Earth House Restaurant Thong Lor 9

Situated in a Bungalow off Sukhimvit 53, Thonglor Soi 9 is a gem of a restaurant serving purely vegetarian fare, Mediterranean style. I had a full day of rest after 2 busy days in Bangkok from 12 - 14th September, so this place was a lovely treat for me. Its about a 15 minute walk from my serviced apartments in Soi 14 in Ekkamai. 

The address is as shown in the picture below and one thing I noticed when I stepped in was that the place was in total harmony with greenery and the trees around it. Look at the restaurant inside, there are plenty of green living plants along all the walls. When I stepped outside into the courtyard and headed to the bathroom, the open courtyard stood under the Banyan tree and was something out of a movie. 

Address of the Earth House. It is situated off Sukhumvit 53 and Along Thonglor 9, so the 112 / 2 I guess is that there are 2 houses in the Unit 112  

So without much further ado, I decided to try the avocado toast. There were 3 slices of sourdough bread and the avocado paste was done very nicely. See the picture below. It was really tasty and there were really fresh sides of lettuce and cherry tomatoes which made my meal delightful. I also had an Americano coffee to complement my breakfast. 

Beautiful Courtyard for any event 

There are a few faithful clients who patronise this and they appear to be the international tourists and some your urban Gen Z types whose 'office' is their laptops and mobile phones. All the power to them for this new way of working across any time zone, culture, and language.

Will I venture again to this oasis of calm ? The answer is obvious. 

Video showing the Chill Place in all its morning glory 

 Mushroom Risotto 

Cheap, Clean and Tranquil Service Apartments in Ekkamai Bangkok

Reading a Book on Speeches by Famous People in the Balcony overlooking greenery. A luxury afforded only to a few places in the heart of Bangkok 

In the suburbs of Bangkok there lies this gem of a service apartment. Called Nice Residences,it is located in Ekkamai Soi 14, off Ekkamai Road. I pay a minimal price of THB 1000 or  S$ 40 (US$ 30) per night to get the following below :

a) Large (180 ft2) clean room with balcony facing to 2 huge private bungalows.

b) Unfettered morning charm awakened by the sounds of birds chirping outside

c) Airconditioning

Happiness in the morning ; Nothing beats a nice coffee and a book in the quiet environs of a nearby country. 

d) Beautiful balcony to do soul replenishment and quiet reading.

I bought this gem of a book called "Speeches that Changed the World" from a 2nd hand bookstore at the nearby Don Don Donki building)

e) Ensuite bathroom with WC and bathtub.

 

An amazing deal in a central location which I am happy to say is my go to place when I need to refocus and recharge.

I am here with 2 colleagues to attend the Biomedical show at BITEC and seek

a) distributorship 

b) new agents or potential partners for business.

Do give it a try ; its only S$40 and what can go wrong at that price ?

 

Tips my Mentor Taught Me.

We all need Mentors who have seen it all and (ideally) 10 to 15 years our senior to guide us through life's unchartered waters. Its better to take advice from an old sea dog captain who may have retired from helming his cargo ship days than from depending on your experience, gut instinct, or what your star sign may say (Sagittarius is mine).

Here are tips from the very successful friend of whose picture is here, and whose name I shall not reveal. He retired early at age 54 and has never looked back on wanting to stay on in a highly stressed, though very high paying career as a banker. He was the CEO of a major multinational bank in a nearby Asian country. He spends his time, doing hobbies he enjoys, and meeting friends and his extended family (his daughters are both married and living outside of Singapore). 

     REAL LIFE TIPS

1.Always read the fine print in any thing 

  A product , a contract,  an NDA, a guarantor in any loan or financial 

  transaction

  If you have doubts, don't sign. 

2.Watch what the person does - not what he says 

3. What is NOT said is more important that what is said 99% of time. 

4. If its too good to be true, it probably is.

5.Always be on time for appointments.

   If you think you are stretched for time to meet that person on a particular day, reschedule. Do not waste his and your precious time fuming about a possible no show. 

6. Never brag about expensive possessions. 

   They belong only to those who earned money the hard way for them and look good only for a while. A top level S Class Mercedes at the end of the day is just a big car, but requires lots of money to purchase and to maintain. Be Humble.

7. One unlucky break and you are wiped out

Financially, reputationally and even health can go overnight from seemingly healthy to (say) you have just 6 months to live.

8. Black Swans Do Exist - and when they bite, all heall breaks loose.

Finally, the big downer, you can do well in anything for decades, (running a 

business, have a lucky streak in gambling, flipping properties, assets 

enhancement etc) - there will be a time when the PERFECT STORM hits, 

and if you are in the game. You WILL be wiped out.

9. Be Humble. 

10. Greed is real Bad.

 Gordon Gecko, in the film Wall Street ended up in jail.....

    

Don't be greedy, earn a little (or more than a little) and...

 10. Exit Early  

Enjoy what you have struggled for while you are still striving for that one last hurrah.  Its a contradiction, but you deserve the small fruits that come your way to incentivise yourself to climb higher for the best fruits.

Finally a Bonus.

 11. Life's too short to die with millions in the bank and while you worked a                 lifetime to earn it, you have hardly had any time to enjoy it. Spend Some 

12. Live a Little 

Go for the year end holidays (I have had over 20 with my family to date). We thoroughly enjoyed those getaways first when the kids were babies (first in 1996, and young children 1997 -  2009, next when they were early to mid teens (2008 - 2012). From 2014, it was duo holidays just my wife and I (in total 6 - all in Europe and all at least 2 weeks long).  

13. Pay it Forward

Give to charity and the needy.  Money, your experience and Time.

There is No Time like the Present 

Nemo Mortalium Omnibus Horis Sapit.

No Human has all the Wisdom of the World. 

Back to Drone Flying for some Exercise

4 Sept 23 Drone Practice. 

After a  hiatus of almost 9 months, I am back at the hobby I picked up last year, drone flying. The sight of flying a small aircraft and controlling something in the air had always had a fascination for me since I was in Primary school.

I remember years back, while staying in Adis Road, I was one of those very fortunate boys whose Dad doted on me. I had a petrol engine small plane (Spitfire I believe) and I dared not to fly it as playing with highly flammable things well, were very dangerous.

My then friend Percy Henry (he has now since migrated to Adelaide Australia) opted to fly it and we went to the nearby park to take the maiden flight. We flipped the propeller and the engine roared into life. Percy then managed to get the plane to speed on the grass patch and the plane rose high, almost vertically. AND THEN it fell headlong into the ground and literally crashed (no burning).

The end of my aeromodelling days and love for plane model flying !

My dream is to fly larger drones and take better videos in the future for (hoprfully) future holidays.