One of the delights of travelling abroad is to view the english version menus on display outside the restaurants to entice the English speaking foreigner into through their portals. The heading is one clearly tasty dish that would have us all beating a path to their door.
I can get the pork instead of cork but bombed egg I guess is scrambled ? Even down in Puglia where we live in Italy they are guilty of this type of stuff Ears from pasta with turnip I saw in Ostuni for orrichiete con rape ( ear shaped pasta with the green tops of the italian type of turnip plant ). British friends there have offered to do the translation but too often the owner who is proud of how much his son or daughter has learnt at school insists on using them rather than a native speaker. Personally I have never seen the same thing in an Italian or Thai restaurant in the UK so maybe by moving they lose that need to use a family member with a school dictionary.
We went to the city again last night and returned to the Riverside Market. They cook everything fresh and insist they never use MSG . It has been amazing in restaurants in Chiang Mai how seemingly quickly food arrives after ordering. There seems time merely for the waitress to get to the kitchen before she is back with the entire order with nary a sign of a wok used in anger. Whether by design or not at The Riverside Market you wait a goodly time and the food arrives piping hot and tasting as if it has dropped out of the wok unto the plate a minute ago. Plus no sleepless nights with MSG.
The view is great from the restaurant veranda . This is the iron bridge across the river where the lights change colour every couple of minutes and all through the evening two guys on the bridge sell hot air lanterns which they launch and we punters get to watch them float up into the night sky. The lanterns drop fireworks and leave a fiery glow in the air. Now my old iPhone can’t do it justice but here goes. Trust me it’s a lantern with a tail of firework.
At one time there can 15 or 20 in the sky floating gently away on the light breeze.
Hey we moved hotels yesterday as well to the Opium Serviced Apartments. These really are great and very modern ( only built last year) This is our living area
Then we have a separate bedroom
a kitchen area with dining seats for two
and what is really great a balcony to sit out on the a couple of chairs and a table. Essential for that final nightcap of the night.
I have to say the staff are really great and really helpful. We are already fixed up with transport to the jungle camp some 3 hrs away and a girl and 2 of the other guests sorted out this Macbook Air which seems to have troubles after connecting to the Grand Napat internet link.
We are paying £44 a night with breakfast so it seems a really good deal. The problem for long stayers ( monthly rate £27 a night) is that the pool is small and never gets the sun so a) it is still really cold and b) for sun worshippers like me I would have to move my bed lounger into the car park and sit out there where it shines all day. For many especially those Brits that wrapped their kids in burka type swimwear I know it is no problem but I am like the Italians if the sun is out you sit in it.
As an old Asia hand we don’t use the hotel for our dobbying ( laundry ) as they often farm it out and use a local anyway. So I went in search of place this morning . Imagine my delight that there is one at the end of the road called Snow White ( ahh) . It is 10 baht a kilo (10 p) they charge and iron the lot. My load isn’t in this picture but you can see the drying process they also
The street is full of bars and stalls to buy stir fry so tonight we aren’t straying far from home.
Travels With My Wife 