Mon Nom Sod, MBK Bangkok

After being blown away by my first taste of Mon Nom Sod (also spelled Mont Nom Sod) at the flagship in Banglampu, I just had to taste the delicious toast again before I left Thailand.  MBK was a lot closer to my hotel on Sukhumvit so we tried that branch located on the second floor of the legendary shopping mall MBK.  It was again totally delicious, however, I give the edge to the mothership branch in Banglampu for the absolute best taste.  Here is a pic of the toast insanity!  Sweetened condensed milk is my favorite topping.  The farm fresh milk is also stellar.  This is a must when in Bangkok.

MOS Burger, Bangkok

I had my first taste of the well regarded Japanese burger chain MOS Burger at the Siam Paragon food court.  Let me tell you, I was very, very impressed with my burger.  I sampled the 'Premium Beef Burger', which was super tasty.  The portion size is just right.  Easy to handle and it doesn't fill you up too much.  It isn't greasy in the least bit and all of the ingredients are fresh.  I also had a taste of the fish sandwich, which was really good.  The french fries are served in a cute little portion size although they didn't stand out. 

I can't see this restaurant ever being popular in America since people here are so obsessed with huge portions.  Fine with me though.  I look forward to exploring more of the menu on my next trip to Tokyo.

Dinner in Huay Kwang, Bangkok

Here are a few pics from our dinner in Huay Kwang last night.  This area is an excellent place to walk around and enjoy delicious Thai food.  Highlights from last night were the pad kra prow and the mango with sticky rice.

Back in Bangkok

Made it out of rustic Laos back to civilization in Bangkok.  Flew on Nok Air into the old international airport at Don Muang.  Equipment was an old 737-400.  Not much to see with the thick haze hanging over the Kingdom of Thailand today.  

Feels great to be back here, I always feel so comfortable.  I have about 24 hours left in my trip now before my flight to LAX.  Back at the hotel sipping on a cold Leo and watching the news about the big quake in Japan.  Some horrible shots of the tsunami rolling over the coast line. 

My hotel in Bangkok is a brilliant place - Baan Sukhumvit Soi 18.  Excellent location near MRT and Skytrain.  Comfortable rooms with big baths.  Friendly service and a delicious breakfast.  Super quiet too.  I highly recommend it.

Dinner tonight at the Huay Kwang nightmarket.  Can't wait!

Laos, Vang Vieng

Yesterday was one of those days where traveling isn't the bed of roses it usually is or should be.  The memory of the young girl with her face smashed like a pancake was still fresh in my head.  I had thought of renting a motorbike until that incident.  People here drive bad, really bad.  There isn't much to see in Vientiane and in a few hours you know the whole town.  The food isn't anything special and there is no real street food scene like in Thailand.  I was getting bored quickly. 

I wanted to see the countryside and some mountains.  Vang Vieng was the place since it was only 3 hours away.  But that is only true in the guide book.  In order to pick up our bag from Tom's house we were scammed on the taxi.  I guess I could have lost my cool and looked for different cabs but I didn't have the time.  I try to remember in Asia that losing your cool is a very bad thing.  It shows the loss of face.  Usually I'm not the type of guy to lose his cool.  So we get our minivan to the country.  The van is full of young backpackers from Canada and a German couple.  The full van proceeds to drive the city streets for an hour and then ends up right back at our starting place.  People, me included start wondering what the hell is going on.  Our driver gets out and leaves for 30 minutes and doesn't say a word.  The German guy loses his cool.  He get out and demands his bag back.  He raises his voice.  I guess he doesn't know about losing face and frankly I don't think he cares.  He gets his bags and leaves.  Two young Americans fill the seats of the Germans.  

Finally, we are on the road for a 3.5 hour drive through some of the worst roads I've been on before.  I'm staying cool but Lilly is really unhappy.  We fight for the next day.  We arrive in a beautiful town that is unfortunately overrun by young backpackers who are more interested in drugs and drinking than anything else.  I knew this would be the case though.  It was just as Lonely Planet said it would be.  The scenery was breathtaking though as you can see below.  We didn't have time to explore more of the area or enjoy the river.  Too bad since I'll never be back. 

It was hard to find a place to eat dinner since basically every restaurant is full of space cadet kids watching reruns of Family Guy and Friends.  Went to bed early and made the long drive back in the morning.  On the way back we were scammed again.  I really don't appreciate people ripping me off.  I thought the Lao people were supposed to be nice.  So I was in a really, really pissed off mood this afternoon. It really takes a lot to piss me off.  It took more than a few cold Beer Laos to cool me down.

I'm fine now but I can't wait to leave Laos and return to Thailand.  I really don't care much for this country.  I compare it to Cambodia in Southeast Asia where it is dirty poor and just very dirty.  At least Cambodia has the jewel of Angkor Wat.  Laos has nothing close to that.  I'm glad I have been here once to see what it is all about.  After all, that's what traveling is all about.  The only real way to learn about different countries and cities is by being there.  I've learned that I don't need to come back here.   

I've traveled to many countries in Asia but I really only care to return to Japan, Thailand and Vietnam of the places I've been thus far.  Well, I do plan to get back to HK and Singapore again since I didn't spend enough time in either spot.  Still on the must visit list are Bali, Indonesia and Philippines.  I have no desire to visit Korea.  Burma seems to rustic for me.

The day ended on a better note.  I had a wonderful tour of the US Embassy in Laos and met the Ambassador.  Dinner was in a nice spot on the river but the food was lacking.  Nothing in this country has wowed me like in Thailand. 

Really looking forward to Bangkok tomorrow.