April 17 10:30 am
Nha Trang
So yesterday I got college credit for snorkeling in the ocean. More on that later.
Yesterday morning we woke up early and headed out by boat to one of the islands around Nha Trang. The boat that took us most of the way looked sort of like the shrimping boats from Forrest Gump. When we got close to shore, a group of people in basket boats arrived to take us to shore. A basket boat is exactly what it sounds like, it looks like the bottom half of a wicker basket. It's a perfect circle, and it's rowed by 2 people whosit across from each other. The 2 passengers also sit across from each other, perpendicular to the rowers. It's the only way to balance the boat. I want to buy one and row it home across the Pacific. Those things are excellent.
Anyway, we got off at the island and went to visit the elementary school there. We had a short intro by the principal, he told us a bit about the school there. Most of the children come from fishing families and they sometimes have to take off from school to help with the fishing. We went into the schoolyard to see the kids for a few minutes, but for the most part they were either shy or not that interested in us. It was surprising, because kids in HCMC often crowd around me and/ or follow me. The island kids did like Adam quite a bit because he could lift them into the air with one hand.
After that, we went snorkeling. Actually I went with only the goggles because I have a tendancy to inhale water if I snorkel. We jumped off the boat and swam over to the coral reef. Did you know coral comes in colors other than pink and white? Because I didn't, but this reef was white/gray/purplish. Also I saw schools of tropical fish zipping along below me. They didn't seem too interested in me, but I was near the surface far away from them.
Nha Trang is literally one of the most beautiful places I've ever been to in my life. The water is bright blue-green and so clean you can see straight to the bottom. The water is sometimes interrupted by green mountainous islands with trees that cascade down towards the sea. The water has the occasional brightly colored tourist and fishing boats that seem completely natural in the landscape. It's heaven. Go google some pictures of it or something.
Also, there is an establishment where you can get 2 drinks for $1.30.
This morning, we got up early again and made a few stops. The first was to a pagoda that had a huge shrine (or whatever the equilvalent) to the monks who had self-immolated to protest the actions of the American-backed South Vietnamese government, which had persecuted Buddhists. It was a huge white statue of Buddha, and its pedestal had portraits of the monks who died.
There were more than the usual number of children selling postcards hanging out outside, and Anh Tang stopped and played cards with them. They looked really excited to have the adult attention.
Later we stopped and looked at some more Cham towers. Really once you've seen one Cham tower you've seen them all.
Thursday, April 17, 2003
April 15 11 am
Binh Thuan Province
So we arrived in Dalat and I took the occasion to walk around the city and eat things. There were cannolis. There was chocolate cake. Earlier in the day there were Girl Scout cookies. So it was a good day. Then I stayed up late talking to Thu. When I woke up the next morning, she told me Anh Hung had forgotten to turn off the faucet next door and the floor had flooded. The floor was completely dry, so I didn't believe her until I reached into my backpack to get some clothes. Yup. Everything at the bottom was soaking wet. The ink in my journal was all runny (although still readable) and it got on some of my clothes too. But anyway.
That morning we went to a Zen Buddhist monastery in the mountains. It was absolutely gorgeous, sitting halfway up a mountain overlooking a lake. Dalat is very cool compared to the rest of VN and there were pine trees all around. We spent the first part of the time listening to a monk's lecture on the basics of meditation. He also showed us the stick they used to whack those who fall asleep while meditating. They hang it on the wall. Afterwards, we were allowed to walk around the grounds. I walked down to the lake and then trudged back up again.
Then I went to Dalat market, which is large. It's about 3 or 4 stories of vendors who sell all sorts of things. I bought a few more presents, including a carved turtle for my grandmother. (That's the only gift I'll list because I'm reasonably sure she doesn't check the internet)
The other thing I did in Dalat was go to a chapel/ seminary and talk to a priest. Considering how frequently I engage in this activity at home, I was a little surprised that I did so here. Co Hai had the name of a priest in Dalat she wanted to talk to, and I went along. I'm glad I did, it was a really good experience. The priest we spoke to had lived in Berkley, California for 8 years and spoke amazing English; we also met a younger priest-in-training who also spoke good English. They told us that at that particular place they do some education, not only for new priests but also for street children who couldn't go to regular school because their parents didn't have the proper paperwork to be in Dalat. The Catholic Church is also opening a technical/trade school in the area. They used to be heavily involved in education before 1975. After that they weren't allowed to run schools, but they're gradually being allowed to do some things, as long as they're not political. Also after 1975 the government strongly limited the number of priests they were allowed to train, they could only train 5 new priests a year out of a huge pool of applicants. A lot of men who were training to be priests had to leave the seminary.
