Second update of nights and days in Bangkok
Friday continued:
You will be pleased to see that my glasses have arrived and you will not have to suffer so many spelling, and other errors.
Sheila was feeling a little ill today so after some Chinese medicine from Khun Noy Sheila went to bed. I am not sure if it is the flu or Khun Noy’s medicine. I went to the supermarket to get Sheila a lady’s razor and also some more recognizable medicine. I also took the opportunity to buy some croissants and Danish pastries that I also think are therapeutic, though Sheila is not convinced, so I think Rosalind and I will have to eat them all. Rosalind was also working on the chapters that she is providing for the next ‘Bangkok Guide’ an excellent publication that she helped edit last year.
For dinner Rosalind prepared roast pork with pumpkin and green beans, (aloi mahk’) very delicious; it has been a long time since we had roast pork and Sheila’s tip about brushing the pork with vinegar ensured that the ‘crackling’ was very crunchy and enjoyed greatly.
Just prior to dinner Rosalind asked if I would like a pre-dinner drink of any sort, I thought that a medicinal whisky was appropriate and when it was the Johnnie Walker Blue Label version it was very therapeutic. In fact I savored my whisky, through dinner and half way through the night. Adam did not get home from work until 2200 and was exhausted, particularly after the early morning with some clients the night before. We stayed up to watch the football and we thought that the Ivory Coast was robbed in their game with Holland as the goal from Van Nistleroy was clearly from an off-side position. It seems grossly unfair that the Ivory Coast will probably be eliminated as a result of a gross refereeing error.
Saturday 17th June 2006
Sheila is feeling worse and did not get up until 1606 which is very unusual for Sheila, but Sheila remains convinced that it is just a flu like bug and that her system will prevail in the end.
To enable Sheila to sleep undisturbed I got up early and went to the supermarket to get a supply of toilet rolls, potatoes and herbs for a ‘metze’ dish I wanted to make. The recipe called for fresh mint and a bought a packet of what looked like mint to me, it turned out to be something called sweet vine. But I figured that if it looked a bit like mint and it was sold as fresh produce then it would do as a substitute.
On the way I made ‘friends’ with the Soi dogs nearby, these are sort of stray dogs that are kenneled in the laneway as and added security measure. The dogs sort of guard the property that they are near and this pack always bark up a storm when ever anyone goes near during the day. As I was quite early they had not been released from their kennel and were I think a little scared of me as they had no-where to run to and I had ‘bearded them in their den’. Rosalind expressed some concerns with my fondness for the dogs, telling me that many of the dogs have rabies and the treatment is not very nice. To date I have only been bitten once, many years ago, ‘touch wood’ that remains the case.
Rosalind’s cook top had been taken away for replacement as the glass top is cracked. The promise was that the new one will be fitted on Monday, but Rosalind is a little suspicious of this promise. This meant that my cooking had to be a little creative, to say the least. The boiled potatoes was the first hurdle and this was cleared by putting potato cubes in a bowl with a little water and covering with ‘glad wrap’ before micro-waving for six minutes. That worked ok, though I did get a couple of steam burns on my fingers as I removed the glad wrap too soon, to test the firmness of the potato. Basically the recipe is a mixture of mashed up pumpkin, from the night before, with mashed potato, chick-peas, herbs, spices and flour mixed together, made into patties and then cooked. As they appeared to cook ok, with Adam and Rosalind at the gym and Sheila ‘hors de combat’ I thought that I should make some scones for afternoon tea. Well the recipe was called ‘lemonade scones’. There was no lemonade so I thought that soda water would be an appropriate substitute.
The canisters of flour are not marked so I had a 50% chance of picking the self-raising flour, ever the eternal optimist I ploughed on. I ran out of one type of flour so I topped up the mixture with the other type until it stopped sticking to my hands like thick ‘clag’. I remembered Sheila mentioning some time that scones need to be thick and not worked too much. To cut a long and sad story short in the kitchen are a plate of twelve bits of ‘damper’, I assured Sheila that they will be fine when eaten with jam and cream. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating and might depend on how hungry Adam and Rosalind are after gym.
