Justin Peretz

Check out this smoothie — made with dragon fruit and bananas. That deep purple color is what the fruit looks like. They only added ice, and it was SOOOOO good. The dragon fruit is purple in the middle, and has spikes. You can see one just to the right of my shoulder, and to the left of the bananas. Who wants one now? BTW, about a buck for the smoothie, sometimes less.

This was on the back of a Tuk Tuk and I took a picture of it. It’s an ad for an adventure park nearby that has lots of ziplines and cool, adventurous things to do. I think the  middle one looks a little like me!!! Or maybe Aidan, or my cousin Michael!

There are a lot of different ways to get around in Thailand. You can take a regular taxi, hop on a motor scooter, or take a Tuk Tuk, like the ones pictured here. They are cheap and can really move through traffic. It’s a little hectic, but a lot of fun. Tomorrow we’re going to rent a motor scooter. In the back of one picture is an old part of a wall in Chiang Mail. There is a moat around the entire Old City, and the city is over 700 years old. It’s really a cool place!

I snuck up from behind on this elephant and tried to push it into the water, but it wouldn’t budge. They are really, really heavy. There are about 4,000 elephants in Thailand, mostly in the Northern part near Chiang Mai. Anyone want to go elephant tipping with me. I need your help!

Can anyone tell me what this is? This is a very common item at almost every fresh market in Thailand. If you guess correctly, I’ll announce you as a winner and you might even get a present from Thailand. So put on your thinking cap and tell me what it is. You could win my contest!

Hey, if Mario is missing in the U.S.A. or Italy, I found him in Phuket. Did you hear anything on the news of his sudden disappearance? Let me know if you did.

You know how you think “How could someone lose a shoe” when you find one on the street? Well, we were in this market in Phuket tonight and I came across these feet and sandals in a box by a vendor. I asked if I could take a picture, but of course they couldn’t understand me because they spoke Thai, so I quickly took the photo and left. There must be an address in Thailand where people send feet that they lose. How else could they all end up in this box?

Clowns are creepy, especially when it’s one named Ronald. McDonald’s are everywhere in Thailand, and they ALL have the same creepy Ronald McDonald in front of the place. He’s supposed to be saying “Sawadee Krup,” which means hello or welcome in Thai. When Thai people use this phrase, they put their hands together, almost like they’re praying, and bow respectfully to you. But having Ronald do that is just plain wrong. What do you think? Does he look a little creepy to you?

We were on our way back from a day at the beach when an ice cream scooter pulled up in front of our hotel. I told my mom I wanted an ice cream sandwich, and that is exactly what I got: ice cream in a hot dog bun with peanuts on top, all for about 65¢! I don’t like hot dogs, so it was pretty good this way! Ice cream sandwich, anyone?

We came across this guy at a temple in Thailand. I think we should get one of these and put in our front yard to ward off freaky freaks. It would be so random in our neighborhood. Who can come up with a good name for our new friend in the picture? Give it a shot. Looks like he came out a Thai video game, doesn’t it?