I've discovered that Blogger, Flickr and our internet at home do not play so nicely together (kills the internet!!) which does not make things easy in trying to blog. I decided to move my blog over to Wordpress, so now you can find me at:
http://iamdianthus.wordpress.com
Well, tomorrow D and I take off for our first official vacation since landing in Thailand. We are going to Vietnam! Whoohoo! Vietnam has been at the top of both of our "must visit" lists, and it doesn't hurt that I have been obsessed with Vietnamese food since arriving in SE Asia. We are spending the majority of our time in Hanoi, with a potential 2-3 day side trip to a hill town in the north (near the border with China) called Sapa. I am stoked for this trip.
This will be a real vacation which means the computer is staying put in Bangkok. Lots of stories and lots of photos when we return!
Last night’s dinner was intended to be stir-fried flank steak and long beans, but in the adventure that is grocery shopping in Bangkok there was no flank steak to be found. D and I checked at the meat counter where we were getting our ground chicken for the kebabs, nothing. We checked the pre-packaged meat section, nothing. We even asked the very nice women working at the Aussie meat counter, who looked at us and repeated, “flank steak,” then had a brief discussion in Thai and went off to find someone who could speak more English. The very nice manager told us to look at the other meat counter where we had already been. *Sigh*… Apparently, it was not meant to be. D suggested making meatballs with the ground beef and pork we had purchased to make meatloaf, since we probably had more than we needed anyway. I had forgotten my cheat sheet of how many grams in a pound and was too stubborn and embarrassed to just ask for “1/2 pound.”
I wasn’t completely sure what kind of meatballs I wanted to make since this was an “on the fly” kind of a meal. Pork balls and fish balls are a big street food item, and I remembered a conversation with my mom about them. She had made some out of Hot Sour Salty Sweet. Since, I stupidly left that cookbook at home, I was on my own. One of my new favorite combinations is fish sauce and soy sauce, learned from what quite possibly could be one of the best beef marinates ever, from Into the Vietnamese Kitchen. (I’ve included it below, so you can try it too) They turned out to be quite tasty, if I do say so myself. This is a very “unscientific” recipe, but hey! It’s like Jamie Oliver!
Meatballs – SE Asia style
Ingredients
½ pound ground pork (these could be all beef, no problem)
½ pound ground beef
½ medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Thai chili, minced (substitute Serrano, Jalapeno, or even some chili flakes)
3 teaspoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons soy sauce
good chunk of ginger, grated (I used the small holes)
healthy pinch of salt
10 grinds of black pepper
1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped (this is approximate)
Method
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Shape into balls (I made them small golf ball size) and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, and then crank up the broiler. Broil for a few minutes to brown on top. Enjoy!
Beef Stir-Fry Marinade from Into the Vietnamese Kitchen
Enough for ¾ pound beef
Ingredients
1 teaspoon cornstarch
¾ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 ½ teaspoons fish sauce
1 ½ teaspoons light (regular) soy sauce
Method
In a shallow bowl, combine the cornstarch, sugar, pepper, fish sauce, and soy sauce and stir to mix. Add the beef called for in the recipe, turn to coat the meat evenly, and set aside to marinate while you ready the remaining ingredients for the stir-fry.
Ground meat has taken shape as the theme of this week’s menu. Last night, I tried out friend (and fellow food lover) FZQ’s recipe for patty-style Chicken Kebabs. The recipe was appealing since my barbeque is packed away with 99% of our stuff (I miss you BBQ!), although I’m sure these would delicious cooked on the grill.
I altered the recipe slightly (more due to the fact that some things are just harder to come by here than anything else) substituting fresh mint for the dried and sprinkling in some chili powder. (I don’t know if the jalapeno’s we managed to find here are wimpy or my heat tolerance has gone up a lot, but I had eaten a slice of one, seeds and all, and got nothing, so in went the chili powder!) FQZ served them up with a spicy cilantro sauce that sounded great, but due to the fact that I have no blender and my food processor is packed away with the barbeque I decided to whip up a yogurt sauce instead. The chicken kebabs were delicious and something I would make again in an instant.
