Indonesia and maybe Muslim, Hindu, vegetarian or vegan or simply happy to be invited. Of course if you have Muslim guests then you would have Halal meat and if you have Hindu guests then you don't serve red meat. If your guests include vegans then it's important to cook the completely vegetarian food first and keep it seperate from the food that you prepare with meat or fish.
Here is a sample of fusion food I might make for my guests when tastes and dietary requirements are varied for a lunch or dinner party. I will pick a few of the items and share the recipes.

Menu for Fusion Dinner Party

Vegetarian Noodle Salad
Corn Tortilla chicken lasagna
Beetroot and apple salad
Lentil and vegetable curry
Salmon with home made green curry sauce.
Cod and potato fish cakes.
Asparagus quiche
Pulao rice

Recipes

Asian vegetable and noodle salad. 

Asian noodle and vegetable salad

1 8oz Package of noodles cooked and cooled.
1 cup of peas
10 cherry tomatoes quartered
3 sprigs of green onions chopped.
1 bunch of cilantro(fresh coriander)chopped
4oz cooked green peas
4 oz of cooked green beans chopped small
3 Green & red chills diced
Lettuce leaves for decorating
fried tofu cut into small pieces

Dressing
Juice of one lemon
1 tbs of soy sauce
1 tbsp of chili oil
1tbsp of sesame oil
1tbs fish sauce(optional)
1tsp brown sugar
2 tsp salt
Mix all the dressing ingredients together.
Place all the above ingredients  in a bowl and add the dressing ingredients in the bowl and combine tossing all together so dressing is mixed in with the vegetables and noodles.
Arrange the lettuce on a serving platter and put the salad on the lettuce leaves as pictured above.

Cod Fish Cakes

8 oz cooked  cod or 1 8oz tin of tuna drained

1 large bunch cilantro chopped fine

1small onion chopped

6 medium sized new potatoes boiled and mashed

1 large jalapeño chili chopped

Cod fish cakes

salt and pepper to taste.

1 egg beaten and put in a bowl. 

Method

Mix all the above in a mixing bowl except the beaten egg

Put in 2 tablespoons of oil in a shallow frying pan.

Make the fish and potato mixture  into medium sized balls and flatten

dip in the egg and fry on high then turned down to medium.

Fry each patty till golden and turn

Put on a kitchen paper and then serving dish.

Beet and Apple Salad

Beet and Apple salad

Cut the apples and beet roots into cubes
cut the cucumber in to small pieces
Tarragon chopped fine
green onions chopped small
 Make dressing with lemon juice tarragon and mustard mix together. 
Serve in a bowl.

The salmon was baked with a green curry paste which I made with green chillis, lime juice, cilantro, onions and lemon grass,salt and pepper to taste, blended in a food processor and poured over the salmon with some olive oil and baked till the salmon is cooked through.

The corn and chicken lasagna is made with corn tortillas instead of the normal pasta lasagna.

DESSERT

Key Lime pie

Apple tart 

Trifle

Bakewell tart.

An assortment of pies and quiche

Recipes

 Bakewell tart

Preheat the oven to 325*F

Buy a ready made vegetable oil pie shell 

Bake the pie shell for about 10 minutes and take it out of the oven and let it cool. 

FILLING

Rasberry or any favourite flavor jam.

Put 2 tablespoons of jam in the pie shell, spread it in the bottom and set aside.

1 and 1/2 sticks of butter ( room temperature)

3/4 cup of sugar

3 eggs(room temperature)

6oz of ground almonds

2oz of self raising flour

zest of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons flaked almonds

Cream the butter and sugar together till pale colored in a glass mixing bowl

Beat the eggs and add gradually to the sugar and butter till mixed

Add the lemon zest

Add the ground almonds to the mixture and mix till creamy 

Fold in the self raising flour and carefully mix till completely mixed 

Pour the  wet mixture in to the pastrycase

Sprinkle extra almonds on top of the cake mixture

Put into the pre heated oven and bake on the top shelf for about 40 minutes till a tooth pick comes out clean from the middle of the cake.

Open Faced Fruit tart.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Ready made pastry thawed and placed in a baking dish.

2 cups Frozen berries 
4oz sugar
Pull some of the pastry over the fruit but keep some peaking out.
Bake for about 40 minutes till fruit is bubbling.

This is a sample menu of what I might serve to a mixture of guests with varying tastes and varying dietary requirements. Next time you throw a dinner party you may try this or a variation on these ideas.