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For my morning ride I headed out to the Naklua Market, a fresh seafood lovers paradise. Next stop was to check on the WS paving work. Progress still moving at a glacial pace with paving up to Soi 14. And prep work just past Soi LePub. Over on Buakhao Soi 15, Soi Piss Alley is only accessible if you're on two wheels or feet.

Two pics from the afternoon and the dinner in the same restaurant we went yesterday. Proper wine, proper glasses. And a good service.

Thai's have the right idea as their cars never need any servicing. They just get the monk to bless the vehicle and write a short prayer on the inside of the roof above the driver's head.

We were taken to a local cafe for breakfast on our travel day home. Love the potatoes and onions they do.

In the small side street then the first Beerlao and something to eat. Beerlao Gold tastes a bit like dark Lao. Then we sat back and had time to people watch But then it started to rain

First an oil massage for 80,000 Kip = 150 Bt. Then strolled a bit through the night market that was just set up and visited the promenade.

Homemade lamb kofta, homemade mint and yogurt sauce, salad from a bag

Then a deserved break in one of the many bistros.

Tonight at about 20.30.....June 16th...... Soi Buakhao........

The view was nice, but the cave wasn't that special. At least good and safe paths. Then it was time to return.

Since part of the route was closed, the driver took us to another cave. So climb stairs again. 🙄 First the river had to be crossed. The ferryman was about to cast off with his customers. Strange oranges .....

2nd stop: The Angel Cave. Here you could fly through the jungle with the zip line, visit 2 caves, one of which was probably only accessible by tubing (tube from truck tires). There was even a swimming pool.

Right next to it, a slippery, steep path leads up to a cave. I won't climb up there again. A slightly larger cave but no paths inside and very slippery. Going down became dangerous as the bamboo railings were not fixed well.

The hotel was rated 9 on booking.com. Unfortunately the restaurant was closed and the breakfast ("very good breakfast" according to booking.com) was delivered to the room from another restaurant. You could choose from 3 variants. Here's what Mrs. CO and I ordered: Plus Nescafe. We were disappointed. Luckily I had some travel provisions with me: cheese, salami and ham. So the baguette was at least put to good use. Let's see what else we can do, the weather isn't that good. A trip to Vang Vieng is planned, but maybe not until Friday when the rain stops.

Had a drink in another restaurant. Beerlao small for 13,000 kip = 24 Bt. Hoegaarden is there for 50 Bt. The cocktails cost 45,000 kip each = 83 Bt. But only had a few revolutions. Yoghurt with berries 18,000 and espresso 17,000, so around 30-35 Bt.

I had booked the Bloom Boutique Hotel in the center and only 350 m to the night market/promenade via Booking.com for 1600 Bt/night. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but it has a nice lobby and the rooms and bathrooms are large. There are also smaller ones for less money.

Last few back on Soi Buakhao.....The new Zero Bar.....with band.........opposite everyday market... Good to see all these bars open by the Marquee........ And where the old K Bank was..........

Short trip to Vientiane, Laos. Been here the last time in 2008 and 2012, not counting day trips for visa. E-Visa ordered a few days in advance, for about 1830 Bt. We drove to Chaiyaphum where Mrs. CO's family lives and stayed overnight. Then spent another night in Nong Khai. Dinner at Macky's Riverside Kitchen, was excellent.

I'm sorry I cant get into the spirit of things today. My son has just finished 7 years of medical training and in the first week is likely to get struck off and possibly jailed for sleeping with one of his patients. He was set to be a great vet too. What's the difference between a lentil and a chickpea? I've never paid to have a lentil on my face.

I've read quite a few books by John Grisham, but missed a few along the way. Just finished The Pelican Brief. What a great read. Can't remember if I watched the movie, so going to give that a watch in the next couple of days while the book is still fresh in my mind. It'll be interesting to see how true they stayed to the book. Next up in the list of missed Grisham books...

That's cool! 🙂 Well done.

As we approached the cave, we felt a cold draft. It was pleasantly fresh in the cave. The cave was smaller but had a lot of stalagmites and was brightly lit.

Today the weather was a bit better, so we rented a car with a driver (4000 Bt) and drove to Vang Vieng. After half an hour we were out of Vientiane and after another 90 minutes we reached Vang Vieng. The route outside of Vientiane is a good freeway with little traffic. Total about 130 km. Unfortunately, some of the sights were not accessible due to road construction, but we were still able to see a lot. 1st stop: the lagoon

What was Golden Time on Soi Boomerang is now Play Girlz and they're having a soft opening tonight and grand opening party tomorrow. Balloon chaser alert, free food both nights.

Agree, Blue is a great host and a nice guy I've been a few times, one evening myself and two others polished off 3 dozen oysters in one sitting, however, I had also ordered a Mushroom soup which was delivered luke warm much to my chagrin. soon remedied though. Blue calls himself a "Gin sommelier" - he really knows his Gins and how to serve them. Good quality food, excellent service and a well presented menu makes it a very nice place to spend an evening. On my next trip I'm taking along one of my 3 remaining bottles of Dom Perignon 1996, which myself and one other will enjoy along with 2 dozen oysters.