In a lot of ways, it was just like talking to a priest at home. He was very happy that I was Catholic and that I went to a Catholic college. He told me that they follow the American church pretty carefully and I think he probably knows more about it than I do. When I asked him if he thought the Vietnamese Church was more conservative than the American one, he laughed and told me that they were "more Vatican than the Vatican" They follow traditions pretty seriously here. I think it's partially because VN is culturally a lot more conservative than the US, but people also seem more likely to hang on to old church traditions. When I was in Notre Dame in Ho Chi Minh City lighting my Girl Scout cookie candle this guy came up to me and handed me a prayer card. He told me if I said the prayer on good Friday Jesus would release 33 souls from pergatory. If I said it twice Jesus would spring twice as many people. I've never even heard puragatory mentioned in a church in the US. People are also more scrupulous about going to church and such. They're not cynical about the religion the way a lot of people are in America. Priests are treated with more obvious respect, and there's no shortage of young men wanting to be priests. When I told him I was Irish he lamented that Ireland doesn't export priests like it used ot. It's a lot like the way I've been told the church was in the 50s.
After the church, I hung out with Co Hai all afternoon. It was cool. She used to work in Dalat and knows where things are. We went all over, to Dalat University and the golf course and generally all over the city. Dalat's very pretty and hilly and it's definitely at a slower pace than HCMC.
I forgot to mention that that morning we went to Bao Dai's summer palace. Bao Dai is considered the last of the Vietnamese emporers, although his father was probably gay and Bao Dai didn't look a thing like him. No matter. The country was pretty much run by the French anyway, and they sent Bao Dai to be educated in France. He was very influenced by them, and the palace looks like something that might have been built in the US in the 50s or 60s. It was pale yellow on the outside and everything was all geometric and generally unattractive. I don't remember if I took pictures.
This morning we got on a bus to Nha Trang. On the way, we stopped at a Co Ho ethnic minority village and talked to a nun who works there. She said she came to the village 10 years ago to help the people with medicine and things like that, and she told us about their society. It's set up almost the opposite of Vietnamese and Western society - very strongly matriarchal. If a girl falls in love with a boy, her mother brings his family about 1 million Vietnam dong ($75) as sort of a deposit. If the couple gets married, the bride's family pays the groom's family between 10 and 30 VND. Weddings are a huge deal in their society, and they rent a really nice wedding dress and a car and go drive around the area. It sometimes takes the bride's family 5 years to pay off the wedding. Once the couple is married, the man goes to live with the woman's family and takes her last name. The woman has the supreme authority in the family and goes to work while the men stay home with the kids. If a man wants to leave a marriage, he has to pay back all the money/ animals that were part of the bride's dowery and then he is considered free. So it's sort of an economic thing.
Later - Nha Trang
On the bus ride here we stopped at some Cham towers. The Chams are a group of people who had a kingdom in the south before the Vietnamese conquered them. The towers are made of brick that is the reddish color of the soil in the area. The hill where the towers sit is dusty and actually has cacti. The Chams were very influenced by India and the towers look pretty Indian. I took pictures.
Also on the bus they gave us some Vietnamese elementary school textbooks. I had 2 art books, a social studies book, and a book with stories. The art books were really step-by-step ("a. take 2 pieces of paper. b. glue them together.") There was another book that was focused on manners and ethics, with a whole section on when to say "please" and when to say "excuse me".
Here in Nha Trang, our hotel is a block away from the beach. I went for a quick swim in the ocean and the water is so nice and warm!
