10-09-2005

local pet and plant / bonsai market Weather began partly cloudy and moved to full cloudy by afternoon. It was mostly a day of cruising, nothing too interesting along the shoreline other than the occasional farmer and ubiquitous water buffalo. The market was typically crowded. There were lots of stalls with all manner of wood carving, small pets, plants and exquisite bonsai trees which can be had for a small fraction of their American price. Unfortunately they cannot be brought home due to customs and just the logistics of lugging them. Pets included rabbits, turtles, fish, small pigs, all varieties of birds, dogs and sadly kittens. The kittens seemed to be second class citizens crowded into small cages. They all looked frail and sickly. It was very sad.