Having "Me" Time

It's the weekend and though I am still feeling under the weather, something about sleeping at the early hours of 9pm and waking up in the wee hours of the morning is refreshing.  The sky is blue, the birds are chirping and the wind is in the air.  It is refreshing and a great way to re-energize.  Of course, another great way to re-energize is to go out and have some good food with good company.  If you fancy some dimsum I recently discovered a new place upon recommendation of a dear friend.  It's called "Yuan" (which makes me think of the Chinese Yuan which is the local chinese currency). What I love about this dimsum place is that you get freshly made dimsum. None of that frozen and re-steamed kind of dimsum.  Each portion is large and you can taste the quality of the ingredients inside.  I had some dimsum made out of snow fish, the usual shumai, fried taro with red pork, fried cream buns and a few other dishes. My favorite was the fried cre...

Talking to a Japanese friend about Japanese food and ramen, I cannot but think about taking you to this ramen place I've been going to since I was young called "Ramentei."  If you live in Bangkok, I'm sure many of you have heard about this place and have been to it.  They have a couple branches, with the original one being near Villa Supermarket on Sukhumvit 33.  There's another one next to Thaniya Plaza where one goes to see golf materials, and there is also one between Suriwong and Silom roads. What I love about it, is that it's simple, serves good food fast and you know what to expect.  Delicious ramen, served efficiently and in a relatively clean restaurant.   Some locations are older than others, but overall, it's clean and good.   You can choose between sitting in the Japanese style tables, or on regular tables.  I personally prefer regular tables since I always think they're more comfortable and don't require my pushing myse...

 Since my good friends are out eating at Taling Ping today (which I have to skip due to a bad stomach)  I thought I'd write about this restaurant that is a great place to take guests from out of town or a place to have little reunions over authentic Thai food.  The great thing about this restaurant is that it has expanded from it's original location on Silom's Pun Road to the convenience of Siam Paragon and Central World Shopping Malls.  All within BTS access.  Wonderful if you are meeting friends who are coming from different parts of Bangkok. Taling Ping is somewhere I always take my guests from out-of-town for a relaxing dinner combined with some shopping.  It serves traditional Thai cuisine with a good ambiance and good service.  Make sure you get there early for the seats fill up quite quickly.  Their food is reliable and the taste is consistent no matter where or when you go.  There are a few favorites of mine at the restaurant....

I'm taking a break from moving and clearing away clutter today and instead take myself on a virtual holiday to a great sushi place I tried out with my dear friends over the holidays.  It's called "ISAO" and is located at Sukhumvit 31, accessible by BTS Phrom Phrong station.  (They have 1 parking space, so I recommend taking the BTS or the taxi.)  I like the sushi there, I like it very much and right now wish I could go for some "Jackie" or the "Spicy salmon." The restaurant is not big but it has a second level where they have quite a few tables.  Upon entering, you immediately feel like you are in Japan.  It's clean, cosy and feels authentic surrounded by bamboos.  The tables and chairs are comfortable.  You could spend a good two hours there chatting away and catching up. (We did anyways)  I think it would also be a good "date" place or somewhere to just go have a nice quiet lunch if you are out of ideas and don't want to spe...

When traveling, everyone always tries to buy goods that are cheaper than what they can get back home.  Being in Singapore, where a lot of people come to buy electronics I had to go check out the prices.  My mission was to find out if electronic products (especially the iPad) are cheaper here or in Bangkok. Singapore has a mall that specializes in electronics called Funan . It's easily accessible by MRT (undergound), just get off at City Hall and exit on North Ridge Road.  Funan is just down the street.  It's like Fortune and Panthip Plaza in Bangkok, but its more quiet and more orderly. There are a zillion shops selling laptops and computers.  I walk around and just enjoy browsing through all the gadgets and gizmos.  I always had a particular fondness for electronics and the techonology always fascinates me.  Its actually more fun than looking for clothes...  I check out the price of the ILuv clock radio for iPod and iPhone dual...