The Adventures of Tomato In Thailand - Chiang Mai

So that Chris had the opportunity to spend some time with Tom he had decided that he would take a couple of days off work and that the three of us would go and visit a part of Thailand that we had not been to yet. We had heard from a number of people that Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand) is beautiful at this time of year and actually cold (which we thought would suit Tom perfectly) so prior to Tom arriving I had sorted out flights and a hotel.

The journey was an absolute doddle - the new airport is about a 25/30 minute taxi ride from our apartment (well it was at that time in the morning - god alone knows how long it would take in rush hour) and the flight was only about an hour long. The hotel we were staying at was called Baan Gong Kham and was absolutely beautiful (The only downside was that it wasn't very central so we had a taxi or tuk tuk ride to get into the city). It was a small hotel complex (only about 8 houses) that was decorated in the traditional Lanna style - the houses were made of wood, had huge beds in them, doors that opened out onto a balcony and the bathrooms had a jacuzzi in them. The bathrooms also had no tiles on the roof above the jacuzzi (I can only assume that the idea behind this was that you had your jacuzzi under the stars - in reality it means that there is a bloody big hole in the roof that the mosquitoes get in through!!).

Chiang Mai is really stunning - very different to Bangkok - the air was clean, the pace of life more laid back, it was cool in the evenings and mornings and there was no humidity so it was easy to go out and about all day - we had a ball (even me - who by this time was on antibiotics to get rid of the horrific throat infection I had - Tom and Chris reckoned I looked like Biggles with my scarf on). On the Saturday we checked into the hotel then headed into the old city where we had a very late lunch. We discovered that after 6pm traffic is not allowed through the main street of the old town and the whole street, as well as the side streets, are turned into one huge market (On Saturday evening it is run by the local Wualai Community which is known for it's silver and lacquer wares and on Sunday evening it has everything from unique local handicrafts to portrait paintings and is less touristy) - We watched people setting up their stalls then went and had a coffee (Tom didn't like the cake very much - sorry Tom....I can resist everything but temptation!!) whilst the vendors got themselves organised. One of the really nice things about this was that all the Wat's were still open, and most had stalls in their grounds, so you could do some shopping then have a look round. (To the left is Chris and I doing an impression of a Thai getting their photo taken - we have no idea why they do this but they ALL do it!!). We shopped till we dropped. Actually I nearly did drop so we headed back to the hotel where I hit the sack and left Tom and Chris to find somewhere to get something to eat. They found a local watering hole and, once Tom worked out that the woman trying to talk to him was actually a waitress trying to show him to a table and not a hooker trying to pick him up (Chris said the look on his face was a picture....I'm sorry I missed it), they had the hottest meal Chris has ever had (He was apparently bright red in the face and grinning from ear to ear). Chris informed me the next day that at one point in the evening he thought that the waitress was going to swing for Tom - every time she came over to top up his glass (They had a pitcher of beer) Tom lifted it up....sometimes he had a drink and other times he just held it (Obviously he was concerned that she was going to run away with his glass when it still had beer in it!!). Chris had to keep dunting him so she could give him a refill!!

On Sunday we got up early (this had more to do with Tom doing a very bad ghost impression outside our door than the fact that we were full of the joys of life) and headed back to the old city where we hired a Song Tao (They are like vans turned into buses) and went up the mountain to Wat Prathat Doi Suthep. According to legend, a Buddha relic, magically replicated iteself just before it was about to be enshrined in a Stupa (this is a bell-shaped tower which usually contains a relic of the Buddha or the ashes of a king or important monk). The relic was placed on the back of a sacred white elephant, which was allowed to roam where-ever it wanted. The elephant eventually climbed to the top of Suthep Mountain, trumpeted three times, turned around three times, knelt down and died. This was taken as a sign that this was the spot where the relic wanted to be, so King Ku Na built Wat Prathat Doi Suthep at the end of 14^th century. To reach it requires a climb up 309 steps (who's idea was this??) but all the puffing and panting was worth it - the Wat is stunning and, because it was such a beautiful day, we had an amazing view of Chiang Mai. We then jumped back in our Song Tao and headed to Mon Tha Falls which were beautiful (as you can see from the photo's) - there is another waterfall which is bigger but to see that would have required a five mile walk...hmmm....I think I'll pass!! We wound our way back down the mountain, past the tree that was growing in the middle of the road (???), and then had a lovely lunch in an Irish Pub in town (Chris and Tom had Steak and Ale pie with their Guinness). Our evening was spent wondering through the Sunday night market, we had to get another bag so we could get all the stuff we had bought back to Bangkok. We found a great little bar called the Cat Bar that was right on the edge of the walking street so we sat and had a couple of beers (well, Chris and tom did - I was still on water) and watched groups of people congregating round the bug stall goading each other into trying the various bugs. After about five minutes (and close inspection to make sure no-one had vomited) Tom and I decided to go for it.....I told you I was running a temperature. We ate bamboo worms - which had the consistency of those weird diet crisps you get in Marks & Spencers that are like eating cardboard and don't taste of much, silk worms - I really don't recommend these....they were squishy inside eeeeuuuu and, last but not least, crickets - which, once i had got over the fact that i was eating crickets, tasted quite nice (even Chris tried the crickets and bamboo worms). I think this photo is great - there is a lot to be said for care in the community!! (Not very PC I know but I do have a point!!)

