Upcoming Thailand trip in late Jan/early Feb. any reccommendations ?

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*** Weed is legal in Thailand ***

Cannabis. Pot. Marijuana. All legal and openly sold. Jars lined up like candy bins. Everywhere. So many little shops with prices and varieties posted. Yes, all over Bangkok, too. I smelled it but I did not see anybody smoking it openly.

***Reclining/sleeping Buddha***

My favorite site/sight in Bangkok. Tourist central, but so what. About 150 ft long and 50 ft high. (46 m x 15 m) Utterly, beyond splendid gold-leafed Buddha. Brick core, covered in sculpted plaster. Check out his almost 10 ft tall feet, inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

In my opinion he deserves a much larger display pavilion. Space in the temple complex is limited; the pavilion walls are much too close, only a few feet away. No doubt so visitors cannot stand there and gape instead of moving along.

*** For Foodies ***

If you like Thai food at all, Bangkok is heaven on earth. Don't be afraid to eat from booths on the streets. All kinds of (some unidentifiable) snacks, noodles, skewers, omelets and yummies are available. Not everything is fishy stuff. Try the fried tempura vegetables and chickpeas. I waddled from one watermelon smoothie place to another. Or for fresh-crushed pomegranate juice.

I tried out "Cabbages and Condoms," a Thai cuisine restaurant dedicated to raising funds for family planning services. When founded, the average Thai woman had 7 kids. Now, many have 2 or even only one child.

I ate stir-fried morning glories. The entire plateful. A nicely textured (and tasting) cross between green beans and asparagus. The flowers had shriveled to almost nothing.

"Coffee and Condoms," a coffee/tea shop - is next to a gift store stocked with high-quality crafts made by local artisans. Yes, there are plenty of items made with condoms. (BTW This company also owns a small resort named "Birds and Bees," near Pattaya Beach.)

In Myanmar I ate stir-fried water lilies; they were slightly more like green beans than the morning glories. My favorite thing was a homemade, non-spicy snack mix of unknown beans, nuts & legumes that I picked up at the local market. Fried in peanut oil and salted. I had no brakes. I could make myself sick on it. Especially, washed down by army-owned Myanmar Beer.

Don't sneer at McDonald's. They are everywhere in Bangkok (as were Taco Bell, KFC, Burger King, etc.) and sometimes you do need to sit down in the cool, collect your wits and check your (free) wi-fi.

Yes, McD's has the same-old, same-old burgers, but they offer dessert pies. Not the pitiful baked cardboard pies in the US but those evil FRIED pies from long ago. Crunchy. And in very interesting flavors.

Taro. Purplish pudding with a curious but pleasant taste. Or banana brown sugar filling which turned into a caramel. And sweet creamed corn filled pies that were available alamode. Yep. Creamed corn filled, crispy hot pies and ice cream are an excellent combo.

Istanbul. Turkish cuisine. My favorite. Too much to eat, which I didn't - because I had to fit into airline seats. My non-touristy Istanbul neighborhood had baklava shops, others selling cheese pastries or Turkish pizza. There are cafeterias (chains) which display all options in warming dishes in the window. Pleasurable to the eyes, quite appetizing to merely look at.

Choose a main course (or TWO!) then cruise down the line past various salads, soups, pilafs, desserts (don't look, eyes down, keep moving) and as much bread as you want. A feed at one of these cafeterias can easily cost less than $10. I saw very poor-looking, threadbare Chinese ladies grab a thrifty meal: bowl of soup, some tea and a pile of bread for the equivalent of a couple of dollars.

*** Fun in Thailand ***

Back to Thailand. Famous for "red-light" activities. Cowboy Street in Bangkok, for example. However, know that I am in bed (in my hotel) when most of these establishments open, so I'm only passing on what I observed and was told by participants.

Cowboy Street (pedestrians, motorcycles and push carts only) features club after club. In the morning, street vendors make and serve breakfast on the spot from food carts in front of the clubs. Although mostly closed down for cleaning, 24-hr-escort service does exist with some "very friendly" (yes, to ME!) ladies sitting around tables in the front of the clubs. The street starts to hop around 10 PM.

First floor are clothed waitresses/ladies who sell way-over-priced drinks. 2nd floors reserved for naked ladies and 3rd floors for guys/gays/transvestites, transsexuals, etc. Something for everybody.

Pattaya Beach. Couple of hours via freeway down the coast. Lovely, lovely, easily accessible beach right across the street from all varieties of American restaurants. Everybody laid back, smiling, relaxed in sun and breeze. Endless cheap boozy drinks. Splendid overlook view. I understand locals consider Pattaya to be a so-so beach; there are many others that are secluded, uncrowded and even more beautiful. No wonder some James Bond movies were filmed in Thailand.

Yes, the escort/club business is big but it's not "in your face." I'd have no problem taking kids to Pattaya. If you like Indian food, investigate one street back from the main drag. So, so many Indian restaurants. As for me, I had yet another session of foot reflexology. An hour for $7 in a high-priced tourist zone. (I had either reflexology or body massage every 48 hours while in Thailand.)

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