Up Early,

I wanted to be at the plant market as it opened, 

and soon after was joined there by Vic & Joy, 

we bimbled around, 

I was using the big camera, 

and did not take many photographs with the pocket camera, 

just a few as we had a coffee, 

 it is the weekend plant/flower market, to find the market if you are leaving Pattaya to go to Bangkok as you pass the Bangkok Pattaya Hospital on your left take the next 'U' turn and the market will be on the left, there is lots of parking space behind it, as I did not take many photographs there are a few here, that I took when we lived in Pattaya,

 

we stopped off at the watch shop, but they did not have the one that Graham wanted, so I sent him a few photographs of similar ones, on to a baht bus, 

alighting at the temple, Vic & Joy has already left the bus at Soi Bukaow market,

for myself past Turkish Corner, 

and the Thai Restaurant, 

making my way towards the Pattaya Beer Garden, 

not a fisherman on the jetty, 

just someone chilling out, 

the sea lapping the water treatment plant, 

I did not sit next to the water, if the clouds break and it gets sunny, these tables will not be nice to sit at, also it looked like it was going to rain, so the seat I was in was slightly under cover,

firstly a banana shake, 

followed by the biggest tuna salad I have ever seen! the meal came to 245 baht, just as I finished it started to rain,

getting ready for the night's trade, 

Wow! that is a lot of beer!

looking back towards the main dinning area, 

and these are how we used to order beer, each chiller/dispenser holding 2 or 3 litres!

back out of the beer garden, and under the sign, 

World Gems, still here, it was here on my first visit here in 1982, and still going strong!

the Hulk keeping guard, 

work continuing on this sign, 

a wave form the guy at the top, 

as he completes the installation, 

on the other side of the world, Diana had sent me a few photographs of the girls in Poland, from left to right, Diana, Wilma and Kai,

all was going swimmingly well, 

as you might expect, 

lots of food and selfies!

all set to go out, 

to a folk show, 

and a typically Polish meal,

and here is the video that Diana made of it, looks like great fun!

tonight I was going to go to Thepprasit Night Market, as it happens it was still quite bright as I left my hotel, but the traffic was gridlocked, the driver summed it up in one word, 'Accident', as an aside if you do have a accident in Thailand under no circumstances move any of the vehicles, even if you have brought the main Sumkivitt Highway, all 4 lanes of it to a complete stop, as I did when a car rear ended me when I was stationary at a red traffic light in lane 1, and then that was rear ended slightly into lane 2 by another car, and that was rear ended slightly into lane 3 and that was totalled in lane 4! no vehicle can be moved until both the police and the insurance company from all drivers have arrived and clear blame has been established, as it happens I was given a clean bill of health, a pedestrian waiting to cross the road when the lights were red witnessed everything, and stated I was at a complete stop for a long time before the first car hit me, back to my delay, it took what seemed like hours before I arrived, 

it was dark and the lights were on,

I had a look around and bought a real genuine fake leather belt, 

(you have to live here to get this),

plenty of shoes that is for sure, 

and lots of other goods, 

last year the market had shrunk more that a lot, but this year it seems to have grown, not back to its former self of several years ago, but it was certainly bigger than the last few years I was here, 

a band playing to amuse the crowds, 

into the main market, 

with its gayly coloured lanterns, 

lots of food stalls,

 

and drinks too, 

into the pet section,

lots of beds for pets,

 

and live stock, Guinea pigs, and next door, 

real pigs!

above small monkeys, 

and of course a cat café, 

although with only 2 cats it could have done with a few more, 

the shrine in the far corner of the market, 

the sign says it all, 

I have to admit I was a tad hungry, 

and as I passed the fried chicken stall, 

I weaken and bought 3 pieces, the aroma was just so delicious, 

as I passed it, 

I was almost tempted by some sushi, but 3 pieces of chicken was more than enough, 

I could have eaten them here, 

but I decided to make a move for my hotel, a baht bus ride and a short walk to my hotel, 

outside I grabbed my bottle of vodka, a soda and a glass and settled in to my evening meal, as I watched motorcycle taxis bringing in workers to start the evenings night shift, no sooner had I started eating and I found I had a new best friend, 

one of the local cats had sussed that fried chicken was on offer, then a strange thing, 

a huge group of totally lost and confused tourists assembled outside of my hotel, after shouted instruction they started walking, 

the queue of them, 

nearly never ending, 

meanwhile, I had really overordered the chicken, the local cat was eating more than me!

 she almost over come her fear of me as she was so full, 

and relaxed into a watchful peace, like many cats out here they are totally wild, knowing the ones that had adopted us when we lived here, they just would not trust anyone to get too close, but that was fine for me, for once she had eaten all she could eat, I was then thinking of going out, but supping vodka sodas watching people walk past it was getting late, so a early evening for me.