The following day, no ill effects from the bugs, we hired a taxi for the day and went to the well-preserved and rarely visited ruins of the ancient city Wiang Kum Kam which is traditionally regarded as the prototype for Chiang Mai. They were built around 1281 and have only fairly recently been uncovered - some were more impressive than others but you go round them in a horse drawn carriage and it is a lovely way to spend a morning. After that we went to the Mae Sa Elephant Camp which is a fantastic place - they have won awards for the care and welfare of the elephants and are actually in the Guinness Book of Records for their 2.40 meters wide and 12 meters long painting entitled 'Cold Wind, Swirling Mist, Charming Lanna' which was created by a group of eight elephant artists. We watched a brilliant show - the elephants took hats off their Mahout's then put them back on again, played football, demonstrated log pulling and did some painting. (We bought a lovely one of flowers in a vase which we are currently having framed). Then, despite Chris saying he was never going to get on another elephant, we went on a 30 minute ride through jungle - don't think Tom was entirely convinced...he looks very unsure doesn't he!! (I think Chris made his boss's day - Phil called to ask him a question and said 'Where are you?' to which Chris replied 'Currently sitting on top of an elephant' - Phil burst out laughing....obviously not the answer he was expecting!!). After we left the elephant camp we were persuaded by our taxi driver to go to a small settlement of the Karen, Long Neck (they are the tribe that wear the bronze rings round their necks) and Long Ear (they insert large and heavy silver objects in their ears) hill tribes - it was fascinating to see them but I would never go there again and will never take anyone who comes to visit. It had the feel of an open air prison - I'm not going to rant on the subject but have to ask the question - When modern tourism policies and western ideas meet ancient cultures, who wins and who loses? (I think the answer is obvious). Anyway, we went back to the hotel and decided that since it was our last night we would push the boat out and have a special meal. Our hotel was opposite a very classy French Restaurant called Le Crystal - we sat outside on the garden balcony with views of the Ping River and had a divine meal (It was the first time in nearly a week that I had any appetite so I particularly enjoyed it) which was about seven courses with a different wine matched to each course. When we got back to the hotel Tom decided to try out a new type of yoga - he called it Yogic Flying (No we don't know why he did this either but doesn't he look happy!!). It was a great holiday.

The Adventures of Tomato In Thailand - The sights and sounds of Bangkok

The following day Chris was back at work so for the next five days it was my job to show Tom the sites and sounds of Bangkok.

