Of elephant riding and wine tasting

     We finally made it to Thailand. You may recall how I ruined our original plans to come here by falling on my face nearly two months ago. But now I'm fully recovered and able to do all the normal things you'd expect when visiting Thailand, like touring one of the emerging vineyards at this latitude on the back of an elephant.
  

Your intrepid tourists atop Honey the elephant. She showed her appreciation (disdain?) by going No. 1 
and No. 2 during our tour. That inscrutable, ever-present smile is tough to read.

Ead and Honey. 

     Hua Hin Hills Vineyard is built on a former elephant corral, where the Elephas maximus were domesticated for any number of uses. Honey's keeper, Ead, says these elephants have been known to live to 100 years old. At 40, Honey is just entering middle-age.
    This vineyard, located about 20 miles inland of the seaside resort of Hua Hin (125 miles south of Bangkok), was founded in 2004 and has produced some award-winning wines under the Monsoon Valley Wine label. During our visit to the Sala Bistro, conveniently located above the vines, we tasted a Columbard, White Shiraz and Shiraz. All three were excellent, even the rosy White Shiraz.
     Our table was set with three wine glasses and a plate of Thai hors d'oeuvres. But being complete oafs, we ate all the food with the Columbard instead of waiting for the other two wines to be served. No worries, or as the Thais say: "mai bin lie."  After completing the tasting, our waitress Kanokporn happily brought us more food and a full bottle of the Columbard which seemed to go really well with Sala Bistro's Thai-inspired tapas. (Before any of you get carried away with the porn in Kanokporn's name, be advised that many names in Thailand contain this seemingly fitting suffix given this country's reputation for anything-goes hedonism. I'm fairly convinced the porn in their names was added to humor immature American males like myself.)
     

Chicken satay, fish balls, shrimp won tons, 
coconut rice treats in banana leaf, toasts 
and several dipping sauces.

Kanokporn keeping our wine glasses full.

   

View of Hua Hin Hills Vineyard from The Sala Bistro.

We spent the other two of our three days in Hua Hin largely hanging out at the beach enjoying 
the incredibly soft sand and warm waters of the South China Sea.

A thousand words... at least

Door-buster special.

    Don't need a coffin? Take home one of these durians and someone just might keel over when you crack it open. It's fitting that of all the products this shopkeeper could have chosen to lure people into his casket showroom he chose durian -- the legendary "king of fruits" with the killer scent. 
     I took this photo last week in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, a fast-growing city about 15 miles north of downtown Singapore. Margaret was attending meetings in Hong Kong, so I took a day-trip across the Straits of Johor. I had two goals. 
     One, visit the Istana Besar (grand palace) that Sultan Abu Bakar built in 1866 to house the royal family, but it was closed for renovation. Luckily, I can get back pretty easily. It's basically a subway ride away.
     Two, eat lunch at one of the hawker centers in search of the authentic street-food experience that has been lost in Singapore due to the Lion City's sanitation standards, according to Lonely Planet. Thank goodness we can still slip across the border now and then and risk getting sick authentically.

Something for everyone.

     I chose this vendor because she had the biggest, most colorful and best organized spread in the long stretch of all the hawkers in the alleys across the street from the train station. Here's what I got for three ringgits (one U.S. dollar):

Authentically good... and I didn't get sick.

     I chose vegetarian to be on the safe side, a scoop of both the red and green curry, braised Chinese spinach, rice and a slice of roti, delicious fried bread stuffed with big slices of onions and other vegetables. I honestly have not had anything this flavorful at a Singapore food court. Next time, I may have the nerve to go for some of the meat and fish.

Cramped but workable.

     Johor Bahru (or JB, as the locals call it) has benefited mightily from it's proximity to Singapore. An estimated 300,000 people who work in Singapore live in the metropolitan area of JB (pop. 2 million). With a world-class port and financial center in nearby Singapore, many companies have built manufacturing plants here where the cost of living is about one-third of Singapore. JB itself is now home to Malaysia's largest container shipping center -- the 17th busiest port in the world. Singapore and Shanghai are basically tied at No. 1.
     As JB continues to modernize, it seems committed to preserving some of the authentic feel of the old city; but, with very little original charm to save, the locals seem eager to get on with the development. You can't really blame them.

Part of the new train/bus transportation center.

Preserved old station next door, with its Art Deco styling.

A break from nothing

     Since bashing my head into Martin Road a few weeks ago I've been under strict do-nothing orders. Sounds great, but like a kid thinking ice cream for lunch every day might be heaven on earth, it didn't take long for me to get sick of it. I got an idea for a low-impact escape when I saw a news report that Singapore will likely surpass Las Vegas this year as the world's second largest casino-gambling market. How strenuous could a trip over to the new Marina Bay Sands Casino be? 
     Even less so than I expected.

In fairness, it was Monday morning.

     I wasn't interested in playing slots or cards. My plan was simply to make a long-shot bet on the Mariners for grins and have a look around. Very low impact on all fronts. I quickly discovered, however, that despite showing the Yankees vs. White Sox game on the big screen, you can't bet on baseball in Singapore. The sports handle is limited to football (soccer) and Formula 1 racing only. 
     Alas, with no football matches or races of interest to bet on, the action proved too dull even for this invalid. Before heading back home, I took a quick walk around the main casino. I managed to get three frames shot before security politely put a stop to my game.

Pretty standard Vegas-style opulence.

      Macau is the undisputed casino-gambling leader with a handle four times larger than Singapore. Still, the Lion City's take ain't bad for a place with only two casinos and highly restrictive rules aimed at discouraging locals and encouraging out-of-town high-rollers. The lavish amenities surely help attract the big-dollar players. Those amenities include the opulent Marina Bay Sands Hotel next door, best known for both it's unusual architecture and... 

Night view courtesy of Wikipedia Creative Commons.

...its freaky looking roof-top pool 56 stories above the city.

This guy must be thinking, "Why is the riff-raff allowed up here?"

     Twenty local dollars gets you access to the Singapore Skypark. Not much of a park, but the views are pretty spectacular.

Where the money goes.

     Overall, though, it seems the park is designed to get you to take your pictures and get out. No big deal. It was time to get back to the sofa where I belong.