More Pics From Paris

On the Metro after lunch

In the hotel lobby

Making friends at Carrefour while Nuch checks out

Comme Chez Maman

After spending Friday at Carrefour and catching up on some sleep, on Saturday we headed downtown.  

We started with lunch at a restaurant recommended by my boss, Comme Chez Maman.

Carrefour

Not my first choice of things to do in Paris, but we spent Friday at the Carrefour near our hotel.  It is connected to a shopping Mall.  I thought it was decorated in the style of the Pompidou Center where the internal components (pipes, ducts, wires...)  are on the outside, but it's actually just under renovation.

We stocked up on meats and wines

The Bubba Gump's Of Mussels

At the Carrefour Mall they had a branch of Leon's, the mussel specialists.  You can get a salad or some fries, but everything else is mussels - steamed, baked, fried, boiled and seasoned with every flavor you can imagine.  We were joined by some of Nuch's colleagues.

Almost Home

Nuch stopped by the vet to see Kittie. She's almost ready to come home, but we are going to Paris for the weekend, so she must stay for a few more days.

Poor cat - she picked the wrong home to adopt.

Recovery

Kittie will stay at the vet's for a few days, but doing well - and gets to wear this trendy hat.

Nature Called

And the vet answered .

I came back from a three day trip to Malaysia and Kittie was acting differently along with making strange sounds. At first, I thought she may be in labor, but after several hours Nuch and I realized it was quite the opposite.

To say Kittie was in heat is putting it lightly. Kittie's cat was on fire! She moaned incessantly - every moan an attempt to silence the previous moan. With any attempt to soothe her, she got into kittie-style position, which was downright  freaky.  We debated putting her outside, but did not for fear of a new brood of a kitties. So, we kept her inside and suffered the insufferable.

Earlier in the evening, I was at the KL airport having dinner. In the restaurant, a child was crying, and cried/ screamed the entire time I was there. At first, it was just another annoying aspect of travel; something you need to accept when you're with a large group of random companions -, mom and dad can't leave their kid in a kennel. But after 20 minutes I could sense the anxiety among the other patrons. Even I, with my monk-like patience, began to think is this right? I mean, not turning your phone off in a movie theatre is socially unacceptable. But this kid cried on and although people were mentally digging out their ear drums, nobody complained nor grumbled into their double shot gin and tonics.     It was like we had all chosen to silently suffer for the future of humanity.

Kids get a break because at some point,we were all kids and at one time or another we likely screamed bloody murder at an airport restaurant until everyone had finished their meal and paid their bill.

Kittie didn't sound much different from this kid at the airport. Unfortunately for Kittie, I was never a cat, and when I learned that this natural process could go on for a week or more, it was time to call the vet.

Nuch took Kittie to the vet this morning.  I didn't envy that ride. Nuch said Kittie wailed all the way. It was raining and traffic was bad to make matters worse.

At the time, I was at work and enjoying the peace and quiet of an industrial factory. At some point, I began to feel some pity for Kittie. With thoughts of Steve Martin's The Jerk, I was, basically, taking away her "purpose". I imagine she will come back a more docile Kittie, but the charm of Kittie is that she is a wild street cat, but a street cat that you can bring to dinner. Take away the street and she's just a cat.

Well, it's too late now. 

Nuch and I were having dinner tonight and commiserating over our decision. It was just after our appetizers that the vet sent pictures to show us that Kittie was okay.

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Chicken On The Run

At the Shanghai Furniture Fair and no time for a proper meal?  Try the chicken feet

Jack Knife

This is how our cat prefers to sleep.

It looks like Kittie is dreaming of diving in the Olympics.

Encounters Of The Third Kind

Nuch sent me this photo from a recent trip.  I didn't recognize them as anyone famous - although they did look a bit tall for even your tallest Thai tv star..  When I asked Nuch, she informed me that they were part of a group of lady boys (the third sex) that was returning to Thailand after finishing their contract at a cabaret in Tokyo.

Everybody Loves A Wedding

Here's Nuch at my T-bird classmate's wedding.

Belated Mother's Day

This is a bit late - Mother's Day in Thailand was on August 12.

We took Nuch's mother out for a seafood lunch, then drinks at Anantara - formerly the Marriott Resort and Spa.

After dropping Nuch's mom off, Nuch, her brother and I went to dinner by a canal near their home and somehow ended up singing karaoke?