50 something on her travels

Early every morning, I leave my B&B (top left), to walk around the corner to visit the local Thai stall. The family sells everything - fruit, veg, savoury and sweet snacks.  Our favourite is red sticky rice with Thai custard and coconut. It is extremely sweet! It might not look much but it tastes delicious. All for the price of 25p.

We've seen some very old warning signs on the beach about jellyfish, but not thought much about it.  Just before Christmas, George knelt on a tentacle in the sea and it was like a stinging nettle. No harm done.  When I saw the jellyfish this week, I first thought it was a plastic bag. But no it definitely wasn't. It was dead and washed up on the beach.  So I'm now wearing my sea shoes!  

It doesn't look much, but this is an amazing device for every bathroom. The Thai bidet is otherwise known as a bum gun. It sits by the toilet in every Thai bathroom.  When you hold the handle in, a spray a jet of water will clean your bum after a number one or two. It offers a cleaner and more hygienic alternative to using toilet paper.  We love it! Unfortunately if you had one on a boat in the UK you'd have to suffer freezing temperatures. 😱 

In our local restaurant we were offered some high protein snacks at the table.  Called Silkworm pupae. These insects are high in protein and have a nutty texture. George rather liked them. I gave them a wide berth.  They don't look half as bad as the other insects on offer at markets around Asia.  Top treats include spiders  scorpions and crickets. In many markets, tourists are not allowed to take photos unless they are buying the creatures. 📷

For weeks I've been trying to take photos of talented bikers, but never get the opportunity.  However we got a very quick blurry snap yesterday.  Introducing beach sellers on scooters - riding down the road with one hand on the bike, whilst holding up a tray of food with the other one. The food isn't covered and the tray is often overflowing.  They drive along the road, looking left and right for a customer. And when they see one, they effortlessly drive off the road into the bumpy beach car park.  I've never seen them drop a thing.  I don't think I'd last long in that job. 🤣

Before Christmas, George had a shoe malfunction when we went out one evening. The sole on his one of his Timberland shoes came apart. His foot looked like a crocodile snapping away down the road. 🐊 So he was on a mission to get a cheap alternative to last the holiday. And I was also on the hunt for new pumps as mine were on their way to the bin.  At a local market in Bangkok we stumbled upon a secondhand trainer shop. Yes - I thought no way are my feet going in someone else's sweaty shoes. But then I went in and changed my mind.  The shop was heaving with trainers that looked so new, you'd never know. Some were very expensive brands. The manager must carefully select what he buys secondhand and then cleans them up like brand new. And yes they smell lovely!  In the end we both bought a pair of pumps each at around £9. I've included a photo now after a few weeks of us wearing them. A little more lived in, but certainly better than buying brand new.  Since ...