BOTTOMS UP #2

CHEERS! All hair Caesar! In my previous blog post, I boasted Canadian Club as my drink of choice at home. I felt it necessary to also pay homage to Canada's national cocktail, the Caesar. It originated in May of 1969 in Calgary, Alberta. The recipe for a traditional Caesar is:

1 oz vodka
2 dashes of hot sauce (tobasco)
4 dashes of Worcestershire
salt and pepper
5 oz Motts Clamato juice

The glass is rimmed with celery salt, and both a wedge of lime and a stalk of celery are placed in the drink as garnish. Over the years, there has been some variation to the drink, adding a variety of garnishes and upping the heat factor. For those outside of Canada, the drink is similar to a Bloody Mary (which uses tomato juice). Since it's May and the anniversary of the Caesar, give it a try!

YUM SENG! In Singapore, English is widely spoken so you can still say Cheers! or use the Cantonese equivalent Yum Seng which translates to 'drink good'.  The national cocktail, is of course, the Singapore Sling. The drink originated in 1915 at the Long Bar which is located on the second floor of  the famous Raffles Hotel. For $16, I sipped on the gin-based, pink drink, while snacking on peanuts and chucking the shells on the floor. This is the only place in Singapore where littering is acceptable. Although this particular drink is not something I'd usually order (too sweet and I try to avoid gin), the experience of sitting in the charming Long Bar was worth it.

MOT, HAI, BA, YOOOO! In Vietnamese, this translates to one, two, three, cheers! The most popular drink in Vietnam is beer and it's usually served with ice. Vietnam is extremely hot so I was thankful for the ice, especially when the beer was served warm. I met up with some fellow travelers on the road and we stopped for a night, deciding to go for food and drinks. We started drinking beer as usual, but as the night progressed, we were in for a surprise. The owner wanted to treat us to Snake Wine. The entire snake is infused in rice wine or grain alcohol. It's said to improve both health and virility...

After a few shots, I was pretty much done for the night. Thanks to my companions, I made it back to the guest house. Waking up the next morning, I had little recollection of anything after the snake wine and it did nothing to improve my health!

SEREFE! I spent a short amount of time in Turkey when I was traveling in Greece. Since consuming alcohol is against the Islamic faith, drinking in Turkey is not as common as in other European countries. The national drink is called Raki. It's extremely potent at 80-90 proof. Raki is an unsweetened anise flavoured drink, and commonly referred to as 'lion's milk' because of its colour.

Like the snake wine, I was not prepared for the potency of this drink. Luckily I was able to make it back to the boat returning to Greece. When you can no longer feel your teeth, it's time to call it quits.

CHOK DEE! One of my favourite places to visit in Southeast Asia was Thailand. Drinking is relatively inexpensive and most people drink either beer or Thai whisky. My favourite beer was Singha.  There's nothing more refreshing than an ice-cold beer on a hot day. And it's always hot in Thailand.

I love the beach and spent quite a bit of time on Koh Samui island. Located on the east coast of Thailand, Koh Samui was a nice get away from the bustling activity of Bangkok. In the mornings, I would enjoy a banana shake for breakfast but at night, would switch to a banana colada. Sipping on this delicious drink, lounging on the beach, listening to the waves and watching the moon rise in the night sky was a perfect end to a day in paradise. The bananas also helped keep my potassium up!

With the Swiss boys Adi and Rene, Koh Samui

Traveling provides a chance to try something you normally wouldn't. It also gives the opportunity to meet and talk with people whose paths you likely wouldn't cross. I had a number of great encounters on my journeys. Whether it was sipping on Lao whisky while tubing down the river in VanVieng, clinking wine glasses in Venice while yelling SALUTE! or drinking beer at an outdoor cafe in Budapest, the bonds I formed, even for a short time, were memorable. Looking back, I wouldn't have done anything different (well, maybe avoided that snake wine).

Drink responsibly. Don't drink and drive...even on a bicycle...call Uber!

~MT