I decided that the first place I should take him was to Jim Thompson's House (and not just because they have the same surname). The story of Jim Thompson is really interesting - He was a trained architect who turned his attention to the Thai silk industry after being stationed in Thailand during WW2 (He was assigned to the Office of Strategic Services which was the forerunner of the CIA). He gained worldwide recognition for his success in rebuilding the industry, for generating international demand for Thai silk (He was responsible for providing all the fabrics for the film The King and I) and was awarded the Order of the White Elephant which is a decoration bestowed upon foreigners for having rendered exceptional service to Thailand. He was also very well known for combining traditional Thai architecture with western lifestyle ideas and for his collection of Asian antiques. What makes his story the stuff of legend is that he had his fortune told by a Monk who said that disaster would befall him in his 61st year and during a break with friends in Malaysia he went out for a walk in the jungle and was never seen again (There was an extensive search but it failed to reveal any clues about his disappearance) - he was 61 - so the house and all the stuff in it is pretty much how he left it. Tom loved it - there are six teak houses that were brought from various area's of Thailand to form a complex, a beautiful garden (Honestly, you would never believe you were still in the heart of Bangkok) and some amazing antiques including a mouse house (Very cool idea to keep kids occupied and stop their mouse from dying of boredom - don't know why they don't still make them!!). The best bit about Jim Thomson's house - it is a stones throw from a very good shopping centre called MBK (Mah Boon Krong). This is the best place to go for shoppers who love shopping in a market-style atmosphere, but would prefer to do it in air-conditioned comfort. It is very Thai and is positively packed with stalls - You don't want to know how much money Tom spent.....let me put it this way - we left with a lot of bags!! (Tom was also traumatised - he went to the toilet and was at the urinal when a woman wondered in with a cup of tea, knocked on one of the doors and handed the guy inside the cup of tea then wondered back out)

The following day we went on a trip to Ayuthaya which is the old capital of Thailand (Well, one of them anyway...). We had been told to be at the pier at 7am - at 6.15am my phone went and this was the organiser calling to say that we didn't actually need to be there till 7.30!! We were already on the Skytrain. (Tom was starting to understand our 'Only In Thailand' thing after being told the day before by a taxi driver that 'No I'm not going to take you. I don't want to go that way - you will need to get a different taxi'). I thought it was the same trip that Chris and I had done when we came for a look at Bangkok prior to moving here but the tour actually went to different temples in Ayuthaya as well as the Kings Summer Palace (Bang Pa In) - we got some fantastic photo's and Tom really enjoyed wondering round the ruins as well as the boat trip back to Bangkok. (Not sure if that was the actual boat trip he enjoyed or the fact that they were playing Abba in the background (Which he sang along to - I was sitting next to him at the window so couldn't even pretend I wasn't with him!!))

On Wednesday we decided that a pamper day was in order after the rigours of the Ayuthaya tour (Your out all day and it is an early start). We headed down to a place called 'Take Care' on Soi 33 for a manicure and pedicure - I could not stop laughing!! There is no nice way of saying this.....Tom has freaky feet - His toes look like they have been made from playdo and stuck on the top of his feet rather than where they should be. The girl who was doing his pedicure looked at them then said in Thai to her colleague, whilst wiggling his toes and laughing, 'Ling Lek' which means little monkey. (Can you guess who got teased for the rest of his stay about his little monkey feet??). We then went for a spot of lunch and I introduced Tom to the delights of a Miang Kam starter which consists of betel leaves that you fill with dried shrimp, onion, chilli, peanuts, ginger, toasted coconut and a sweetish sauce (Which I think is honey based) - you wrap the whole thing up in the leaf and pop it in your mouth - flavour explosions!! (They may sound horrible but are absolutely gorgeous I can assure you!!). After lunch we went up to Soi 11 to Suk Spa (You may remember that this was the place Chris suffered the embarrassment of having his boxers removed!!) and had a foot massage (again there was much hilarity caused by Tom's 'Ling' feet), a herbal steam (Which involved sitting on a wooden stool in a very small room, completely naked, having my eyes burned out by whatever herbs they were using), followed by a cold shower (Which was OUTSIDE!!.....I could see people walking down the Soi - don't think I have ever showered so fast in my life. Is this was Thai people call relaxing???), followed by a back massage which was divine (just as well after the shower experience!!). Anyway, we then headed back over to the river where we had cocktails in the Authors lounge at the Oriental Hotel (It is housed in the original Oriental building and was a favourite stop-off for writers like Joseph Conrad, Somerset Maugham, Noel Coward and Graham Greene) then went on a night cruise along the Chao Phrya River, known as the River of Kings, aboard a “Maeyanang” rice barge.

