Having "Me" Time

It's Friday evening and the weekend lies ahead.  When I get tired, when I need a holiday sometimes all it takes is a little day trip to revitalize the soul.  Just an hour outside of Bangkok and already it can make one feel relaxed. I see the big open sky high above me and somehow it dissolves away the hassles and tiredness of everyday life.  If you are wondering what to do this weekend, perhaps you can take a little trip to Bang pu (Bangpoo).  It's actually only around 45 minutes away and a good place to just go have a good lunch and come back refreshed. Bang pu is adjacent to Bangkok in Samut Prakarn province and lies southeast of Bangkok.  It borders on the Gulf of Thailand and that's where its charm lies.  You can go have a nice meal by the gulf and it's only an hour's drive away.  A good place to escape the hassle and bustle of modern Bangkok.  A restaurant Alex and I tried and have since gone back is called "Rabiengta- Le" which li...

A few weeks ago I went for the first time to a restaurant not far from Bangkok that made me feel like a child again.  It's called Baan Nam Kieng Din, around 45 minutes drive and located on the beautiful Utayan road which is between Nakorn Chaisi and Phuttamonton.  It is very near to the Buddhist Park at Phuttamonton which has the highest standing buddha image in the world. Yes, it's incredibly big.  If you combine the dinner with the buddha image it makes a wonderful afternoon out. Anyways, this restaurant is wonderful in that it caters to people of all ages and when you go there, you feel like you escape the world a little and go on a little holiday.  The drive out under the big wide sky relaxes you and the spacious garden greets you upon arrival makes it feel fun and exciting.  The garden isn't just any garden, there are small ponds with a pair of black swans, enclosures with bunny rabbits running around and ducks of all sizes that just...

I enjoy eating food cooked in almost every style.  I love italian food, japanese food, french food, italian food, indian food, and yes even british food.  (There's something about mushy peas as well as fish and chips)....The list is endless, but tonight I want to talk about middle eastern food and a great place to have it at Beirut Restaurant . Beirut Restaurant is a Lebanese restaurant and apparently has quite a few branches.  I went to the one at Ploenchit Tower (accessible by BTS station Ploenchit) with some good friends who like to explore. The restaurant and the food turned out much better than we expected.  So good that since then we have all been back again together as well as with others. So what do they serve?  As Lebanon borders on Syria and Israel, the food you get there is the classic range of blended beans, eggplants and other kinds of dips.  My favorite is the Hummus made of blended chickpeas and olive olive oil, Babaghanouj wh...

It's the weekend and we all must dine.  I love long weekends where I have the time to meet friends, hang out and just enjoy eating good food.  Life is great at this point.  When we travel, we also must eat good food.  For me, travel and good food go hand in hand.  To experience a culture fully, you must eat the food they eat and enjoy the entire experience.  One of my favorite restaurants in Vienna which is frequented by both locals and visitors is the "Figlmueller." Opened since 1905, at Figlmueller you can have one of the most famous "Schnitzel" in Vienna.  I drool just thinking about it.  What is this weird sounding food called "schnitzel"?  It is basically pork tenderloin which has been pounded until very thin.  It is then put into a batter and topped with breadcrumbs before being fried.  It's served with salad and potatoes. You can have schnitzel almost everywhere in Vienna, but what makes Figlmueller so...

The festive season has begun and with it comes the time for gatherings and reunions.  Although we don't have the whole Christmas feel in Bangkok just yet it is coming.  I start to hear Christmas songs and the shops are all changing their displays.  Now all we need is abit of snow in Bangkok.   So with all these festivities going on, it is of course the time to go out and meet friends.  Friends you haven't met in a long time, friends who are back on a visit and friends who just want to hang out and have a good time.  Last weekend I went to meet some good old friends whom I've known ever since I can remember.  We went to this new restaurant called " The Anna Restaurant and Art Gallery." It's a cute restaurant and one that is simple in its furnishings yet pleasing to the eye.   It's housed in a relatively large compound of an old styled Thai wooden house whose interiros...