Pat-tay-a..Good-bye-a. Hi-ya Chiang Mia.

No, I didn't take the pic just to get cute Thai punk-rockers in background.

Friday night LC treated us to Japanese cuisine. Amazing.  The food was as great as the experience.  I have video footage of the event if you would care to see.  These food items were beautifully placed on colorful saucers that circled the restaurant via a narrow conveyor belt.  The food is in a raw, chilled and/or uncooked state.  As the food snakes through the restaurant you take your choice from a variety of food items.  As a customer you have a selection of small portioned selections of items like: meat, seafood, noodles, vegetables, etc.  This is all you can eat.  Then the best part, you cook the food in hot soup pots at your table.  So as you are sitting in a booth or on a bar stool, you grab the little saucer items from the belt and add them to the hot broth to cook.  Sadly, I feel that this would be a lawsuit waiting to happen in the US. 

Additionally you could grab any kind of sushi you wanted, which was located around the perimeter of the restaurant.  I have never really experimented with sushi much, for several reasons: it is expensive, I have no idea what to order, and I don’t know too many people that appreciate it.  So this was perfect, I tried a variety of sushi and found my favorite.  I have no idea what was in it, but the flavor was amazing.  It was rectangular in shape with green vegetables, rice and a swirl of sauce on the top.   I convinced my friends to try it and they wanted more.  All of the sushi available was colorful, unique, and artistic.  There were two kinds of fried rice, one was a seasoned-rice, the other was a garlic rice.  There was a variety of juices and teas.  I tried the guava, which was good.  Also, there was ice cream, big fan.  I tried a little sample of all four flavors, double chocolate, vanilla, cookies and cream, and rum raisin.  I mostly wanted to try the rum raisin because I see it all over here in Asia.  I didn’t hate it.  The cookies and cream, (originally founded at SDSU)…was a let down. The Thai’s have not mastered this ice cream yet.  Vanilla won.

garlic naan with spicy Indian aloo gobi

Saturday I slept in for one of the first times in Thailand, after a late Friday night - Some of us went out to celebrate our certifications, training completion, and our last night in Pattaya (amen).  We did some karaoke and dancing. Saturday we met for some Indian food before leaving Pattaya, the food was amazing.  Hands down the best Indian food I have ever tasted.  At least that was what I thought, up until 15 minutes after I ate. I was sick for about 3 hours, right up until we were about to get on our 12 hour bus ride to Chiang Mai. Then all was well.

I paid 785 Baht ($25) for a 13 hour VIP bus ride to Chiang Mai 4pm-5am.  This was on the spendier ends of things, as I spent an extra couple dollars to take the VIP bus.  The VIP bus had AC, soft music, fully-reclining seats with foot rests, blankets, and formally dress flight attendant (she was so cute, professional hat with matching uniform) that provided us with cold water, lobster crisps, chicken flavor-coated peanuts, room temperature sweetened soy milk, and a meal (steamed white rice, a mini portion of ‘funky tofu sausage,’ and a mini portion of spicy cauliflower, and ?beef). I would recommend VIP traveling, 785 baht was more than reasonable and frankly more comfortable than I could have imagined.  The food isn’t as impressive but I loved it for the experience.  I wouldn’t change a thing.

There were few people on the bus, making the ride pleasant.  I didn’t sleep on the bus ride, I tried.  Instead I watched Pirates of the Caribbean on my iPod (thank you Nick).  I watched the whole movie, I don’t remember the last time I watched a whole movie – I always fall asleep. I have three more Pirate movies on my iPod.  Nick put 6 movies on my iPod to surprise me, 4 Pirates movies, Wizard of Oz, and Fantasia (interesting choice). I was unsure about Fantasia but I think he knows me better than I know myself sometimes. 

