Have I told you that I  like Thailand lately? well I do. What a contrast to the noisy, pushy life that is China. I’ve heard a car horn once since I’ve been here for a few days and I’m sure it was justified. People talk to each other instead of shouting.In fact their voices are almost imperceptible. Life is lived at a very different pace and quite frankly I enjoy it. What’s not to like? well the answer is that in summer time the heat is intense and takes a bit of getting used to. But I guess if you have the option to retire to the aircon then you will be ok. 

At age 60 the Thai government make it quite easy foreigners to retire here and many do and I think I could be one in the future.The only downside is that I might have to go and get a real job for a couple of years to get a few more dollars 🙁

I can’t believe I didn’t have coffee yesterday but it’s true.This would have been the first time in many months that this has happened and mind you I didn’t feel any worse because of it. And so after being at the fruit market and buying my jack fruit,mandarins and almonds it’s time to get a caffeine hit. Black Canyon is a coffee chain which is not great but it’s a lot better than Starbucks, mind you that would not be too difficult. But today’s coffee does taste pretty good. 

But what I was going to say was,  I’m not sure what is worse or looks worse than a big fat guy with a young rent boy or a big fat guy with a young lady. Well you may say how do I know they’re not friends? simple really, friends talk when they are together they don’t just sit and go through the motions.So on this premise I rest my case. But to be clear, I think big fat men with young boys is definitely a lot worse. 

As I mentioned before my friend Anne has opened a bar in Chiang Mai and it’s in Loi kroa soi 3 up near where they have the Muay Thai boxing. There are many bars here but you have to come here and see for yourself. 

You can have a game of pool with one of the young ladies and by the way they can play very well. There are a couple that have a fin on their back.(shark) If you want you can play pool at no extra charge but if you wish to spend some time alone with one of the girls they will also be happy to do so. It’s Thailand afterall 😆

If you are not aware of the bar scene in Thailand then let me give you an insight. If you come into a bar, almost any bar in a sort of red light area then be aware you can buy many things.  You can buy alcohol but it’s not easy to buy crisps, however you can buy a lady or ladyboy for that matter. Mind you there are no ladyboys at Annie’s Bar. You talk to the boss lady or Mamasan and you pay the bar fine,  I believe it’s now 500 bhat and then you discuss with the lady of your choice the rest of the negotiation for her time. Many people of course are shocked by this but it’s very straight forward and takes away the stress of the situation for those wanting to have some company. Yes company, it’s not all sex and dipraviy, some people come here for company believe it or not. The ladies in the bar usually have a family to feed and as much as it’s a very sad way of life it’s common all over the world, but Thailand works with them and does not penalise those that make a living this way any more. This of course can’t be said for many other countries that take the moral high ground and pursue those that are just trying to make a quid and don’t have many other options, maybe before you criticise this way of life why don’t you come and experience it. You can be a voyeur or a participant it’s totally up to you, but either way if you come to Chiang Mai come and see Anne at Annie’s Bar.

I got to Chiang Mai at 4pm after a very long time travelling,  not exactly sure how long I was travelling for but my body is very weary.

Rather than go for sleep I shower and head out to find my friends new bar that she has opened here. I’ve known Anne for about 5 years and I’m very happy that  she has finally opened it. 

I have two beers and a few games of pool and by 7.30 I’m ready for bed and so it’s off I go at a very slow pace to find my hotel which is about 20 mins away.  I’m exhausted by the time I get back and just fall into bed. 

Well so far I’ve made it to Shanghai but I’m now waiting for the bus to take me to Pudong airport.  I got the train from Suzhou to Honqqiao Station and it only takes about 35 mins whereas if you drive it will take you over 2 and a half hours. The advantage of a high speed rail network.  The ticket was 40 rmb which is a bit of a bargain. Some clown was sitting in my seat when I got on, no doubt the pretty young lady next to him was the draw card but I told him to fuck off out of my seat ever so politely when he suggested I should sit elsewhere.And with out another word off he went. Not sure if the young lady was happy about that or not but I couldn’t care less 😆

When you arrive in the main arrival hall you have to contend with swarms of yellow clad tourist folk that are ready to get you a hotel or taxi at the slightest glance. A few were polite and  helpful when I asked for directions to the shuttle bus, but there was one that was full of shit. She had a car waiting and it would only cost 200 rmb to the airport. This just happens to be more than what you would pay if you just went to the taxi rank. The 5 min walk to the shuttle bus was going to take 20 mins but as I’m not a fat lazy git I told her that I would rather take the bus and pay my 30 rmb.There is a huge mark up on goods and services for the unsuspecting tourist in China.  If they say 100 then offer 30 and maybe buy for 50 at the most. We got to the airport just before midnight and so now I have at least 4 hours before I can check in. The price you pay for a cheap airline ticket.

Well it’s now nearly 5am and so I must have got a little sleep although I’m not sure how because with the racket of hammer drills and people walking passed and the fact that I was on a chair sitting upright, although I did lie over my large case which comes in handy in these situations.

