Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
ONCE IS NOT ENOUGH
Today was not just hot , it was "Dang Hot " as my son would say . So what better way to cool off than a swim in the beautiful River Kwai, but why swim alone, why not take a couple pretty girls and go swim with the elephants again. So off we go, and we were not disappointed , because the elephants were hot too and welcomed a cool swim, even if it meant having a big white ,expat ,Beluga Whale riding on it's back.ha ha . As always and really true, Moll-Lee remembered me and came walking over to me and got down on one knee for me to get on board and then, off to the river we went, Moll-Lee is such a wonderful elephant and friend and has the patiences of a saint,with all the folks that want to take their picture with her, and she never gets upset at all.
Come on over and I'll take you to meet Moll-Lee and she'll want to take you for a swim too . And you will never forget as long as you live . This is not a pay -for - view ride , this is a because we love you and we are friends ride. Malcolm
Come on over and I'll take you to meet Moll-Lee and she'll want to take you for a swim too . And you will never forget as long as you live . This is not a pay -for - view ride , this is a because we love you and we are friends ride. Malcolm
Monday, January 26, 2009
PARTY THAI STYLE
There is nothing like a good party and ,in Thailand as the old song goes "nobody does it better".I somehow feel that Thai's invented parties, they seem to have it down to a science.Of course all Thai party have some distinct,tell tell signs that separate them from all others .
1. Loud Music, and I do mean Loud. 2. Great food and lots of it. 3. And the glue that seems to hold it all together KAROKE.
And so it was right across the street from my house , the occasion, as if Thais need one , was the all important part of a Thai wedding THE ENGAGEMENT PARTY.This kind of party in Thailand is not like in other countries , where it is the time and place to make the big important announcement, and the giving of the big and long awaited diamond ring, no,no this party is much more important that that .
This is where the grooms parents and family meet the bride to be and her parents and family , and I do mean family , they come from all around the country for this celebration.This is the time and place to talk about land ,houses ,money ,grandchildren , the important stuff , did I say money , yes I did , but it is well worth repeating , they call it the revered name SIN SOT.Enough said about that , for all you expats, married to Thai ladies you know what I mean. I bought a nice buffalo myself,(altho I never saw it with my own eyes ,I heard they got a good deal). Did you ?
All the ladies and a few men,will lend a hand in the cooking and preparing the special food for this party. If a lot regions of the country are represented,then you are in for a real treat as many of them will prepare traditional dishes normally only eaten in their part of the country.
Be careful what you wrap you sweet and hot lips around , it just may have a stinger on it's tail , or look just like the insect you put on the end of your hook when you went fishing last week,and there is a possibility it could still be wiggling and trying to get out of the plate, and even if it looks like and taste like chicken a good chance that it's not. But theres one thing you can be sure of it will be soooo hot , that smoke will come out your ears and elsewhere too , if you know what I mean.
Well , you know me by now , Food, Dance ,Music, and chance for me to do my Elvis impersonation, I'm there. My sweet wife, Ciejay and me had a great time and to my suprise she even got up and danced a jig or too .
I sang ,I danced, I Ate , I went home late, tired and with the worse case of heartburn I've ever had.
BUT------ I 'M RETIRED IN THAILAND AND LOVING IT Malcolm
1. Loud Music, and I do mean Loud. 2. Great food and lots of it. 3. And the glue that seems to hold it all together KAROKE.
And so it was right across the street from my house , the occasion, as if Thais need one , was the all important part of a Thai wedding THE ENGAGEMENT PARTY.This kind of party in Thailand is not like in other countries , where it is the time and place to make the big important announcement, and the giving of the big and long awaited diamond ring, no,no this party is much more important that that .
This is where the grooms parents and family meet the bride to be and her parents and family , and I do mean family , they come from all around the country for this celebration.This is the time and place to talk about land ,houses ,money ,grandchildren , the important stuff , did I say money , yes I did , but it is well worth repeating , they call it the revered name SIN SOT.Enough said about that , for all you expats, married to Thai ladies you know what I mean. I bought a nice buffalo myself,(altho I never saw it with my own eyes ,I heard they got a good deal). Did you ?
