Food in Bangkok... is just amazing.

Food is my true love...

One of many things I love about living in Thailand, or Bangkok in particular (Cus I live in this amazing city!) I am often asked about my favorite places/food to eat in Bangkok and it is so so so hard to pick one or few. There are many many great great international restaurants in Bangkok and in the same time you can find delicious and cheap street food 24/7 and that makes this city unique and amazing!

For those who wanna try street food in Bangkok, follow my insider tips here. First you must know which area you are staying or where you wanna go. I picked some popular places to go eat that won't break you piggy bank :)
- Soi Convent in Silom (Soi means street) / BTS Saladaeng or MRT Silom
- Sukhumvit soi 38 / BTS Prompong
- Yaowarat or China Town
- Onnut market / BTS Onnut
- Northeastern style vendor on Sukhumvit 18. Open for dinner only. / BTS Asoke or MRT Sukhumvit

Those are just few places that I like but it is very common to find small street vendors in the sub "soi" ;)

This dish is called "Sua Rong Hai" which literary means "Crying Tiger". It is the grilled beef with fat on the meat. If you don't want the fat on, just order Nua Yang which means grilled beef. This is priced at 60 Baht or 2$. The dish is common in any northeastern Thai restaurant. Must try!

Apart from the Sua Rong Hai, these dishes can be found at the north eastern style restaurant as well. The are Somtum or Papaya Salad, Kor Moo Yang or Grilled pork and the last one is the most exotic here :) It is the grilled pork intestine. Hahaha... It sounds disgusting but it is good!!! The three dishes cost me at about 180 Baht or 6 bucks!

Pork satay in China Town. It costs less than 100 Baht or 3$ for all these items!

Kuay Tiaw Nua or Beef noodle soup. It costs 40 Baht or about 1.20$

Ok that's a bit about the street food in Bangkok. Now I am going to show you some of my favorite non-street food/places to eat in Bangkok.

1. Roast Coffee & Eatery (Thonglor 13 Rd./BTS Thonglor)
This place is popular for weekend brunch. They serve American rustic cuisine and some cool signature drinks. The presentation is simple but stylish. You can expect to spend about 500 Baht for one dish and drink for lunch.

2. El Gaucho Argentinean Steak House
Oh so divine! It is one of my favorite steak places in Bangkok. The meat here will come with nothing else. You need to order side dishes and extra sauce. The BBQ ribs, Chorizo and the steak are worth trying! However the food here is not cheap. A dinner for two with a bottle of wine could go up to about 8,000 Baht or 266$. If you don't order beef, it can go way cheaper. Well try it yourself, it is worth it!

3. Limoncello Ristorante
This is one of my favorite Italian restaurants in town. The food is goooooood and never disappoints me. Love the wood oven pizza and lasagne here. Make sure you save some room for dessert. They will bring a tray full of all desserts and you can pick one. Again, the quality comes with the price you pay. Expect to spend about 1,000-2,000 Baht for two without the wine or alcoholic beverages.

4. Kwan Han Roo Korean Restaurant (Korean Town, Sukhumvit 12)
I am a meat lover. I love BBQ and this Korean BBQ is one of my most favorite. The food is good and the price is very friendly to my wallet. They give you raw meat to cook on a grill. What I really like here is they have many side dishes including Kimchi and salad.

 Cooking is fun!

It's bacon!

5. Momo Paradise Japanese Shabu
I have a true love in Japanese food and shabu is just perfect for a meat lover who also loves to eat vegetables :) I recommend you do buffet when you go to any shabu place. They will bring you thin sliced meat (mostly beef and pork) and vegetable. You cook everything in the hotpot and dip in either the white sesame or the ponsu sauce (sour soy sauce). It will cost you about 600 Baht/person for a buffet here with drinks.

We try both sukiyaki and shabu soup.

I hope you have some idea of where to go try delicious food in Bangkok now. Now I will gather my favorite and come back to share with you soon :)

London, UK: September 2010

There is a song called “I left my heart in San Francisco” but I am going to say here that I left my heart in London! I never imagined that I would one day visit this vibrant city. London was a part of my UK trip and I spent two days and a half here. It is inevitably saying that London is one of the most expensive cities in the world and it is true but there are a lot of free stuff you can enjoy and the city is so lovely and romantic. Just put on good walking shoes and prepare to walk a lot. London awaits you to experience her beauty. I didn’t plan much for this trip but really put my trust on my good friend who lives in Manchester and invited me to visit the UK. Such an awesome friend! But I did some research in the Internet (www.visitlondon.com) of what I would like to see so it saved me time. Okie! Come with me and let see what we can do in this city in two days and a half.

