Lecker Ribs

I'm fortunate that one of my favorite restaurants in Korat (and possibly Thailand) is just 100 yards behind my condo.  I usually have their cordon bleu or rib eye, but was told I needed to try their ribs - another homerun. 

Man In The Chair

Ever get that feeling you're being watched.

 

 

Local Heroes

For some unknown reason, a Pub in Korat thought it suitable to place super-sized super hero statues along it's entrance.

 

 

Kwai

I added a new dish to my list of unusual local delicacies - Water Buffalo, or "kwai" in Thai.

 

On reflection, it was not that bad, but because it looked and smelled like steak, I was expecting it to taste like steak and the texture to be like steak.  The taste was a bit sweeter, which was not a problem, but the texture was almost like a moist salmon fillet, and I just couldn't get over that.  Although I finished it, my first Kwai steak will also be my last. 

St Andrews Ball 2017

Last Saturday, Nuch and I joined my boss, his family, and some customers for the Bangkok Scottish Society's annual St Andrew's Ball.

Nuch and I before things got started.

The opening ceremony - I almost got used to the bagpipes by the end of the night

                               

It's been a while since Nuch and I joined an extravaganza like this - The Scottish Society put on a great event.

 

This is the before picture - fortunately for all, there is no after picture

This is as close as I got to the dance floor

 

My boss, Joe and Emorn 

Emorn's sister Payom, Joe's son Raymond's date Min, Emorn, and Nuch - one of many many selfies

  

No Scottish event is complete without Haggis

  

Raymond, Min, Joe and Payom

  

and finally, some dessert in the wee hours of the morn

Separation Anxiety

Nuch is convinced that Tipper knows she is about to be left alone for a few days when she sees Nuch's luggage, and then, sits on it to keep her from packing.  I'm of the opinion that it's either really, really comfortable, the only clean spot in our house that is not covered in cat fur, or smells of exotic far off cities that Tipper can only imagine through their scents.

Chizza

You don't know what you're missing, America.  Apparently, Chizza, or pizza with a fried chicken crust, is only available in selected countries outside the US, including Thailand

Heng Heng Update

Heng Heng's new family keeps sending Nuch photos, which is kinda nice.

Also, a little weird.  Here's a video they sent of Heng Heng trying to use the litter box.  

Nuch took this as a subtle request for a new litter box - being this one is obviously too small.  So, she bought them a new one, and they obliged us with another video of Heng Heng trying to poo.  

Here's Heng Heng's climbing toy.

Here's Tipper's climbing toy

The New Hub Of Isaan

Big news for little Korat, which has an airport, but has not had any flights since the last century.  A new airline is opening routes to Chiang Mai and Phuket.

Loy Kratong 2017

The November full moon means it is Loy Kratong day or the Thai version of Valentine's Day.  Nuch and I had a romantic dinner, and then, headed to the local temple to float our Kratong in the adjacent canal.

There's A Special Place In Hell

For the dude that left the toilet like this on my flight back from Jakarta

Jakarta Reunion

Last weekend, Carl and I met up for a night out in Jakarta, which is located about halfway between Surabaya and Bangkok.

Here's the view from my hotel room.  Although we went out in the evening, we spent most of Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning by the pool

The goal of the trip was to catch up and kill some brain cells, but we did take in some of the local culture - this is a miniature reconstruction of  Indonesia's famous Borobudur temple, which is conveniently located about 50 yards from the pool

Chillin' by the pool

In the spirit of Peace Corps we snuck Vodka into the pool area in a plastic water bottle and mixed our own drinks.  In the spirit of being old dudes, we couldn't finish it all and had to poor it down the drain, so Carl could carry his fancy REI jug on his flight home.

Checking out in the hotel lounge - the first stop on the long road to recovery.... We've given ourselves 6 month to recuperate before our next trip - Bali