Yogurt Sauce
Ingredients
1 little carton plain yogurt
¼ cup finely diced cucumber, peeled
1 tablespoon chopped mint
juice of one lime (lemon would be delicious, they are imported & expensive here!)
salt & pepper to taste
Method
Mix ingredients in a bowl. Let chill in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes for the flavors to come together.
I served the patties up with Dave's Bow Ties with Pesto, Feta & Cherry Tomatoes and a salad. Delicious! Tonight - Meatballs!
On Sunday night, D and I had our lone Thai friend Nong (aka our real estate agent) over for dinner. During our house hunting, Nong had asked me if I would show her some cooking tips, once she found out that I like to cook. I wasn’t 100% sure of what to make, since she wanted some more Western-type dishes. I remembered when I had lunch with her on our move-in day, we had talked about what kind of food she liked or didn’t like. She said she didn’t eat beef and didn’t like Mexican food (carne asada went out the window!), but was open to other things. She claimed that she wasn’t such a good cook. I finally settled on making Pasta Puttanseca, since it tastes like you’ve spent hours on it, but it only takes like 20 minutes to make. D also pointed out that there are lots of Italian restaurants here, so the chances were good she would probably like it. I had the beginnings of some Italian bread in the fridge, so the menu shaped up nicely to include the bread and a big salad. Fast forward to D and I arriving home from the grocery store 15 minutes before Nong was due to arrive. I shaped up the loaves of bread, while D prepared a pupu platter of cheese and salami. Luckily, Nong ended up being late, so we had time to get the bread in the oven and make the salad. All in all, it was a nice evening and the pasta was salty, spicy and delicious!
Pasta Puttanesca adapted from Jamie Oliver’s recipe
makes an excellent “I’m tired” weeknight dinner
Ingredients
1 pound dried pasta (I used spaghetti, penne is also really good)
1-2 tablespoons Extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup capers, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped in half
6 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon chile flakes (add more or less to taste)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 14 oz cans chopped tomatoes
1 handful fresh basil leaves, chopped
Method
Cook the pasta in salted, boiling water. Meanwhile, fry the garlic, chilies, anchovies, and oregano in the olive oil over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Add the capers and olives and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, bring to a simmer, and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Toss the pasta and sauce together, sprinkle the basil over top. Enjoy!
I spent some time yesterday trying out my new watercolors. It is quite fun, I have to say, and nice to get my hands dirty and away from the computer. It is called "The Red Awning" based on a photo I took in Bangkok's Chinatown.
One of my biggest pet peeves is when people talk about all the great ideas they have or the things that they want to do, without any action behind their words. The old "talk the talk, and walk the walk." Well, I have to admit I've been a bit guilty of the talking without the walking as of late, in regards to my freelance portfolio. So, after some new additions, bio writing, multiple issues with the domain, and moments of self-doubt, here is my (work-in-progress) portfolio!
Studio 0202
I’ve been in a creative buzz this week (and my poor blog is suffering). Not surprisingly, our move to Bangkok has given me lots of inspiration. (And it probably doesn’t hurt that I don’t have a job to go to everyday that uses a lot of it up) I’ve been working on my photography, and lately I’ve been obsessed with doing this which makes your photos look like they are little models. I joked with D that I spend my time trying to make digital models look like the real world, and making the real world look like little models. Maybe I’ve watched the Wallace & Gromit movie one too many times…
I’ve also been cruising a lot of artists & illustrators websites, with some new finds (thanks Big Bun!) and some forgotten favorites. I’ve been drawing more lately. It’s nice to get away from the computer a bit. I’ve been working on a new style, and created a new world called “Verde City” inspired by the Bangkok skywalks, my love of signs and 50’s furniture, and the little environmentalist in me. Here’s what I’ve done so far.
(click on picture to see them bigger)
I hit up the art store yesterday to try some new stuff (watercolors!), so more will be forthcoming!
Last week felt like it was in fast-forward. D arrived home safely from her trip on Tuesday evening, and the days after all blurred together. I didn’t do such a great job planning the menu for the week, since I had been grazing on leftovers for much of the previous weekend. I did make this delicious pasta and some tasty cinnamon raisin bread from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice. D arrived home on Friday, announcing that Monday was a holiday! Yay!
