Jan 1, 2009

Thailand - Treats for the Eyes and Mouth

We found Bangkok shiny by day


and by night,


full of ancient colorful places like this ornate temple

and modern colorful places like this outdoor stage in front of the shopping mall.

There were rich homes along the river  (in front of which Mashi took a nice photo of me in the sun)

and, not so rich ones (in front of which I took a not so good photo of Mashi in a shadow.  Sorry hon'!)

There were crowded, noisy streets with pink - yes, bright pink and orange taxis


and quite tree-lined beaches with bright umbrellas to relax under.

There were friendly, smiling men who led us on our elephant ride



More smiling men...beautiful "ladymen" as they were called, wishing everyone Merry Christmas.

There were friendly, smiling women, one who made us a delicious glass noodle salad on our first day and recognized us when we went back for more the next.  She was impressive - working day in and out along one of the busiest, noisiest streets in Bangkok, decked out in nice clothes, make-up, well-done hair, and a cart full of more ingredients than you couldn't imagine lugging around the busy, hot streets, serving tasty treats day after day with a smile.

Which brings me to our favorite part of Thailand...the spicy, yummy food...

Recycling and pollution control seems a bit lagging in Thailand, but there is no lack of green...
green curry, green salads, green leafy vegetables in oyster sauce, like this..our Christmas Eve dinner


...green herbs, limes, peppers on the sides of spicy dishes like this that accompanied our pad thai in the market place along the banks of the river near the national palace

...and our favorite, green papaya salad, which we ate every day, some days for both lunch AND dinner

...and, of course, we had plenty of Singha beer to wash down all that spicy, yumminess.  It was a good Christmas in Thailand.

1 comment:

Emilie said...

Thanks for the English version too! My mouth is watering for that papaya salad. oh my gosh.

i'd love to spend new years with you sometime soon, but i'd rather be eating sushi on your couch than at times square, if the truth be known.

love you... and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!