Little Miss is 5 Years Old

She had a blast!

Thank you very much for all the wishes, telephone calls, sms, presents and your thoughts on her special day.

xoxo

Our 8th Wedding Anniversary

Hubby took me to the 59th floor of Banyan Tree Hotel in Bangkok to celebrate our special day, what a great experience!
A MUST do if you are ever in Bangkok.

Little Miss - Cooking

She came home on Thursday after school singing "e..e... egg on the pan ..." and told me happily that she learnt how to make scrambled egg in school !

So the next morning when I drop her in her class I asked her teacher if she really made the scrambled egg and Teacher Michelle said that it is true and she ate it all for lunch. Apparently she had drop the egg on the floor on the first attempt to crack the egg but the cook gave her a new one then she proceed to make it all by herself.

Sure enough when I asked her what she wants for lunch today she said she wants to make her own scrambled egg ... one happy Mami here :)

Bridge on the River Kwai

Located 128kms to the west of Bangkok, Kanchanaburi's main claim to fame is the famous Bridge on the River Kwai, popularized by Pierre Boulle's novel of 1956 and the epic film of the same name made in 1958 (won 7 Oscars, 3 BAFTA Awards, 3 Golden Globes, etc).

The bridge was built during WW II and now the track is developed into a walkway with side platforms, this allows crossing the railway bridge on foot. These platforms are useful as viewpoints and for avoiding trains (Orient Express passsing by this route !). A small tourist train runs back and forth across the bridge too, cost Baht 50  per person in August 2010, obviously Little Miss favorite part of the trip :)

Our first trip exploring Bangkok provinces with our own car and relying it solely on the GPS, so happy to know that everything works out great. The infrastructure is amazing here, the roads are wide and no traffic whatsoever. Our Little Miss enjoyed the ride, plenty of things to see and we've seen many Factory Outlets shop (although we didn't stop to any, I was more interested in the Orchid's nurseries along the way, will blog it separately).

Enjoy the photos !!!

Say NO to war !

Ready to cross the famous bridge

Heavy clouds, view of floating restaurant rooftops (where we had our lunch ) from the bridge

Lovely findings on the other side of the bridge

Bridge from the bottom

Fastest way to cross the river :)

Second time crossing, no safety railings !

Little Miss & I waiting for the Tourist Train

It's here, let's GO !

On board the tourist train

View of River Kwai on the other side taken from the train

Refreshing coconut drink, best on hot day

Lumphini Park

Our Little Miss loves this park, 5 minutes away by car from our home and there's 57.6-hectare open space with trees, artificial lake and playgrounds in the heart of Bangkok. We usually go there on  Saturday after 4 pm, Hubby will jog, Little Miss will ride her pink bike and I will walk briskly behind her. This time around I brought my camera and managed to capture some shots (while catching my breath *winks*)

Bike helmet on - Happy Face !

Ready to Ride

Aerobics, anyone ?

The Lake

Happy Girl :)

During winter time (November - February), the Palm Garden of Lumphini Park becomes the site for the annual Concert in the Park festival featuring classical music by the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra and other bands, will definitely make a point to see it.


Have a great weekend everyone !

The Jim Thompson House

Jim Thompson was an American businessman who helped revitalize the Thai Silk and textile industry in the 1950s and 1960s. We visited his beautiful traditional Thai house (now museum) at the end of a quiet soi by the Saan Saab Canal couple weeks ago. The house consists of six authentic Thai houses interconnected seamlessly to appear as a large elevated house set in a lush garden. No nails were used, only wooden joints and pegs, a standard feature in the traditional Thai house.  The house making up the living room is 175 years old, the oldest house and the other houses are 75 – 150 years old.

Cameras were not allowed inside the house but during guided tour we're shown his extensive art collection that is both beautiful and intriguing. Our tour guide mentioned that Jim Thompson collected a lot of art piece that is broken which for Thai people is considered bad luck ! As you might know, Mr Thompson vanished without a trace when vacationing overseas and his disappearance remained an unsolved mystery to this day.

PS. Except for Sundays, Jim Thompson house is open to the public from 9am to 4.30pm. 

Pak Bung Fai Daeng

An essential dish, both in home style cooking and at restaurants. Pak Bung (in English : Water Spinach or Water Morning Glory, in Bahasa Indonesia : Kangkung) is a very common vegetable in Thailand, as well as other South East Asian countries.

It is very easy to make at home, in Indonesia the leaves are usually stir fried with chili and garlic, my Mom in Bali will add terasi bakar / belacan, virgin coconut oil and jeruk limo with the previous 2 (the concoction called bumbu plecing), it is my childhood favorite. But in Thailand I am crazy over Pak Bung Fai Daeng, it is stir-fried with oyster sauce or soybean paste, garlic and chillies. To cook something “Fai Daeng” in Thai means over a really hot fire. The result is an absolute delish, the first item in my food order whenever we are eating out in any Thai Restaurant, just loved it !!!

Celebrating Queen's Birthday

We attended candle light ceremony in the hotel yesterday to celebrate Her Majesty Queen Sirikit birthday and to offer blessings and prayers for the Queen. She was born on August 12, 1932.

Like the King's, her birthday is a national holiday and is also Mothers' Day in Thailand.

Her Majesty Queen Sirikit

People across the country lit candles at 7.29pm

Little Miss, fascinated by the power of microphone

Can you spot us ?

Celebrating Mother's Day at Angelini with friends

Durian

Durian @ Bang Rak Market

The "king" of fruit in Southeast Asia, it has distinctive odor, an acquired taste and also banned in some establishment. Although the fruit is not native to Thailand, the country is currently one of the major exporters of durians in the world. Peak durian season in Thailand is between May to August, you can find them easily in supermarket or any corner of open market.