As we traveled out of Pattaya, life seemed to get greener and exciting for me. I arrived in Chiang Mai around 5am Sunday morning.  The air was clean, cool, fragrant with flowers, and free of sulfur and methane gases. We all went to sleep around 7am and slept until about 11:30am.  Then we went off to a pool Echo Resort on the East side of Chiang Mai, where the Thai swim team used to train.  It was 100 Baht to swim all day.  It was a beautiful area and so was the pool.  The setting was tropical, paths leading to a pool.  I would describe it as an eco-friendly, green area.  The walk in is through lush green tropical plants, trees, bushes, and flowers.  I had lunch near the pool, cashew chicken and vegetables and supper out in a market square area Sunday night, spicy cashew chicken.  Yes, I like the cashew chicken with vegetables.  Each time I order it, it is different.  It’s so good and seems to always have different vegetables.  Most of the dished have spring onions and carrots.   I experienced great food, but with that lack of Thai spice I have been anticipating.

Walking through the gardens towards the pool and future hostel.

Another site along the way to the hostel.

Sunday and Monday we stayed the Hennesey’s Thai house.  It is the home of Susan’s aunt and uncle.  I have video footage.  I will have to find a good way to link these videos to my blog. Ideas anyone?  Is YouTube the best bet?  Anyway, her aunt and uncle moved to Thailand three years ago with their three kids.  Two of their kids are in college, one in Thailand the other in Australia.  The family happened to be on vacation so we had the house to ourselves.  Their son Patrick is going to one of the universities here.  He has been so great.  He watched the house for us, toured us around and answered all of our questions.  His parents and sister returned Monday evening.  His parents, Ed and Janet are great, they remind me of my Minnesota aunt and uncle J.  They are fun, lively, and world travelers.  The have been great resources for us thus far.  Monday evening we stayed in at their place and they bought us pizzas.  It was weird having American food here in Thailand.  I had Greek Pizza, was pretty good.  The company was nice.

 Front of the Hennesey's home in Chiang Mai. We are going to take a left through those open doors.

Taking a left just after the gate at the front door. Notice the narrow moat that half-encompasses the property. Includes fish.

Now we are taking a quick right at the corner. Here is a nice pond, complete with small fish.  I am told there are a couple of turtles that appreciate the small, zen sanctuary canopied by trees.


Looking a little farther in from the same angle. The house and front door is behind me as I take this pic.


Full view of the pond, again the house is behind me. We walked in from the left according to this pic.

This is what was behind me, the side or main door of the house. Kindly remove your shoes.

Ready to see inside?

 Living room here. One bedroom to the left through that wooden door. Beautful!

 Kitchen, of course one of my favorite rooms. Lots of windows and sulight. Through the left window you will see the pond, if you look left through it. No oven, stove is outside throught the other window.  There is a cute porch out that way.  A washer is also out there.

Kitchen again with the camera angle more to the right.  There is a bathroom to the right of the refrigerator.  Refrigerators are not common in households.  Most people buy what they need on a day-to-day basis in the markets.

Tueday we booked 2 nights at the hostel literally over the fence from their place. It’s beautiful.  This hostel was located with in the Echo Resort, where we swam Sunday.  It was more than I wanted to spend, but it was conveniently located next to the Hennesey’s place.  The cost was about 375 ($12.50) Baht per night.  Our room was a 2-bunk bed, dorm-size room.  We shared a community bathroom (it had bar soap and toilet paper!), showers with warm water, flushing sit-down toilets, A/C, wifi, jinjoks, squirrels, bats, roo-ing and cawh-ing tropical birds, and other creatures I have not yet identified. And mosquitos, imported from Minnesota to make me feel at home.  Swimming, breakfast, sunshine, and fresh air were all included in the cost.  The breakfast varied between our two mornings.  It included items like fried rice with tofu and vegetables, French toast (served with honey), stir-fry vegetables, chicken rice in a broth, toasted white bread (butter solids floating in water, orange marmalade, or strawberry jam), juice (longsan or orange) crawling with ants, fresh watermelon, pineapple, chilled water.  Today there was an interesting red tangy clear-like noodle with vegetables and spicy cabbage vegetables in addition to the fruit and juices.  It was really nice. I love it that you can sit under the trees to eat breakfast near an old barnwood shack, canopied by large tropical leaves, branches, and trees.

