Unsatisfactory beer candies

I found these at a Japanese pub in Singapore and bought them as a fun Christmas present for a friend in the UK. I've never seen Japanese beer candies before. In the end they were too heavy to post, so I ended up eating them myself. ^^

The label says 'Sapporo' but it's not the Sapporo Beer logo - I think it just means they are beer candies from Sapporo (which is a city in Northern Japan, and has this pictured clock tower in it). 

The verdict: They taste nothing much like beer! Maybe a slight beer aftertaste? They're definitely boiled sweets, and quite pleasant. But they could be any kind of boiled sweet; it's just the label which suggests beer. 

Oh well! It was good to satisfy my curiosity with these 'biiru doroppusu' (that's what it says on the can, btw) and slightly glad I didn't spend $10 posting them to Europe! 

And in your mall tonight..

Neat, grey-robed, Buddhist nuns en masse in The Body Shop stocking up on toiletries at Novena, Singapore. 

You don't see that often in London.

Grey robes usually mean nuns from Vietnam, China, Japan or Korea, apparently. (Other countries tend to favour reds, ochre and orange).

Word of the Day: tiga suku

OK, words of the day..

Language: Malay
Meaning: literally 'three quarters'. In use: (referring to a person) 'a bit crazy or simple', 'not quite all there'. In other words, there's a quarter missing somewhere. it can be used jokingly, or more directly. 

Pronunciation: teegah sookuh

Compare English phrases 'a pepperoni short of a pizza'; 'not playing with a full deck'. These phrases are slightly affectionate / joking.

^_^

Cheryl Cole in sizzling choc knock shock!

(FYI this post is completely unrelated to Cheryl Cole) 

Chocolate in South East Asia is pants. Oh yes. Instead of that cocoa-y, creamy stuff I grew up with in Europe, the same brands here in Singapore are an unsatisfyingly waxy, flavourless affair. (Oh no!) 

There are probably some crucial reasons for this: recipes do vary worldwide - for reasons of market preference amongst other things; many regions have their own, more economical, supply chains with local production facilities; and SEA is generally a rotisserie - so transporting and vending British-style chocolate over here would be a sticky mess (remember the London uber-summer of 2003, what did KitKats look like then?) And if a recipe accommodates not-melting in transport, it's probably not-melting in your mouth too. 

Here's an example bought excitedly on an Asian trip last weekend: so-called Maltesers. Yes, Maltesers, those light, crisp, meltilicious little baubles of joy! And a different market from Singapore. How hopeful was I! And the messaging still says 'the lighter way to enjoy chocolate'. But no. These were made in Australia for Asia: cue waxy, unmelty, thick-crunchy little cannon balls. *sigh*

I've bought more upmarket brands in Singapore and it still doesn't seem to be that good (with the possible exception of some Japanese brands like Royce, which are also prohibitively expensive to keep as a habit!) The upshot of all this is that while I'd happily look forward to wolfing down a bar a day in London, I've gone off chocolate during the past three years living in Asia. Fruits here are good, and I'll happily have those instead. It's much healthier. And even when I returned to Europe recently, I no longer felt any particular desire for choc. I guess I should really thank APAC manufacturers for this!

So, if by chance happen to find yourself minted, and gagging for chocolate in Singapore - go here - https://www.royce.com/contents/english_singapore/

Bonkers British Festivals no1: The Ottery Tar Barrels

('Bonkers' = crazy, incredible)

OK, this is not very timely, but it's from my home town in England, and it does qualify as bonkers.

What happens:
Every November 5th (aka Guy Fawkes Night) certain people of Ottery St Mary pad up in sack-cloth and run through the streets carrying giant, flaming, tar-soaked barrels on their shoulders. There are 17 barrels altogether, which are lit outside the town's pubs (where rollers spend a fair amount of time before and after their run). Barrel rolling is not a race, but a demonstration of local custom. 

Ottery (as Ottery St Mary is known locally) families might compete down the generations, and traditionally it was just the men and young men who rolled. Nowadays women can do it too, and it's a very impressive, if crazy, event, attracting tens of thousands to the town for the night. (The town is tiny, btw, so this is a huge crowd!)

The barrels are soaked in tar for up to 12 months prior to the event, and filled with straw and paper before lighting. The larger ones for the men's event might weigh up to 30kg, and they become increasingly unstable as they burn. It's not necessarily a safe event for rollers or onlookers, and there have been cases of burns and serious injuries to both. As a result, I think there are 'health & safety' restrictions being applied to the festival now (not to mention high insurance costs). 

 
Why: 
Nobody is quite sure. I tried to write a piece about the tar barrels as a journalist some years ago and hit a distinctly muddy wall with its history! The event dates from the 17th century, and has been pegged to Guy Fawkes Night - the commemoration of the date when, in 1605, Guy Fawkes was thwarted in blowing up the British House of Lords (part of Parliament) with gunpowder. (On the same night, British towns today burn an effigies of 'The Guy' on a bonfire - how's that for lasting propaganda!)

There is also a theory that the spectacle might have had roots in an old pagan custom of burning things to ward off bad spirits around Halloween, 31 October.(Halloween was a festival in its own right, long before Christianity appeared and re-appropriated it.) And even today, Halloween and November 5th tend to merge together in the UK festival calendar.

Another theory is that the event is a throw-down from using fires to warn locals of the approaching Spanish Armada (which was earlier, in 1588). Take your pick.

A friend's daughter competing in the women's event. Tx to Becki for the photo!

For Ottery today, the tar barrel event is accompanied by a large bonfire (to burn The Guy) and a fairground. As a child / teen, I used to go with my friends and family every year - mostly to have fun at the fair. And even then it became increasingly difficult to gain entry to the town, or move through the streets, competing with the number of tourists who arrived. I can only imagine it is a lot more hectic than that now. But if you're up for a bit of a crush, and a slightly crazy night, this might be worth a visit!