Marino & Tiz in Thailand 2019: 04/11/19

Today is Wednesday and as such is the day that Tiz works.

Just on that for a moment. This is Tiz's second time (or second day, if you prefer) at working remotely from overseas and, at least in Thailand and working for Katapault, the Melbourne based advertising and promotional materials company, it has been easier and with less glitches than working from Watsonia.
I would have been sceptical, as so many are, but if you have diligent and honest employees/contractors, a robust system in place and good supporting infrastructure it is a great way to do business. No wasted travel time, no having to pay for office space and happier workers.
What's there not to like about any of that?

Even though the speeds are much slower than normal.

I only wish we could get those speeds in our oh so developed country! I am feeling a compulsion to blurt out a statement with NBN and many expletives in it, but I will resist.

I decided that as I don't have my walking companion with me today I would jump on the bike and ride around.

It was a little after 8am when I left and headed north to the fishing village. Once I got there I just rode around and found that it was indeed a little village that people lived and worked and traded there, and not just a port.

There was a lot to photograph but I stuck out like " a pimple on a bum", given I was the only farang there, as they all went about their daily business and chores.

All the locals that could be bothered looking at me had that "Poor white guy looks lost." or "What in the name of (insert name of suitable/appropriate deity here) is he doing here!"

Here are the two shots I took -

The green line shows where I rode and the orange hatch, at the end of the narrow bridge across the canal, is where I took the shot looking out to sea.

And then it was off to the other end of Soi Ruamijit, which in my mind is "The Beach Road".

The beach was near empty at the north end, where there are very few facilities and food stalls.

I'm told that Thais don't like to walk so they will always park

as close to the centre of the town as possible, where food stalls
and pay toilets and showers are plentiful.

At the other end of Soi Raumijit is the Grand Pacific Sovereign Resort.

The lobby entrance is accessed from a little road around the back, facing away from the beach.

Along the backroad I came across this view.

It looked like so many scenes one comes across, especially in this end of Asia.

A huge development that seems to have stalled and has been abandoned.

There is one, called Triple Treat Resort, and yes it has a big sign telling you what it is (could have been?) at the entrance of the fishing village .

It has a road with a security gate and box/house, complete with guard, and nothing else.

To me it looks like the guard is there protecting the guard box and little bit of tarmac, and that's all.

From what I have seen, Indonesia is the biggest perpetrator of this sort of thing and it seems that it always gets linked to massive bribes and the grandiose plans of overly well connected politicians family and sycophants.

Dreamland Beach (now known as New Kuta Beach) is the one that sticks in my mind the most.

It is a beach located on the Bukit peninsula, on the island of Bali.

This is a good and relatively brief article on its recent history.

The beach now provides basic accommodation and cafes for surfers and day-trippers.

It was once an unspoiled place with only Balinese housing and warangs and was, and still is, renowned for its dangerous, but revered, shorebreak.

Dreamland Beach is the site of the failed Pecatu Graha development, planned by Tommy Suharto, the youngest son of the former president Suharto. In 2008 it became active building site with all the previous Warongs having been levelled for a hotel complex. Development stalled after 6 months.

Wine, of which the local product, we're told, is particularly shite.

It's roughly AUD48 for a 3 litre box, which works out to

~AUD11 for 750ml, which is a standard bottle, back home.

On the other hand a 1 litre bottle of Gilbey's gin or vodka is AUD22,

a 1 litre bottle of Absolut Vodka is AUD35

and a 1litre bottle of Johnnie Walker Black label is AUD78.

I came across this rental car in the Makro car park and it piqued my curiosity as to how much a it would cost. It's about AUD40 per day but I don't know if and what the extras might be.

This is what I got at Makros.

Some thing are relatively good value and others not so much.

Lettuce is AUD1.10 - OK value

King Oyster mushrooms at AUD2 - Great value

Tomatoes, which were similar to store bought Australian tasteless crap were AUD1.30/kg

- Taste rubbish even if they were cheap

Milk (0% fat) 2 litres was AUD4 - Expensive. Double what we pay at home, and half of it's real value, which is why our dairy farmers are going broke.

Tuna in vegetable oil 200g (x4) were AUD1.25 each but the quality is pretty ordinary. Think the lowest grade tune you can get from Aldi, but with a mackerel taste to it. - You get what you pay for but here there is no Sirena or John West option.

All up the cost was AUD14.40

And for the curious - a rose apple is a close relative of the guava. It is a similar to a small pear in size, the same texture as a firm crisp Green Anjou pear and hw the faint scent of rose.

Here is a great link to learn more about them.

... and the pics -