An interlude

I’m going to take a break from the Vietnam Blog for a day or so.  We need to upload the pics from Hanoi and (as noted in yesterdays post) we needed to take in the computer for some tech work, so we are a little behind on that.  

We did have some fun, though.

I started here.

The ladies headed off to HarborLand for some slides and climbing and play.

My errand was simple enough.  Go the the Apple Store, pick up repair, sign all the stuff they needed to give me the computer back, and then I could have an hour and fifteen or so to blog and then J and I would swap Kiddo and she could have some time.  Sadly, HarborLand is picky about that and I couldn’t get admittance after the fact, needed to buy their socks to play in (J and I couldn’t just swap), and Kiddo would need to exit and then reenter with me.  So, instead of my paying 180 baht to swap, it would be another 800 baht for Kiddo, me, and socks.  Sigh!  So, J did the whole thing and I had a little extra time to write.  Not bad and she and Kiddo got into the zone, so everyone was happy.  Pics and vids at end. 

The plan, seeing as we would be leaving IconSiam at approx 1700h was to walk the 1km to a restaurant that we know called, The Wine Connection.  It’s nothing fancy and it’s about Olive Garden level or quality, but Kiddo eats it; also, they have a pizza deal where we can get a small salad to share, a pizza to share and two glasses of wine.  We can add a pasta or cheese board to that and between the three of us, it’s a perfect amount of food.  

I thought I was meeting J and Kiddo outside of HarborLand, but J went to the main entrance.  So, after navigating the Sunday crowd (a gaming tourney was going on in one of the conference rooms, a Van Gogh exhibit, the new Apple Store there, and the usual SEA love for malls and it was a busy day.  Finding them, we check Google Maps and see it’s an estimated 8-10 min walk.  Easy and Kiddo likes walking… AKA, City Hiking.  Especially in the rain.  It was drizzling and I had the computer, so I was keeping an eye on the sky, as well as the road.  

After about 250m, the rain was starting to pick up and I scanned the road for a taxi or shelter to wait out the quick burst.  Across the street I saw a place with a sign saying Burgers and Beer.  Well, we are fans of burgers and two of us are fans of beer, so we decided to try a new place and a little local place instead of a huge chain.  

First, loved the place.  The ambiance.  The feel.  The grittiness of it.  Just simple tables and chairs.  Little kitchen in the back.  Some spare kegs and the like tucked into corners.  It’s not that it was run down or dirty, but gritty.  Real.  Like going to Cousin Joe’s house because he’s got a basement bar and grills up a mean burger type feel to it.  They also had a Stone Brewing Sign and served me in a Ballast Point glass, as I was wearing a Ballast Shirt.  

My one complaint was the burger.  Every… and I mean EVERY…. Burger we have had in Thailand is overworked and has rosemary added.  How is it that no one in Thailand knows how to make a burger.  I’m half tempted to change that, but finding meat vendors, etc, would be Herculean and we are leaving in a year.  Besides, it’s a cheap flight to HCMC and I know I can get a great burger there.  

J and I got a pint each, both IPAs.  Yup, we’re Cali Beer geeks.  :P  We just kind of shared and swapped drinks.  I think I have her cooties already.  The MLM and the RPM.  The MLM was their brew, so cool for that.  Both were good, but we both liked the RPM more, overall.  However, the MLM went much better with my burger.

Kiddo crushed a basket of fries, half a burger (big burgers) and had a blast.  J and I did as well and found a new place for a burger.  J tried the OMG Cheesy and I went pulled pork.  The pulled pork was a winner for sure.  Prices were better than other places we’ve gone and quality was better as well.  Plus, the beers were crafted and not just local Thai beer; not that I haven’t grown to love me some Singha and Leo, much like I have a soft spot for MGD and PBR.

After eating, we crossed back over the street, since we were headed in that direction and didn’t want to pay for the driver to sit in traffic for 300m only to U-turn and sit in traffic for 200m to cut thru the mall traffic and clogs.  We flagged a taxi within a minute and used out Thai to give the guy directions.  Cool and he was off.  

It was a fun day for all.  We are having another adventure on Tuesday, getting back to Dasa for some book browsing and adventures and then we are trying a place called Bartels, which was recommended by an American we know here who says, “It’s like a REAL American sandwich.  Good bread.  Actual toppings.  Try the Cubano or grilled Ham and Cheese.”  Ringing enough endorsement for us.

Other than that, I will get caught up on Vietnam and Hanoi soon, but we had an interlude, so I thought that the blog could use one as well.

Let’s go, Kiddo…. We have about 3 weeks on summer left before Mumma goes back, so let’s have some fun.  I still need to blog about the butterflies, the park, and the children’s museum, but we had HarborLand, going to do town and books, a water park, and maybe one more surprise for you.  We love you and are so happy that Mumma and Dada could make this a memorable summer filled with fun.