Taste of Thai

We are barely half-way through the trip and already have had quite the adventure with food. Well...I shouldn't say "we"...because I have been playing it pretty safe considering I get sick from Florida water and would prefer to not be spending more time in the bathroom than Thailand on this trip.

Anyway, the big news is that I have found the one food that transcends all cultures and brings joy to foreigners no matter what country they are in:

Yup...cotton candy. Right here in Chiang Mai at the Sunday Market. Now, for the polar opposite of transcending cultures...bugs. Crickets to be exact. And loads of other 'delicacies' to bring a gush of quenstionable body parts into your mouth. Katie and I said no way to these, but the boys went for it.

 

  

We have also tried numerous different Thai restaurants.  Nate always seems to be the most open with Katie a close second. Here is my safe dish of Thai Chicken Basil with a donut of rice and the appetizer of Fried pork balls (of which I didn't attempt)....

Just like massages, food is also fairly ridiculously inexpensive. Our total bill for 4 people including sodas and beer this afternoon was 280 Baht..or approximately $9. FOR 4 PEOPLE. Nate is loving the beer over here by the way...

While Ryan is busy 'educating' the locals on how to make an ABC shot. As you can see there is quite a variance in the education from person to person.

 

 

My personal favorite was the offering hanging on the shelf by all of the booze in the "Good Friends" bar.

Thailand knows how to do ice cream as well. We stolled into the aptly named Beary Bear Ice Cream (?) shop to get some sweet treats, and found this strange combination of ice cream parlor (about 25% of store) and weird shrine to stuffed bears and all things Disney/Hello Kitty/etc. There was even a HOT PINK Hello Kitty Fridge, which I considered bargaining to buy for my sister. But I settled on taking a picture of this poster instead (check out the Heffalumps Becca!)

 

  

Another fun little tid bit about Thailand is that it is not smiled upon to show affection between males and females. Katie and I could hold hands all day long, but Nate and I not so much. So Nate has been hearing "Don't touch me Nate" more than usual, and has even heard it from Katie which admittedly sounds kind of weird. Here is our "don't kiss me Nate" pose...