Yesterday I spent most of my day chilling and researching the job front.  I have been working on catering my cover letters and resumes.  Susan’s aunt and uncle have been giving me tips on job placement, as I am looking more for positions outside of simply teaching English.  For physical activity I enjoyed some diving, swimming, dancing, and lots of walking. Tonight we had supper a half a block from our stay.  I had cashew chicken, I ordered it spicy.  It was tasty but lacked spicy until I freely chose to indulge in the big red chili peppers basking in the cashew sauce.  I ate about six or seven of them.  The spice was nice.  However, I could feel my stomach burning about a half hour later. 

 Chiang Mai in the evening - Moat

 Love these Thai moons! Stop me in my tracks and I wonder what it will look life for those that will see it tomorrow.

7-Elevens...all over Thai.

Wednesday, we packed up our things and packed a few days worth of things for the next few days in Chiang Rai (pronounced Chang Rye).  We are planning to do some school tours and applications.  And yes, to see some of the city.  This will be nice as Chiang Rai is about 2 hours from Chiang Mai.  Chiang Rai (75,000) is much smaller than Chang Mai (300,000).  I am hoping for even less Westerners or farangs, but I will say that I do appreciate Chiang Mai.  I think Chiang Rai will be a lot smaller and have a unique flair to it.  I am looking forward to getting closer to the culture and people as I navigate Thailand.  We left at 5:30 pm this afternoon via Green Bus.  Our ticket was 144 Baht ($4.80).  We booked a hostel for the evening at the North Hotel.  The dorm-style hostel room was booked full so we plan to stay in a room that is a little more costly, $8 with wifi – not bad.  It is near the bus station and the night bazaar so it should be a nice location.  We should be able to find inexpensive locations for the next couple of nights.  I am excited, it has been so nice.  I am looking forward to exploring this new area.

 Twin, I know you planted this.

 What's that? You need to make some copies and buy 6 dozen eggs on the way home? I know just the place!

 What do you say to finishing the night with some Thai Reggae? This band made my night, but not as much as the hat and his Thai reggae moves. This was so fun. There were dogs coming in from the street..ahem, yes licking themselves to those fine reggae tunes.

Finally, just wanted to apologize for my lack of activity on the blog.  It has been a busy week.  My internet connection has more utilize more for communication means.  Hope you are enjoying our adventure together. See you soon.

Pattaya Friday Market

After completing my exams, I decided a walk sounded good. This was when I came upon the Friday market.

Care to join me for a short stroll through the market?  I  promise I will make it fun, I have been working on my Thai (yikes) and my bargaining. Please remove your fanny pack. Be ready to move quick. If I lose you, meet me by the durians - that will teach you to tag behind.

Paprika, chilies (We keep things spicy in these parts), garlic, and mangosteen (pronounced mangkhut) being bagged. Watch out, motorbike behind you.  Several of the dishes here have garlic, I am a fan.  There's something beatiful about seeing all of the spices and fresh/dried allium.

 Here is a an example of the "take away" foods that are pre-packaged.  Most contain vegetables with fish, meat, or tofu.  Steamed rice, as pictured, is also sold.  These typically cost no more than 30 Baht.

 Tamarind (front and center), sapadila (top left), and packaged/sliced mango (bottom left).

Tamarind is a popular flavor in Asia.  It is typically sold as a dried fruit, used as a candy flavor, or placed in dishes.
The sapadila  (la-mut) is a sweet fruit, it's taste almost like a combination of brownsugar and rootbeer.  You remove the skin, slice it lengthwise, and remove the blackseeds form yellow or golden flesh.  This fruit is native to Mexico and the Yucatan, introduced to SE Asia in colonial times.  It is often used in chewing gum or chickle. It's often used as a remedy for diarrhea, colds, and coughs.  Interesting, The crushed seeds supposedly have a diuretic effect on riding the body of kidney stones.

