Rabeang Rim Nam - Samut Prakan

Nuch and I found a new restaurant on the river.  Next door to the restaurant is a large Buddha.

Here are some pictures of the restaurant from Trip Advisor

Temple Of The Cats

Most temples are swarmed by unwanted stray dogs that are dropped off by their owners.  The temple near our house, where Nuch often makes merit, is swarmed by cats.

Cheap And Good

Our local grocery store, Foodland has their own greasy spoon diner called "Took Lae Dee" or Cheap and Good.

Recently, they introduced a new dish called the Tramezzini.  I would describe it as a combination of Pizza and Eggs Benedict with onion rings on top.  I had to try it.

I don't know if this is a real food back home, but it wasn't bad.  Of course, bacon makes everything taste good.

Hide And Seek

Tipper likes to come into our bedroom while we're getting ready in the morning.  Not so much to be with us, but because it's the one room in the house that is normally off limits - since I'm allergic to cats.  

We usually let her hang out for a while, but make sure she's out before we head downstairs.  Sometimes this takes a while because she'll hide underneath the bed or burrow behind a stack of clothes.  

She almost won this game of hide and seek.

Beware Of Toe Jam

This sign was in the bathroom of my supplier's factory.  

To be fair, the Thai language says don't clean your feet in the Bathroom, which kinda makes more sense than don't wash your feet in a toilet.  But for a moment, I did wonder - do the flip-flopped Cambodian migrant workers think this is some kind of modern foot cleansing apparatus?  

I also wondered - why the need for an English translation.  I'm their only regular foreign visitor.  What do they think I do in there?

Tis But A Scratch

Amazingly, the Erawan Shrine's Brahma statue escaped relatively unscathed from the recent bomb attack.  I'm sure this will only add to it's already legendary powers (that, by the way, helped the Gators beat Tennessee back in 2000)

As sad and as tragic as it is, Thailand will bounce back.  It always does.

Bang Saen Day Trip

Here are few pictures from our afternoon at the beach.  

In typical Thai fashion, we never got in the water and were never exposed to the sun.  This particular spot had a promenade, so you didn't even touch the sand.

With the Bike for Mom festivities, the beach was quiet.

 Just before sunset

Lost In Google Translate

Last week, someone noticed the Ministry of Labour's English translation for the occupations forbidden to foreigners was not quite right and posted it on Twitter. 

Like young fools who blindly accept MS Words auto spelling and grammar correct on their term papers, whoever put up this page on the Ministry's website blindly accepted Google's translation.

If you've ever used Google Translate for anything more than a basic Thai sentence, you'll know that the result is often more confusing than the original Thai.  Only because it can make just enough sense that the brain is tricked into thinking there is actually some meaning behind the cobbled together jumble of words.

Bike For Mom

To celebrate Mother's Day (The Queen's Birthday), bike parades were organized throughout Thailand.  I read that 300k people participated and it's now in the Guinness Book of World Records.  

I didn't know there were that many functioning bikes in Thailand.  Most of them are gear-less and have no brakes. 

Breakfast With The Cubs

For the first time in almost 10 years, I'm following the Cubs.  

I started to take notice in June when they were above .500 and had one of the better records in the National league.  By July, I was convinced they were for real and was watching a few innings of the late games before I went to work and then, following on ESPN while at my desk.  

Towards the end of July, they started slumping again, and I thought the Lovable Losers had returned.  Thinking positively - at least, I would be able to get some work done in the morning.  On July 27th, it seemed the oldest curse in baseball was in full effect, as the Cubs fell behind to the Rockies after losing a large lead.  Then, in the bottom of the 9th down by 1 run with two outs and a man on first, Kris Bryant hit a walk-off two run homer.  

I believe this swing is what has given the Cubs the momentum to win 15 out of their last 17 games - and is also why I rarely get anything done until noon.

Moon's Eye View

Holiday At The Vet

Kittie had feline leukemia when we adopted her, but it was just recently that she showed the first symptoms - swollen lymph node in her neck, lethargy, poor coat condition, and abscesses in her mouth which added to the weight loss.

She's been recovering at the vet for a week and looks and acts much much better.

Pink Corrola

My recent cab ride was pimped out.

Even had the disco lights

One Trip

It's a common sight on Thailand's road, but it never ceases to amaze me.

Nuch's Family Songkran

These are 3 months old, but better late than never.  While I was in Hanoi with my Dad and Maggie, Nuch spent time with her family and had a more traditional Songkran.

When East Misses West

With all the good meals I post, it's only fair to post some of the bad meals.  They usually come when I order a unique Western dish at a very local Thai restaurant.  I should have learned my lesson a long time ago, but there are times when I can't resist.

Deep Fried Sausage and Bacon.  I thought this was pretty straight-forward - take the bacon and sausage and dump them in the deep fryer.   Unlike the US, where it's important to use day-old cooking oil, this came out like a Japanese tempura - and could almost be considered healthy.

I live well outside the city, so I had extremely low expectations for the Chicken Cordon Bleu at a Thai restaurant near my house. They did not disappoint.