Binh Thuan Province
So we arrived in Dalat and I took the occasion to walk around the city and eat things. There were cannolis. There was chocolate cake. Earlier in the day there were Girl Scout cookies. So it was a good day. Then I stayed up late talking to Thu. When I woke up the next morning, she told me Anh Hung had forgotten to turn off the faucet next door and the floor had flooded. The floor was completely dry, so I didn't believe her until I reached into my backpack to get some clothes. Yup. Everything at the bottom was soaking wet. The ink in my journal was all runny (although still readable) and it got on some of my clothes too. But anyway.
That morning we went to a Zen Buddhist monastery in the mountains. It was absolutely gorgeous, sitting halfway up a mountain overlooking a lake. Dalat is very cool compared to the rest of VN and there were pine trees all around. We spent the first part of the time listening to a monk's lecture on the basics of meditation. He also showed us the stick they used to whack those who fall asleep while meditating. They hang it on the wall. Afterwards, we were allowed to walk around the grounds. I walked down to the lake and then trudged back up again.
Then I went to Dalat market, which is large. It's about 3 or 4 stories of vendors who sell all sorts of things. I bought a few more presents, including a carved turtle for my grandmother. (That's the only gift I'll list because I'm reasonably sure she doesn't check the internet)
The other thing I did in Dalat was go to a chapel/ seminary and talk to a priest. Considering how frequently I engage in this activity at home, I was a little surprised that I did so here. Co Hai had the name of a priest in Dalat she wanted to talk to, and I went along. I'm glad I did, it was a really good experience. The priest we spoke to had lived in Berkley, California for 8 years and spoke amazing English; we also met a younger priest-in-training who also spoke good English. They told us that at that particular place they do some education, not only for new priests but also for street children who couldn't go to regular school because their parents didn't have the proper paperwork to be in Dalat. The Catholic Church is also opening a technical/trade school in the area. They used to be heavily involved in education before 1975. After that they weren't allowed to run schools, but they're gradually being allowed to do some things, as long as they're not political. Also after 1975 the government strongly limited the number of priests they were allowed to train, they could only train 5 new priests a year out of a huge pool of applicants. A lot of men who were training to be priests had to leave the seminary.
In a lot of ways, it was just like talking to a priest at home. He was very happy that I was Catholic and that I went to a Catholic college. He told me that they follow the American church pretty carefully and I think he probably knows more about it than I do. When I asked him if he thought the Vietnamese Church was more conservative than the American one, he laughed and told me that they were "more Vatican than the Vatican" They follow traditions pretty seriously here. I think it's partially because VN is culturally a lot more conservative than the US, but people also seem more likely to hang on to old church traditions. When I was in Notre Dame in Ho Chi Minh City lighting my Girl Scout cookie candle this guy came up to me and handed me a prayer card. He told me if I said the prayer on good Friday Jesus would release 33 souls from pergatory. If I said it twice Jesus would spring twice as many people. I've never even heard puragatory mentioned in a church in the US. People are also more scrupulous about going to church and such. They're not cynical about the religion the way a lot of people are in America. Priests are treated with more obvious respect, and there's no shortage of young men wanting to be priests. When I told him I was Irish he lamented that Ireland doesn't export priests like it used ot. It's a lot like the way I've been told the church was in the 50s.
After the church, I hung out with Co Hai all afternoon. It was cool. She used to work in Dalat and knows where things are. We went all over, to Dalat University and the golf course and generally all over the city. Dalat's very pretty and hilly and it's definitely at a slower pace than HCMC.
I forgot to mention that that morning we went to Bao Dai's summer palace. Bao Dai is considered the last of the Vietnamese emporers, although his father was probably gay and Bao Dai didn't look a thing like him. No matter. The country was pretty much run by the French anyway, and they sent Bao Dai to be educated in France. He was very influenced by them, and the palace looks like something that might have been built in the US in the 50s or 60s. It was pale yellow on the outside and everything was all geometric and generally unattractive. I don't remember if I took pictures.