All the ladies and a few men,will lend a hand in the cooking and preparing the special food for this party. If a lot regions of the country are represented,then you are in for a real treat as many of them will prepare traditional dishes normally only eaten in their part of the country.
Be careful what you wrap you sweet and hot lips around , it just may have a stinger on it's tail , or look just like the insect you put on the end of your hook when you went fishing last week,and there is a possibility it could still be wiggling and trying to get out of the plate, and even if it looks like and taste like chicken a good chance that it's not. But theres one thing you can be sure of it will be soooo hot , that smoke will come out your ears and elsewhere too , if you know what I mean.
Well , you know me by now , Food, Dance ,Music, and chance for me to do my Elvis impersonation, I'm there. My sweet wife, Ciejay and me had a great time and to my suprise she even got up and danced a jig or too .
I sang ,I danced, I Ate , I went home late, tired and with the worse case of heartburn I've ever had.
BUT------ I 'M RETIRED IN THAILAND AND LOVING IT Malcolm
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
The Bridge On The River Kwai and The Railroad
I love history , but I am not a history expert.Living here in Wang Pho and on the River Kawi, home of the famous Bridge On The River Kwai, I have learned a lot of WWll history,as it concerns our village of Wang Pho. Here ,in our little village we are in the center of everything famous relating to the building of the bridge, and railroad in our area, built by the Japaneese Army ,using British pow's and Asians. as forced laborers to get the job done.
Twenty five miles south of us is the city of Kanchanaburi and home to the famous Bridge. Closer to our village is the famous viaduct,built out of timbers from trees in the local forest, the base for the viaduct is carved out of solid rock from the face of the mountain. the viaduct is still being used today and is the highlight of the tourist riding the train from Bangkok for a day trip,or an overnight stay in one of the resorts that Sai Yok is famous for ,all located right on the river and many with a view of the railroad also. The train slows to five miles and hour which gives you lots of time to take pictures and take in the sights while crossing , you are a arms reach of the rock wall on one side and 150 feet from the bank of the river on the other side. I'm sure if the train were to go any faster the thing would surely come falling down , as some of the timbers are the original ones from WWll . Every time we take the train I say a little prayer before we cross.
A few miles past our village is the end of the line for the railroad , it ends in the city of Nom Tok. About halfway between Wang Pho and Nom Tok is what historians call HELL FIRE PASS .Hundreds of POW'S died here along with thousands of Asians, they were forced to work 24 hours a day ,using only hand picks and hoes and shovels for tools, they also had to carry all the rock bolders and chips in small buckets to build the railroad bed. The pass was cut thru a solid rock mountain. When they worked at night they used lanterns , these gave of a erie glow with rock wall on both sides of the men , so it got the name HELL FIRE PASS . It is said by some that survived that to them it look like a scene HELL.
Located in the city of Kanchanaburi is a WW ll cementery where the British soldiers are buried,and I must say it is a most beautiful place . Many tourist that have relatives that died in the building of the bridge and railroad come here year round to mourn their lost loved ones, and to pay their respect, so that they never forget.
On one visit there I ask one of the cemetery grounds keepers , what country do the most visitors to the cemetery come from and to my surprise he said "they come from Japan".
Being courious , I have ask lots of folk "where is the cemetery and monuments for the forced Asian labours that died during the construction, and as always the answer is "there is none" ,sad , but that is history.
Most of the pictures posted are my own , tho all the old ones and some of the bridge, I gleamed from the net , a special thanks to whom ever took them and posted them, none were copyrighted to my knowledge. Hope you enjoy the pictures.