Check out these apples. These are rose apples (pronounced cham-poo), native to the East Indies.  They grow on a shrub-like tree, ripen from the outside to the center of the tree.  The colors vary: dark green, yellow, orange, pink, or red.  Color is not an indicator of ripe-ness, instead look for a firm crisp, rose apple.  I love the name.

 I have mostly seen cherry red rose apples, occasionally some green. I find them beautiful. Their physical beauty is great, but they also make a healthy snack.  They have a decent serving of fiber and vitamin C. Traditionally, it is seen as a healing fruit.  Common uses for the seends include diarrhea relief.  When the seeds are ground, they have been used to relieve or cool the small-pox.

Apple, Pear, Rose Apple (cham-poo).......MANGO (ma-muang)

If you keep with me I may buy you a special treat at the end.

 Tangerines (pronounced som)
 There are stands and vendors that sell "orange juice." However they are more of a tangerine.  The juice is wonderful. Why you ask? Because it's loaded with pulp. Perfect fiber, vitamin C, antioxidants. It is a refreshing as the smile you get from the vendor! Love this land of smiles.

Papaya (pronounced farang) 

Oh fresh papaya. This vitamin rich fruit is sweet and tender.  The color as you can see is a vibrant orange, but can have yellow or pink hues to it.  This fruit is available year round, but harvest best Summer to fall.  This fruit is rich in flavanoids, carotenoids, vitamin A, C, and E..oh and yes, lycopene.  Provides its indulgers with healthy prostates, immune systems, and perhaps a healthy ticker.  A popular Thai salad, Som Tam, includes lemon juice, chilies, peanuts, and dried shrimp. I have not tried the salad yet.  If you are out of dried shrimp tonight, squeeze a lemon over the farang and it will be one nutrient dense, tangy treat.  What about the seeds? Funny you should ask, you can actually eat them.  They have a peppery bitter taste. Stop spitting them at me and try a few.

How about those apples? Just 20 Baht for three ..and then there's tamarind.

Strawberries! You can buy them whole or a kind lady with whip them into a smoothie for you.

Rice Cakes (Nang led, khao tan) - Popular snack or treat here in Thai. Rice cakes with a carmel drizzle. To the top right is a pot of bubbly carmel that a lady is swiling on her cakes.  You commonly see these also sold in 711's, marts, etc.  Some of them are more sophiticated, while others appear to be simple. Some are crisp and others are more chewy.

Rice Cakes

Tangerines, like mini spheres of sunshine. Guaranteed to rock your immune system and happy-slap your buds.

Guava (pronounced farang)

Interesting enough, farang means white person or westerner.  From that you may gather that this fruit is not native to Asia.  Guava is available year round in Thai.  The taste is sweet and tangy.  They are eaten ripe or less ripe, some people sprinkle sugar, salt, or chilie powder on the unripe fruit.  Guava is typically used in drinks, jellies, and as popular ice cream flavor.

Grapes! They always look so good. Even black grapes the size of ping-pong balls. I am dying to buy a bundle but I have refrained, because I cannot wash them.  I will be brave, give me a month or so.

Garlic - Love

This might last Nick and I two months.

So much garlic, love it. Try it, we eat it like apples here.  Keeps boys and malaria away.

Limes, potatoes, carrots, and ginger root.

Tomatoes and limes.  You won't see lemons in Thai.

Mushroom varieties, snap peas, tomatoes.

Cucumbers - commobly used as a garnish on Thai dishes.

Homemade baked treats

Leafy greens

Hey! Looks like you stayed with me and my zig-zags through the market. Hope you enjoyed the mysterious smells and the rainbow of fruits and vegetables.

Now I have a challenge for you.  I want you to go to the store and buy and exotic fruit of vegetable and tell me what you think.  Mom, Dad, you may have to take advantage of this in FL.  I don't think you will be able to find these in Dells or Colton without a special request.  Report back for me if you want some more excitement your way.