We took a Virgin train (www.virgintrains.co.uk) from Manchester to London. The trips usually takes around two hours in a super fast train. For the train ticket, don’t ever mistakenly buy it at the station because it is going to cost you a fortune. Buy the ticket in advance for a good deal. The train arrived at Euston Station and then we took Underground or Tube (www.tfl.gov.uk) from King’s Cross/St. Pancras Station to our hostel in Bayswater. It was my first time in London and to experience the oldest underground system in the world! I looked at the Underground map that looked like a spider web and suddenly got little headache. But believe me, it is well organized and very easy to understand, just give it some time and make sure you take the right line and direction. I didn’t get lost at all using the Tube. I found it super easy and convenient mode of transportation. We purchased a day pass for zone 1 which you can travel with public transportation unlimited in one day within the zone. The hostel (www.hostelworld.com) we booked is in Bayswater area which is close to Hyde Park and it is easy to get around. Whenever I travel to big cities, I like to stay in hostel not only it is cheap but also the interesting people you meet. After having checked in to our hostel, we headed to one of the landmarks in the city- The London Eye. We took a Circle line to Westminster Station. It was a stunning view when you stepped out from the station and you saw the giant wheels London Eye in front of you. We crossed the Westminster Bridge and headed to purchase our tickets to the Wheels. The ride takes around 20 minutes and you can see the view over the River Thames. We went out at the sunset to picture London at dusk. After that we took a beautiful walk along the Thames to the Millennium Bridge. The Millennium Bridge is a pedestrian bridge crossing the River Thames with the famous Tate Modern at the southern end and St. Paul’s Cathedral at the other end. If you cross the bridge at night from the southern end and you will get the amazing sight of St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Next morning, we visited the Buckingham Palace and watched the change of the guards. It is surely a must if you come to London. After that we walked through St.James’s Park to the Horse Guards House, then walked along the Parliament Street and dropped by at the famous house at 10 at Downing Street. I was lucky enough to get a bright and sunny day in London! My flat ballet shoes served their purpose well. We kept walking to the Parliament Square and enjoyed the sight of Big Ben, Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey. At the Westminster Abbey, there is an admission fee but it is surely worth a visit. The birth of the Westminster Abbey is rooted back more than a thousand years. It is where Kings and Queens of UK are crowned. Once you are there, don’t forget to visit St. Magaret’s Church which stands between the Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament.

My afternoon excitement awaited silently. We headed to the British Museum where a mummy’s lover like me would be satisfied. I was excited to see mummies! The admission is free and this is what I so loved about London. There are many free museums you can visit and I did visit two museums in this trip. I could really spend my whole day here if we had time but the door closed at 5.30 pm and we had to leave. On the way back to the hostel, we decided to take a bus along the Oxford Street. It was a torturing trip for a shopaholic like me because there are millions shops along the street!!! Just name it- M&S, Selfridges, John Lewis, Debenhams, HMV, House of Fraser, Primark and many more! After crucifying myself to the bus seat, we entered Bayswater Road and Hyde Park. We jumped off the bus at Lancaster Gate and wondered in Hyde Park/Kensington Garden. The weather was getting colder so we just kept walking toward the Kensington Palace where Princess Diana resided. The sight of the Palace looking over the Round Pond at sunset was peaceful and beautiful.

Our third day in London was not so pleasant since we got to experience the British weather. It rained nonstop from morning until afternoon but the show must go on. We visited a must-to-see place on my list. After breakfast, we took a Circle line to Tower Hill and there it was... the Tower of London. We got a good deal here for buy 1 get 1 free promotion which we got by traveling by Virgin train to London. If you read English history or watch the TV series “The Tudors”, you probably have heard about the Tower. The Tower of London was founded almost a thousand years ago by Williams the Conqueror of the Normans. The Tower has been a palace and fortress and is the home of the Crown Jewels of the UK. Our last afternoon was spent carefully, we went to the National Gallery. The Nationally Gallery is a home of finest collections of the Western paintings. I was so thrilled to see “Madonna of the Rocks by Leonardo Da Vinci”! The admission here again is free but donations are welcome. In front of the National Gallery is the Trafalgar Square with the famous Nelson’s Column in the centre of the square.It is also used for public gatherings like the New Year’s celebration in London. The last place I visited in London before catching a coach back to Manchester is a must visit... Harrods at Knightsbridge!