We tried to enjoy some “culture” in our new city; only to discover that the place we wanted to go was closed for the holiday. So, we wandered around exploring some of the side streets and ended up having dinner at Tamarind Café (warning: annoying music on the website!), a vegetarian restaurant. We shared several appetizers (Sesame Falafel, Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Cheese & Tofu Croquettes) and two of the salads (Green Papaya Salad, Beetroot & Mango), and it was quite nice not having to be so vigilant, hunting for any hints of shrimp in the Thai dishes.
Monday we hit the grocery store for this week’s menu, which was crazy crowded (at least compared to my mid-day shopping excursions), and spent the afternoon puttering around the house.
This week’s menu:
Monday
Lemongrass Chicken (I used this recipe)
Stir-fried Veggies
Garlicky Noodles with Maggi & Butter (from Into the Vietnamese Kitchen)
Tuesday
Bun with Stir-fried Beef (aka Vietnamese Noodle Salad)
Wednesday
Tofu Scramble
Black Beans (if I can find them!)
Thursday
Garlicky Oven Roasted Chicken
Asparagus & Shiitake Mushroom Stir-fry
Rice
Friday
Pizza
Salad
Every so often I’ll have these moments, “I live in Bangkok?!” or “I live in Thailand!!” It’s not the obvious things that will cause me think this, like the ever-present pictures of the HM the King or the fact that I can’t read 90% of the signs. It’s the smallest things that seem to trigger the thought; it will happen when I’m riding on Skytrain and looking out the window at the skyline whizzing by. Today I had one of those moments. I was behind a mom and daughter (who was probably 7 or 8, I’m guessing) going through the turnstile at the Skytrain station. I watched the little girl help this teenage/early 20-something woman put her ticket in the turnstile properly in order to keep the line moving. I decided to stop and get one of my favorite snacks, a waffle, at the little stand at the top of the stairs. (These things are so good, not like regular waffles, slightly yeasty with a little sprinkle of sugar. Yum!) As I was walking down the street back home, munching on my waffle, I caught up with the mom and daughter. They were walking at a pretty good pace and the sidewalk is not easy to pass people on, so I decided to walk behind them. The daughter was dressed in her school uniform and (I’m guessing here) talking about what happened at school that day. Every once and while, she would reach out and touch her mom’s arm. Her mom seemed to be listening, but mainly just kept walking carrying both her own bag and her daughter’s book bag. They stopped at the little storefront café that I pass by on the way to the station. As I passed them, it hit me. I live in Thailand.
In my new life of “freelancer and housewife,” I am attempting to get myself on some sort of schedule in order to balance time on the computer with the cooking, cleaning and errands. The cleaning schedule is a little rockier and I’m still getting into the swing of that (no, we don’t have a maid despite my best attempts to get the dogs to hold a broom and dustpan), but I am getting back to planning our menu. To quote my brother (my housewife role model) “plan your menu, so you know exactly what you need to buy and when. Instead of doing the wander-around-Whole-Foods-blowing-$200, you’ll be in and out like a SEAL Team strike." I also find it makes daily cooking a whole lot more enjoyable, since I can spend time perusing recipes and knowing when dinner time roles around that I’ve got everything I need instead of scrounging around the fridge at 5:30 going “what the heck am I going to make?”
Alas, I choose the week D is headed out of town for business to start back up again…Anyway, here’s what I planned:
Sunday:
Mom’s Black Pepper Chicken (this is not my mom’s recipe, but a friend’s mom’s recipe. Thanks FZQ!)
Crepes & Co. Summer Salad (my version of a salad we had at a restaurant here)
Bread
Monday:
Stir-fried Beef with Chinese Celery
Tuesday:
Phat Kraphrao
Wednesday:
Chicken Drumettes with Spicy Hoisin-Garlic Sauce
Mixed Salad
Thursday/Friday:
Not sure just yet, probably some leftovers or pizza (thanks mom!)
D and I ran errands mainly this weekend at a few of the local malls. We hit a few bookstores in our wanderings and D got me a new cookbook to help with my Vietnamese food obsession, called "Into the Vietnamese Kitchen." So far, things look delicious and the book reads easily. The author has some great stories and information on the ingredients. I'll post things up as I make them!