This morning we got on a bus to Nha Trang. On the way, we stopped at a Co Ho ethnic minority village and talked to a nun who works there. She said she came to the village 10 years ago to help the people with medicine and things like that, and she told us about their society. It's set up almost the opposite of Vietnamese and Western society - very strongly matriarchal. If a girl falls in love with a boy, her mother brings his family about 1 million Vietnam dong ($75) as sort of a deposit. If the couple gets married, the bride's family pays the groom's family between 10 and 30 VND. Weddings are a huge deal in their society, and they rent a really nice wedding dress and a car and go drive around the area. It sometimes takes the bride's family 5 years to pay off the wedding. Once the couple is married, the man goes to live with the woman's family and takes her last name. The woman has the supreme authority in the family and goes to work while the men stay home with the kids. If a man wants to leave a marriage, he has to pay back all the money/ animals that were part of the bride's dowery and then he is considered free. So it's sort of an economic thing.
Later - Nha Trang
On the bus ride here we stopped at some Cham towers. The Chams are a group of people who had a kingdom in the south before the Vietnamese conquered them. The towers are made of brick that is the reddish color of the soil in the area. The hill where the towers sit is dusty and actually has cacti. The Chams were very influenced by India and the towers look pretty Indian. I took pictures.
Also on the bus they gave us some Vietnamese elementary school textbooks. I had 2 art books, a social studies book, and a book with stories. The art books were really step-by-step ("a. take 2 pieces of paper. b. glue them together.") There was another book that was focused on manners and ethics, with a whole section on when to say "please" and when to say "excuse me".
Here in Nha Trang, our hotel is a block away from the beach. I went for a quick swim in the ocean and the water is so nice and warm!
Later....
On a happier note, for the past 2 nights I went to the theater performances that my advisor suggested with Phuong. It was very cool. The sets were really simple - the first one consisted mostly of some blocks that were moved around to symbolize furniture and white ribbons that descended from the ceiling. The ribbons had phones attached to them and were used to symbolize telephones.
The second play was a musical about a boy who leaves the countryside to go away to college. He often imagines that his father comes to advise him. For some reason, the father comes dressed as a bird. Maybe I should have asked Phuong to explain that one to me. Anyway, when that play ended I ran into my advisor outside and talked to her for awhile. It turns out that she wrote both plays. She actually speaks fairly decent English. She took me backstage briefly to introduce me to one of the actors and would have hooked me up with an interview, except that we were about to leave. She was really nice and helpful and offered to introduce me to other people to interview. So I am excited now.
today we got up at the ungodly hour of 6 and boarded a bus for Dalat. We had to say good bye to Michelle, who is leaving for the US. I'm going to miss her. The group keeps shrinking. Also I heard that there are 2 unconfirmed cases of SARS in HCMC ( Present-time note: As far as I know they still haven't been confirmed) I really hope ISP doesn't get cancelled. I don't think it will. The WHO says the only threat is to healthcare workers.
We stopped briefly to visit a coffee/tea plantation. I bougth Cate some coffee, my first gift for anyone thus far. We got to see the place where they grow coffee and tea. Tea plants look like shrubs someone might have in front of their house, and coffee trees are about the size of a small pine tree. Coffee beans are red and about the same size as cherries. You peel away the outside covering and there are 2 beans inside. They are light green and do taste vaguely like coffee.
On a happier note, for the past 2 nights I went to the theater performances that my advisor suggested with Phuong. It was very cool. The sets were really simple - the first one consisted mostly of some blocks that were moved around to symbolize furniture and white ribbons that descended from the ceiling. The ribbons had phones attached to them and were used to symbolize telephones.
The second play was a musical about a boy who leaves the countryside to go away to college. He often imagines that his father comes to advise him. For some reason, the father comes dressed as a bird. Maybe I should have asked Phuong to explain that one to me. Anyway, when that play ended I ran into my advisor outside and talked to her for awhile. It turns out that she wrote both plays. She actually speaks fairly decent English. She took me backstage briefly to introduce me to one of the actors and would have hooked me up with an interview, except that we were about to leave. She was really nice and helpful and offered to introduce me to other people to interview. So I am excited now.
today we got up at the ungodly hour of 6 and boarded a bus for Dalat. We had to say good bye to Michelle, who is leaving for the US. I'm going to miss her. The group keeps shrinking. Also I heard that there are 2 unconfirmed cases of SARS in HCMC ( Present-time note: As far as I know they still haven't been confirmed) I really hope ISP doesn't get cancelled. I don't think it will. The WHO says the only threat is to healthcare workers.
