Gerard couldn't wait to go with Nimu's friends, Bevs and Eric, to Bangkok last October! He, like Eric, has never been to Thailand. Bevs told Gerard of what to expect from Thailand. "The city is hot like Manila. And the food is spicy!"
Gerard, Eric and Bevs at the airport.
Goodbye, Manila. Sawatdee Khrab, Bangkok!
Gerard knew what Bevs meant when she said the word "hot." But spicy? He has never heard of such a word.
"What is spicy?" he asked Bevs.
"Well, spicy means it's hot on the tongue." she answered.
"Hot. Spicy." Gerard said it again. He was confused. Hot hurts the skin. And if spicy and hot are the same, does that mean spicy can hurt the tongue, too?
"You'll taste the word soon," Bevs told him.
Bevs wanted Gerard to have a true Thai gastronomic experience so she ordered popular Thai dishes during the trip.
Gerard went along for the ride with Bevs and Eric.
Their first stop was a quaint restaurant in one of Bangkok's big malls. Bevs told Gerard that Thais really love herbs and spices, and even fish sauce! Gerard had a whiff of the spices infront of him. "Mmmm..."
Eric ordered Korean beef noodle soup and Bevs ordered spicy seafood noodle soup to share with Gerard. As soon as he had a taste of the red broth, Gerard felt a burning sensation on his metal tongue and screamed, "Oil! Oil, please!" And Bevs also screamed, "Water! Water, please!" But nonetheless, it was the yummiest spicy seafood noodle soup they ever tasted!
Next stop was Feuang Nara restaurant. Bevs and Eric loved this restaurant so much! They ordered breaded pork which came with a spicy dip and Glory Morning vegetables (which is probably Thai's local version of Kangkong) in oyster sauce. Gerard was very happy with this meal and it wasn't that spicy, too!
Along the way, Gerard made a few friends, too! Meet Captain Quack and the seven duckies! They were inviting him for a bubble bath as it was a really hot day. But Gerard didn't want to miss the next gastronomic adventures of Bevs and Eric so he politely declined.
For dessert, Bevs and Eric ordered sago and cantaloupe served with shaved ice, mixed with coconut milk. "Thais love coconut milk just as much as Filipinos," Bevs mentioned to Gerard. What's nice about the dessert was that it was served in a Margarita glass. Three small scoops of cantaloupe sat on top of the shaved ice and underneath it were the gummy sago.
On their last day, Bevs and Eric wanted to make it special for Gerard so they ordered the famous Tom Yum soup. The Tom Yum is a potent combination of herbs and spices mixed with mushrooms and prawns. They also ordered a plate of stir-fried rice noodles with vegetables and chicken. Gerard was couldn't get over how yummy the Tom Yum soup was. "It's really Tom Yummy!" he said.
The three capped of the trip with a traditional Thai dessert:
sticky rice with coconut milk and mangoes!
"What a food trip!" Gerard said as he thanked Bevs and Eric.
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