Chat Chia Day Market and Prime Restaurant for Steak Dinner

December 26

Decided to wake up early and be out the door at 6 am. The Day Market is in my opinion the “Real” market. This is where Thais go for all their needs including those with street carts and restaurants. Fresh fish from the boats that have been out all night, all manner of fresh meats and chicken and some that I didn't recognize. Vegetables and fruits number in the hundreds, as well as dishes, household items, clothes and flowers.  We took the green Songtheaw right to the market.  It's right at the end of the line.

These are spice pastes for curries, soups, sauces etc.

Dragon Fruit is Yummy!

Horseshoe Crab

The pink ones are Century Eggs. http://www.instructables.com/id/century-eggs/

It was a morning of surprises for us and the vendors as we were the only foreigners in the market. We got all the looks and then smiles as I said hello in Thai. I stopped to ask what something was and learned about Palm Sugar, Flowers, Coconut Milk and Fresh Cashews! We walked around a corner and there was the cutest little grandma holding up bags of cashews saying in Thai.... “Delicious” You buy two” then she had us taste some kind of cracker.....Same...”Delicious” You Buy Two!” Yes, we bought two bags of cashews and one bag of crackers. Her daughter was up inside their booth handing down the items to Mama. It was really awesome!

The Thais know how to take the coconut meat from the shell and keep the round shape intact. They then place it in a shredder that looked like a mini version of a tree chipper. Out came finely shredded coconut to be sold in large sacks or made into coconut milk. I bought some fresh coconut milk and added it to my morning coffee! Wow!

Aisles are narrow throughout the market and there were people bustling here and there including some scooters zipping up and down. We had to be aware of where we were stepping or getting too close to a table where the fresh fish was hanging tail off the end and to not be run over by a scooter or a vendor with a basket full of merchandise on his hand truck....It was exhilarating!

We made our way back to the resort for breakfast and then Vince and I went back to the mall where we used the ATM to get some more Baht for our trip to Chiang Mai. We wandered the Home Pro store and saw 500 thread count sheets (about $100.00 for one sheet and two pillow cases) , mattresses, VitaMix type blender ($475.00), pots and pans, rice cookers, floor fans and bug zappers.

Back for a rest, work on the blog, and then out to dinner at Prime Steakhouse Restaurant. http://primehuahin.com/ We arrived at the restaurant a half hour before our reservation time so we walked around the block to see what was there. It seems we found ourselves in the Red Light / Bar district. The restaurant is located on a little side street, and is open air as are all the restaurants here. We watched groups of Foreigners, mostly drunk wander by and stop to see if they could come into eat. They only take reservations which is a good thing as it helps them regulate who is coming and going. Just around the corner from the restaurant are bar after bar catering to the tourist and expat population. It was only 7:00 pm so we didn't see many ladies of the evening / bar girls, I am sure the bars do a booming business as the night wears on. Even with the early time we all felt a heightened sense of need for security around our pockets and such. We really don't care for drunk foreigners!

We all enjoyed the steak dinner immensely and were very full. Dinner was expensive because it was geared toward foreigners. They import the meat from New Zealand and it was very tasty. The cost for the 4 of us with cokes, steak and dessert was $105.00. Not bad for US prices, but here is was 10 days salary for the average Thai working minimum wage.

The Songtheaw ride on the way home was crowded with a total of 29 people.....New record for us! It is much easier to ride being packed in like sardines because when the driver stops quickly or rounds a corner we are not falling over. The sheer number of foreigners here is amazing. Just on the Songtheaw we have heard Russian, French, German, Polish, Swiss, British English, Swedish, Australian and American English. Oh, and on occasion we hear Thai.  It is always an adventure!