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Gelato in Italia

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Hi everyone, very sorry I haven’t posted in a while. The reason for this is because we are at 98% of our 3 Gigs of photos so I can’t upload too many more photos. After this I may only have one or two posts left. I was going to do the best photos of the trip but now that will not be a possibility – if you want, you can read the whole blog from the beginning. In this post I am going to tell you all about all the gelato we ate in Italy, rank them and score them out of 10. Let’s begin. The photos in this post are in order of worst to best.

P.S. They were all really good, even the worst one was very nice.

13th. Gelateria Gustevole, Gelateria Gustevole was in the city of Lucca. Gustevole was an artisan style gelateria near the iconic square Piazza San Michele. We went there after a long day of exploring the streets of Lucca. At Gustevole I ordered 2 flavours in a cone, Lemon & Cream with Cherry and Chocolate. The flavour was just a little bland for me. My Mom, on the other hand loved her flavour. It was called Napoleone, it was made out of cream, ginger, nuts, and fruit. I would rate Gustevole a 7 out of 10.

12th. Cremeria Monteforte, Cremeria Monteforte was near the Pantheon in Rome. At Cremeria Monteforte I ordered Mango & Bacio (chocolate-hazelnut). It was good but the Bacio had too much chocolate and not enough hazelnut. The photo above shows us with Baby Brooke enjoying our gelato beside the Pantheon. My Mom ordered pistachio & peach. The peach was very good. I would rate Cremeria Monteforte a 7 out of 10. 11th. Gelateria La Carraia, La Carraia was in Firenze (Florence) near our apartment on Piazza dei Peruzzi. At La Carraia I ordered a Raspberry Chocolate flavour. It was good but I didn’t get enough raspberry and the chocolate was a tinch too sweet. La Carraia was a very good gelato place but unfortunately the chocolate and raspberry didn’t really come together and compliment each other. I would rate La Carraia a 7.5 out of 10.10th. Gelateria Veneta Lucca, Gelateria Veneta Lucca was of course in Lucca, it was right off the big square called Piazza Anfiteatro. At Veneta they gave big portions of 3 flavours so me and my Dad shared with each other, we got Rocher (chocolate hazelnut), Lemon, and Coconut. It was delicious. I would rate Gelateria Veneta Lucca an 8 out of 10.9th. Sorbetteria Castiglione, Sorbetteria Castiglione was a gelato place in the Italian city of Bologna. Castiglione had a very nice environment and a great outdoor seating area. At Castiglione I ordered Passion Fruit or in Italian, Maracuja, and Hazelnut or in Italian, Nocciola. Denise liked Castiglione because they gave her a free balloon. I would rate Sorbetteria Castiglione an 8 out of 10.8th. Gelateria Brivido, Gelateria Brivido was right beside the main square in the historic city of Siena. Brivido looked very popular and we were in the mood for gelato so we went for it.  Since Brivido gave big portions we ordered 3 flavours to share. We got Tutto Bosco (forest fruit), Mint, and Coffee. The Tutto Bosco and Mint were really good, I don’t like the flavour of coffee but my parents said it was sensational. Brivido did not have their prices posted so we were a little skeptical and when the bill came out it was 6.50 euros each ($9.75  CAD)!!! I would rate Gelateria Brivido an 8 out of 10.7th. Caffe Maraviglia, Caffe Maraviglia was just off Piazza San Michele in Lucca. At Caffe Maraviglia I ordered Frutti di Bosco (forest fruit) and Bacio (chocolate hazelnut). The combo of the berries and the rich nutty chocolate was scrumptious. Caffe Maraviglia was just a small place but it was very good. I would rate Caffe Maraviglia an 8.5 out of 10. 6th. Cremeria Santo Stefano, Cremeria Santo Stefano was on Via San Stefano in Bologna. Santo Stefano was decorated kind of like an old-timey candy shop. At Cremeria Santo Stefano I ordered Chocolate Biscuit Cake and Mango. I really liked Cremeria Santo Stefano. I would rate Cremeria Santo Stefano an 8.5 out of 10.5th. Gelateria del Teatro, Gelateria del Teatro was a recommended gelato place in the Italian capital, Roma. At Gelateria del Teatro I ordered Maracuja (Passion Fruit) and Nocciola (Hazelnut). Denise ordered Canella  (Cinnamon) and Ananas Menta (Pineapple Mint). I would rate Gelateria del Teatro an 8.5 out of 10.4th. Gelateria del Cavour, Gelateria del Cavour was in the city of Bologna in the Province of Emilia Romagna. The gelato at Gelateria del Cavour was very creamy and delicious. There I got Bacio (chocolate hazelnut) and Nocciola (hazelnut). Cavour had very high end decor and was very chic. It was Becca’s first gelato in Italy. I would rate Gelateria del Cavour an 8.5 out of 10.3rd. Gelatiamo, Gelatiamo was in the heart of Lucca. We went to Gelatiamo after a long day of biking and it was a good reward. At Gelatiamo I ordered Tutto Bosco (you already know) and their special: Gelatiamo (chocolate hazelnut mint). Denise got Tutto Bosco and After 8. Gelatiamo had a wide flavour selection. I would definitely recommend it if you’re in Lucca. I would rate Gelatiamo a 9 out of 10.2nd. Gelateria Edoardo, Gelateria Edoardo was a small gelato place right beside the Duomo in Firenze (Florence). It was our first gelato in Italy so maybe that had an impact on my rating. I ordered chocolate and stracciatella in a crispy cup (a cup made out of cone). I would rate Gelateria Edoardo a 9 out of 10.1st! Gelateria Fatamorgana, Gelateria Fatamorgana was a little gelato place near the Vatican in Rome. Before going into the museums of the Vatican we stopped for some gelato at Fatamorgana. It had been recommended in the Lonely Planet. They had many original and unique flavours. I ordered Lampone (raspberry) and Nocciola. Other flavours my family ordered were Sicilian Almond and Pineapple Ginger. I would rate Gelateria Fatamorgana a…..10 out of 10 (and 2 thumbs up)!