We then had a shopping day and I took Tom to Siam Square which houses the Siam Centre, Siam Paragon (huge shopping mall) and is only a short walk from Central World (even bigger shopping mall - actually it is so big that it contains two beer gardens and Chris has not found either of them yet!!) That evening we went out to Cheap Charlie's (Yes, Tom loved it as much as we do and actually asked if we could go back) and met up with an old friend of Chris's, who he used to work with at Coopers but had not seen for about 10 years, called Tony (Who I have to say is completely bonkers!!.....very nice.....but completely bonkers!!). I have to say that I started to feel very unwell during the course of the evening - I had a raging temperature and a sore throat (I had gone over to Jenny's apartment before Tom arrived and her daughter was off school with the dreaded lurgy!! I think that is who I got it from - she was getting me back for telling her a story about a dead cow that then gave her nightmares)

Friday I felt pretty awful but didn't want to spoil Tom's holiday so we headed out anyway, me doped up to the eyeballs with cold and flu tablets, and went to Chatuchak Market which is not only the largest market in Bangkok but is one of the largest markets in the world. It has nearly everything you could ever wish to buy and many things you would never want to!!. The prices are amazing and you can buy clothes, animals, books, plants, artefacts, wooden items, ceramics, antiques, jewellery, and so many other things it would take too long to list. We had a lovely morning (the market is really quiet on a Friday but some of the stalls are open) and went to a great little restaurant that Chris and I found when we first visited the market and we go back every time. I kind of wilted in the afternoon and ended up in bed so we had a very quiet Friday night - Chris ended up working till after midnight (Client from hell was acting up again and since we were going on holiday he wanted to get everything finished) and I was really ill. (Poor Tom ended up sitting watching re-runs of Midsummer Murders - what can I say.....Thai TV is really bad!!)

The Adventures of Tomato In Thailand - The Beginning

Well....he made it!!! (No phone call from Dubai to say that he had missed his flight - it is a miracle!!) Although I have to say that despite having received our address in both Thai and English he still didn't have it on him!! We sent him a text message to see if he had been let into the country to which he replied that he was at immigration and could we give him our address....then, instead of calling to say that he had arrived at the apartment block, he wondered around trying to find us - got lost and had to be rescued by Moon (She obviously spotted this pale, hairy person with a big case and thought 'Ah this can only be Tom') honestly....for someone who is so intelligent he is amazingly daft!! (Although to be fair he hadn't slept and was ever so slightly jet lagged)

Once we had shown him round we gave him a well deserved glass of wine and sat out on our balcony for an hour or so to give him a chance to recover. We then took him out to Cheap Charlie's and for an Indian (I know - you would have thought we would have had Thai but the restaurant we had planned to take him was completely packed).

We started the next day by celebrating his birthday (Moon had made a cake as I knew that he hadn't had a cake on his actual birthday) then we introduced him to the wonders of the Bangkok Skytrain and took him on the Chao Phraya River Express Boat to Wat Pho (Wat means temple) then along to The Grand Palace complex, which includes the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Keow). Moon came along with us as, believe it or not, she had never visited either Wat Pho or The Grand Palace.

For those of you that are interested (This means I am about to give you lots of facts - sorry but there is not a lot I can say about sightseeing - at least the photo's should amuse....) :

Wat Pho or Wat Phra Chetuphon, as it is generally known to the Thais, has a number of claims to fame - it was founded in the 17^th century making it the oldest temple in Bangkok (Older than the city itself), it is the largest Wat in Bangkok (20 acres split over two sites), it houses Thailand's largest reclining Buddha image (The Buddha is gold plated, is 46 meters long, 15 meters high and the feet are inlaid with mother-of-pearl to display the 108 auspicious signs which apparently distinguish a true Buddha - I really wasn't kidding when I said that the Thais like their Buddha's big and gold!!), has the most number of Buddha images in Thailand (more than 1000 Buddha images in total, most from the ruins of the former capitals Ayuthaya and Sukhothai) and was actually considered Thailand's first university.

The Grand Palace complex (which was once the official home for the Kings of Siam where you can see the Royal Funeral Hall and Coronation Hall) really is amazing. In the Temple of the Emerald Buddha itself is the holiest and most revered of religious objects in Thailand - a Buddha image carved from one piece of Jade (It is absolutely stunning - the King is the only person holy enough to touch it and three times a year there is a ceremony during which he changes the outfit on the Buddha - there is one for each of the three seasons in Thailand.....Winter (otherwise known as Hot), Summer (otherwise known as Very Hot) and the Rainy Season (otherwise known as Very Hot and Very Wet)).

Ok - back to Tomato's adventures.....

