Billions

A few hundred randomly sequenced photographs of Pattaya from my just ended two week exploration. I'll load in groups of ten,as time permits. Should be a few hundred good 'uns to show.

Good point. Sometimes I think this really is my last moment on planet Earth,as the driver weaves in and out of lanes and death is only a nanosecond away. I've truly thought that my time on the mortal coil has come to an end..... For an extra four quid,it is worth it!

Bought this book at Canterbury Tales last week,and so glad I did. An ultra interesting read,easy to dip in and out of,and pertinent in so many ways. I would have finished it by now if I hadn't been interrupted by a zillion strolling beach vendors as I plotted up on my deckchair,but that's the way it goes. Well done to the author for being astonishingly candid.

Had a Thai breakfast here recently...was bang on. Everything as it should be. Had to laugh at the golf place next door....a motley crew coughing their guts up as they wheezed and spluttered whilst smoking cigarettes as their minibus was loaded with clubs. Sportsmen? Candidates for lung cancer ward maybe.

Cheese smuggling was very successful. I brought about 5 kilos.....thirteen vacuum packed slabs of approx 400g each. I kept them refrigerated until setting off to airport,then transferred them to a cooler bag I bought at Argos,and added two Freezer Tiles also from Argos. On arrival in Bangkok the cheeses were still very cold and hadn't sweated. The freezer plates were still ultra cold too....the aircraft hold must be a giant chiller. So,mission accomplished. No issues whatsoever with Thai customs.

Had a wander this morning....a huge crane was helping in the operation,chainsaws buzzing and a crew carting away some of the debris. A couple of beach vendors joined in the clean up,as access to their earning zone was temporarily blocked off. This is more than a trim.....there's some serious tree-felling going on.....

I'm having trouble uploading via my hotel Internet,so will prepare the rest and complete the job when I get back to the UK. It's strange how people rejoice at seeing plates of steaming food but are confused when the images are from the next step backwards. The market activity in Klong Toey is dramatic in the extreme,and the range of images represents this.I spent two hours a day there,for five days,and have got to say it was a fantastic experience.Better that than sitting perched up at the Golden Bar drinking beer as the day opens up as many seemed to do.There's so much to see and do...... Being at the market didn't define my holiday in any way,but I'm so glad I went there,it was exhilarating and mind expanding. The photos include many market workers,Thai shoppers,butchers,porters,traders,monks....some great insights into the mechanisms of another culture going about it's ways....it's not just pigs heads and frog parts. Wait and see. I also took loads of photos of Nana Plaza and other Bangkok playgrounds,was going to present these once collated too,with commentary on the changes taking place. I didn't come to Thailand to photograph a couple of animals in a market.These too will have to wait til I have a reliable and stronger connection though...as will the Pattaya ones from the days ahead.

Something not right either with local internet connection,my computer or photo upload system as I'm struggling to deliver images....

I'll try another upload,as you say might be hotel Internet going renegade....

Ok,all you pics have now loaded!

Hmmmm..... I'm now viewing on an IPad,and your 13 is showing seven photos and six boxes without any images. The bulk upload is showing zero photos but thirty four little rectangles with a question mark enclosed in a small blue square.... Back at you.

I just tried to upload a batch of photos and the site wouldn't accept them.....so,maybe there are some devils still at work?

Ha....the editing software is mastered! Here's a few to start with....I'll start explaining whats what when I get stuck in tonight! Klong Toey is a brutal food market down by the docks in Bangkok. There's some spectacular sights down there. ***Images not showing for some reason***

I've just landed on Planet Pattaya after four daze in Bangkok,and have an amazing photo-reportage to share.Its going to take a while to prepare it,as I rattled off some 1700 pictures,and need to select the what is appropriate before resizing and presenting on here. They really are good! People,animals,machetes,butchery,organs,severed heads,cruelty....plenty to go round. I'm working on a new computer,and also with a new photo-editing programme,so it might take a while as I get used to the new layout and buttons,but I'll try and load up about fifty a day until the story is told. The first bundle sometime tonight then!

No....the Manuka is part of an anti-arthritis recipe from my mother,she claims it reversed severe arthritic stiffening in her hands,and I am getting strange aches in the joints,so I'm willing to try anything. The potion is a spoonful of blackstrap molasses,same of Manuka honey ( level 10 or above) and a shot of cider vinegar all in a near boiling solution. I brought the molasses and vinegar with me,only need the antibacterial honey to complete the formula and retain the full use of my hands.....

Well,no lemons at Klong Toey market and same same at Foodland in Soi 5 Bangkok,so I relented and bought some limes. The problem of course is the colour.....they were selling tangerines,which were lime green in colour,same as limes,and next to them,Tahiti Limes....bigger than the usual so maybe lemons by another name? Unfortunately not,just chopped one up and it's lime flavoured....twice the size of their Thai sisters and three times the price (same as Russian hookers).No lemons then. After that I tried to find some Manuka honey.....again,nothing doing here. Lots of expensive NZ brands but nothing with Manuka on the label. Anyone know a stockist?.........

Yep,very helpful. I saw my daughter carrying a bag of lemons last week,asked her why and she went off rattling about the health benefits,so thought I'd give it a whirl. Had a few in the UK and thought I'd keep it going in Thailand. I arrived in Bangkok this morning,so will float over to Foodland and check the shelves there,then might venture forth to Klong Toey and see if there's anyone hawking them there between the buckets of turtles,the frogs being mutilated and the fine displays of pigs heads which adorn many a table top. Otherwise I'll concede and buy a bag of limes as my best option.

Are fresh lemons easily available in Pttya? I am on a new diet which means starting the day with a glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice diluted with cold water. I remember trying to find them in Foodland in Bkk a couple of years ago,and kept getting shown limes ( I think they share the same word in Thai).Its not lemon juice I want,but the actual lemon. I know they should be available,but where exactly? Thanks. Otherwise I'll have to pack a dozen in my luggage.....

I'm pretty sure it is GF,but it's in Soi 5....an area populated by African and Arab visitors,and these guys are not the most friendly of people....in fact,they are perhaps the most surly and miserable tourist group in the whole city.The hotel seems to attract mainly middle eastern visitors,something you might want to consider as I've found them to be the rudest and most belligerent specimens ever encountered on the streets of Bangkok. And that's saying something,when you consider how arrogant the Israelis are when they hit town,treating everyone like shit..... (Probably offended a few with those comments,but that's the way it is).

But I was highlighting a less common error with the more popular error..... I used to think "bath" was when the spellchecker/autocorrect kicked in,but maybe not....

Makes a change from bath I suppose.....

Just had an email from Thai Air today,telling me I have 33,000 miles stacked up on the Silver Orchid Club. I've only ever used these to offset extra kilos of baggage or entry to lounges,and never tried to work out what other value they have (upgrades,free flights). Any regular redeemers out there who actually put these miles to good use? If so,how does it work,and what do you get?

I just contacted my associate as to what he wants and why and got this back "Extra sharp cheddar! Villa selection gets boring after 20 years!! Plus its 3x the price of cheese in the real world..." So....anyone smuggled cheese before? How to get it to Thailand without it liquifying in transit? And what about the non-vacuum packed versions....any realistic chance of keeping them non toxic after sixteen hours in a suitcase? I remember Taffy of the Hairy Pie Club in Bangkok having a freezer in his bar filled to the brim with pies and bacon,all brought over by customers. I think they were frozen prior to being transported though,not a good plan for my product.....