Trip 4 - Day 9

18th August

A goes out to get breakfast and returns with pork and rice (Kao Kamu?) as well as a selection of meat and vegetables that she's bought from the market. We then spend what remains of the morning rearranging the furniture in the room, but at the end of the exercise, there is very little difference in my opinion, but I'm told that it's much better. (???)

Then there's a trip down to the local 'Mom & Pop' shop (not 7/11 or Family Mart!) where we top up on bottled water, Coke and some eggs. (125 baht) as well as looking at the furniture shops for wardrobes as I still have a lot of stuff in my suitcase and A is not happy about this. (I guess it's a 'female' thing.)

Back to the room and now it's cleaning time. A starts on the laundry and gets quite angry when I laugh about still filling the machine with a hose! I say that I will get a longer hose so that the machine can be fixed to the tap in the bathroom, but she says that it is a waste of money and is "No ploblem; I can do." I do my 'bit' and she laughs telling me that "Man not do cleaning in Thailand".

After cleaning the room, it's time to clean the scooter and when I look out, there's a communal bike clean going on with three bikes being cleaned and whenever you get a few Thai girls together you can be assured that plates of food will soon arrive. Five minutes later I'm called to join the impromptu picnic that's taking place and it's home made fish balls with sweet dipping sauce. I'm not a great lover of fish normally, but I have resolved to try harder to fit in with A's diet rather than impose my own, so I partake and am pleasantly surprised to find that they are quite acceptable.

A then tells me that she's taking the lady from #2 off to the bus station as she is going home today in order to vote in the referendum tomorrow. She's cathing a VIP bus service (food, water & toilet on board) from the local bus station on Sukhumvit to Phitsanulok which is costing 428 baht for her and her baby. The journey will be around 9 hours and she'll be arriving at 01:00. She will then go to vote tomorrow and get a bus back to Pattaya arriving at around midnight. (Can anyone imagine this dedication to voting taking place in our own countries?).

Tonight is home cooking night rather than food being bought in from the food stalls. There's a fish that A has bought and she's insistent that I at least try to eat some of it, but I am mainly looking forward to the chicken panang that she is making. The curry paste is bought ready made at the market rather than being made at 'home', but is still made from fresh ingredients so is 'authentic'. (The main ingredients of the paste are chilli, galangal, shallot and garlic)

Heat coconut milk in a pot and just as it approaches the boil, add the curry paste and stir until the paste has integrated with the coconut milk to form a sauce. Add chicken, chopped eggplant (Makua), and kaffir leaves (Bai Makrut) and stir for 2 - 3 minutes.Add 300ml of water and a handful of sweet basil leaves (Bai Horopah) along with a tablespoon of sugar, a chicken stock cube and 3 tablespoon of fish sauce.Simmer for 20 minutes until chicken is fully cooked and serve with Thai Rice (Kao)

The food is really great and I enjoy it with a cold bottle of Chang and then we just settle down and watch some TV. (I find it surprising that most films can be worked out without any dialogue.)

Later in the evening, I send a text message to a few of the BM's that are meeting up in London tonight (Alleycat, Bryan, Deadman & Murgatroyd) and then get a call from Deadman saying that he hopes to back in Pattaya for New Year and then I'm talking with Alleycat who says that he's due in town next month and looks forward to meeting up. I also get texts from Bryan & Murgatroyd, so it's quite a strange feeling when I retire knowing that the night in London is just starting out. A asks who I've been talking to and as these are all people that she's met, there's no issue.

Spend for the day is

Supplies at shop : 125 baht
2 x Cornettos from ice cream bike : 50 baht