Well the verdict on the ‘scones’ was mixed to say the least, about fifty-fifty; I assured everyone that I would eat them and they assured that they would not.
The potato and pumpkin ‘kibblers’ were appreciated by all, though I suspect that they will not be appreciated as much as I continue to serve them up as ‘nibbles’ until they are all finished; ‘waste not want not’. Dinner was a Lebanese banquet, that was of course too much of to many courses, though it does provide the makings for lunch for a few days after. The world cup football matches seemed to be a couple of ‘lack lustre’ affairs, but we are keenly anticipating the Australia Brazil game with Adam feverishly working out the implications of the various results scenarios.
Sunday 19th June 2006
Sheila is still not feeling well, with a very sore throat and congested chest. Kuhn Noy had purchased some anti-biotics at the local pharmacy. They are broad spectrum anti-biotics each tablet containing 625 mg of amoxicillin. We are amazed that one is able to buy these on demand over the counter with no prescription. It does not bode well for the efficacy of these drugs in a few years time as their abuse leads to the development of resistant infections. So Sheila is trying to do her bit by holding back from taking any anti-biotics, saying that she would rather use her own immune system and strengthen that. Sheila stayed in bed until about lunch-time, feeling a little better Sheila was able to get up and get dressed and sit and read while Rosalind, Adam and I went to the gym. I was only going for a swim; it was pouring with rain, but I was not worried about getting wet.
When we enter the club there is always a phalanx of young ladies behind the reception desk whose greeting of “Sawasdee” is always accompanied by the broadest smiles. In exchange for our membership cards they provide each of us with a tagged locker key with a plastic clip to fasten it to ones swimming costume or gym gear. I did not have my glasses with me so could not read my locker number so Adam read the number for me and I thought no more about it. When I got changed and clipped my tag to my swimming costume the tag came off the chain and rather than run the risk of losing it to the bottom of the pool I unlocked my locker again and put the tag inside (with the number on). I proceeded up-stairs to the roof-top pool, while Rosalind did a Pilates class and Adam went running on a treadmill. The wind was howling around the pool and the rain coming down in buckets, but I was keen to have some exercise and start my laps. There was a bit of thunder and lightning, so after a couple of laps I decided to take my wedding ring and copper bracelet off to make me less of a target for a lightning strike. I had completed ten laps (20 metre pool) when a lightning strike followed immediately by a huge thunderclap caused me to think that discretion was the better part of valor for a few minutes at least.
I did some stretching exercises in a small covered pavilion, poolside, for a few minutes and when I had not heard a close thunderclap for a minute I judged that it was ok to go back into the water. I completed about fifty laps then thought it was time to rendezvous with Adam and Rosalind. I had a long leisurely shower and went back into the changing rooms to get dressed. I put my key in the lock, the door opened and the cupboard was bare. All of my clothes, wallet watch etc were missing. Ah catastrophe!
Luckily I had the two small towels that we are provided with when we enter the changing area. I wrapped the bigger towel around my lower body, went up the stairs to the reception area where my near nakedness caused some concern, and I explained that all of my clothes, wallet, watch etc had been taken from my locker. My normal phlegmatic demeanor had a slight edge of panic to it. “Could I please have your locker number sir?” This I thought was a needless waste of time as a miscreant was decamping with all my gear as we spoke and as I pointed out I had left the broken tag in the locker and that had been taken also. Obviously the thief had been smart enough to take that back to reception to retrieve my membership card and make good his escape.
“Eighty- three, but as I said I had left the tag inside”.
As I provided the number of my locker one of the beautiful young ladies searched through the draw of member’s cards that had been provided in exchange for keys.
“So sorry sir, your locker number eighty one.”
