I was a junior at Stanford and not totally satisfied with my choice to become a chemical engineer.  I had at that point actually taken more art courses than those in ChE.  I always had an artistic flare, and when I graduated in ChE, I almost went to Sophia University in Tokyo to pursue my interest in art.  My more responsible self kept me on my path to become what I am today, But going back to 1960, I looked into becoming an architect or architectural engineer.  To do so meant I had to spend a extra year and half making up courses.  But I've kept up with this field, which will lead today to an architect no one has ever heard of, Shaun Killa. To begin, who designed those noteworthy structures of our historic past? A good place to start is the Great Pyramid of Giza, which dates back to 2560 BC, or 4585 years ago. Egyptian Prince Hemiunu  is believed to have been the architect. Actually, Egyptian chancellor to King Djoser around 2625,  Imhotep , built the...

A 6:15AM pickup at the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit, two hours in the Suvarnabhumi Airport first class lounge, first class flight from Bangkok to Dubai, then after two hours in the airline first class lounge, a second AirBus 380,   largest passenger liner in world , from Dubai to Munich, a total period of around 20 hours.  Basically, we had to wake up at 4:45AM in Bangkok, and did not get to the Munich Westin Grande Hotel until 3:15AM ( or 9:15PM Munich time--there is a 6 hour difference ). This was the ultimate in luxury, and a prime example of too much of a good thing. First, Emirates picks us up at our Bangkok hotel and drops us off at our Munich hotel.  Nice. The Emirates Bangkok first class airline lounge early in the morning has the full complement of food and drinks. First class on an Air Bus 380 features unlimited caviar and high end champagne/scotch, like Dom Perignon, Johnny Walker Blue and Dalmore. The TV screen is huge, video/audio selections immense and a door b...

If you ever come to Bangkok, one experience you should not miss is rooftop dining.  It must have been more than two decades ago.  I was staying in the Banyan Tree Hotel, which was then a Westin.  In any case, at the top was  Vertigo , the first roof top dining restaurant in the city.  The building has 61 floors, and you are at the top. Since then I've dined at a few more.  As the second of its kind,  Sirocco  opened in 2003 on the 63rd floor.  Read about  my experience in 2015: ... the symbol of supreme dining extravagance in Thailand, remaining as the highest place to enjoy a meal with only the sky above you, on the 63rd floor of the State Tower.   I took the photos below awaiting my table and saw the sunset. Maybe your mind might recall this scene, for parts of  Hangover 2  were shot here. This posting  provides cuisine and wine details for every dish. So, the chef came by to chat with me, for maybe the third time, ...