('Why do we call him Tomato?' I hear you ask - just look at the colour he went after one day of being in Bangkok!! Actually he coped admirably with the heat and was amused and bemused when Moon dived for the same bit of shade he was heading for!!).

We had a lovely, and very late, lunch at the Oriental Hotel down by the river (It is known as the Raffles of Bangkok) and had a very enjoyable afternoon drinking beer and looking (erm.... that should be laughing) at old photographs - and not just old photo's of us (I would like to remind you that I have the technology and it would not be difficult to scan said photos onto the computer and post them onto this blog - so you had all better be nice!!). We then headed out to a couple of bars and watched with glee as Tom turned slightly green at the smell of mangled dried squid. I am not actually being funny when I say mangled - not sure if you can see properly in the photo but the squid is dried then put through a small mangle on the back of the sellers bike (Just like the one Granny used to use for the washing - only slightly smaller) and is then hung on the frame connected to the bike. I cannot describe how gross this is - I may eat frogs legs but draw the line at mangled squid!!. Tom was slightly worse for wear at the end of the evening (and is going to kill me for adding these photos :-))

New Year's Eve and New Year's Day

We decided that the only way to celebrate our first new year in Thailand was to celebrate in style!! I booked us into the coolest hotel I have ever stayed in.

It's called Reflection Rooms and I think the concept is brilliant - each room has been decorated by a different designer, both Thai and International, so have a completely different feel to them. http://www.reflections-thai.com/rooms.html#rooms (We stayed in room 406). We were not 100% sure where it was but managed to spot it pretty easily 'It will be the big pink building then' was Chris's comment. We checked in and were shown to our room - it was fab (Chris admitted that it was pretty weird but in a good way) and had the biggest bed I have ever seen (Not sure why since Thai's are so small but Chris was thrilled because for once his feet didn't hang off the end). There was an invitation to attend pre-dinner cocktails which we decided to go along to (Well, it would have been rude not to!!)

We had a lovely afternoon - went for a walk to explore the area and ended up sitting watching the world go by whilst eating Lychee and Strawberry sorbet (Very yummy - if not a little weird given the fact that it was New Years Eve and really we should have been freezing our butts off!!). We then bought a couple of beers and headed back to the hotel - a very relaxing start to our evening (A pity it didn't stay that way but I'll get to that)

We headed down to the veranda by the pool (Which was really beautiful....lots of little lanterns dotted about) and had a couple of rum cocktails and some pre-dinner nibbles. The atmosphere was very chilled and we sat chatting till it was time to head over to the restaurant for dinner. Like the rest of the hotel, the restaurant was very quirky - it looked like it had a giant paper squid hanging outside it and had a very strange array of rather scary looking dolls which you could buy (Why you would want to is beyond me!!).

We had just ordered when Chris got a text message saying that there were bombs going off in Bangkok and that we should stay indoors. At this point the waiter put on the TV in the restaurant (There was one in the corner) but it was all in Thai so we knew that bombs had gone off but not where or how many. We just had to take comfort in the fact that the reports we were watching didn't show any injured people and there were no scenes of devastation (I'm sure we all remember the images shown on TV when the London Tube was bombed). Sadie phoned, having seen the news in the UK, and once she was assured that we were fine she was able to give us a bit more information (It's ridiculous when you think about it - we were actually in the country but had to rely on someone from Scotland to tell us what was going on).

The food at the restaurant was lovely (Thai and Japanese) but, as you can imagine, all we really wanted to do was to sit in front of an english news channel and find out exactly what was going on (There had been more reports by this time). This turned out to be surprisingly difficult, the hotel had no satellite channels and the only computer for guests was being used, but the receptionist took pity on us and let us use his computer so at least we then knew how many bombs had gone off, where the bombs had gone off and how many people had been hurt.

We saw in the bells sitting by the pool watching a cat chase after her three (Very cute) kittens as they jumped about the bushes trying to bite each others tails. It was a very strange evening.

New Years Day was quiet - we didn't stray very far from the house (Only popping out for some pizza) but by the 2nd everything had pretty much got back to normal.

Chris's Holiday

Chris actually had some time off over the festive season - he still had to work Wednesday, Thursday and Friday but at least he got a bit of a break. We used the time well.....