Not as half sorry and stupid as I felt, I wrapped the towel tighter around me and retreated to the locker room. Yes my key did fit lock number eighty-one and all of my gear had been ‘replaced’ while I was at the front desk. In my defence I will say that all the odd numbers are in a row above the even numbers so eighty one is next to eighty three and I was able to open eighty three with my key as it had not been locked. Ah the traps that oriental health clubs can pose for unwary sailors.
I went to the ‘juice bar’ and had a soy-milk banana smoothie with Rosalind while we waited for Adam to finish his workout and get changed. When Adam arrived he had a quick drink then proposed that we visit a ‘Hagan-daz’ ice cream shop on the way home to get some suitable dessert for the evening while we watch more football. Despite Rosalind’s great knowledge of Bangkok he did not know that there was an ice-cream shop at the location Adam mentioned. Sure enough Adam’s radar is spot on and while he was illegally parked on a busy road Rosalind and I bought three litres of ice-cream packed with dry-ice to keep it cool on the way home. The flavours were two litres of ‘praline and cream’ and one of ‘tirramasu’. Adam wrinkled his nose up when Rosalind mentioned that part of the selection was ‘tirramasu’ in response to my request. I was pleased that my selection was not favoured by Adam. Gluttony is sometimes a cross that I have to bear.
The main course was four different types of pizza accompanied by a couple of beers as we settled down for the football. I forget who were playing in the first game as our excitement built for the Australia Brazil game. We were thrilled with the first half and thought that Australia more than held their own. The first Brazilian goal deflated our exuberant mood and the second did not help though we talked through all of the positive aspects and the implications of the Australia Croatia game. Ah now I remember it was the Japan Croatia game and a nil al draw which was a good result for us.
Rosalind told us that her sister Alice would be arriving during the week for a short visit.
Monday 19th June 2006
It was another early morning for us and at breakfast Rosalind and Adam said that they did not get to sleep until 0530, Sheila said that it was 0600 before she got to sleep. I was better able to subdue my ‘hype’ after the game and enjoyed a much longer repose.The new stove top arrived before lunch and it took a few hours f
You will be pleased to see that my glasses have arrived and you will not have to suffer so many spelling, and other errors.
Sheila was feeling a little ill today so after some Chinese medicine from Khun Noy Sheila went to bed. I am not sure if it is the flu or Khun Noy’s medicine. I went to the supermarket to get Sheila a lady’s razor and also some more recognizable medicine. I also took the opportunity to buy some croissants and Danish pastries that I also think are therapeutic, though Sheila is not convinced, so I think Rosalind and I will have to eat them all. Rosalind was also working on the chapters that she is providing for the next ‘Bangkok Guide’ an excellent publication that she helped edit last year.
For dinner Rosalind prepared roast pork with pumpkin and green beans, (aloi mahk’) very delicious; it has been a long time since we had roast pork and Sheila’s tip about brushing the pork with vinegar ensured that the ‘crackling’ was very crunchy and enjoyed greatly.
Just prior to dinner Rosalind asked if I would like a pre-dinner drink of any sort, I thought that a medicinal whisky was appropriate and when it was the Johnnie Walker Blue Label version it was very therapeutic. In fact I savored my whisky, through dinner and half way through the night. Adam did not get home from work until 2200 and was exhausted, particularly after the early morning with some clients the night before. We stayed up to watch the football and we thought that the Ivory Coast was robbed in their game with Holland as the goal from Van Nistleroy was clearly from an off-side position. It seems grossly unfair that the Ivory Coast will probably be eliminated as a result of a gross refereeing error.
Saturday 17th June 2006
Sheila is feeling worse and did not get up until 1606 which is very unusual for Sheila, but Sheila remains convinced that it is just a flu like bug and that her system will prevail in the end.
To enable Sheila to sleep undisturbed I got up early and went to the supermarket to get a supply of toilet rolls, potatoes and herbs for a ‘metze’ dish I wanted to make. The recipe called for fresh mint and a bought a packet of what looked like mint to me, it turned out to be something called sweet vine. But I figured that if it looked a bit like mint and it was sold as fresh produce then it would do as a substitute.