London, I love you!

Krabi: 12-16 Sep 09

I got an excuse to take vacation again in Sep (the last one was in Aug :p) when my friend, Kevin, came for a visit for a week. We had been talking about Thailand trip for months and it finally came true. We picked Krabi as we both had never been there so it must be really cool checking out new place together. So we flew down to krabi and spent 4 nights there.

When Kevin arrived, I took him out right away. We went for a boat ride to Marriotte Riverside Hotel, then Sky Bar at Le Bua and last but not least at Brown Sugar. So this pic is from Tuck's camera. - Tuck, me and Kevin. Kevin was half dead already (jetlag) when we were at Brown Sugar but he kept his spirit high and went with me everywhere I wanted to go :) Thanks~~
Next day after spending half day enjoying our "suite" at President Solitaire hotel (It was a suite! Very large!), we headed to the airport to catch a plane to Krabi. This pic was when we were flying over Koh Samui and Pangan in Thai Gulf.
Entering main land of Surat Thani province.
We arrived Krabi safely and got picked up by the hotel. This is Ao Nang beach at sunset.
We were checking out the neighborhood.

We decided to walk to the end of the road to a small local restaurant which a friend recommended us. Great food and beautiful view we got here. I always love watching sunsets cus i hardly get up for sunrise :)

Day 2, we went on a full day tour to Phi Phi Island. This is a place where we left for the trip. It is called "Nopparat Thara" Beach.
Krabi has a stunning landscape. Just for Krabi sea, there like so many islands like this. These limestone rocks have been standing for centuries.
In our speed boat, Kevin was still little sleepy :)
I was kinda excited for snorkelling in the Andaman Sea.
At Maya Bay where the movie "The Beach" was shot. So I guess I must step on Leonardo's footprints somewhere :p
It was a lil crowded that day we went but the place was gorgeous!
Going to a lagoon.
See how clear the water is?
This is sea gypsy cemetery. There were some sea gypsies living here before.

The water is so clear so that u can see these colorful fish. When we were in the water, we brought some bread to feed the fish and these fish just came around us.
Lunch break here and I went swimming while Kevin took a nap.
Bamboo Island. We just went swimming and chilled out here.
This is our hotel
Our swimming pool. We came swimming almost every evening and one evening we just hung in pool and sipped magarita :)
A view from our room.
Day 3, it was my birthday today. We went on a half day kayaking trip. It rained on the way.
Tha Lane Bay
We went with a group and tour guide. Going through the mangrove forest.
Love it!

It rained heavily so we had to stop for a while here at this cave. I really felt like sitting in a floating bathtub.
We moved on when the rain got lighter. Going deep inside the mangrove forest. I felt like we were going to a place like in Anaconda movie :p
Kevin worked really hard on controlling and having the boat move while I got some minutes to enjoy taking photos.
Row row row your boat!
We left the mangrove forest behind and were going out there to the sea!
We stopped at this sand dune for photos and snack.
Star fish!
Kevin was happy to get out of the boat i guess :)

Having some pineapple.
Later in the evening, Kevin took me out to this Italian Restaurant near on beach road for my birthday celebration.
Waiting for the food.
This is my birthday banana split, no not a cake! Well Kevin planned with a waitress about this. Since there was no cake on the menu. Kevin tried to convince me to have banana split as a dessert which I said yes. The waitress brought the icecream to our table and she said to us that "sorry we don't have a lighter" and I saw there was a candle on the ice cream. So I knew it right away that Kevin tried to surprise me but the restaurant just ruined his plan. Unlit candle on the ice cream.. hehehe... So Kevin just told me to wait and he ran out of the restaurant to borrow a lighter from some tourists there. He got it and lit my candle. So I made a wish :) This was really good birthday.
Day 4, we took it easy by getting up late and went to the beautiful Railay Beach around noon.
We took a long tail boat to the beach.
It was raining when we arrived so we decided to stop at this restaurant for lunch.


On the way to Phranang Beach, we had to pass this mangrove.
Coconut trees. There were a lot of monkeys there as well.
And we were here at Phranang Beach.
Railay is famous for rock climbers. A lot of rock climbers come here just to climb up those rocks!What beautiful place! Leisurely life!

We came back to this place where the boat picked us up and went back to Ao Nang to spend the last night in Krabi. We just looked at each other when we had to leave the place. We both didn't wanna leave at all. I got very tan skin while Kevin got burnt and red so he was kinda jealous at me :p