We tried out a new spa on Soi 11 called Suk Spa - it is set in an old style wooden Thai house and was absolutely gorgeous. http://www.sukspa.com/home.htm have a look and you'll see what i mean. We both booked in for a back and shoulder de-stress massage (before you say it - i am completely aware i have nothing to be stressed about!!). We sat outside and had our feet washed in warm water that had mint, lemongrass and flower petals in it and our legs were ex foliated with some kind of salt scrub (Which felt lovely till the girl I had went over a very recent mosquito bite!!). We were then taken up to the 4th floor of the building, shown into co-joining rooms and told to take all our clothes off. Chris and I were both a little baffled by this - Why do we need to take our clothes off? We are having a back massage!! I obliged - Chris on the other hand elected to keep his boxers on. The door between the rooms was closed and it was at this point that i heard a slight commotion from the other room - the masseuse had discovered Chris still had his pants on.....giggling.......she proceeded to roll down them down and then she removed them completely (I wish i had been there to see the look on his face!!). Anyway, the massage was brilliant and, strangely, involved rather a lot of buttock pummling (Ah.....that's why she removed his pants.....still a bit confused as to what buttock pummling has to do with back massage but hay ho).

We also tried a couple of new restaurants which were fantastic. We went to a place called Tenderloins on Soi 33 and had proper garlic bread (This may sound a bit bizarre but it was a cause for celebration. The Thai's put sugar in their bread which really makes it taste foul....seriously, can you imagine having a sweet ham and cheese sandwich?? I rest my case) and steak that was cooked to perfection (They even had tomato ketchup - I know I'm a philistine). There were no tables free so we sat at a ledge that looked out onto the street - Chris spent the entire evening teasing me because I had not noticed the amount of girlie bars that were on the Soi. People watching has never been so entertaining and I have to say.......the fact that mullets are not sexy has obviously not reached a fairly large section of the worlds male population!!!

The other place we discovered was called the Moghul Room - i say discovered.....it's right next to cheap charlies so we decided to try it (not that we're lazy or anything!!). The décor left a little to be desired but the food was amazing!! They had pakora on the menu which we tried....it wasn't the same but was still very tasty (When we come to Scotland on holiday i am going to be on a mission to find a book that has a recipe for proper pakora - our hunt for a Glaswegian owned Indian restaurant in Bangkok is proving fruitless and it's not like we're asking for much!!). We then had lamb samosas and we tried our first ever Doza which is like a very thin, crispy crepe and you can choose what filling you have - we had spicy potato and the combination of textures was really really good!! We also ordered spicy chickpeas (Jo you would have loved them and we will definitely take you there when you visit) to go with the buttered chicken......yummy.....

We also tried a couple of new bars but ended up in our old faithful Admakers. It really wasn't supposed to be funny but I don't think I have ever laughed so much - the band.....oh my god....the band (I'll get to the dancing Americans and pogoing Thai's in a minute). They started off well....played a couple of Gary Moore tracks which sounded great (The lead singer had quite a deep voice so they worked well) but then they made the disastrous decision that Queen songs were the way to go.....the first song, 'It's a kind of magic', was bad and it went downhill from there. I just want you take a minute to think about this.....it was a Thai band - the singer had a deep voice - he didn't actually know the words and just sang what he thought they sounded like - the harmonies from the bass and keyboard players were....interesting (and that is the kindest description that i can think of) and they were singing songs such as 'Radio Gaga', 'Bohemian Rhapsody' (aarrggg) and my personal favourite 'We are the Shampions' (I will never be able to listen to that song again). Honestly....the Americans should have known better....they had absolutely no excuse for what followed!! There were about eight of them who ended up dancing at the front of the stage....let me put it this way.....Chris who is famous for his 'frog in a blender' dancing felt confident that he could have gone up there and made a good impression!! (Yes, they were THAT bad - one of them did a very strange bum in the air wiggle without moving his feet, his arms looked like they were glued to his side and only his hands were moving - it has to be the oddest dancing I have ever seen!!). So, on one side of the stage you had strange bum wiggling Americans and on the other you had pogoing Thai's - honestly....you would have thought they were at a proper rock concert - one was having a real go at swinging his hair for Satan (which would have worked better if he had actually had hair to swing!! He looked like he was having some strange upright fit - ROCK ON!!). It was hilarious but when the band moved from Queen to the Red Hot Chilli Peppers Chris and I could take no more!!