Let's Talk Thai Food

We are huge fans of Thai food. We took full advantage of the best Thailand has to offer during our stay.

There is a huge variety of cuisines to choose from across the various beaches on Phuket Island and inland at Phuket Town. We found that the best place to taste real authentic Thai food are some of the open air street side restaurants that congregate near most hotels and shopping centers. You can find bargain price seafood meals daily that features fresh catch from local fishermen. We tried a number of fish dishes, and none of them disappointed. Our favourite dish was steamed white or red snapper with lemon grass, which is served hot and spicy on a heated metal dish. There are also plenty of appetizers to keep you busy while you wait for the main course. As you could probably guess, most appetizers also feature seafood. Most people have tried Tom Yum soup (Sour and spicy Thai sea food soup); it’s also a favourite of the travellers there.

I have to say the one dish I kept going back to was spicy glass noodle salad which comes with either chicken, minced pork or seafood, and Nick’s favourite was Yum Squid (baby Squid salad). These restaurants offer a casual and authentic dining experience even for people with limited budget. If you are somewhat a daredevil, make sure you ask your server that you want your food nice and spicy, but watch out for the little green chilli peppers. They are deadly!


If you want a little bit more than the usual tourist dining experience, then get on a scooter, forget about the map and get lost, that’s the best way to stumble upon a local market or food fair that will absolutely blew your mind! That’s exactly how we discovered this amazing outdoor food court right in the center of Phuket Island. We were looking for a fruit vendor when we saw the food court, located discreetly among some office buildings and commercial shops. The first thing we noticed was the lack of English on all the signs and menus. We looked around the food court and saw all sorts of interesting food items, mostly vegetarian (we found out later that the locals were celebrating the Vegetarian Festival), such as Thai curry vegetable with rice, tofu with chilli pepper, Pad Thai (the really spicy version), and all sorts of mouth watering noodle dishes. Almost all of the diners at this place were locals working at the office building nearby, and indeed we found the food tend to be spicier than what are usually found at most hotel dining rooms.


After drooling over the displayed dishes, we decided on one of the kitchens that had some sample dishes on display. I somehow conveyed to him that we wanted some fried rice with vegetables and a Pad Thai. In no time, we had our food made and served to us, and oh boy, it was probably the most memorable meal we had during our trip! The vegetable was just spicy enough that I was able to eat it without calling an ambulance, and the Pad Thai had all the aroma and taste that will leave you beg for more.


Once in the heart of Phuket Town, one is treated to an exhilarating stroll through some of the most colourful and tasty show of street vendors, sidewalk stands and local dinning halls that jams the streets of this hustling and bustling civility. Your money will go a long way here, so be prepared to treat yourself to a barrage of little snacks as you venture out into the busy local streets. We certainly didn’t pass up on opportunity to try something new and exotic. There are the delicious steamed buns, fresh fruit shakes, papaya salads, dumplings, glass noodles, little rice cakes with coconuts icings, and the list goes on and on. After stuffing ourselves with everything we could get our hands on, we ventured into the fresh produce market. Walking among the streaming crowd that congregates daily at the local market, we took in the sights, sound, smell and taste of the streets.

Food is such a huge part of experience in Phuket. It’s really up to the traveller to decide what type of dining experience they want out of the trip, but whatever the case, Phuket has plenty to offer. Trust us, take the time to discover and you will be deliciously rewarded.

How to Shoot Perfect Sunset Pictures with Digital SLR

Sunset is the most beautiful time of the day. However, sometimes your sunset pictures don't turn out as expected. There are techniques you can improve while shooting sunset scenary using a digital SLR camera. I found some helpful hints for shooting sunsets targeting Olympus Digital Camera users. However, the techniques apply to all digital SLR camera users. You should practice these techniques before going to your travel destination. You will see huge improvement on your scenic shots. Of course, patience and luck come in play sometimes.


I shot this one by an unknown beach in Phuket, Thailand. Nick and I were on a scooter ride around the island on our last day in Phuket, and stumbled upon this secluded lovely beach. It was a couple of hours before sunset. We decided to stay for the sunset. We climbed to the highest point of the surrounding rocks and waited for the perfect timing. And this is what I got after 7 or 8 shots. I love this shot because it highlights the dramatic colors of the sky. And the small island in the middle of the sea makes the composition quite interesting. It was shot in mannual mode, at f/3.5, 1/150th of a second.

Shopping in Bangkok, Thailand

Bangkok always has the reputation of being one of the busiest shopping center in Asia. Based on what we saw and experienced, it is indeed well deserved of this reputation. We had limited amount of time, so we concentrated our shopping effort on MBK Center, which is located right in the city center and convenient to get to from our hotel. There are many more shopping plazas and night markets we simply didn't have time to visit. However, MBK's got everything you can think of. Inside the mall is eight stories full of shops, and shoppers from all over the world. There is really no need to go anywhere else. Picture seen here is a big billboard of Beckham inside the mall. Oh yeah, Thai people are big on soccer.

