The perfect one bite from Thailand: Part 1

It wasn't supposed to be this way...

 

It was supposed to be MW’s first time traveling in Thailand – in Southeast Asia, in fact. However, as life would have it, I ended up going to a conference in Cambodia just a week before our vacation. MW came to Phnom Penh with me, and hung around on his own while I was working. To be perfectly honest, I can’t say that I wasn’t worried with MW exploring a big city in Southeast Asian on his own for the first time in his life. MW is a great guy – don’t get me wrong. But he is at times, well, naïve. This isn’t a bad thing in general. It means that MW sees the world in a positive light, and innocently welcomes and enjoys many new experiences. At the same time, it also means that he gets easily conned into doing things that did not necessarily the best decisions. So yup, I thought that he would get pick-pocked at least two or three times, and maybe even get unhurt if he is unlucky. However, MW is a lucky guy. MW had a great time exploring in Phnom Penh on his own, including getting a haircut and a manicure for less than six dollars USD in total.

Okay, so yes, I didn’t plan for MW to experience Southeast Asia on his own for the first time before our vacation in Phuket. But his time alone in Phnom Penh gave a great start to his traveling experiences, providing him with familiarity with the ways of this part of the world. He quickly learned that the heat never ends and that the motorcycles don’t really stop for anybody. And that the cost of traveling is relatively cheap for the most part, especially food. Little did I know then, that MW has never really eaten proper Thai food for the 47 years of his life

Our first breakfast in Phuket was at a little market near our accommodation. I picked the Old Town area for us to stay at. It seemed most authentic, and our accommodation was perfect – simple and central. It definitely didn’t include the fancy buffet breakfast with a rotating menu like the hotel from Phnom Penh. But that was for work, where we needed to quickly eat before parting ways for the day. Now that I’m on vacation, we can both enjoy our meals together.

We went to a walk around town, navigating our way through roads without sidewalks and not relying on a map. It was around 8 AM, as we were both up early despite the late night travel. The weather outside was certainly warm and getting hotter by the minute. We passed the typical breakfast and lunch joints, serving various fried up noodles, rice, and vege combos. We didn’t know what we were looking for, but knew that we found just what we needed when we stumbled upon this neighbhourhood local market.