"Can not, can not", she says. But ... I know different. I just did. If she had said, "May not, may not", then she would have been right, I guess.

I had just taken a picture of the cigarette packs sold here with all the gruesome images on them . They were on the counter for sale. I showed you one picture of it before, but wanted to show you more. She did not raise her voice. Thais are soft spoken, it seems, and do not like raised voices, even during an argument. Some americans embarrass themselves and the U.S. by coming here and acting rude and loud like they do in the states. It's not the Thai way.

I am not sure why she didn't want me to take pictures. It's not like it was a secret. They are on display for sale. But, I honored her request and didn't take any more. (I still have one, though!)

I had asked the hostel owner if there were any grocery stores here. All I have ever seen are small convenient stores like 7/11. He says yes and gives me directions. I walk a good ways and see lots of sights, many of them while I am lost and wandering around. Getting lost does not bother me anymore. It did at first. The streets often do not have signs and if they do they are in Thai . My maps are in english but I never know if they show small streets coming in from the side or not. So, counting streets on the map before I turn is not always accurate. 

In order to find my way back, I have started to remember the colors of storefronts when I turn a corner. Thais love color. I try to remember I turned left at the green,blue,yellow, red building. Right at the green, orange. gold building, etc. Getting lost just lets me see more, and I always get back to where I intended to be.

Then, I reach the grocery store and it looks more like a Wat than a store. There is a Chinese altar type thing in the parking lot. 

 The store is nice and I buy a few drinks and things to put in my refrigerator, as well as shampoo and things like that. (And, I take my forbidden photo). I notice they don't sell things like aspirins or cold medicines, etc. But, there are pharmacies everywhere (just like 7/11 are everywhere) that carry these items .

Thailand is a very popular place for foreigners to come for dental work. What is so expensive in other countries can be done here much cheaper and it is good work. People from other countries often take medical holidays to come here to get surgeries or dental work done.

My hostel includes breakfast in the room price. You can select from the menu any time of the day and have your breakfast. It is a full breakfast, not a continental type. It is American style breakfast. I guess because the guests here are not Thai. I have eaten Thai food almost exclusively up until now.

The first morning I chose eggs, toast, orange juice, coffee, bacon, tomatoes (grilled) and whatever else came with that order from the menu. It was filling and I ate breakfast at 12:30 noon. The next day I had cereal with bananas, and all the fixins. The coffee here, not just at the hostel, is served in a little cup like a tea cup . Hot tea is served in a coffee mug style cup. Go figure. Hot tea seems to be very popular here, like in England, and is often served regardless of what else you order.

So far I have not seen any McDonalds here in Pattaya. I did see them in Bangkok, though. Ronald McDonald standing on the outside is doing a waii. I want to get a picture of that sometime if I get a chance.

I keep asking anyone that speaks good english about the dates here. My ATM receipts show 2013 and some other times I see 2013 as the year. But, other times it is 2556. I don't know what is on the local Thai newspapers, because I can't read Thai. Duh! There is a 543 years difference between the Buddhist calendar and the Gregorian (our) calendar. Year 2013 in the U.S. is year 2556 in Thailand. I guess, maybe, if dealing with international dates they use the 2013, like the rest of the world.

I had been here about 5 days, I think, when I decided to get some money from the ATM . That is what I had planned to use to travel after reading various forums and finding how other vagabonders handled the money thing. I brought some american money for backup, but planned to get cash in the currency of whichever country I was in from the ATM machines. I spent 5 days in the Cabin in the Woods in Texas before leaving the states. Much of this time was spent contacting credit card companies and banks to be sure my credit cards and ATM cards would work when I got here. I called them all twice just to be sure. Yes, they all assured me they would work.

Most things here you have to use cash to pay for. All the hostels want cash and the food places, just about everything. No credit cards. I can use credit cards online to book flights or things like that, but every attraction I go see or anything else I buy must be paid in local money.

Well, to make a long story longer, I went to an ATM and just thought I would get some bahts to use while here in Thailand . I couldn't believe the machine kicked it out. I brought two credit cards and two ATM cards, just in case I had trouble with one. Well, the second ATM card would not work either. I have enough U.S. cash money left to hold me about two weeks. This is backup money, though, in case I get to some country without ATM machines or one of them eats my card. I can use a credit card online to book a flight home. But, I don't want to go home.

I send both ATM companies e-mails, explaining the mess I am in.I'm in a foreign country and out of money because their cards will not work. They answer my e-mails 24 hours later and say I must call them.

I get skype on the ipad and stay up until 2 a.m. to call my ATM people in the states. There is a 13 hour time difference. I need to call during their business hours. They say they need to give me a new pin but I will have to call from my home phone in the States. I just told them I was in Thailand, how can I call from my home phone? I WANT MY MONEY!

Finally, after a few days, and talking to some important people, I was able to get them to let me use someone in the states to call for me, with my info . I asked Johnny (brother) and Karla (sister-in-law), to call them and retrieve a new pin for me. They did and now all is well. I appreciate the help guys and your reward is you won't be seeing Larry in the states anytime soon. Both ATM cards work! Life is grand.

I see people sitting around in all these places with little briefcases. They are filled with some kind of tickets with numbers on them. One of my fellow backpackers said he didn't think they were lottery tickets, but we still don't know what they are.

While wondering around lost in Pattaya, I came across another beauty of a building. It turned out to be a monastery. I did not go in, though. Food and drinks are left for the monks at altars you see around town, but I notice sometimes the ants and bees beat them to it.

As I am wandering down a outdoor market, there is a motorbike that comes right down the aisle. I sure don't know how people keep from getting run over here, in particular, me.

There is so much I do not know about this land!