Michel and our host enjoying rambutan
Rambutan fruits at the plantation
Carefully piling rambutans
 
The quiet rambutan picking
Opening a durian
Close-up on the infamous durian
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The following morning, we wake up early to go to the eastern part of the country in the plantation of a Thai with whom Michel works on his insurance project here. A driver is waiting and takes us to Chantha Buri, not far from the Cambodian border. The journey is long (3 hours), and the scenery boring as there are so many constructions along the road, but Michel has plenty of conversation and I also manage to sleep towards the end. We arrive in a restaurant next to the road for a lunch not far from the sea in Ban Tha Chaleeb, where our host has just arrived. He introduces us to his friends and colleagues and we begin a feast of seafood as only Asia allos it. I enjoy shrimp, seashells, fish and big crabs, accompanied by sauces and herbs. Everyone is relaxed and friendly, and we wrap up the meal with good local fruit ice cream. We then go to the region's maritime museum, where we discover the history of the country and many explanations on how people lived and their relationship with the sea. Our host has many companies, and has come in the region for a real estate enterprise, as well as for a plantation which gives him an excuse to leave Bangkok from time to time. We follow him by car inland to the plantation in Ban Ta Pong. The main house is in a sad state, unlike the rambutan trees baring so many red hairy fruits. We pick and eat many and watch the people who collect them and take 80% of profits for their work. The durian fruit is a regional favorite, and is exported to China, Malaysia and Singapore. It is famous for its very strong smell and taste, which locals love but foreigners often hate. The picking has already been done, as has that of the delicious mangoseen, with a sweet white flesh. These fruits are opposites, to my taste: one is unbearable, the other delicious. Nevertheless, I taste the durians, this Thai variety being less smelly and actually good. It is creamy and sweet, unlike the one the variety I tasted in Indonesia and which had an awful after taste. I then devour several excellent mangosteens in this friendly place: dogs come for scraps, a puppy plays with a young girl, the fruit pickers share their harvest. A rain shower freshens the air - it's the end of the day and we leave our kind host. Michel has asked the driver to make a detour along the coast so that I may see the city of Pattaya, famous for its night life. With PathPong, it's one of the highlights of prostitution, ever since the GIs came during the Vietnam War. Nearest beach to Bangkok, 1h30 away, it is completely dedicated to tourism, both local and foreign. I sleep almost all the way before we stroll along the beach to a café. All the roads are bordered by disimilar constructions, and the place lacks charm, being more of a Bangkok getaway than anything else, with low prices and sharp competition because of the overcapacity. After our walk along the noisy road, we go back in the car and see the different bars, restaurants, night clubs and hotels that abound for several kilometers. We go back to Bangkok, where I head to PathPong by foot to make a few purchases. I manage to go through the crowd without too much hassle, and am already used to this mix of clean shops, girl bars, and pubs, and walk by as I would in Pigalle, not paying attention to all this but going to a specific place. The prices are outrageous at first, especially in comparison with what I asked the day before as I just walked by. I try to aim below the lowest prices spoken as I left the sellers, going from 500 to 300 then 250 Baht as I walked by without stopping. For the same object, it is now 800, but I manage to get back to reasonable levels. In other places, I have no idea of the price, so I simply say it's too expensive. I refuse to name my price, and simply wear them out by letting them lower from 800 to 160 for example, making them grin. It's rather a good deal for me, and I'm sure it's fine for them as well, even if it's not as good as with other tourists, and not daring to ask for prices 2 to 3 times lower than those announce. A bit worn out, I go back to Michel's place, where I manage to finish preparing my web site while he works on a memo. The next morning, I go back to Singapore after this full break which was so interesting. Thank you Michel, thank you Thailand!
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Chantha Buri 