Had to withdraw 1,000,000 at the ATM, 2492 Bt deducted, which makes a rate of 1:400, plus 100 Bt ATM fee. So, take a lot of baht with you. I still have euros, they will probably have to go. Wanted to go to a posh French today, was closed. It started raining. So we looked at the 10 best restaurants on Tripadvisor. Hey, an Italian just around the corner fits. We go in, there are only 2 Indians inside. Mrs. CampariO asks me if we're at the Italian, but we were. Sit down, ask the Indian for a bottle of red wine. "We have." Me: "Can I see the bottles?" Reply: "Yes, in the shop across the road." I look amazed. Ok, I go over to a small shop, choose a bottle, pay for it and go back to the "Italian". There are now 2 small beer glasses on the table. "Do you also have wine glasses?" Yes, there are supposed to be some. One of the Indians is looking for them. We look at the menu. There is no ham or pork, everything is probably halal. "Do you have a corkscrew?" Inder puts the corkscrew in front of me on the table. I was expecting him to open the bottle. Still no wine glasses. I look at Mrs. CO, she shakes her head. We get up and leave.

In my younger days I used to do just about everything,stripped a Norton Commando engine down to the big ends in my parents coal shed & changed a couple of clutches in the street outside their house among loads of other shit. I did all the routine stuff on my Harley & when I upgraded the front brakes to Harrison Billet did it myself.But my engine upgrades I got the pro's to do.I had problems with leaking bleed nipples & dowels rubbing the forks with the brakes & all I could think of was for an extra few bob I wouldn't have these problems. I don't touch our cars,my MB is coming up to 12yo & goes to an indie of very good repute & my wife's Nissan is 10yo & goes to a local garage.Any bodywork needs doing my next door neighbour has a bodyshop so he gets our business. I spent my working life fixing aircraft & after a while doing similar shit in my spare time became very tiresome,plus of course modern cars are not designed to be maintained by old farts like me.

The hotel (Royal Nakara) wanted 200 Bt/day parking fee, so I parked the car in one of the guarded parking lots at the border for 100 Bt/day. By tuktuk for 20 Bt/person to the border, stamped out and then by minibus (30 Bt) over the bridge to be stamped in Laos. Changed some money at the border (rate 1 Bt = 540 kip), according to the internet the rate was only 420. I have no idea what rate at the ATM will be. Bought a SIM card with 5 gigabytes for 80 Bt at the exchange office. I'm rich: Taxi drivers are already waiting, either by tricycle for 300 Bt or AC Taxi for 400 Bt to Vientiane. No need to negotiate. On the Thai side we were offered the transfer for 1500 Bt, my bid of 400 was rejected because petrol was too expensive and then their offer went down to 1000.

Au Revoir, Monsieur Eden Two dead, one wounded in shooting at Bangkok cold-cuts company Some of you may have met Marc (EdenPapa), the founder, operator and part-owner of Bangkok's Eden Club, a hugely popular establishment at its peak. I was surprised to read about his death in Stickman's column, as I had thought Marc had passed away several years ago. The last time I spoke with him was in January, 2007, and he was dealing with heavy-duty health problems at that time. I knew Marc quite well back in the day when I was a big fan (and customer) of the Eden Club. Every trip I made to Bangkok included several visits to Eden. I mostly chose the overnight takeaway option, but also had inhouse two-girl sessions. Marc invited me for lunch or dinner numerous times over the years we had contact. They weren't cheap restaurants, either- the New York Steakhouse at the JW Marriott, for example. He said he liked talking with me and enjoyed reading the stuff I posted on the Bangkok boards. We were both "foodies" and that gave us a topic for endless discussion. This all took place between 2002 and 2007. As Stickman says, Marc was indeed connected and certainly wasn't the kind of guy you'd want to mess with. I have to differ with Stick on one point- Marc wasn't the owner of the Eden Club. He was the originator and operator of Eden Club, but he only had a minority stake in it. He was the outward face of the Eden Club, as the majority stakeholders were passive and in at least one case, secret and hidden. There's no way of knowing for sure, but the girls working at Eden believed a family member of an extremely influential man in Thai politics was a part owner and that's why Eden was never raided by police. Marc came across as grumpy when you first encountered him, but that was a deliberate tactic of his to discourage the "looky-looky" guys from wasting his time and that of the girls. Once he decided you were there for business, he was actually quite friendly. For very practical reasons, Marc wasn't interested in having drinkers fill the 15 seats at the bar. Eden was a narrow, single shopfront with barely enough space to accommodate customers there for sex sessions, much less gawkers. Marc always emphasized that Eden was a brothel and not a drinking bar and that "Eden wasn't for everybody." Just to keep all the ducks in a row- Marc announced plans to open Eden Pattaya in August, 2006. This surprised many people, myself included, as Marc had often said he would never open any sort of business in Pattaya because the competition was too tough and the profit margins too low. He didn't think the Eden Club would work in Pattaya because the dominant customer base was wrong. In Bangkok, Eden's customers were mostly visiting businessmen and working resident ex-pats willing and able to pay premium prices. He felt there weren't enough such customers in Pattaya to make Eden a viable operation. However, a good friend of his, a Frenchman named Francis, persuaded Marc to give "Eden Pattaya" a shot. Francis lived in Pattaya and had a family with a Thai woman. He was convinced he could make Eden Pattaya a popular and profitable operation. Eden Pattaya opened in late December 2006 on the exact same model as the Bangkok Eden Club. Sadly, Francis died of a heart attack just a few days after Eden Pattaya opened. Marc had no desire to remain involved in Eden Pattaya and sold the club and hotel next door to Cerberus. It was renamed the Hell Club and later became the Devil's Den. The Eden Club had a concept that was unique in Thailand and maybe the world. The Devil's Den was the only other place to successfully use the same concept. Neither place ever had a direct competitor, although a few made short-lived tries in Bangkok and Phuket. I had never before met anyone quite like Marc and doubt I ever will. He was one of a kind, whether you consider his kind good or bad. Evil

