Bangkok Week 409 April 28, 2016 A fun long-weekend in Trad, and then a whirlwind trip to Sydney -- my first of many! View fullsize Welcome to Trad! Maruay tries the home-made dog cookies straight from Erika in Toronto. View fullsize Wasting no time; enjoying the "Khao Lam" -- sweet sticky rice baked in bamboo. View fullsize Our first of many fine meals: seafood at a new restaurant, because our 'regular' go-to place was closed. View fullsize Evidence of freshly-caught fish? View fullsize Then, it was time to take our car for a quick wheel alignment. View fullsize Doing a fruit tour in the back yard. Look, a baby mangosteen! View fullsize Explorers! View fullsize Checking out the multi-colored flowers. View fullsize No trip to Trad is complete without a shop at Makro! View fullsize A dog on a bike, and men climbing out of the middle of the street. View fullsize Maruay is the evening entertainment. View fullsize Enjoying keeping a pillow lodged in his mouth. View fullsize "Now that I've got it, I can't let go." View fullsize Dinner at our favorite A/C'd Thai restaurant on the main street - with the fish leftover from lunch! View fullsize What a feast! View fullsize The next morning, saying hello to the stray cat who's taken up residence in the yard. View fullsize She's seen better days. View fullsize Off to the Black Sand Beach! Where we're greeted by lots of mudskippers and mangroves. View fullsize A bright blue-and-red crab wrestles with a half-eaten leaf. View fullsize Enjoying the walk through the mangroves -- because it's still breezy. View fullsize Trying to blend in with the mangroves. View fullsize We made it! To one of 5 black sand beaches in the world. View fullsize The tide is much lower than when we were here earlier this year. View fullsize Will the boardwalk hold up under our weight? View fullsize Promoting MIT fencing, wherever he goes. View fullsize This tourist blends in very well. View fullsize A brightly-colored fishing boat, half-way to Koh Chang. View fullsize That's our destination! View fullsize Another fishing boat -- this time, the fishermen are the brightly-colored ones. View fullsize Creepy lines in the sand... but from what exactly? View fullsize Say cheese! View fullsize Someone looks lost! View fullsize Imitating the very descriptive signs that leave no questions unanswered. View fullsize More crabs. View fullsize And more mudskippers. Did you know they have blue polkadots? View fullsize On the way back, a stop in Baan Nam Chiao, where they make the famous hats. View fullsize Found the perfect one for me! View fullsize I'll take this basket - it's a good fit. View fullsize A very tall, and rather steep, footbridge crosses the river. View fullsize Which is otherwise home to the local fishing boats. View fullsize Great view of the rooftops from up here. View fullsize And the river, which forks just up ahead. View fullsize A view to the colorful other side. View fullsize The local mosque. View fullsize Chicken rice soup. With a very cute "G" for "chicken". View fullsize Back at the house, mischievous Maruay decides it's time for a dip. View fullsize But when it's time to come back, he realized he bit off more than he can chew! View fullsize Lunch at a local resort that Top likes. View fullsize Operation Jackfruit is underway. View fullsize The result! View fullsize Time for today's lesson: how to pick a mango. View fullsize First, it requires lots of arm strength to manoeuvre the little claw at the end of the long pole. View fullsize The fruit of her labor!! Hah! View fullsize Off to dinner at our favorite dinner joint. View fullsize They've upgraded their tuk tuk since last year! View fullsize We're here before sunset this time. View fullsize And our early reservation allowed us to secure one of the best seats in the house. View fullsize Hello from the dock! View fullsize The neighbors. View fullsize Time for dinner for these red falcons - another revenue stream for this enterprising restaurant. View fullsize Time for the feast! View fullsize No dinner is complete without a DQ to wash it down. View fullsize Namwan watches her older brother play with his new "iPhone". View fullsize Maruay, my pillow. View fullsize The dogs enjoy a chat with a neighbor the next morning. View fullsize Some social time with the whole family. View fullsize Maruay knows how to give a good hug! View fullsize Excited by her souvenir from Makro Trad - Chicken Legs! View fullsize Check out the queue for visa-on-arrival! View fullsize My first-ever view of Sydney. View fullsize And the mountainous conservation area directly south of Sydney. View fullsize My taxi was being chased by an Anzac Day parade!! View fullsize St. James's Church, and the gaudy Sydney Tower in the background. View fullsize All roads closed for the imminent Anzac Day Parade! View fullsize Here it is! Marching band and all! View fullsize These kids have figured out how to get a good view View fullsize What a festive day! And great weather to top it off. View fullsize A marching band comprised entirely of veterans? View fullsize Time for some preliminary Sydney sight-seeing on my way to breakfast. Here's City Hall. View fullsize And a super-cute little cafe, with great coffee (of course). View fullsize And the regal Queen Victoria Building - the most posh shopping arcade I've ever seen! View fullsize More CBD; spot the reflection of Sydney Tower? View fullsize Town Hall at night. View fullsize And the view from the BCG Sydney office - hard to top this! View fullsize Looking down over Hyde Park. View fullsize Double-decker trains! I was expecting a subway. View fullsize They make for a comfy ride to the airport! View fullsize Qantas, Vietnam, Malaysia, Virgin - so many countries represented! View fullsize United, Air Canada - where am I? View fullsize Back in Bangkok! And a surprise dinner with Adil. I still can't get over the coincidence!