For momma and B, the book is at Amazon here: Into the Vietnamese Kitchen
My return to cooking has been admittedly a bit slow. The incredible stress of moving to Thailand and a month (or so) in hotels did not do much to inspire me in the kitchen. I’ve eaten a lot of delicious food since arriving, which has helped. Now that we’ve settled in to our new home and gotten the bare essentials for the kitchen, it’s time to cook.
Not surprisingly I’ve become enamored with Southeast Asian cuisine. The smells, the flavors, the spice, and the fact that food is everywhere in Bangkok has drawn me in. The odd thing is I’ve become fascinated, not by Thai food, but by Vietnamese (no disrespect to the amazing Thai food, which I’m sure I will be fiendishly cooking after my mom’s visit. Cooking classes here we come!). Specifically, the Vietnamese noodle dishes called Bun thit nuong. D and I have had them frequently at our trips to Food Loft, so I decided that it was time to make it at home. This way I could experiment with different toppings and meat, outside of the pork spring roll and pork ball of Food Loft. I hunted around on the Internet and found a recipe that matched what I’d had at Food Loft.
Master Recipe for Noodle Salads (by Mai Pham, Fine Cooking) Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
For the greens:
2 cups washed and shredded romaine, red, or green leaf lettuce
2 cups fresh, crisp bean sprouts
1-1/2 cups peeled, seeded, and julienne cucumber
1/3 to 1/2 cup roughly chopped or small whole mint leaves
1/3 to 1/2 cup roughly chopped or small basil or Thai basil leaves
For the garnishes:
2 Tbs. chopped roasted peanuts
12 sprigs fresh cilantro
Nuoc Cham (Vietnamese Dipping Sauce)
For the noodles:
8 oz. dried rice vermicelli
For the Topping:
Anything goes here. Beef is an extremely popular choice. She suggests Warm Lemon Grass Shrimp, Vietnamese Grilled Pork, or Stir-Fried Vegetables.
Method:
Mix up the Nuoc Cham, and let sit for at least 15 minutes (This can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for up to a month)
Once you’ve washed and dried all the greens, its time to start stacking. First the bean sprouts go into the bottom of the bowl.
Then the lettuce, followed by the Thai basil, mint and cucumbers. This can all be assembled in advance and kept in the fridge with a damp paper towel to keep cool.
Bring a medium pot full of water to a rolling boil. Add the rice vermicelli and, stirring often, cook them until the strands are soft and white, but still resilient, 3 to 5 minutes. Don't be tempted to undercook them, as they must be fully cooked to absorb the flavors of the dish. Rinse them in a colander under cold water just until they're cool and the water runs clear. Let the noodles drain in the colander for 30 minutes, and then set them aside for up to 2 hours, unrefrigerated.
Prepare the topping. I veered from the recipe the first time and made Vietnamese Garlic Beef instead. This time I had D grab some chicken satay from a vendor on her way home.
Final assembly. Place the rice noodles atop the greens, then the topping. Garnish with the chopped peanuts and cilantro leaves. Drizzle on the Nuoc Cham. She suggests letting each person put as much or as little as they want to adjust to personal tastes. Toss everything together and dig in!
(Find more pictures of the process in my Flickr stream here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dianthus/)
Today D had surprised me by taking the day off (and making up for a lost holiday day), and we decided to explore one of the neighboring streets in our new neighborhood. We’d been hearing a lot about cool shops along the street and decided it was worth a look.
First we headed off to Playground! (yes, the exclamation point is part of the name) to look for fun items for the house. D had also mentioned that there was a KuppA there as well. KuppA (a coffeehouse/café), had intrigued us after reading about it in our various guidebooks, so we decided to check it out and perhaps have lunch there. Playground! is a pretty neat store, sort of a cross between Urban Outfitters and Ikea. We picked up some little condiment jars and an oil bottle from one of my favorites, Eva Solo. KuppA turned out to be a nice, chill place and we ended up having lunch. D ordered a chicken sandwich with this delicious coffee drink and I had a panang pot pie with a refreshing lychee and mint icy/shake. The food was decent and the atmosphere was one where you could easily kick back and sip on coffee and read. Very nice.