Crab Market🦀🦐🦑

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Today we took a tuk-tuk to a city near Kampot called Kep. We went to the crab market in Kep. The crab market is packed with vendors and locals naming prices and enjoying their meals. In the crab market there are crabs, shrimps, squids, clams etc. The market is right across from the sea where you can see fisherman catching crab and other sea creatures. There are two kinds of crab, Stone Crab and Blue Crab. Most of the vendors said Stone Crab was better, but it was also more expensive. We ate squid, shrimp, and of course…crab! 

This is the crab we got at a restaurant just outside of the market. It was labour intensive to prepare the crab for eating but it was sooo delicious. I ate the crab with steamed rice which added a great element to the dish.

This is a skewer of shrimp that we got in the market. I loved it so much. I dared my dad to eat the eye but he didn’t go for it. I ate 2 shrimps off the skewer.

This is me eating squid for the first time in my life. From the look on my face you would think I did not like it but it was totally scrumptious. The best part was the tentacles. Again my dad did not eat the eye😥. Anyway, to say the least the squid was very good.

This is a basket of more squid, these squid are a little bigger then the ones we ate. These squid looked like they were just caught from the sea. When I saw these I was so surprised but the vendor was just sitting there picking up a squid like it was a thing she did every day, (it probably was).  

This is the grill we got the squid from. 2 squids were 5000 Riel ( Riel is Cambodian currency). 5000 Riel is $1.25 US. It surely was an awesome adventure at the crab market in Kep. (I still cannot believe I ate squid😀).

P.S. I will be off WiFi for 4 days on Koh Rong Samloem  so you will not here from me till the 15th. Until then, Bye!

Eating at Railay Great View Resort

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This is Lae Lay Restaurant at Railay Great View Resort, there is a big breakfast buffet that has so many choices! I really liked the pancakes, croissants, and the yoghurt. It was the biggest breakfast buffet I have ever seen in my life. 

This is the buffet, all the nets have a different type of fruit. The fruits they had were passion fruit, watermelon, papaya, pineapple, and dragonfruit. I always had watermelon.

This was my breakfast on the last day in Railay. I had cereal and yoghurt, pancakes, french toast, a croissant, a sausage, watermelon, banana, cucumber, and OJ. 

This is Denise eating her breakfast on the last day. She looked like she was really enjoying it. I do not think the Lae Lay buffet can be beat!

This is Chicken Satay I had for lunch at Lae Lay. Chicken Satay is practically chicken yakitori. Me and Denise have eaten it a lot of it in Thailand. Lae Lay Restaurant was great. The presentation was exquisite! I would rate the food at Lae Lay a 9 out of 10.

Eating in Luang Prabang

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Tamarind Restaurant

We ate at Tamarind on our last night in Luang Prabang. I ordered the kid’s sampler, it came with sticky rice, salsa, vegetables, dried buffalo, pork sausage, egg, seaweed, and sticky rice crackers. It was so so so so delicious. The workers at Tamarind taught us the traditional way to eat sticky rice; roll it up into a ball, then dip it in the salsa with your thumb, then plop it in your mouth! I would definitely go back to Tamarind to eat the scrumptious food they have to offer. I would rate it an 8 out of 10.

