With just a few weeks left in Hang Chat, we're happy to present another Spotlight feature on our favorite people and places in our little town.
In this post, I'll introduce you to three of our favorite adoptive family members: Lung (Uncle) Ween and his wife (Mrs. Lung Ween, of course) and Lung Geet (we think that’s what he said).
Lung Ween and his wife run a typical Thai restaurant in the giant front room of their home. Sara and I love their fried rice; it is the most flavorful in town by a mile. They are always happy to see us, and we go see them once a week for lunch like clockwork.
As a bonus, they have two very cute (and perpetually tired) dogs. One is a big blob of a mutt that stays outside by his giant chewing bones; he is sleeping in the shade under their car 99.9% of the time we visit, and we'd fear for his vitality if he didn't lethargically lift his head and glance our way when our motorbike pulls up.
The other dog is a ridiculously curly toy poodle that gets the royal treatment of life inside the house, free reign inside the restaurant, and hilariously demeaning outfits. Sara attempted tosteal befriend this cute little guy to no avail, as the dog was more than happy to stay near the fridge filled with chicken and pork.
Also of note, Lung Ween's is the only place in Hang Chat that keeps the Thai News channel on instead of the trulyterrible fabulous soap operas and "comedy" shows we’re used to seeing. We enjoy the break, although the news seems a little bland without the "boi-oi-oing" sound effects normally featured heavily in Thai TV.
Right across the street from Lung Ween is our favorite place in Hang Chat: Lung Geet's house and drink cart.
Hang Chat has six or seven coffee shops, and probably twice as many drink carts. It always makes me smile to think of how lucky we were to stumble upon Lung Geet's unassuming location, off the main road and usually quiet. Lung Geet himself is a wonderful guy, welcoming and very sweet to us. On top of that, he somehow has the best AND cheapest drinks in all of Lampang, with fifty cents getting you a big cup of Thai milk tea or iced coffee. For the first few months of frequenting his stand, Sara and I would chat a little bit with Lung Geet and visit with his VERY feisty cat, Uan, which is the Thai word for chubby. Uan loves to "play" with us by clawing and biting at us, but her biggest claim to fame is, as Lung Geet put it, her "gymnastics". She'll take a few steps, tuck her head under her front paws, and roll forward like a fluffy bowling ball. She does it plenty on her own, but you can activate it yourself by petting her twice near her tail, which is her cue to start the routine. Here’s a short video of Uan Sara took. Just imagine her doing this 10 times in a row.
Just as Uan was getting used to us and becoming more and more friendly, another cat showed up at Lung Geet's. This second cat, who we named Preggo Baby because she has been constantly pregnant since we met her a few months ago, is probably the sweetest cat we've met here. We spent a lot of time giving her massages during our visits, and eventually she'd come running out to us from her hiding spot behind the building when she'd hear our voices. About a month after we met her, Lung Geet set her up with a comfy spot inside to have her babies. She had four babies, all different colors, all incredibly cute, and all VERY hungry. A few weeks later, one of the babies shacked up with another cat family and moved down the road to get more space. The other three, we're happy to report, are doing great with Lung Geet's help, and we have had some wonderful experiences visiting with the entire family. Feisty Uan is very unhappy about the invasion of her home by these new cats, but she is still Lung Geet's favorite and gets plenty of time with him. Preggo Baby is, at press time, pregnant again, and Sara and I have to laugh when we think about the little babies inside her getting massaged when the previous litter squeezes her belly to get more milk.
When we went to take some of these pictures for this posts, both Lung Geet and Lung Ween assumed we were leaving Thailand that day and either said goodbye or good luck or shook my hand. We still have about a month here, but I'm already getting a little sad thinking about our routine changing. Thank you to our adoptive uncles and aunts for making our time in Hang Chat both delicious and welcoming!
In this post, I'll introduce you to three of our favorite adoptive family members: Lung (Uncle) Ween and his wife (Mrs. Lung Ween, of course) and Lung Geet (we think that’s what he said).
Lung Ween and his wife run a typical Thai restaurant in the giant front room of their home. Sara and I love their fried rice; it is the most flavorful in town by a mile. They are always happy to see us, and we go see them once a week for lunch like clockwork.
As a bonus, they have two very cute (and perpetually tired) dogs. One is a big blob of a mutt that stays outside by his giant chewing bones; he is sleeping in the shade under their car 99.9% of the time we visit, and we'd fear for his vitality if he didn't lethargically lift his head and glance our way when our motorbike pulls up.The other dog is a ridiculously curly toy poodle that gets the royal treatment of life inside the house, free reign inside the restaurant, and hilariously demeaning outfits. Sara attempted to
Also of note, Lung Ween's is the only place in Hang Chat that keeps the Thai News channel on instead of the truly
Right across the street from Lung Ween is our favorite place in Hang Chat: Lung Geet's house and drink cart.
Hang Chat has six or seven coffee shops, and probably twice as many drink carts. It always makes me smile to think of how lucky we were to stumble upon Lung Geet's unassuming location, off the main road and usually quiet. Lung Geet himself is a wonderful guy, welcoming and very sweet to us. On top of that, he somehow has the best AND cheapest drinks in all of Lampang, with fifty cents getting you a big cup of Thai milk tea or iced coffee. For the first few months of frequenting his stand, Sara and I would chat a little bit with Lung Geet and visit with his VERY feisty cat, Uan, which is the Thai word for chubby. Uan loves to "play" with us by clawing and biting at us, but her biggest claim to fame is, as Lung Geet put it, her "gymnastics". She'll take a few steps, tuck her head under her front paws, and roll forward like a fluffy bowling ball. She does it plenty on her own, but you can activate it yourself by petting her twice near her tail, which is her cue to start the routine. Here’s a short video of Uan Sara took. Just imagine her doing this 10 times in a row.
Just as Uan was getting used to us and becoming more and more friendly, another cat showed up at Lung Geet's. This second cat, who we named Preggo Baby because she has been constantly pregnant since we met her a few months ago, is probably the sweetest cat we've met here. We spent a lot of time giving her massages during our visits, and eventually she'd come running out to us from her hiding spot behind the building when she'd hear our voices. About a month after we met her, Lung Geet set her up with a comfy spot inside to have her babies. She had four babies, all different colors, all incredibly cute, and all VERY hungry. A few weeks later, one of the babies shacked up with another cat family and moved down the road to get more space. The other three, we're happy to report, are doing great with Lung Geet's help, and we have had some wonderful experiences visiting with the entire family. Feisty Uan is very unhappy about the invasion of her home by these new cats, but she is still Lung Geet's favorite and gets plenty of time with him. Preggo Baby is, at press time, pregnant again, and Sara and I have to laugh when we think about the little babies inside her getting massaged when the previous litter squeezes her belly to get more milk.
When we went to take some of these pictures for this posts, both Lung Geet and Lung Ween assumed we were leaving Thailand that day and either said goodbye or good luck or shook my hand. We still have about a month here, but I'm already getting a little sad thinking about our routine changing. Thank you to our adoptive uncles and aunts for making our time in Hang Chat both delicious and welcoming!
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