by Nicola | Dec 31, 2009
IMAGE: The Green Barrier at Hassi Bahbah, Algeria, via. Algeria is not a small country – according to Wikipedia, it is one hundred three-and-a-half times the size of Texas – but eighty-five percent of its territory consists of the Sahara desert. In fact, only a thin... by Nicola | Dec 30, 2009
IMAGE: Model bakery from the tomb of Meketre, chancellor to Mentuhotep II and III. From the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (Egypt, ~1975 B.C., plastered and painted wood, height of tallest figure is 18cm). This model, part of the ancient... by Nicola | Dec 27, 2009
IMAGE: Above-ground entrances to the Bronx beer caves. Photo by blogger Ed García Conde. On Christmas Day, the New York Times broke the exciting news that a construction project in the South Bronx had uncovered several abandoned beer caves. In fact, an arched entrance... by Nicola | Dec 27, 2009
IMAGE: Mongol hordes attack the walled city of Xiaxia, via. IMAGE: The Imperial Portrait of Emperor Xianfeng, via. IMAGE: A hot meal, via. The tale of General Tso’s Chicken, as described in my last post, may strike many of you as quite convoluted enough already.... by Nicola | Dec 23, 2009
When Fuschia Dunlop, a British cook and food writer specialising in Chinese cuisine, was compiling material for her recent book on Hunanese food, she faced a difficult decision: to include, or not to include, a recipe for General Tso’s Chicken. IMAGE: General...