Buriram

Mam had work in Buriram. I went along and looked for Khmer ruins while she was busy.

Always nice to have Amazon coffee on the road.

This is an old Khmer pond in the vicinity of Prasat Kracharb Phon. I couldn't find any remains of the ancient structure.

I was trying to find Prasat Nong Yai Phim. I had a GPS fix, but many of these ancient sites are hard to find as there are no signs or markers of any sort. I found this piece of sandstone but that was it.

My GPS told me the Prasat was in the jungle on the other side of this lotus-filled moat. 

It's somewhere in there.

Finally I asked someone who told me to go inside the grounds of a nearby wat to find the entrance to the ancient site. It was across this wooden bridge.

All that's left of Prasat Nong Yai Phim is this mound and a few stones.

Prasat Nong Yai Phim

Prasat Nong Yai Phim 

Prasat Nong Yai  Phim

Prasat Nong Phlong was easier to find. It is in the grounds of an old wat on which lots of construction is being done.

 Sadly, there seems to be no effort to restore or even preserve this ancient site.

At least one wall is still standing.

Prasat Nong Phlong

Prasat Nong Phlong

There are only a few pieces of carved sandstore at Prasat Nong Phlong. There must have been much more including carved lintels and other decoration.

Prasat Nong Phlong

I couldn't tell if this stone was ancient or modern. It has some gold leaf rubbed into the upper side and is tied with the sacred cloth.

Prasat Nong Phlong

The entire site is surrounded by an irregularly shaped moat. The Khmer usually kept things quite square.

We had lunch at Lin's Kitchen in Buriram. From the outside it was just a nondescript place at the back of a Shell filling station. Inside it was quite charming and nicely decorated with a deck with a pond view. Very nice food as well.

Today's Ride NW of Ban Mai

A new place for lunch. This guy used to have a small stall, now he's gone upscale with a permanent location. He specializes in Khao Man Gai (boiled chicken on rice with a nice sauce) and various coffee drinks made in the traditional Thai style, with a cloth sack filter.

Now to the actual afternoon ride. This bridge crosses the south fork of the Lam Takhong River. In this area there are only a few bridges suitable for vehicles. I guess the folks here got tired waiting for the government.

A pedestrian bridge nearby.

On the other side, these beautiful rice fields.

Charcoal pit with product for sale.

Lots of ducks.

Left Coast America

I went to the US to visit family in April, but got so busy that I just got done looking at the photos. Here are more than enough.

My sister. She lives near the North Park Blocks in downtown Portland. She's walking distance from everything important, including the Deschutes Brewery.

Portland has many bridges. This is the Morrison Bridge.

Lots of Springtime flowers.

This is Bailey's Tap Room. Lots of beer on tap!

The "beer board" at Bailey's.

Great architecture and nicely maintained old buildings.

Chinatown gate.

More nice old buildings.

The world famous Voodoo Doughnuts.

Voodoo doughnuts. They are filled with strawberry jelly. They come with a pretzel stick which you use to poke the doughnut voodoo doll.

Elephant sculpture at the North Park Blocks.

We took a long walk along this little-used railroad spur. In the summer months they run an excursion train out to the shore.

We spotted some geese.

And what looks like a real voodoo doll.

The Willamette River with Portland in the distance.

We had a nice lunch on the river. This place is called Aquariva.

Dinner at Jake's Grill, located in the historic Governor Hotel. Note the heads above the bar.

Union Station. I took the train from Portland to San Luis Obispo, near where my Dad lives.

Amtrak's Coast Starlight has a nice domed lounge car.

It was raining by the time we got to Eugene.

The train was quite long.

Gin and Tonic in the Cascade Mountain Range.

Snow in the Cascades.

I didn't really expect to see a snow storm this late in the year.

The Davis, California Amtrak Station.

Breakfast in the dining car. The food was quite good.

California's Bay Area. You can just see the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance.

Old steam engine at a railway museum at the Salinas Amtrak Station.

My Dad. We're dining at Pappy's, a famous old truck stop and diner. That's my grilled tri-tip steak in the foreground.

Pappy's.

Dad, Donna and me having Sunday Brunch at the Santa Maria Inn.

I took the Amtrak bus to Santa Barbara and the train to Union Station in Los Angeles. This old Chinese restaurant is in Lompoc, California. Not far from Vandenberg Air Force Base.

Union Station, Los Angeles. One of the last of the great railway stations.

This is the old and now unused ticket counter room. It is often seen in movies and on TV.