{"id":3136,"date":"2017-02-06T23:30:18","date_gmt":"2017-02-07T07:30:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/?p=3136"},"modified":"2019-03-31T11:00:50","modified_gmt":"2019-03-31T18:00:50","slug":"birds-in-the-trees-pigs-on-the-table","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jeffersonscher.com\/ttw\/2017\/02\/birds-in-the-trees-pigs-on-the-table\/","title":{"rendered":"Birds in the Trees, Pigs on the Table"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our snorkeling time on Koh Lipe has come to an end, and we\u2019ll dry out for a couple of days before resuming our observance of undersea life off Koh Lanta. In between, we will feast on delicious Thai-Chinese food and arise before dawn to visit a waterfowl preserve where we\u2019ll test our photography skills.<\/p>\n

Sunday, February 5, 2017<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Varin Resort\u2019s breakfast buffet has delicious fried chicken. Who knew? After the usual mad dash to stuff my luggage back together and isolate the foul-smelling, still-wet swimwear, we accompanied our bags down the beach to the ferry kiosk. Since we were nearly an hour early, we killed time shopping or, in my case, sitting in the shade of an air conditioner working on a blog post.<\/p>\n

The ferry actually is a speedboat, and it was very full. Fortunately, we had smooth seas and arrived back at Pak Bara without incident. When leaving the pier, we had an opportunity to purchase photos of ourselves from four days earlier: not much had changed, other than between my nose and mouth. Up the road we stopped for a quick one-plate lunch.<\/p>\n

Eventually we reached Trang and unloaded our huge haul of bags at the Thumrin Thana hotel. Trang probably is most famous for its \u201cunderwater weddings\u201d every Valentine\u2019s Day, but we\u2019ll be too busy for love. After wandering the streets for the basic necessities (bottled water and iced tea) and exploring the few nearby businesses open around 5PM on a Sunday, I retreated to the hotel\u2019s strong air conditioning to prepare for dinner.<\/p>\n

Kanok is a Thai-Chinese fusion restaurant that serves a dish we\u2019ll probably only have once on this trip: sea asparagus<\/em>. Brilliantly white and chewy tender, the finger-thickness segments actually are a kind of worm. Good marketing, and tasty stir-fried with shrimp, black mushrooms, and a little Chinese broccoli in a garlicky sauce. The most memorable dish, however, probably was the larb made with pieces of magically crispy duck. I could eat this every day. Other winners included shrimp and sliced coconut shoots (similar to bamboo shoots) in a soupy red curry; steamed fish with thin shreds of ginger, scallions, carrots, chillies, and black mushrooms in a soy-based sauce; and pork knuckle, a fatty cut cooked extremely tender with unctuous chunks of fatty skin, big cloves of a garlic, and a savory brown sauce. The Chinese broccoli stir-fried with rehydrated salted fish is something of an acquired taste. For dessert, the restaurant recommended sweetened sticky rice covered with a thick layer of some kind of taro pudding, topped with ginkgo nuts simmered in syrup. If it sounds like a sugar bomb, you have a good idea of how it tasted. We left more than full.<\/p>\n

\"\"Sea Asparagus with Shrimp at Kanok, Trang<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Crispy Duck Larb at Kanok, Trang<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Shrimp with Coconut Shoots at Kanok, Trang<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Steamed Fish at Kanok, Trang<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Tender Pork Knuckle at Kanok, Trang<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Chinese Broccoli with Salted Fish at Kanok, Trang<\/span><\/a><\/p>

\"\"Taro and Sticky Rice at Kanok, Trang<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n
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