We stopped briefly to visit a coffee/tea plantation. I bougth Cate some coffee, my first gift for anyone thus far. We got to see the place where they grow coffee and tea. Tea plants look like shrubs someone might have in front of their house, and coffee trees are about the size of a small pine tree. Coffee beans are red and about the same size as cherries. You peel away the outside covering and there are 2 beans inside. They are light green and do taste vaguely like coffee.
April 13, Noon
On a bus to Dalat
So yesterday we all went out to lunch with Co Tam, our Vietnamese teacher. She took us to this restaurant that was located in the back of a mosque that served food that I think was Indian. I was suprised it was there. The food was good and very spicey. I had never been to a mosque before. There are Muslims, a few, in HCMC. The people there actually let me up to have a look around, even though I wasn't dressed appropriately. (I didn't look slutty, but I was wearing short sleeves and my head was uncovered. I didn't know we were going to a mosque.) they probably thought I was a harmless tourist. It was very simple, just a tile floor with different sections for men and women. The restaurant was sort of behind and to the left of where people pray.
Then we went out to this ice cream place and gave her our gifts. I gave her the photo book of the United States that I brought, and I stopped to point out the Vermont-esque scenes.
Also I forgot to mention that the day before she was interviewing me as part of my Vietnamese test and was asking me all the standard questions that I have the vocabulary to answer. (ie, "What is the age of your cat?") She was asking me about my family, and she asked how old my father is. when I told her, she asked if he'd ever been to Vietnam before. I said yes, and she got kind of an "oh shit" expression on her face. She asked when, and I told her "1972" in English. She told me to say it in Vietnamese, and I did, and that was that. She was the first Vietnamese person I've told that my father was in the war. Good that she didn't really care.
On a bus to Dalat
So yesterday we all went out to lunch with Co Tam, our Vietnamese teacher. She took us to this restaurant that was located in the back of a mosque that served food that I think was Indian. I was suprised it was there. The food was good and very spicey. I had never been to a mosque before. There are Muslims, a few, in HCMC. The people there actually let me up to have a look around, even though I wasn't dressed appropriately. (I didn't look slutty, but I was wearing short sleeves and my head was uncovered. I didn't know we were going to a mosque.) they probably thought I was a harmless tourist. It was very simple, just a tile floor with different sections for men and women. The restaurant was sort of behind and to the left of where people pray.
Then we went out to this ice cream place and gave her our gifts. I gave her the photo book of the United States that I brought, and I stopped to point out the Vermont-esque scenes.
Also I forgot to mention that the day before she was interviewing me as part of my Vietnamese test and was asking me all the standard questions that I have the vocabulary to answer. (ie, "What is the age of your cat?") She was asking me about my family, and she asked how old my father is. when I told her, she asked if he'd ever been to Vietnam before. I said yes, and she got kind of an "oh shit" expression on her face. She asked when, and I told her "1972" in English. She told me to say it in Vietnamese, and I did, and that was that. She was the first Vietnamese person I've told that my father was in the war. Good that she didn't really care.
April 12
Ug, I have been doing such a bad job of keeping up with writing lately. Last night I went to see a comedy with Phoung. It was really good, you almost didn't have to be able to speak Vietnamese to follow it. It was about a strange family. The wife gets a fake, substitute husband who looks like her real husband because the real one is too difficult to deal with, the son wants to be a singer and does an Elvis number, and the daughter sells fake bottled water until she gets caught. Also it used the Austin Powers theme as scene-change music.
For the record, I am aware of how much that description sucks.
Also yesterday, we had our culture and development midterm. It was long but not too bad. We also had our Vietnamese final in the morning. It was weird, full of words that we'd never heard, but Co Tam translated a lot of them for us. I'm going to miss her.