We continued walking with our next destination of H1, a modern mini-mall designed by Thai architect Duangrit Bunnag. I had been curious to see it after reading about it in our Wallpaper* City Guide. I have to say I was under whelmed. The buildings were ok, nothing too crazy, but I guess different for Thailand. The outdoor spaces were small and did pull you away from the hustle and bustle of the street, but it was empty and there were no obvious places to sit and enjoy the place. We spent a little time at the art & design bookstore there and then headed back down the other side of the street in search of cake!
For being in a country that seems to enjoy its sweet treats, we discovered a serious lack of cake options. At that point, I had gotten lemon meringue pie in my head and the only piece we had managed to find was completely unappetizing. We decided to head back to the house and order from the wonderful Food By Phone. I would have my lemon meringue!
We have been slowly settling in to our new digs. It has been a roller coaster ride of emotions lately. I don’t think either D or I thought that this would be an easy transition, but I don’t think either one of us was really prepared for how challenging things could be. We are both trying to adjust to the Thai way of things, which is proving a little difficult for our American brains. Things just happen differently here, and that is one of the great things about living in another country and also one of its challenges. I’ve definitely had some low points of frustration and exhaustion, which isn’t particularly motivating to write about. We are learning to navigate the waters and life is taking on a sense of normalcy. We also equipped the kitchen with some items, and I am starting to cook again (which if you know me, is an important part of life). It has been a long time! Recipes and misadventures will be coming!
*And big hugs for the pictures I’ve received (you know who you are!). They have helped me more than I could ever say.
Well, it has finally happened! We’ve moved into the townhouse!
Moving was a chaotic day of checking out of the hotel, meeting with our real estate agent, Nong, D heading off to work, Nong and I heading to the townhouse for a walk-through with the building manager and meeting the shippers who had our boxes from home, the building manager deciding to have the place sprayed for mosquitoes, waiting for D to arrive with all our stuff, and waiting for the boys to arrive via the vet! I did end up having lunch with Nong at MK Restaurant, a local chain of suki/hot pot restaurants. It was very good, and I don’t think I’ve eaten so much since we’ve been here. Nong ordered all the fixings and was pretty insistent on tasting everything.
In the afternoon, D arrived with all our luggage from the hotel, and soon after the vet arrived with the boys. It was a joyous reunion and they were quite happy to see us. Finally we were all together again! Since we had no pots, pans, plates, silverware or real food items, we decided to explore our new neighborhood and find something for dinner. At the end of our Soi (not to be confused with our sub-soi!) is a small mini-mall. We found a café that serves up some really delicious Thai food in a chill atmosphere. We had veggie Tom Yam (since it is typically made with shrimp aka death!) that was fantastic! The flavors and the layering of said flavors were amazing! D ordered noodles with black soy sauce and chicken, and I ordered green curry with chicken. The noodles were good, and the green curry was some of the best I’ve ever had. My mouth is watering typing about it. Rich and pungent, so good! I think we have found our new neighborhood place.
D and I headed down to Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, so I could apply for a new visa and D had some meetings set up. We learned a few lessons on this trip. One, flying cheap airline wasn’t necessary the best thing. Our flight was delayed for an hour, we had to buy snacks on the plane, and where said airline flies in to is not the major airport, but a smaller one an hour drive outside the city. Our taxi driver from the airport was quite a character and made the ride slightly more entertaining. As we got closer to our hotel, we were able to get glimpses of the Petronas Twin Towers. I had been stoked to see these buildings, knowing that they were once the tallest buildings in the world and watching a Discovery Channel show on the design and construction of them. I wasn’t disappointed. They were stunning all lit up. The towers are surprisingly delicate. They don’t give the impression of being as tall as they really are.
Friday morning it was off to the Thai embassy to apply for my visa. After some confusion about where to go, which line to be in and a super fast walk to an ATM for Ringget (we had been told to bring dollars), my application was submitted and they told me I could pick it up on Monday. What a relief! D and I spent the rest of the day exploring around the Patronas Towers. The actual towers are offices for a large petroleum company, but they smartly built a shopping mall at the base. My planning/design nerd brain kicked in, and was impressed with the entire complex. The Towers and adjoining shopping complex back up to a large park area with the KL Convention Center on the side opposite the Towers. It was very nice, and judging by the amount of people we saw, well used. We walked around the park taking pictures and people watching. We decided to stay and have dinner at the mall, since I had spied a California Pizza Kitchen there. I know, I know, but sometimes it’s nice to have something familiar.
