Here is the proof

Wolfram has been claiming he can fly. I always doubted that but today he proved me wrong.

See yourself!

Happy Wolfram

After a day of relaxing by the pool and starting happy hour... Wolfram looks happy :)

PS: he is not red; it's the tshirt!

Happy hour

We arrived today at the Hilton in Phuket. Sadly the weather has been very stormy so after a long nap we decided to make the best of the lounge area and its cocktails (mocktails).

Interestingly, at Happy Hour, an unexpected customer rushed into the bar: a peacock....

And it was very thirsty :)

Being tall in Asia is always a challenge

Especially in the subway where Wolfram has to keep his head down.

As much as he complains about it, reality is that the majority of the people are short in Asia and if they were taking the subway in Berlin or Paris, they could hardly reach the handles up there.

So it's only fair to adjust the height of the handles to the average size...

Wat Arun

Last day in Bangkok and we decided to take it easy. Read only one temple today, Wat Arun, then relax by the pool. We are both exhausted and sightseeing under the sun is not helping.

Wat Arun is unique in its style, yet fascinating. Take a pile of ceramic and build a temple from it. You get Wat Arun. On top put it on the other side if the river so it offers a fantastic view on the palace and Wat Pho.

The climb to the top was as hard as I remembered. Worth the effort, but quite some sport to make it to the top level. It fascinates me to see those Asian women sightseeing in the most improbable outfit: mini skirts, high heels, trying to keep balance while walking, talking a picture and holding an umbrella to hide from the sun. I truly believe it requires training to manage all of the attire.

The longest Buddha ever

At least that I've ever seen.

When visiting Thailand, one should be ready to see lots of Buddhas, especially in temples. They can be found standing, sitting, meditating, lying down, etc. they can be young or old, slim or fat.... There's an infinite number of ways to portray Buddha in Thailand.

Still the reclining Buddha in the Wat Pho temple is the longest I've ever seen so far in my life (43m no less). And I've seen lots of Buddhas over the years and the world :)

I like the atmosphere in Wat Pho, even when packed with tourists there is something serene about the place. I took a few pictures, trying to get the whole Buddha on one picture (thanks to the wide angle lens). 

My only regret is that I couldn't get a massage at the massage school, home of the Thai massage. But bringing to this world a tadpole requires a few sacrifices. I'll catch up after September.

Mocktails on Vesak day

There is no alcohol served on Vesak day in Thailand. We found it the hard way.

While for me it didn't made a difference as I become an expert in mocktails, for Wolfram that came as a surprise. After a long day of sightseeing he wanted his mojito and found it "not very loaded". No wonder, it was a virgin mojito :)

He will catch up in Phuket!

The Grand Palace

We woke up early, had a solid breakfast, got a taxi and arrive at the Grand Palace of Bangkok to discover the place packed with people.

May 24th this year is a holiday in Thailand as well as in Singapore. It's Vesak, celebrating the ‘Buddha’s Birthday’. Vesak is actually the celebration of the birth, enlightenment and death of Buddha all celebrated in one day. So efficient! Needless to say that half of Bangkok was with us in the palace to attend celebrations in the temples.

The Grand Palace was as impressive as I remembered. The only negative this time was the crowd which made the experience not so pleasant. I'm happy I had the chance to visit it when it was emptier, but sad for Wolfram who had to cope with so many people around. Imagine the challenge for the guy who likes to have pictures without people. 

The Grand Palace is also a place where one should be dressed appropriately. Consequently Wolfram had to borrow some long pants and I had to unroll mine to cover my legs. This lead to us feeling even more hot and sweating even more. Clearly this visit turned into a complete workout :)

I didn't take too many pictures this time because I some point I couldn't bear the heat anymore so I spent a lot of my time in the shades watching people.

The pictures I took are either taken from the shade where I was trying to cool down or on the way in between two shade areas, i.e. I took one shot and decided not to bother if someone is on it. Perfection didn't win the battle against survival of the pregnant woman :)

Here is a selection of pictures: 

More thaï food

Someone felt like Padthai today, someone else wanted to try beef in oyster sauce.