Ug, I have been doing such a bad job of keeping up with writing lately. Last night I went to see a comedy with Phoung. It was really good, you almost didn't have to be able to speak Vietnamese to follow it. It was about a strange family. The wife gets a fake, substitute husband who looks like her real husband because the real one is too difficult to deal with, the son wants to be a singer and does an Elvis number, and the daughter sells fake bottled water until she gets caught. Also it used the Austin Powers theme as scene-change music.
For the record, I am aware of how much that description sucks.
Also yesterday, we had our culture and development midterm. It was long but not too bad. We also had our Vietnamese final in the morning. It was weird, full of words that we'd never heard, but Co Tam translated a lot of them for us. I'm going to miss her.
April 9, 11 pm
Saigon
Today Anh Hung called and told me he'd set up a meeting with my ISP advisor. She's a playwright/actress/director/drama teacher. So we went to her school to see her. It's a 3 story building that I would describe as very open, in the sense that the windows and doors are often open and air flows in and out easily. It kind of looks like the university. In front of it is a big theater covered in blue-tinted glass. I have her my proposal, which is basically "I want to study theater in HCMC." She told me I had to refine it more than that. Yeah. So she gave me the names of 2 plays to see this weekend, in the hopes that that will give me some ideas. Phoung's coming with me to translate! Rejoice!
Random notes on things going on here before I forget:
-I've spotted random tourists walking around in SARS masks. Also people (not many people, just maybe 2) are selling high tech masks on the street for $75 USD.
-I've must cease spending money like it's my job.
-Awhile ago we had a lecturer come to talk to us on doi moi, which is basically the policies with which VN's been developing a market economy. Since doi moi started in the last 80s, VN's made a lot of progress; it went from importing rice to exporting it in large quantities and the standard of living has increased. Someone asked the professor if he thought people were being exploited in the sweatshops that have been cropping up here. He said no, that they would have to work just as hard on a farm and would not make close to the $50 USD a month they make now. He viewed it as opportunity rather than exploitation. So Nike doesn't make this stuff up after all. People asked a few more questions, but he definitely maintained his belief and seems puzzled that we would view sweatshops as bad.
On one hand, from what I've seen of farming, people do work really hard for not much money. Sometimes they move to the city looking for a better life and end up part of an army of vendors selling lottery tickets or cigarettes. It honestly seems worse than grinding factory work.
On the other hand, these companies come here because it is illegal to treat people so poorly in the United States. Are the people here less important? Would people view it as exploitation if they knew how much money Nike was making on those shoes?
Saigon
Today Anh Hung called and told me he'd set up a meeting with my ISP advisor. She's a playwright/actress/director/drama teacher. So we went to her school to see her. It's a 3 story building that I would describe as very open, in the sense that the windows and doors are often open and air flows in and out easily. It kind of looks like the university. In front of it is a big theater covered in blue-tinted glass. I have her my proposal, which is basically "I want to study theater in HCMC." She told me I had to refine it more than that. Yeah. So she gave me the names of 2 plays to see this weekend, in the hopes that that will give me some ideas. Phoung's coming with me to translate! Rejoice!
Random notes on things going on here before I forget:
-I've spotted random tourists walking around in SARS masks. Also people (not many people, just maybe 2) are selling high tech masks on the street for $75 USD.
-I've must cease spending money like it's my job.
-Awhile ago we had a lecturer come to talk to us on doi moi, which is basically the policies with which VN's been developing a market economy. Since doi moi started in the last 80s, VN's made a lot of progress; it went from importing rice to exporting it in large quantities and the standard of living has increased. Someone asked the professor if he thought people were being exploited in the sweatshops that have been cropping up here. He said no, that they would have to work just as hard on a farm and would not make close to the $50 USD a month they make now. He viewed it as opportunity rather than exploitation. So Nike doesn't make this stuff up after all. People asked a few more questions, but he definitely maintained his belief and seems puzzled that we would view sweatshops as bad.
On one hand, from what I've seen of farming, people do work really hard for not much money. Sometimes they move to the city looking for a better life and end up part of an army of vendors selling lottery tickets or cigarettes. It honestly seems worse than grinding factory work.