Currently I'm crazy about durian pancake served in one of the Chinese restaurant here in Bangkok, it has faint odor and smooth creamy texture, perfect ending of a great supper. Note to self, must go for another pancake or two before the month end.

Chatuchak Weekend Market

This is our 3rd visit to Chatuchak (or Jatujak) weekend market in Bangkok, it is the largest market in Thailand. Simply called J.J. by Bangkokians, it covers over 35 acres (1.13 km²) and contains upwards of 5,000 stalls but most stalls only open on Saturdays and Sundays. You can find wide variety of products including household items, clothing, Thai handicrafts, religious artifacts, collectibles, foods, plants and live animals in here.

The market is adjacent to the Kamphaengphet station of the MRT Bangkok Blue Line, or about a 5-minute walk from the Mo Chit station of the BTS Skytrain Sukhumvit Line and another MRT station of Suan Chatuchak (Chatuchak Park). But we always use the taxi to go and back home, it is faster (since the taxi use the highway) and cost the same for the 3 of us, just being practical .

By now we know to carry essentials only for market visit (cash, wet ones, hat and fan) and dress as comfy as possible, no matter what time of the day we went the heat at some point will be unbearable ! The good thing, plenty options to hydrate your body (freshly squeezed juice, popsicle, cold sliced fruits, cold drink stalls), naturally we choose the one that is busy with customers (this also works for choosing place to eat).

After walking for half an hour we saw tiny stall selling only black grass jelly (Cincau Hitam in Indonesian) known in Thai as chao kuai and is commonly served relatively plain together with ice and natural brown sugar. In some place they also being served with Jackfruitt or mixed together with other Thai desserts. I preferred them plain with no sugar but Little Miss will gradually adjust the taste to her liking, as you can see in the photo below ....

 

Honestly, I haven't seen the market completely, out of 3 visits so far I think I've seen 1/3 of it only. In the beginning our Little Miss dislike open market / bazaar, she preferred supermarket with blasting AC anytime but I've been taking her to so many open market here in Bangkok I supposed she start getting used to the tropical heat, also we have quite numbers of fan collected by her solely for market visit purpose *grin*

One of our favorite thing to do is eating in the market, we're a bit careful choosing where to eat since Little Miss has nuts allergy but so far so good, we've been lucky to find places that is both delicious and save for the whole family. This time around we ate at Dinphow Cuisine (Sector 4, Soi 1) they served delicious Vietnamese food at very reasonable price, we'll definitely going back next time !!!

My fave : Spicy Pork Satay @ Dinphow Cuisine





Little Miss loves their Shrimp Spring Rolls



One happy girl at lunch time

From this trip I got myself a pair of ballerina pumps and Lemon Grass diffuser for our home, Little Miss got several outfits, purse & other knick knacks and Hubby just happily tag along playing tourist. 

The weekenders in JJ

Stay tune for more market visit and beautiful images of Bangkok. 

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

My daughter favorite, we baked it every single week within this month of July :o)

Below recipe is my preferred concoction (less sugar and less butter compared to the original recipe), make sure your oven temperature is correct and voila ... home baked cookies for everybody to enjoy !


Ingredients

* 1 1/4 stick butter, room temperature
* 1/2 cup white sugar
* 3/4 cup brown sugar
* 2 eggs
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon coarsed salt
* 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
* 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions :

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Prepare cookie sheets.

2. In a mixer, cream together the butter, white sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Sift in the flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder; mix well. Stir in the chocolate chips. Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into balls and place them one inch apart onto the prepared cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for couple of minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

4. Keep in airtight container up to 1 week.

Waffles

Sunday morning treat for Little Miss, thick & crispy waffles delivered by room service at Shangri-La Hotel Bangkok. 

She ate 2 slices with lot's of maple syrup *grin*

Once upon a Storm

Little Miss & her friend Mahi was drawing by the window that afternoon when suddenly we hear loud whirling winds and thunder coming closer.

"Girls, look outside, it's going to rain soon !!!"

Our suite in the hotel was on the 16th floor and we had the best view of Chao Phraya river, the dark clouds passing by on high speed followed by heavy rain, such a drama !!!

Khanom

Whenever I see these sweet Thai cake in the food bazaar here in Bangkok I can't help myself but to get couple of packages to enjoy them later at home.

Got no idea what's the exact name of these yummy treats but I found out from our guidebook that Thai sweet cake like these ones were called Khanom in general and they are available almost in any market / food bazaar, just have to find them :o)

The main ingredient is cassava flour, the two on the left are covered with steamed mung beans & filled with fresh coconut and the round colorful ones on the right are filled with coconut sweetened in palm sugar, the center is crispy and caramel like, so good !

Come over for tea, anyone ?

Always Summer

Living in the Tropic means swimming & ice cream are our favorites all year round.

Mini Cupcakes for Zoe

Can't believe she turned 4 years old this week ! 

When I met Elke in Jakarta for the first time Zoe was still in her tummy :o)

Below photos are 38 mini vanilla cupcakes that Elke brought to her school to celebrate her birthday with her classmates.

Then for after school party she has 3 tiers of 24 mini strawberry cupcakes and a giant cupcake with Sleeping Beauty topper (my daughter insist that she has to be in the picture) as shown below ...

This is our first time celebrating Zoe's birthday here in Bangkok ... we're so thrilled !
Happy birthday to you,Little Cutie Pie .. wishing you all the best always.

PS. Click on the link to see more photos of the cupcakes & the party !!!