More than a taste for Thai

Green Papaya Salad is my new favorite food! We went out for dinner last night at a little restaurant in a bamboo hut along the main road in Ko Lanta and had yet another amazing thai feast. Green Papaya salad is a little slice of heaven: Shredded green papaya with a little shredded carrot, roasted peanut and sometimes string beans or cucumber with some kind of sweet citrusy sauce made of lime juice and possibly a little papaya juice or sugar and maybe a dash of fish sauce. It is incredible. We've decided to take a half day thai cooking class while we're here so hopefully I'll be able to find out exactly what's in it and replicate it back home cuz I don't think I can live without it.

So far, Thailand has been the only country (outside of Italy of course) where I can happily eat the local food every day for every meal and be completely happy about it. It's so light and so full of all my favorite things, fresh veggies, noodles, rice, fresh chilis, lime, lemongrass and basil and seafood of all varieties. In the nearly two weeks, I've been here, I have only had one bad meal (the saltiest pad thai ever in a beachside place now known to us only as the MSG Hut... haha.) Last night, Tommy boy and my lady friends took a long walk on the beach at sunset. It's great to be able to follow the light and tide so closely and watch how they interact and change. Sure beats looking at a computer screen all day. Anyway, the fisherman come up on the beaches at sunset and fill their longtail boats with fish and other seafood: giant crabs, and red and white snapper and giant prawns and barracuda and they build these roaring fires to cook them on. The diners pick their fish where it gets weighed and tossed onto the barbecue to join the already cooking whole potatoes wrapped in foil roasting on the grills. They also set up tables with fresh salads and pots of sticky rice. God, did I say I love thai food yet!

The best thing about it, is that unlike France where I ate cheese by the truckload or Spain where I lived on Pico e Pane (bread and crackers), you can eat thai food all day and still look halfway decent in a bikini. Good stuff.