On the other hand, these companies come here because it is illegal to treat people so poorly in the United States. Are the people here less important? Would people view it as exploitation if they knew how much money Nike was making on those shoes?
April 7, 12 pm
Saigon
Yesterday, I went back to the big buffet manicured country-club place, where I again ate way too much food and everything was again delicious.
Also yesterday the cleaning lady knocked on the door while I was sitting in my room and asked if she could have some of the vodka that was in my fridge. I said sure, and she poured herself a glass and left. That was strange. Not because she knew I had the vodka; here it really wouldn't be unusual for her to look in my fridge. However, a) I've never seen a Vietnamese woman drink before and b) it was 11 am.
Today in Vietnamese class, I learned that it's good to have a lot of circular-shaped fingerprints, as opposed to the kind that look like a swish. They're called hoa tay, flower of hand, and if you have them it means that you're good at cooking, painting, and drawing. The more you have the better. I've only got 3, which explains quite a bit.
Saigon
Yesterday, I went back to the big buffet manicured country-club place, where I again ate way too much food and everything was again delicious.
Also yesterday the cleaning lady knocked on the door while I was sitting in my room and asked if she could have some of the vodka that was in my fridge. I said sure, and she poured herself a glass and left. That was strange. Not because she knew I had the vodka; here it really wouldn't be unusual for her to look in my fridge. However, a) I've never seen a Vietnamese woman drink before and b) it was 11 am.
Today in Vietnamese class, I learned that it's good to have a lot of circular-shaped fingerprints, as opposed to the kind that look like a swish. They're called hoa tay, flower of hand, and if you have them it means that you're good at cooking, painting, and drawing. The more you have the better. I've only got 3, which explains quite a bit.
April 5 4 pm
Saigon
It was an Easter basket, with all kinds of yummy Easter candy. I have been trying to conserve and failing miserably. Mmmmm. Last night Crystal and I went cruising around the city with Phoung and Phoung. We went to a few markets and stores looking for jewelry for Crystal. I bought new headphones in a grocery store/ dept store type place. I learned that here it is ok to put something in your purse after you've paid for it and continue to walk around the store. What a trusting country. Of course the best part was riding around the city on motorbikes!
When we got back to the EGH we actually played cards, for the first time in a long time.
This morning, I had an ISP meeting with Stu and Co. I basically either want to stalk a group of people through rehearsal or do a photo essay on current productions with really detailed captions. Either one would be cool and I'm excited about it.
Oh yes, and apparently there are no books on Vietnamese theater on barnesandnoble.com or amazon.com
Saigon
It was an Easter basket, with all kinds of yummy Easter candy. I have been trying to conserve and failing miserably. Mmmmm. Last night Crystal and I went cruising around the city with Phoung and Phoung. We went to a few markets and stores looking for jewelry for Crystal. I bought new headphones in a grocery store/ dept store type place. I learned that here it is ok to put something in your purse after you've paid for it and continue to walk around the store. What a trusting country. Of course the best part was riding around the city on motorbikes!
When we got back to the EGH we actually played cards, for the first time in a long time.
This morning, I had an ISP meeting with Stu and Co. I basically either want to stalk a group of people through rehearsal or do a photo essay on current productions with really detailed captions. Either one would be cool and I'm excited about it.
Oh yes, and apparently there are no books on Vietnamese theater on barnesandnoble.com or amazon.com
April 4
Saigon
Basically not much is going on today. I ordered some capris out of some pretty blue fabric and I'm going to try them on today. I got a note in my mailbox saying I have another package; I think it's Easter baskets. So that should be good. Right now it's afternoon and no one's around. I'll probably walk to the post office to get my package. Maybe fewer vendors this time.
Saigon
Basically not much is going on today. I ordered some capris out of some pretty blue fabric and I'm going to try them on today. I got a note in my mailbox saying I have another package; I think it's Easter baskets. So that should be good. Right now it's afternoon and no one's around. I'll probably walk to the post office to get my package. Maybe fewer vendors this time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