Also I wanted to mention that the water tower is one of a few still standing from the war , and as a note a few years ago students from our local high school climbed up and there were still some live fish swimming around in the tank. Malcolm
Twenty five miles south of us is the city of Kanchanaburi and home to the famous Bridge. Closer to our village is the famous viaduct,built out of timbers from trees in the local forest, the base for the viaduct is carved out of solid rock from the face of the mountain. the viaduct is still being used today and is the highlight of the tourist riding the train from Bangkok for a day trip,or an overnight stay in one of the resorts that Sai Yok is famous for ,all located right on the river and many with a view of the railroad also. The train slows to five miles and hour which gives you lots of time to take pictures and take in the sights while crossing , you are a arms reach of the rock wall on one side and 150 feet from the bank of the river on the other side. I'm sure if the train were to go any faster the thing would surely come falling down , as some of the timbers are the original ones from WWll . Every time we take the train I say a little prayer before we cross.
A few miles past our village is the end of the line for the railroad , it ends in the city of Nom Tok. About halfway between Wang Pho and Nom Tok is what historians call HELL FIRE PASS .Hundreds of POW'S died here along with thousands of Asians, they were forced to work 24 hours a day ,using only hand picks and hoes and shovels for tools, they also had to carry all the rock bolders and chips in small buckets to build the railroad bed. The pass was cut thru a solid rock mountain. When they worked at night they used lanterns , these gave of a erie glow with rock wall on both sides of the men , so it got the name HELL FIRE PASS . It is said by some that survived that to them it look like a scene HELL.
Located in the city of Kanchanaburi is a WW ll cementery where the British soldiers are buried,and I must say it is a most beautiful place . Many tourist that have relatives that died in the building of the bridge and railroad come here year round to mourn their lost loved ones, and to pay their respect, so that they never forget.
On one visit there I ask one of the cemetery grounds keepers , what country do the most visitors to the cemetery come from and to my surprise he said "they come from Japan".
Being courious , I have ask lots of folk "where is the cemetery and monuments for the forced Asian labours that died during the construction, and as always the answer is "there is none" ,sad , but that is history.
Most of the pictures posted are my own , tho all the old ones and some of the bridge, I gleamed from the net , a special thanks to whom ever took them and posted them, none were copyrighted to my knowledge. Hope you enjoy the pictures.
Also I wanted to mention that the water tower is one of a few still standing from the war , and as a note a few years ago students from our local high school climbed up and there were still some live fish swimming around in the tank. Malcolm
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Chai Thai Fair 2009
If theres one thing I love about thailand , it's the fact that you can always find something fun and informitive to do and see . That said , we were coming home from church yesterday and we come upon this huge traffic jam, after a while of moving slow for at least 3 kl. we come to the source, the 2009 Chia Thai Fair . Wow !!! I have never seen so many flowers of every color and fruit and veggies on display in one place in quite a while. And there was hundreds of people in attendance from all over Thailand , I mean this is big . So we finally found a place to park and we joined in the festive. as a said before there was every color and kind of flower that you could think of , and orchids of the likes I have never seen , I managed to bargain for a price at one stand ,of four for 100 baht, all in bloom and very colorful.We enjoy walking around and seeing all the fruit and veggis on display and for sale. And as always , a lot of food for sale. and you know me ,I have to do all I can to help the local economy. ha ha
All the flower displays gave me lots of new ideas for a little landscaping changes for our yard , but I think Ciejay has big plans .
Hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them . Do you have flower fairs in your area ? , if not the next time we have one around here , I will give you a heads up and maybe you can join us for the day . Malcolm
All the flower displays gave me lots of new ideas for a little landscaping changes for our yard , but I think Ciejay has big plans .
Hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them . Do you have flower fairs in your area ? , if not the next time we have one around here , I will give you a heads up and maybe you can join us for the day . Malcolm
Friday, January 9, 2009
Amazing Thailand
Every day in Thailand is like living in a fairy tale land, there is always something new to do or to see or to experience. every time we step outside of our home , we are always treated to something new by this amazing place we now call home . Yesterday I was given a fruit that I had never ate before , the day before, I caught a fish ,and ate it ,that I had never caught or seen before , and I might add ,it was delish, Ciejay made pla tum yum . And just today as I was riding my Honda Wave to the market to buy fresh veggies for lunch and dinner tonite I saw a bird that I have only seen in pictures. And thats not the end of the story yet , while watering the plants and waiting for Ciejay to call me to dinner I looked on a limb of my mango, orchid tree and there was the mosy unusual and beautiful insect I have ever seen, I could not belive my eyes . quickly I snapped a couple of shots of it for fear it would fly away , but to my surprise it is still hanging around . Ciejay said she saw one when she was a little girl and that Mom called it a Jac a Jon.( I'm sure that is not the right spelling , but thats the best I can do ) have you ever seen one ? I hope so . you will never forget it . Also what does your Thai mate call it ? I have included a few snaps of the things mention in this post hope you enjoy them , and please do take the time to enjoy the wonders of this piece of heaven on earth we live in called Thailand.
Malcolm
Malcolm
Thursday, January 8, 2009
SUNRISE and SUNSET
Here are a few of the sunrises and sunsets that I have captured from our view point of the mountains and sky from our front porch, we live at the foot of the mountain range and up on a small hill that gives us a good view of things .
I have always wanted to take pictures and share them with friends and family and I find no better place than here in the Land of Smiles, that Ciejay and me now call home .
I would like to add that if you ever see a picture I have put on my site you are more than welcome to download or copy or print and enjoy them as much as I enjoy taking them. I have enlarged a few myself and hung on our wall and also gave as gifts for house warmings, the folks seem to enjoy, I know I enjoy it when people say where did you get that picture , and I can say ,oh I took it ,while trying not to look like they just made my day . Hope you enjoy them too. The cube is a experiment.
Malcolm
I have always wanted to take pictures and share them with friends and family and I find no better place than here in the Land of Smiles, that Ciejay and me now call home .
I would like to add that if you ever see a picture I have put on my site you are more than welcome to download or copy or print and enjoy them as much as I enjoy taking them. I have enlarged a few myself and hung on our wall and also gave as gifts for house warmings, the folks seem to enjoy, I know I enjoy it when people say where did you get that picture , and I can say ,oh I took it ,while trying not to look like they just made my day . Hope you enjoy them too. The cube is a experiment.
Malcolm
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
WAITING ON THE BIG ONE
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My favorite pasttime in the good ole USA was fishing , Me and Ciejay were off and running at least part of a day,every day off we could get. But they had so many regulations and license and fees and NO TRESPASSING signs and game wardens checking all the time, that they took all the fun out of it . But here in the Land of the Free, if you want to fish and you see a lake GO FISHING.and enjoy yourself. I never catch anything , well maybe sometimes , but I sure have a lot of fun trying . Have any of you did any fishing here in Thailand?, and if so did you catch any ?And also do you catch and release , or you like me, catch and eat ? MalcolmThursday, January 1, 2009
Happy New Year 2009
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If there one thing that our small village knows how to do well, that is to have a party .As with everything they do as city officals, they throw a first class concert . Lots of food ,sing, dancing, kick boxing , beauty contest, lots of speechs and well deserved pats on the back.
2008 was, for a lot of folks a hard year, and a good New Years celebration was just what they needed to usher them into what many are hoping and praying to be a much better year for Thailand ,both physically and emotionly, what with the roller coaster year in politics and the up and down prices for farm goods and commodies , it would be great if things would calm down and smooth out and put folks lives back on solid ground, and put some genuine smiles back on the peoples faces.
Hope you took the time to enjoy a little new years celebration with friends and family , and don't forget to make a few new years resolutions to keep you in line and on your toes and some good goals to shoot for in 2009 , and if you break a few "what the heck" give us something to shoot for in 2010.
Me and ciejay wish you and yours all the best in the new year.
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