If you have time to bargain and has some basic knowledge about jewllery, do explore the dazzling selection of gold, silver, pearls and precious stones. They are readily available at all shopping centers and night markets. Be sure to ask for a certificate if the jeweller didn't provide one. Personally, we found that pearls are great bargains, especially sea pearls, which are considerable more expensive in North America. For people who are looking for an engagement ring or wedding bands, you're at the right place. Also for precious stone lovers, you're in heaven.

If you are looking for clothing and silk, there are plenty to choose from. What we discovered was that their fashion sense is very well up to date, and the price is incredablly affordable. We bought everything from T shirts, jackets, caps, footwear to silk scarves (Ladies, get lots of silk scarves, bed spreads, cushion covers. You're not gonna regret it). One thing you should do is to try on everything before you buy it. We found that clothing size is a bit smaller than North American sizes. Nick goes for large on T shirts and jackets. So you get the idea.

Thai people are very good at making hand crafts. You can find decent quality handycrafts made from such local materials as teakwood, mangowood and bamboo. Do not pass on the opportunities to bring back some hand-made teakwood vases, bamboo serving trays and dinner sets (the ones you only find at Pier 1 Import or Home Sense at imported prices).

Getting to Phuket Town,Thailand

Beaches are nice, but Phuket Town is a very exciting place to explore. It's about 30 minutes by car from the beach. You can get there by local bus, tuk tuk(taxi), scooter, motorcycle, or private car.

We rode the bus once. It was an interesting experience, and we enjoyed it. It's very economic to travel by bus there. It costs less than 1 dollar(25 bhat) per person to Phuket Town from the beach and you can sightsee along the way. Its downside is slow and you have to wait for it by the street. It comes every half an hour. If you miss it, gotta hang around the beach for another half an hour. Image standing in the heat of 30 celsius plus humidity, hum..not very fun, or running for the bus in that kind of heat, which is what we did...huh..wishing we could jump into a pool after that run.

You can also take tuk-tuk to the town. Tuk-tuk is Thai version of taxi. It is essential to bargain before getting in a tuk-tuk. The price ranges from $10 to $20 one way from the beach depending on your bargain skills :p. A tuk-tuk sits 4-5 people, so if you have a group of people to share the cost with you, it's not bad at all.

We found the best way to travel across the island is to rent a scooter. It costs $5 a day plus gas only. You can ride it anywhere, stop and go anytime you want. We discovered a lot of interesting places while scootering around the island. We came across local eateries, night markets, elephant trekking, and sunset view points. And riding the scooter in and out of traffic like locals is A LOT of fun although we had some embarrasing moments, not to mention how I fell off the scooter at the gas station. Watching the chaotic traffic, you probably don't think there's much to the traffic rules. Well, not entirely true. There are rules to comply when it comes to ride a scooter. Drive on the left-hand side of the road; never drive in the opposite direction on a one-way street; bring your driver's license; wear a helmet. The last one applies to the drivers only. Yeah, I know. It doesn't make sense. Only are drivers required to wear a helmet in Thailand. Many foreign travellers get fined for breaking these rules. We witnessed a lot of them. Actually we are not an exception. We got caught just one block away from the bike rental for not wearing a helmet. If you think you can talk your way out of it, well, good luck! We tried. He took away Nick's driver's license. Nick had to go to the police station to pay for the fine in order to get his driver's license back. We learned our lesson :p

Phuket Town is best explored on foot. Once you get into the town, you'll be approached by friendly and persistent locals offering to take you and your friends around the town in a private car with A/C for about 3 dollars(100 baht). Do not go with it. I know it sounds like a bargain and you'll be attempted, but trust me, exploring it at your own pace is the best option. The town itself is small, easy to get around, so many things to see, and so much food to try, you don't want to miss any of it by being stuck in a car. Plus, you really do not know where the driver will take you. Why waste your precious time?

There's so much more about Phuket Town I want to talk about, but I guess I'll have to save that for later. Stay tuned. There will be more to come.

Being an Amature Photographer

Sometimes, I think I might have been a photographer if I never made it to the programming world. I just love travelling and taking shots of just about anything. I used an Olympus E-500 digital SLR with a 14-45mm wide zoom lens and a 40-150mm telephoto lens for our honeymoon photos. I'm still new to using SLR cameras, but thanks to the beautiful scenery in Thailand. Some photos are amazing, left us with unforgettable memories of our trip.

Racha Island, Phuket, Thailand

I finally managed to post the pictures taken at Racha Island online. Racha Island is located very south of Thailand, about 35 minute by speed boat from Phuket main island. The island is known for its excellent corals and marine life, so the best location for snorkling and scuba diving. The Racha Resort features 70 luxurious private villas, surrounded by turquoise blue water and white powder sandy beaches, an ideal location for a romantic getaway. We were just so thrilled to have discovered it and stayed there.

Always something to plan :P

Well, what's next after a wedding? Honeymoon!!! We just got back from our honeymoon. We were in Thailand for THREE weeks. It was the best vacation both of us have ever had. Unbelieveable experience!! So much to tell and so much to remember. Tons of photos and videos were taken, and they will soon be uploaded once the best of the best is chosen and processed (by Photoshop wink* wink*).