You might want to give either ChiknCoop or TiggleBitties a try for Thanksgiving and/or Christmas dinners. Very reasonably priced for a good dinner. Coop (Mike) is a U.S. Air Force vet who does a great July 4 barbecue as well. Evil

Enjoying a pint of Guinness on my walk.

Some rain is setting in, so time for a Beerlao and some food: Somtum Lao and Pat Krapow Moo. On the left is the entrance to the 2nd cave, accessible via the water.

I've just been sitting on my step drinking wine and watching a female woodpecker pop in and out of her hole... It is so weird that as a youth it was rare to spot a woodpecker out in the Dorset countryside but living in Pattaya there is one on my doorstep..!!

You can work it out in advance with most airlines - it's fiddly but can be done - or there is a paid for service that makes it easier. I knew before I purchased the economy ticket yesterday that upgrades were available on all legs and snapped them up immediately.

I too considered Cafe des Amis as a restaurant of choice for a "special" night out although for me little to chose between it and Bruno's until the latter closed. Their somewhat strange promotion of "Gin" as a reason for visiting did nothing for me as I absolutely detest "Mothers Ruin". On subsequent reflection, Bruno's had the edge as we never had a bad meal. I just remembered the "Traditional" Christmas Dinner we all had in Cafe de Amis which was a complete disaster.

Fishcakes,prawns & veg....& tamarind sauce,lovely

Lol, I love sarcastic versions of acronyms for airlines and other institutions - many years ago when I was living in the far north, we were served by an airline named Pacific Western Airlines - this prompted some good ones: -Please Wait Awhile -People Waiting for an Airplane -Pray Whilst Aloft

First day training today, bastard's have put me in the chilled warehouse. Like spending all day in a fridge 🤣

Tomorrow I believe the Bank Of England are meeting, interest rates will be on the agenda I am sure. 80 percent of those polled (financial institutions) believe a 0.25% to 0.5% increase will take place. Will this have a positive effect on the £, it used to, but these days, who knows.

"Let's call in and say Hi to Ricky." I first made that comment at least 15 years or more ago and always felt guilty if not doing so on a night on the town. I just liked the guy and always found him interesting company. I will never forget sitting with him when two girls walked into B B Dolls looking for their first ever ( so they said) job as dancers and Ricky carried out a job interview at the table nearest the bar. Having explained the difference in pay for going topless or full frontal they were required to undergo a suitability appraisal. "Can you both dance?" Yes, was readily accepted without comment. "Okay, show me your tits." They both enthusiastically obliged and with me nodding away as Ricky confirmed approval. Unfortunately, one of them failed the "need you to drop your jeans" final inspection but accepted dancing in a B B Dolls wee skirt. Both wanted to start that night and were passed to the mamasan for final kitting out. The interview concluded with the mamasan rushing out to the 7eleven a few minutes later and returning with a can of shaving foam and a disposable razor. I know that happened because on her return she showed the items to Ricky along with the receipt for reimbursement. No doubt a suitable entry was made in the sundries section of the safe log. Only in Thailand! I wisk Ricky well.

Ricky is a top bloke and made a success of Pandora's despite difficulties. One of the best managers I've seen in Pattaya in a long time, always has time to chat, knows what Customers want and how to run a successful bar. He's been knifed in the back more times than Julius Caesar. I know he's had and continues to have health issues. He's hardly a perfect example of healthy living, but I really hope that during break he is having, he manages to regain his health and enjoy the fruits of his labours. He deserves every success, he deserves to finally relax and hopefully we'll see him around town occasionally and be able to say "Hi" for a good few years to come.