As regular readers of Gaygoat.com will already know, back in 2013 I travelled to Thailand and trained with Master Pimu of WPT Gym. It has taken a while but Bob from The Higher Way and I have finally got together to record the podcast below. Please do share your thoughts about this podcast, part two is coming soon!
The Chao Phrayais the major river in Thailand, with its low alluvial plain forming the centre of the country. It flows through Bangkok and then into the Gulf of Thailand.
I hope you enjoy this time lapse of the Chao Phraya river at night:
Chao Phraya night time lapse
Here is the daytime time lapse view:
Chao Phraya day time lapse
The Chao Phraya constitues a valuable waterway for the transport of the nation’s traditional exports of teak and rice south to Bangkok , though less bulky commodities are now moved overland by road or rail. For centuries the Thai’s have made use of the Chao Phraya, and particularly its canal (khlong) system, for drainage, recreation, and fishing and as a source of water.
The river’s headwaters—the Ping, Wang, Yom, and Nan rivers—rise in the mountains of northern Thailand. At Nakhon Sawan, 140 miles north of Bangkok, the main river begins with the Ping-Nan confluence. Its tortuous course flows past Chai Nat (site of a government dam and irrigation scheme), Sing Buri, Ang Thong, Nonthaburi, and Bangkok to its mouth at Samut Prakan. From its formation at Nakhon Sawan, the river falls less than 80 feet (24 m) in its journey to the sea.
The Chao Phraya system drains 61,807 square miles (160,079 square km) and is the basis of several major irrigation projects. The river’s basin is a low, filled arm of the Gulf of Thailand that is seamed with numerous distributaries. Near Chai Nat a distributary—the Nakhon Chai Si River—branches to the west and parallels the mother stream to the gulf at Samut Sakhon, 25 miles (40 km) west of the main mouth. The main stream bifurcates and reunites several times. Below Chai Nat, the Noi River branches westward and rejoins the Chao Phraya at Sam Khok. The Lop Buri River branches eastward and, before returning to the main stream, flows past the cities of Lop Buri and Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya; at the latter, it receives a great eastern tributary—the Pa Sak River—from the Phetchabun Mountains of the northeast.
Four weeks ago to the day, I arrived at Kiatphontip, Bangkok with the aim of losing 25kg from my starting weight of 95kg. I did not set any milestones, so this actually just happened…..in hindsight I should have set some milestones, but I am happy with my progress and today I weighed in at 84.9 kg, that is a loss of 10 kg in four weeks!
I have been very careful about what I eat and am very fortunate that Noona the amazing chef at the gym cooks very clean and healthy food. Many people who know me, know that I have a sweet tooth, luckily for me the fruit, especially watermelon and pineapple quench the need for sweets.
Here it is very easy to grab a bag of fruit and eat it on the go, these bags of fruit are 30 Thai Baht each.Salmon with scrambled eggs and greens, extremely filling and as Noona would say ‘soooooooo tasty!’The temptation to celebrate with eating with one of these amazing looking ice creams is great, but I better achieve my next milestone first!
The next four weeks I have set a milestone of losing another 10kg, this is where my training will have to be more intense!
Please keep following for more progress updates…..
Many people have asked about holiday money. Do I use the ATM, which bank cards do I use for holidays……
I use the following banks for holiday money, N26, Revolut and Starling. The reason I chose these banks, is because they do not charge for any withdrawals and the exchange rate they offer at overseas ATM’s and places that take card payment is very favourable to the consumer. Whilst travelling I am not a big fan of carrying too much cash, I prefer to pay using the card, where it is accepted.
Regardless of which bank I use here in Thailand, I noticed that if I need cash, the majority of ATM’s will charge 220 baht, which can add up. Aeon Thana Simsap is the only one I found which charges 150 baht.
Found to be the cheapest and only charge 150 baht for cash withdrawal
The other banks charge 220 baht for a withdrawal transaction charge:
If whilst traveling in Thailand you have found a cheaper/free transaction fee, please do comment below!
The last few posts have been haphazard, apologies for that. I thought I could just land in Thailand and start blogging straight away. It took me a few days to get settled in and acclimatised, which I am still trying to do. The temperature is around 32 degree c and making me constantly tired. Also, it does not help that I am not drinking enough water!
Saturday night I met a couple of friends and we went out, they were drinking whiskey whilst I was on the water. It was a strange ‘private members club’ We walked in through the staff entrance, let’s just say it was a very surreal experience. Just to add, in our section the only entertainment was a band playing in front of a football match!
(Not what you expected?)
On Sunday I relaxed at the local pool, the water was freezing…..which in the heat you would think I would welcome but I needed warm water. It took me a while to get used to the temperature.
Sunday swim
Sunday evening was tough for me and I was ready to go back to England, my uncle had sent me some pictures of when my mum was young. As some readers will know, mum passed away a few months ago. Mum is always on my mind and at the moment it is like a roller coaster ride, some days I remember mum with a smile, some days I break down and cry. This made me realise that this journey to good health will not just be physical but also mental.
Monday was a whole new day, through good support of friends, I decided to stay and achieve my goal of losing 25kg.
In the afternoon I trained, forgetting how intense the heat is, luckily between rounds, there is a huge container full of ice water.
My first coffee in Thailand
Tuesday was spent at Salaya shopping mall, where I picked up a few essentials and had a coffee. My first one since arriving in Thailand.
Salaya Central Plaza
Today, Wednesday I felt more settled, hence the long post!
Drinking around 2 litres of water a day, perhaps I should be drinking more and the good news is that so far I have lost 5kg in body weight, probably water but I will take this as a win!
Hi, thanks for visiting my blog, feel free and have a look around.Here is a bit about me, as you may or may not have guessed my name is Mandeep,I work to travel as opposed to work to pay bills and die!Every trip for me is an adventure, I have been very fortunate to stumble across amazing places and meet awesome people along the way.
Why gaygoat? When I first started this blog I was a vegetarian, so gaygoat – happy goat! Also you have to admit it is catchy and a URL you will not forget!
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