Air Asia open their checkin counters at 4 am and I’m about 3rd in the queue, although it doesn’t take long for a couple of Chinese to arrive that don’t understand this concept. It’s one thing that does get on my tits quite a bit,  oh and the ones that won’t wear ear phones when listening to some pathetic soap opera . 

I think I need breakfast, sleep and a shower and preferably in that order and maybe a little distance from this Chinese world I find myself in.

The sun was shining today so I just had to get out and about and catch some rays. I went to my favourite wee restaurant that sells dumplings in a spicy soup.

These are a great wee snack and I like to have them at least once a week.  I’m trying to be rice free for the next few days so this is ideal. The restaurant sits on a busy road but there is a small bridge over the canal at the rear which leads to a quiet lane and I prefer to walk along the canal because you can see the daily life and also the beautiful maple trees that are a vibrant red colour at the moment.

I like to explore these narrow streets but then I have to join a main road and I came across a park which was full with people, mostly older folk. They had music and were dancing and there would have easily been a couple of hundred and they all seem to be taking it very seriously and why not because they were very good indeed and of course the sun was shining.

Across these gardens there was some musicians and an old guy in the middle belting his lungs out. I stopped to listen although his singing was pretty bad the musicians were very good playing traditional instruments.

I head on and out the other side of the park and head down another narrow street with a line of houses that don’t look very big at all. Outside some of the houses they have there singing birds,  mind you I’m not sure what they are.

I think he was a bit camera shy😆

I’ve been in Suzhou for nearly 3 months but I never tire of walking around exploring the narrow streets and to find a new place to eat. 

This restaurant is near Jiangmen Metro station and it is serves spicy Chongching noodles that make your mouth go numb. A great way to heat up the body in the middle of a sunny winter’s day. 

But I only have a picture of the really spicy dumplings. 

So I’ve booked my flights for Harbin and I have my accommodation but I have no idea how I’m going to cope with the temperature, it’s fuckin’ freezing even now and it will be worse when I go in January. I’m going to go to the Ice Festival

http://www.icefestivalharbin.com/

Click on the link to take to a winter wonderland

This is the temperature for today, but hey they make Harbin beer which is one of the tastiest beers too. I’m staying in an AIRBNB accommodation and apparently I am the first foreign guest they have had so it will be an interesting trip for all concerned. Looking forward to it!

No matter where you are in the world you can get nuisance calls, I’m I glad my phone is off most of the time. Today I switched it on and this is a list of the numbers that are either Foxtel or energy companies or some other wankers trying to sell you shit. In the last two weeks the amount of messages that have come through has increased substantially. I would answer them but it will only cost me money so instead I block them but they call from another number and so it continues…………..

Today I was lucky enough to go to Suzhou Botanical Gardens with Rita, she is a young friend that I met through the English club. Both her and her husband Dave have been good enough to take me out and about a few times in the last few weeks. 

Today in Suzhou the sun was shining but as we arrived at the gardens the temperature was a balmy 4c so I’m glad I wore my thermals. I’ve never worn them before, not in all the years I lived in Scotland, I guess I was a bit tougher then and not so much of a big Jessie.

This is my first proper winter in many years. I don’t know  the last time I was in the northern hemisphere at this time of the year.  Yesterday was so wet, so it was nice to see the sun and to be honest in the sun it was quite pleasant. Mind you when we stepped inside the first greenhouse it felt bloody marvelous. 

The first house had many plants I was familiar with, in fact I have many in my own garden. 

They even had a couple of Cockatoos.

We came across this lovely old bunch of birds, mind you a couple looked very pissed off or to be more precise they were like grumpy old men. I don’t know what they were complaining about, I mean it was lovely and warm and they had this big old place to themselves.If they were stuck oot in the cold it would have been a lot worse. 

We moved onto the next house which had succulents, cactus and drought tolerant plants.  I like these better, I’ve always wanted a cactus garden more so because it’s low maintenance but they can look great too. In this greenhouse they had many many different varieties and I thought to myself that it was just what I’ve always wanted. 

As we walked through the gardens you are  accompanied by pan pipe type music. You know the kind of thing if you go for an aromatherapy session.It’s not music that you would consciously put on to listen to but when you hear it you think that it’s sounds pretty good. It’s everywhere you go. The music is activated by a sensor because as you sneak up on one of the out door speakers it all of a sudden bursts into life. 

One really enjoyable thing about today was that the gardens were almost empty and it felt great to get away from the noise and chaos of the city and now and again you could hear the wild birds, although the only one that I saw that looked familiar was a Magpie.

Many of the trees had lost there leaves because it’s winter of course but I will definitely come back here in the spring when everything bursts into life once more. 

I like to wander through the local markets and see what you can find. The market near me sells just about everything you need when it comes to cooking and eating that is.You will find almost any type of food here dead or alive. Of course you have to get over the smells that exist and you really can’t pay too much attention to the local livestock, because if you do you will just get upset. Of course however sad it may be to see the chickens, pigeons,ducks and a variety of seafood splashing and flapping about, it does make sense to keep the food as fresh as possible.  Mind you I don’t condone these conditions and I  don’t like to watch when it’s time for one of the poor beast’s to meet its maker or the dinner plate for that matter.

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