[Our World] Good Catch in the Fish Market

For Our World Tuesday I like to show you a little slice of life in my corner of the world, wherever I happen to be. I am at home in Manila these days and I recently accompanied my honey to the market again... and, as usual, while he picks, I click. The stall owners recognize me by now and humor me.

Today I focus on the seafood area.

Manila, 2011

This magnificent lapu-lapu fish (grouper) not only looked fresh, when steamed by my honey, it tasted like a piece of heaven!

It's my favorite fish. What's yours?

[MyWorld] Bringing in the Catch

In my [personal] world it is a rare occasion that I get up early; I am a confirmed night owl and subjected to a fair amount of [deserved] teasing about it from my friends.

But when I do get up at the crack of dawn, if it's not to catch an early plane, it's typically for something exciting. On our trip to Mindoro some months ago, I was roused from bed to go see the fishermen come in with their catches of the day. I'm so very glad I did.  Here is some of what I saw (all images can be enlarged).

Mindoro, 2010

I am linking to My World Tuesday and Ruby Tuesday.

Reflections in an Aquarium

You've had a glimpse of the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan before on my blog, and today I show you a bit more.

The Kaiyukan sitting on the edge of the water near Osaka Bay is one of the largest public aquariums in the world.  Designed by British architect Peter Chermayeff, I think the  building has a wonderful unique style. I especially like the tiled mural. 

 Osaka, 2009

No one is sitting on the benches this morning, because it was raining... making it the perfect day to explore inside. There were a good number of school groups here this day.

And parents with their young. "Look ma, the manta ray is smiling at me!"

As well as other photography enthusiasts. Who's lookin' at who?

Interesting facts borrowed from Wikipedia: The walk-through aquarium displays marine life in several habitats comprising 27 tanks in 16 main exhibits with a total volume of 10,941 tons of water. The habitats are from the Ring of Fire area of the Pacific Ocean. The largest tank is 9 metres (30 ft) deep and holds 5,400 cubic metres (190,699 cu ft) of water and a variety of fish including manta rays and a pair of whale sharks.

I watched the sardines going round and round and round endlessly and couldn't help but reflect upon the human condition.

Back to the wiki: The tanks used in the aquarium are made of 314 tonnes (346 tons) of acrylic glass - roughly 1.5 times the world's annual production. The largest single pane measures six meters by five meters by thirty centimeters and weighs roughly 10 tons. At the thicknesses used, regular glass would be unwieldy and would not have the desired transparency.

I've linked my post to Weekend Reflections where you'll find others from around the world sharing their reflections.

[MyWorld] Don't Pick Me!

For Cantonese the only seafood worth eating is fresh... very fresh.

In Hong Kong, people have a hefty appetite for seafood - consuming an average of nearly 50 kg (110 lbs) a year - and are willing to pay a premium for it. Thousands of tons of live seafood, most of it caught in the wild, are flown in from around the world. It's a half-billion dollar a year trade... for this one city.

The crabs, lobster, clams, scallops, oysters and other seafood is distributed to countless tanks in wet markets and restaurants throughout the Special Administrative Region. These are snapshots of a wet market I recently visited where customers choose their own live dinner for a nearby restaurant to cook and serve.

 Hong Kong, 2010

I "caught" these red fish in a tank. The perfectly prepared meal we had was to die for. But don't tell these fish that!

This is for Klaus and team's My World Tuesday - you'll find plenty of scenes from around the globe there! And there are more great takes on the theme RED at Mary's Ruby Tuesday.

Red Koi Mural

I've shared with you before that I am partial to mosaics and murals ...or any urban art that serves to beautify our environment. 

This mural of koi I saw in Beijing is no exception.

Beijing, 2007

Koi - a Japanese term - is an ornamental variety of the common carp. These hardy fish are bred in many different colors, patterns and scales. Koi are often seen in Asia in both indoor aquariums and outdoor ponds and are associated with courage and good luck.

This is my post for Ruby Tuesday hosted by Mary. Click on the link for more links to images of RED.