Osaka Day Trip

Last weekend, I joined Nuch's flight to Osaka.  We left Friday night, arrived early Saturday and would have almost exactly 24 hours before checking out Sunday morning and flying back to Bangkok.

Here's a view, looking South, from our hotel window.  The city of Osaka was about 30 miles to the North, so with only 24 hours and Nuch needing some rest after an overnight flight, we spent our time near the hotel.

Our only goals for the trip were to try some ultra-fresh sushi for lunch and some Kobe steak for dinner.   This is the kind of lunch/dinner date you can have when the hotel is free, the flight is nearly free, and you can get over the guilt of leaving your cats in the kennel for a few days.

I had a sake a sampler and for the first time, I noticed a difference in taste from one sake to another - although I'm still not sure which one I like the most.  Must do more testing.

After lunch, Nuch did her make-up shopping

and then, dragged me into a coffee shop

after some rest, it was time for teppanyaki on the 52nd floor of our hotel

I thought our meal was finished before it started when the chef threw a live shrimp on the grill.  Fortunately, Buddhism has a few loopholes, and because we didn't knowingly order a live shrimp, it's brief suffering won't cost us any karma points.

Here's my Kobe steak

and Nuch's abalone, which was tasty, but for a price similar to a steak, I can't say I'd order it again

Here's our chef in action

After a good night's sleep, we were up again and on the way home.

I didn't take any pictures, but Nuch's in-flight manager was kind enough to upgrade me to business class on both legs - making the short trip exponentially more enjoyable.

Urban Thai Architecture

The boss said make an elevated crossing there, so they made an elevated crossing right there.

Right on top of and around the telephone pole.

After a few days of Social Media shaming, the boss decided to move the telephone pole.

Sandwich Wars

I thought that Family Mart had one the convenience store sandwich war.  Both the club and chicken sandwiches looked fresh, had good mass, and were presented in attractive packaging.  

I can't complain about the chicken sandwich, which also had whole grain bread, but the club sandwich was a different story.  Although the ham did fill out the sandwich, I, once again, fell victim to the ol' sliver of cheese just for show trick.

New Champion

Nuch and I tried a new restaurant last week called Dexter's Cafe, and unsuspectingly, I discovered Bangkok's newest, best Eggs Benedict - English muffin, crisp parma ham, sauteed spinach and cheese, a perfectly poached egg, and just the right amount of hollandaise sauce.

Peace Corps Night Ride

There's a large group of former Peace Corps volunteers in Thailand that gets together every month to throw down a few beers and to reminisce about the good ol' days.  Most are former PC Thailand volunteers who have returned to to settle down, or, like Carl and I, who have never really left. The rest are former volunteers that served elsewhere in the world and are now based in Thailand with various international development organizations.

One guy runs a bicycle tour company, and during a recent meeting, he offered our Peace Corps Group a promotion.  So, last Saturday, Carl and I sacrificed an evening downtown to join the Bangkok Night Ride.   

We started near the backpacker district, Khao San Rd, and worked our way to the Chao Phraya river.

Our first stop was Thonburi, which is just across the river from Bangkok.  After a few history lessons as we peddled past ancient forts and temples, we cross back across the Chao Phraya to the 24 hr flower market. 

Normally, a flower market is not someplace that I would have picked to visit, but I can add it to my "been there done that" list, and it makes for some nice photo ops.

After a short ride, our next stop was Wat Poh - famous for the reclining Buddha.  I had been there before, but in the scorching mid-day heat.  Aside from simply cruising through the back alleys of Bangkok, this was the highlight of the tour for me.

After dropping off our bikes, Carl and I ventured back to Khao San Rd, where we had spent so many evenings during our Peace Corps days, and finished off our tour with a few Buckets of Joy.