We Were Up Early Today,

as we were going to the Nong Nooch tropical garden,

 the impressive way in, the garden is on the Sukhumvit Road at kilometer 163 about 19 kilometers from Pattaya if you are heading towards Sattahip,

 Sandio and Mum looking happy as ever,

 the drive way is a mile or so long, each side of it lined with palms,

 oh the concentration!

 there is a retail shop on the main drive in, but also a few smaller shops in the main attraction areas as well,

 one thing about driving out here is that you never know what you might bump into round the next corner,

in this case a elephant round up by motorbike,

 we paid at the toll booth then driving in to the garden we made our way to the car parks, tourists are charged 500 baht but if you are Thai or can show a Thai driving licence the charge is 250 baht,

 all along the route there are lots of attractions to look at,

 it is a fun place, but it does also have a serious side in that it is a major scientific center dedicated to cycads, with its own Cycad Gene Bank,

before we start a map of the garden,

 we decided to take the early show, which means no huge crowds,

 from the car park to the show you have to walk past the elephant enclosure, 

 so we had to buy a 40 baht bunch of bananas,

 and feed the elephants,

 everyone was a bit hesitant at first,

 but we were soon acting like professional elephant feeders,

 Dioshane making it look easy,

as did Diana, 

 but Mum is still not quite so sure,

 we then walked past the aquariums,

  all housing local species of fish,

 and the souvenir,

 and food stalls

 this one selling steamed peanuts,

 the now empty eating area, another hour or two and it will be packed,

 we made our way to one of the coffee bars,

 the one we chose was next to the tour bus we would be taking later,

with seating inside and out,

 whilst our drinks were being prepared I had a look in the shop next door,

 some of the many plants available were these bromeliads, 

 these particular ones are grown for their flowers and coloured leaves, others like the pineapple for their fruit,

 there were a few cactus for sale too,

 coffee over it was time for a look around,

 I did notice that the trees had a number of orchids attached to them,

 some of which were in flower,

 every tree had several plants on it,

 sending mini cascades,

of flowers from them,

 our next stop butterfly hill,

 I cheated a bit here by zooming in with the camera,

 a family picture,

 I remember these as a kid, 

 every one of these floating balls has a number inside which wins you a prize, except in my day it was yellow plastic ducks floating around, with a hook at the top you caught them with and a number painted under them,

 next stop the bird enclosure,

 I tried taking a picture through the wire, but with not much success,

 then found you could walk in,

 which made things a lot easier,

 now there was only wire in the background,

 which was fine for the peacocks, but unfortunately the parrots were still in cages,

 then a bit of fun at the rabbit feeding station,

 we were also lucky in seeing one of the monkey shows,

 a monkey is trained to climb the coconut tree, select the nuts that are ready to eat, it then twists the stem till the coconut fails to the ground,

 the tortoise and turtle center was next on our walk around,

 I am not sure if these are native to Thailand,

 but there is a Thai Turtle Trust,

 there were some in a pool as well,

 with their top lips,

 almost looking like a vampire,

 Diana's family taking a closer look,

 but some of the cast were camera shy,

 the cassowary is a strange looking bird, 

 and it is also considered to be the most dangerous bird alive, it can kill you!

 making our way back to watch the show I suddenly realized that the aquatic section was on 2 floors,

 but first another coffee, which gave me another chance to have a look around,

 and I found these bromeliads in flower,

 drinks all round,

 I should have said coconuts and shakes for Diana's family,

 and a coffee for me,

 it was now time for the show, and still very few people around,

 past the food stalls at the entrance,

 these are the times at this moment in time, in the hot season the shows round 3 and 4 are not held as it is just too hot, so check first if you plan on going to see a specific show,

 and the show begins,

 as you might expect,

 lots of costumes,

 and stage sets,

 all depicting different aspects,

 of Thai life and culture,

 including different instruments,

and pastimes, be it in the ring,

 or in traditional,

 village life,

 as a part of the show included in the admission price there is a elephant show, 

 where for 100 baht you can have your picture taken with an elephant,

 which Dioshane enjoyed,

 the training starts young! 

 then it was Sandio's turn, 

 with two then one elephant,

 then a Tarzan from the elephants tusks,

 I am guessing some one wants some attention,

 the line up begins the show,

 mahouts standing on the elephants,

and one of the elephants standing on two legs,

 the elephants, to the delight of the crowd perform a number of tricks, like bursting balloons with darts,

 riding trikes,

 and painting T shirts,

 which when finished,

 can be purchased for 500 baht,

 basket ball is a world wide favorite,

 even elephants can play it,

 the ball is in the net,

 one more try,

 for a second net,

 hula hoops are also used in the show,

 and of course there is 10 pin bowling,

 a strike!, well nearly,

 then if you are quick and lucky and brave, you can have a elephant walk over you,

 or have a elephant massage,

 which is OK if it is a small elephant,

 but the big ones can be a bit firmer!

 some of the T shirts that were done earlier,

 you can also have your picture taken with tigers,

 but we decided to dress up,

 six years ago we had a picture made of Diana in traditional Thai dress,

 this time we decided both of us would pose,

 and Dioshane, the price of the costumes and picture was 500 baht for 1 person, 900 baht for 2 people, plus if you want to use your own camera a further 400 baht if you want to take a picture if there are 2 people in the picture like us, or 200 baht if there is just 1 person in the picture like Dioshane,

 the girls,

 still with their make up on,

 we made our way to the tour buses,

 when I noticed this pot,

 one of score or more of them,

 but it was the attention to detail on the sides of it that made it so outstanding,

 by now the park was becoming more crowded,

 and we were on our way on the tour bus, it was 100 baht per person,

 bonsai like trees, I say bonsai like as they are all about 2 to 3 meters tall,

 there were of course lots of things to look at on the way round,

 we also past lots of nurseries,

 like this one with hundreds if not thousands of cactus,

 then the heavens opened,

 normally the bus stops at two places so you can take a few pictures,

 but it rained so hard,

 we did not stop,

 every thing was just grey,

 and as soon as I dried the lens,

 it was wet again,

 but how romantic, sharing an umbrella on an elephant in a tropical downpour,

 out of the tour bus and run for cover,

 the park deserted,

 except in the restaurants,

 where we all had a snack,

 the rain had by now stopped,

 but there was still a bit of flooding,

 we made our way out of the park,

 heading back to Pattaya,

 going past this huge water park,

 that is being constructed,

 next to the Sumkivitt Road,

 we had not gone far when it rained again,

 we made a U turn as I wanted to pop in and see a small bike that Mr. Tony had told me about in the RST Terminal Auto Service garage,

 this is it, I asked how much, but was greeted with a shake of the head and given a card,

 making another U turn we stopped at Makro, we were running out of wine, I just do not know where the stuff goes! as this is a big post I will make our evening out into a separate one tomorrow as today we are out fishing.