Monday Memories – Bangkok’s Junior MasterChef

A boy uses a mortar and pestle on Soi 38, Thong Lor. Bangkok, Thailand. Copyright © 2023 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved. Bangkok's Junior MasterChef.

There are many people in Thailand who believe that traditional home-cooked Thai food is becoming a thing of the past. This image of Bangkok’s junior MasterChef gave me some hope that wasn’t the case. Pre-packaged curry pastes and even entire Thai dishes that were historically the staple of a home cooked meal, now sit in … Read more

Footpath Feasting: From Pho to Thit Bo Kho in Saigon

Street Food in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam. Copyright 2014 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

When Lara first suggested the idea of a side trip to Saigon from Bangkok, my thoughts immediately turned to food, to Vietnamese food, and specifically to pho bo (or more correctly, phở bò). Soon after arriving, I’d be salivating at the words thit bo kho (thịt bò khô). You see, when I first moved to Sydney … Read more

Sipping Singha Beer in Bangkok

Sipping Singha Beer in Bangkok. Soi 38, Thong Lor, Bangkok. Copyright © 2023 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

We love eating street food on the footpaths of Bangkok. But if there is a downside, it’s the sweltering heat and often stifling humidity that nearly constantly hangs over the city. There is a cure though and it’s sipping Singha Beer in Bangkok. Icy cold beer too, like the one in the photo above. There’s … Read more

Eating Out in Saigon

Fresh Spring Rolls, Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam. Copyright © 2023 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved. Eating Out in Saigon.

Eating out in Saigon is an absolute delight. While street food rules in Vietnam’s northern capital Hanoi, in the southern Vietnamese city of Saigon, officially called Ho Chi Minh City, you’ll find some of the country’s best restaurants. We’ve long loved Vietnamese cuisine, having been spoilt with authentic Vietnamese food when we used to live in Sydney, home … Read more

Saigon, the Vietnamese City of Millions of Motorbikes

Saigon, the City of Millions of Motorbikes. Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam. Copyright © 2023 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved. Saigon, Vietnam, the City of Millions of Motorbikes.

Some call Saigon, Vietnam, the city of millions of motorbikes. Some say that there are 10 million bikes. We’re not entirely sure there are ten million motorcycles – estimates vary from 2.5 to five to ten and more – so let’s just settle on millions. Either way, for a small city, that’s a lot of … Read more