On Saturday, we explored Bintang Walk, another shopping area within the city. We went and had breakfast there, since we had been unimpressed with the breakfast offerings at the hotel. After breakfast, we wandered around some more and rode the KL Monorail back towards the Towers. We walked through what seemed like the foreigner/visitor area, complete with lots of over-the-top bars. It was entertaining to say the least. We had an early dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant and headed back to the hotel. KL has been much more hot and humid than we’ve been used to.
The rest of the trip, we’ve mostly been around the hotel and over to the Towers. I picked up my visa from the Embassy (yay!) on Monday morning, and spent part of the afternoon at the park. It finally got too hot so I headed back to the hotel to cool off. The head of the office here kindly invited D and I over to his house for a drink, and we had a fun filled evening talking with him and his wife. They are both very interesting people having lived all over. They invited us to stay for dinner. It was so generous of them, and it was extremely nice to have a home cooked meal after a month in hotels and eating out.
Soon we will be back in Bangkok, and hopefully moving into the townhouse. I can’t wait to see the boys!
*Update
We are back in Bangkok, after another ridiculous flight on forementioned low cost airline. Another hour and a half delay in KL! Never again low cost airline!
D and I are off to Kuala Lumpur til Tuesday! I'm making a visa run and D has to work. We'll have internet at the hotel, and I will try to catch up on some posting. KL (as its known) is another hour ahead of Bangkok, which puts us 16 hours ahead of the West Coast.
Finally a break through! We met with the townhouse owner, our agent and the building manager today to go check out furniture, and clarify the things that we wanted changed. The owner was very nice, and it turns out that she lives in the same compound. Our hearts sank at the news that the move in date wouldn’t be until the 23rd. We explained to the owner that we were hoping for an earlier date, since we had been without the dogs for almost a month and how much we were missing them. She immediately understood and sympathized with us! Apparently she is a dog owner too! She said it would take a week to get the mattresses, but that we could maybe move in as early as the 17th! Both D and I were thrilled since we are off to Kuala Lumpur tomorrow and will be getting back on the 16th. Hooray!
I’m not sure where all the time has gone, and it is amazing to me that we have been in Thailand almost a month now. D has gone back to work, and we’ve been hoping for progress on a potential move-in date on the townhouse. At the prodding of several of D’s co-workers we went out with another real estate agent and saw two more houses. They were both nice, one was way too far from Skytrain for us, and the other was nice and about 5 minutes from where the boys are! (and 10 minutes from Skytrain) We decided that it was a good ‘Plan B’ if the townhouse fell through. I’ve been keeping closer to the hotel the past week, since there has been no breakthrough on who is responsible for the bombings. Mainly, there is a lot of finger pointing and denials on all sides. Kind of feels like the US, between the Republicans and the Democrats (except the whole bombing thing)!
After our day exploring Chinatown and Khao San Road, we managed to stay up until midnight and watched some of the fireworks through our window. On a total whim, I checked my email to see if anyone had sent a New Year’s message. There was one message from my brother asking if we were ok, that he had been reading about bombings in Bangkok. I was shocked! I quickly pulled up Google News to see what was going on. We hadn’t seen or heard anything while we were out, or anything on our way back to the hotel. I wrote an email to our families to let them know we were fine and safe at the hotel. The initial reports told us that the bombs weren’t anywhere near where we had been or near our hotel.
We woke up to find the bombings all over the newspapers. At first it was only 6 bombs nowhere near us, and then found out later that the police had disarmed a bomb at Khao San Road a few blocks from where we had dinner (although, we had been gone for a few hours at that point). In the papers was a lot of speculation on who was responsible. The main parties seemed to be supporters of the government that was ousted by the coup or the group in the southern portion of Thailand (where things like this happen on a daily basis).
We decided it was best to lay low and stay at the hotel. Both D and I were glued to our computers reading the news trying to find out more. We did some laundry and went to a nearby restaurant for dinner.