On the way I made ‘friends’ with the Soi dogs nearby, these are sort of stray dogs that are kenneled in the laneway as and added security measure. The dogs sort of guard the property that they are near and this pack always bark up a storm when ever anyone goes near during the day. As I was quite early they had not been released from their kennel and were I think a little scared of me as they had no-where to run to and I had ‘bearded them in their den’. Rosalind expressed some concerns with my fondness for the dogs, telling me that many of the dogs have rabies and the treatment is not very nice. To date I have only been bitten once, many years ago, ‘touch wood’ that remains the case.
Rosalind’s cook top had been taken away for replacement as the glass top is cracked. The promise was that the new one will be fitted on Monday, but Rosalind is a little suspicious of this promise. This meant that my cooking had to be a little creative, to say the least. The boiled potatoes was the first hurdle and this was cleared by putting potato cubes in a bowl with a little water and covering with ‘glad wrap’ before micro-waving for six minutes. That worked ok, though I did get a couple of steam burns on my fingers as I removed the glad wrap too soon, to test the firmness of the potato. Basically the recipe is a mixture of mashed up pumpkin, from the night before, with mashed potato, chick-peas, herbs, spices and flour mixed together, made into patties and then cooked. As they appeared to cook ok, with Adam and Rosalind at the gym and Sheila ‘hors de combat’ I thought that I should make some scones for afternoon tea. Well the recipe was called ‘lemonade scones’. There was no lemonade so I thought that soda water would be an appropriate substitute.
The canisters of flour are not marked so I had a 50% chance of picking the self-raising flour, ever the eternal optimist I ploughed on. I ran out of one type of flour so I topped up the mixture with the other type until it stopped sticking to my hands like thick ‘clag’. I remembered Sheila mentioning some time that scones need to be thick and not worked too much. To cut a long and sad story short in the kitchen are a plate of twelve bits of ‘damper’, I assured Sheila that they will be fine when eaten with jam and cream. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating and might depend on how hungry Adam and Rosalind are after gym.
Well the verdict on the ‘scones’ was mixed to say the least, about fifty-fifty; I assured everyone that I would eat them and they assured that they would not.
The potato and pumpkin ‘kibblers’ were appreciated by all, though I suspect that they will not be appreciated as much as I continue to serve them up as ‘nibbles’ until they are all finished; ‘waste not want not’. Dinner was a Lebanese banquet, that was of course too much of to many courses, though it does provide the makings for lunch for a few days after. The world cup football matches seemed to be a couple of ‘lack lustre’ affairs, but we are keenly anticipating the Australia Brazil game with Adam feverishly working out the implications of the various results scenarios.
Sunday 19th June 2006
Sheila is still not feeling well, with a very sore throat and congested chest. Kuhn Noy had purchased some anti-biotics at the local pharmacy. They are broad spectrum anti-biotics each tablet containing 625 mg of amoxicillin. We are amazed that one is able to buy these on demand over the counter with no prescription. It does not bode well for the efficacy of these drugs in a few years time as their abuse leads to the development of resistant infections. So Sheila is trying to do her bit by holding back from taking any anti-biotics, saying that she would rather use her own immune system and strengthen that. Sheila stayed in bed until about lunch-time, feeling a little better Sheila was able to get up and get dressed and sit and read while Rosalind, Adam and I went to the gym. I was only going for a swim; it was pouring with rain, but I was not worried about getting wet.