All of it combined with some fried starters  and mango sticky rice revisited for dessert.

Another night going to bed after a great dinner.

Miam, Thai food

After a long day of sightseeing, we went to a restaurant near the hotel named Lemongrass.

It was a recommendation from the travel guide therefore full of tourists. Putting this aside the food was good. Not exceptional but good.

We challenged ourselves by trying dishes we never had before as too often when we go for Thai food we end up ordering always the same. But how can we say no to PadThai?

Tonight we tried:

- some fried crepes filled with minced shrimps - really really good

- fried vermicelli for Lamia

- asparagus for Wolfram

Tomorrow we will continue exploring more of the Thai cuisine.

The Golden Mount

After a short ride in a tuk-tuk, we arrived at the Golden Mount, which offers a decent view over the city, assuming you can climb the 300+ steps to get to the top of the temple.

One step at a time, we made it. This slow pace gave us the chance to spot some more Buddhas along the way, some funny baby looking monk statues, many many bells, a few gongs, and eventually the pointy top of the temple.

Nothing massively impressive compare to other temples in Thailand and Bangkok, but it was still nice to get all the way up there for a panoramic view of the city.

Hot hot hot

It's hotter in Bangkok than in Singapore: 36C vs. 32C. It may feel that it's only a few degrees higher, but it does make a huge difference.

It's also dryer, which is good but not enough to overcome the heat.

Today I really suffered from the heat. I used to be able to handle heat pretty well, but since I'm pregnant it's a different story. I feel like I'm overheating all the time. I am sweating in the same way as if I was at the gym. I get out of breath each time I climb stairs. I can't stand to stay under bright sun for more than two minutes. 

It's making sightseeing difficult as I need to smartly make my way in between shade areas and plan to be hiding somewhere cool when the sun is at its maximum.

Or maybe spend those hours in the swimming pool.

Wat Benchamabophit - the marble temple

I wasn't sure I had been there already when I saw the temple from the outside, but once inside I remembered. I remembered the collection of Buddhas lined up along the walls. I probably took similar pictures as last time, but this collection remains impressive.

To note the marble came from Italy, so this time I made sure to take a picture of it. With everything else to look at, one can easily miss the marble under their feet.

PS: pictures have not been worked, so I apologize in advance if they are not straight nor cropped nor with the right white balance. Somebody told me I could fix some of that on the iPad, but I'm too lazy for that :)

Hungry fish in the river

Just waiting for people to throw bread at them.

Given how voracious they were, I wouldn't dare to step a foot in that water, too scared they would attack me.

Chao Phraya River Express

Or a smart way to travel along the river in Bangkok.

Last time I was in Bangkok I took plenty of pictures during this boat ride, so this time I kept it simple. Enjoying the breeze mostly :)

Still I was surprised to see so many "poor" constructions along the riverside especially after the floods. I guess such constructions are easily destroyed and easily rebuilt.

Finally

Finally we're on vacation for a week.

Finally we're in beautiful Bangkok.

Finally this morning Wolfram could feel tadpole moving in my belly :)

It's going to be a good day!

Mokka brought back her first mouse!

We are so proud of her! Even more as it was not expected from her, rather from Muffin.

Thanks to my parents for sharing.

48 hours in Guangzhou

I flew to Guangzhou on Wednesday morning to meet with a supplier. I had never been to Guangzhou and I think I know why. There is nothing to see. It's one of those industrial cities that is expanding as the industry grows. One building after the other. One factory after the other. Even the shopping mall where we spent some time waiting for our return flight was disappointing carrying only local brands and extremely few international ones.

At least I had the chance to eat some decent Chinese food although I was disappointed not to find my favorites (yep, still dreaming of those beans from South Beauty).

The only flight back was at 1:20am. A lovely red-eye flight that brought me home at 6am. Just on time for one hour of sleep before getting to work. It's going to be a long day. I know that already.

SSO Classics in the Park Mothers' Day Concert

Free concert in the park.

Live orchestra, biscuits, picnic blanket, what a nice way to finish the weekend.