Steamy Hot!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010--Nakhon Ratchasima

Got up rather early. The tourist office is out on the edge of town, so I decided to walk there. Even at 9:00 the sun feels warm here. But I made it fine and got a map of the city and asked some questions. The woman was curious about my guidebook which is over 10 years old. She looked at a few listings and found many things that no longer exist. I knew that. Thanks to WikiTravel, I can get updated info on hotels and restaurants. But the information on tourist sites is still essentially correct.

From the tourist office, I walked around the loop first to Tesco Lotus and then to The Mall. The Mall is very large and was very busy. It also had a supermarket, so I waited until I got to it to buy snacks.

I was surprised to see/hear lots of Germen men at The Mall. I knew that there were Americans living in this area--ones who returned here or stayed here after the Vietnam War. But I had no idea there was also a German community. There were 5-6 German men visiting at a restaurant, and there were a couple of others shopping in the supermarket.

I almost went off my diet at The Mall. The Dairy Queen has large Blizzards for only $1.50 US. I ordered one, but the woman working there told me she had only sundaes. She was out of the thicker ice cream used for the Blizzards.

I went to the supermarket and bought a few supplies. I got a large bottle of drinking yogurt, a large diet cola, and some peanuts.

It is too hot here to be out in the afternoon, so I stayed in the room and used the computer for a couple of hours. I also watched an Australian documentary about young people who went to Thailand for several months to work in food processing businesses to learn how hard people work for such little pay to feel the west.

In the evening, I walked acorss town to both Night Markets. I stopped to see portions of the old town walls and the moat around town. At the markets, I looked at the food stalls. However, those in the neighborhood around my hotel are nicer ones. I returned to one of those and had noodle soup with slices of pork with crispy skin.

Thursday, July 8, 2010--Nakhon Ratchasima

It seemed even hotter this morning. There were no clouds in the sky. I walked about 50 minutes to the east to see the Wat Sala Loi. It is a rare wat with non-traditional design. It has won architectural awards for its pleasant design. Many tourists, including a group of students, were there. Two couples were dressed in native costumes performing dances and singing on a platform in the complex. After seeing the wat, I tried to sit in the shade and read for a while, but the flies and the knats were just too bad. I had to start walking back to the hotel.

Again, I spent the afternoon in the room. It was HOT, HOT, HOT! Thank goodness I have paid for an air conditioned room! I read from my book, I did research on the computer for the next 3 towns I will visit. I read the newspapers from home on the computer, too.

This evening, I went out for dinner at another neighborhood stall. I had slices of barbecued duck with rice and a green vegetable. The duck was very tender and delicious.

I'm watching TV this evening. Tomorrow morning, I will head to a small place near here called Phi Mai. There may not be Internet there, but I will return here for one night on Sunday before moving onward on Monday.