When we enter the club there is always a phalanx of young ladies behind the reception desk whose greeting of “Sawasdee” is always accompanied by the broadest smiles. In exchange for our membership cards they provide each of us with a tagged locker key with a plastic clip to fasten it to ones swimming costume or gym gear. I did not have my glasses with me so could not read my locker number so Adam read the number for me and I thought no more about it. When I got changed and clipped my tag to my swimming costume the tag came off the chain and rather than run the risk of losing it to the bottom of the pool I unlocked my locker again and put the tag inside (with the number on). I proceeded up-stairs to the roof-top pool, while Rosalind did a Pilates class and Adam went running on a treadmill. The wind was howling around the pool and the rain coming down in buckets, but I was keen to have some exercise and start my laps. There was a bit of thunder and lightning, so after a couple of laps I decided to take my wedding ring and copper bracelet off to make me less of a target for a lightning strike. I had completed ten laps (20 metre pool) when a lightning strike followed immediately by a huge thunderclap caused me to think that discretion was the better part of valor for a few minutes at least.
I did some stretching exercises in a small covered pavilion, poolside, for a few minutes and when I had not heard a close thunderclap for a minute I judged that it was ok to go back into the water. I completed about fifty laps then thought it was time to rendezvous with Adam and Rosalind. I had a long leisurely shower and went back into the changing rooms to get dressed. I put my key in the lock, the door opened and the cupboard was bare. All of my clothes, wallet watch etc were missing. Ah catastrophe!
Luckily I had the two small towels that we are provided with when we enter the changing area. I wrapped the bigger towel around my lower body, went up the stairs to the reception area where my near nakedness caused some concern, and I explained that all of my clothes, wallet, watch etc had been taken from my locker. My normal phlegmatic demeanor had a slight edge of panic to it. “Could I please have your locker number sir?” This I thought was a needless waste of time as a miscreant was decamping with all my gear as we spoke and as I pointed out I had left the broken tag in the locker and that had been taken also. Obviously the thief had been smart enough to take that back to reception to retrieve my membership card and make good his escape.
“Eighty- three, but as I said I had left the tag inside”.
As I provided the number of my locker one of the beautiful young ladies searched through the draw of member’s cards that had been provided in exchange for keys.
“So sorry sir, your locker number eighty one.”
Not as half sorry and stupid as I felt, I wrapped the towel tighter around me and retreated to the locker room. Yes my key did fit lock number eighty-one and all of my gear had been ‘replaced’ while I was at the front desk. In my defence I will say that all the odd numbers are in a row above the even numbers so eighty one is next to eighty three and I was able to open eighty three with my key as it had not been locked. Ah the traps that oriental health clubs can pose for unwary sailors.
I went to the ‘juice bar’ and had a soy-milk banana smoothie with Rosalind while we waited for Adam to finish his workout and get changed. When Adam arrived he had a quick drink then proposed that we visit a ‘Hagan-daz’ ice cream shop on the way home to get some suitable dessert for the evening while we watch more football. Despite Rosalind’s great knowledge of Bangkok he did not know that there was an ice-cream shop at the location Adam mentioned. Sure enough Adam’s radar is spot on and while he was illegally parked on a busy road Rosalind and I bought three litres of ice-cream packed with dry-ice to keep it cool on the way home. The flavours were two litres of ‘praline and cream’ and one of ‘tirramasu’. Adam wrinkled his nose up when Rosalind mentioned that part of the selection was ‘tirramasu’ in response to my request. I was pleased that my selection was not favoured by Adam. Gluttony is sometimes a cross that I have to bear.
The main course was four different types of pizza accompanied by a couple of beers as we settled down for the football. I forget who were playing in the first game as our excitement built for the Australia Brazil game. We were thrilled with the first half and thought that Australia more than held their own. The first Brazilian goal deflated our exuberant mood and the second did not help though we talked through all of the positive aspects and the implications of the Australia Croatia game. Ah now I remember it was the Japan Croatia game and a nil al draw which was a good result for us.
Rosalind told us that her sister Alice would be arriving during the week for a short visit.
Monday 19th June 2006
It was another early morning for us and at breakfast Rosalind and Adam said that they did not get to sleep until 0530, Sheila said that it was 0600 before she got to sleep. I was better able to subdue my ‘hype’ after the game and enjoyed a much longer repose.The new stove top arrived before lunch and it took a few hours f
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