Le Banneton

Luang Prabang was colonised by the French in 1893, so there are a lot of bakeries with croissants and baguettes. Le Banneton had the best croissants and crepes. We went there 4 times!! Once I ordered an almond croissant, once I ordered a banana-chocolate crepe, once I ordered a ham and egg crepe, and once I had a chocolate crepe. You can see my crepe in the 2nd Le Banneton picture. I highly recommend Le Banneton. I would rate it a 9 out of 10.

 Night Market

The Night Market was a great place to get dinner or lunch. It was practically always busy but had awesome food. Food we got there included rice, dumplings, fish, sausage, smoothies, and most importantly, cake!! The picture above shows the stall where we got fish and sausage. I would rate the Night Market a 7 out of 10.

Luang Prabang Morning Market

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This morning, we went to the Morning Market. The market is always bustling with people bargaining with vendors and selling goods. The market opens at 5:00am and vendors start to pack up their stands at 11:00am. We went around 9:00 am, and it was pretty busy. Food we ate at the market included sticky rice on a stick, coconut pancakes, and fried mung bean cakes. The trip to the morning market was great.

This is us eating food we found in the market. Me and my dad are eating sticky rice on a stick while Denise is eating a seaweed snack. In my opinion, the sticky rice on a stick was very good but a little salty for me. Denise loved the seaweed snacks.

This is me walking through the market. The market has everything from fried fish to jewelry to fresh lettuce and spinach. 

This was a  tent that was practically all chili peppers!! It had like 12 kinds of chili peppers. Even looking at them made me feel like I just ate something really spicy. I was way too scared to try one. Maybe next time  (probably not). 🙂

These are coconut pancakes. They are made from condensed coconut milk. They have a little bit of a weird texture but they taste really good. They usually come in a banana leaf just like practically all other snacks. Coconut pancakes are a great snack.

At a lot of tents in the market sell rolled up banana leaf with orange flowers on them. At first we did not know what they were but soon learned that these are offerings that Buddhist people give to the Buddha. Flowers represent purity in Buddhism. 

Eating in Pai

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At our hotel in Pai, (Pai Homey), they served breakfast every morning from 8:00am to 11:00am. I ordered pancakes with Nutella. They were really really yummy. The pancakes came with papaya that was freshly picked from one of the many papaya trees in Pai.

This is us drinking smoothies we got at a cafe called Cafe’d’tist. I ordered a berry banana lassi and Denise ordered a pineapple ginger lime smoothie. I also got Banana pancakes, so did Denise

This is Khao Soi at a restaurant called Nong. We got it on our first day in Pai. My parents thought it was good but not as good as Khao Soi Mae Sai in Chiang Mai.

This is us eating Ice Cream at the Pai walking street with our friend Katherine. Me and Katherine ordered Chocolate-chip and Denise ordered Chocolate.

This is spring rolls and pork noodle soup at the restaurant Nong. The spring rolls were scrumptious.😀

Guest Post (Dan): Khao Soi and Budget

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Thanks for the guest spot Ev. One highlight of Chiang Mai for me is the Khao Soi Gai (chicken) at the Khao Soi Mae Sai restaurant down the road from where we are staying. It is a spicy coconut noodle soup with a chicken drumstick and topped with crisps that get soggy as they mix in. Apparently this is a particularly northern Thai dish but not like you can only get it here – I’ve had it at the Queen Mother by City Hall in Toronto and wouldn’t bet I could distinguish one bite blind. It’s kind of like the pizza in Naples, which is incredible, ‘best in the world’, but not that different (that I could tell) than the places in (pick your city) that use the same 3 ingredients, all approved by the Council back in Napoli.

Before we left I watched on recommendation the Parts Unknown episode where Anthony Bourdain comes to Chiang Mai (thanks Ben). He hangs out with the American guy who opened the Pok Pok restaurants in the states after living in northern Thailand and they sort of talk about honouring regional cuisines as they go international and what ‘authentic’ means and stuff. They also drink a lot through the episode and don’t get too too deep into anything. But this soup at this place is delicious. Maybe the coconut milk comes straight from a coconut and not a can. Maybe it’s just the idea of eating it in Thailand. Maybe (likely) it’s that it costs 45 Baht (about $1.80 CAD), and yes I will add a Fanta for 15 B. The four of us ate lunch here for less than $10 and we’re going to need more finds like this if we’re going to make it to Japan. In general, pretty cheap food and transport in Chiang Mai have been a sweet surprise after accommodation seemed to be a bit pricier than expected and many travel forums talked about how this isn’t your father’s Thailand.

Also, they drive on the left here – who knew?

Eating at Isty Hotel

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We stayed at Hotel Isty. They generously gave a big selection of breakfast at the breakfast buffet. From waffles to croissants, the food was always delicious. My parents really enjoyed it, as you can see below. But I think me and Denise enjoyed it even more. Overall, I would rate the breakfast at Isty a 9 out of 10