I woke up this morning and laughed at myself. Last night after jazz I walked to meet Sho and Mike at a club not too far away. I knew they were coming sometime between 1030 and 1130 so I'd be clubbing solo .. which has been done before on many occasions (just not in Vietnam). I don't think there was a single Vietnamese person at the club and I concluded that every white person was kidnapped from their nice hotel and deposited into this club. The DJ was spinning something amazing... like old school James brown funk.. with ultra lounge house.. and an occasional pitbull beat. Found a spot on the dance floor, closed my eyes, and danced the night away with myself. Later on found my friends who wanted to go to another club. when I told Sho I was going to stay here solo he looked at me and gave me an astonished 'really?!' and really... I did. and had a great time partying with myself!
managed to sleep in, did a yoga class, and reeeeelaxed with a 90 minute massage before getting in a private car headed to better scenery in mui ne.
it's pouring rain in mui ne. the kind of downpour that threatens to kill my iPhone if I go outside. I'm sitting in a wonderful art cafe with a salad and shiraz by candlelight... because the power is out. I'm overwhelmed with happiness. the last week+ has been rough on me. I checked myself into a luxury resort apartment owned by a sweet Russian couple Vaughn and Sharon. my apartment is huge, modern, air conditioned, poolside, has a full fridge filled with wine, beer and ice cream, there is free laundry service and breakfast, and my huge plasma tv turns into a computer. I don't know what else I could ask for. the kicker... I somehow negotiated this $100+/night room down to $40... over email. yeeaaa boooiiii.
the owner of the cafe, Joe, comes over with free peach shooters since the power is out. usually I'd opt out, but since this cafe is across the street from my apartment and I'm surrounded by white people.. I dont think it gets much safer than that.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Ho Chi Minh ... again.
It was raining when the plane landed in Ho Chi Minh. Spent the afternoon trying to shake the 'yuck' I've been feeling. Paid 200,000 dong ($10) to go to the gym (which is a lot in Vietnam.. but worth every dollar). Apparently women do not lift weights in Vietnam so I created quite a stir in the weight room. Didn't matter because I didnt understand anything the guys were trying to say to me. Took a ... bizarre.. yoga class afterwards. but I loved it- especially when the instructor would count the reps (btw there are no 'reps' in yoga - hence the 'bizarre').. anyway, he didn't know all the numbers. 'thirteen, fourteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty one, twenty three, twenty four, twenty five and rest'.
I'm sitting listening to a fantastic set at a jazz club (yes I am on my iPhone at a jazz club. it prevents the guy at the bar next to me from starting a conversation. I'm tilting my phone in hopes he's reading over my shoulder). I've just eaten at a very expensive restaurant (romantic dinner with myself).. and I'm glad to be leaving the city scene soon... mui ne (ie beach town) tomorrow!
I'm sitting listening to a fantastic set at a jazz club (yes I am on my iPhone at a jazz club. it prevents the guy at the bar next to me from starting a conversation. I'm tilting my phone in hopes he's reading over my shoulder). I've just eaten at a very expensive restaurant (romantic dinner with myself).. and I'm glad to be leaving the city scene soon... mui ne (ie beach town) tomorrow!
still wishing for better days in Hanoi/Halong Bay
There is one highlight today: kayaking around halong bay. Besides the trash.. everywhere in the water... and the rain, and the rude guy that ripped me off on this kayak.. its fun.
It's a long ways back to Hanoi. I'm excited to get the hell out of halong. Booked myself an expensive hotel room in Hanoi and took a bubble bath with the jets on (and lil weezy blaring in the background) as soon as I checked in. and my room comes with a laptop. sigh of relief.
Watched a water puppet show.. I keep hearing 'you haven't experienced Vietnam unless you've been to a water puppet show'. It was.. weird. The highlight was a crazy one string instrument a woman played. In all... I'll just say I'm glad it was 45 minutes because I may have killed someone if it was any longer.
and cruised around the nice market sporting a new look
Too much rice wine at a restaurant and Sho and Mike tried to assign me a new boyfriend who serenaded me with Vietnamese songs for the remainder of the evening. the kind of serenading where he held my hand to his heart while singing at the top of his lungs with his eyes clothes. wow
It's a long ways back to Hanoi. I'm excited to get the hell out of halong. Booked myself an expensive hotel room in Hanoi and took a bubble bath with the jets on (and lil weezy blaring in the background) as soon as I checked in. and my room comes with a laptop. sigh of relief.
Watched a water puppet show.. I keep hearing 'you haven't experienced Vietnam unless you've been to a water puppet show'. It was.. weird. The highlight was a crazy one string instrument a woman played. In all... I'll just say I'm glad it was 45 minutes because I may have killed someone if it was any longer.
and cruised around the nice market sporting a new look
Too much rice wine at a restaurant and Sho and Mike tried to assign me a new boyfriend who serenaded me with Vietnamese songs for the remainder of the evening. the kind of serenading where he held my hand to his heart while singing at the top of his lungs with his eyes clothes. wow
wishing for better days in Hanoi/Halong Bay
It's 8am, I've slept 3 hours, and the bus is late to pick us up for our halong bay tour. Vietnam doesn't have the same kind of tour service as the other countries. You pay less and you can expect a lot less. It's more of a 'I wonder how bad this is going to be' type of experience with every tour I've been on in Vietnam. This one delivers as promised - bad, with a side of everything-is-too-crowded, and a touch of 'why-are-we-standing-and-waiting-again?'. ah Vietnam. I don't know if it's lack of sleep and I'm cranky or if Vietnam really is just...
It's raining. The bus ride is long. We stand forever at the crowded dock before were herded onto a crappy boat and fed a crappy lunch. Everyone on the boat is over 60. Sho and Mike buy a bottle of cheap whiskey to ease the dreariness and I proceed to read 1,394,849 pages of my book.. while striking an asian pose
We go to an amazing cave.. made awful by bright blue, yellow, purple, and pink lights. It didn't look natural.. and it was a shame. So we drank a beer instead.
We arrived at cat ba island. I expected the worst. it's bad, but not as bad as I thought. we check into a hotel in which tripadvisor users absolutely hate. the power goes out. splendid.
we roam the streets looking for something to do. it's an eerie scene. there are people standing outside- everywhere. hundreds and hundreds of people- spilling into the streets. all Vietnamese. I'm tired of following around the boys. I'm not looking to get drunk and nor am I looking for girls. I find a handsome Frenchman my age named Pierre and he tags along and keeps me company with his travel stories.
If I could click my heels three times and be home I would. I'm getting tired of Vietnam. In the last 36 hours the locals are rude, I'm getting ripped off by every vendor, Ive been staying in awful hotels and not sleeping, and I haven't had a meal that looked appetizing.
click click click.
damn still here.
It's raining. The bus ride is long. We stand forever at the crowded dock before were herded onto a crappy boat and fed a crappy lunch. Everyone on the boat is over 60. Sho and Mike buy a bottle of cheap whiskey to ease the dreariness and I proceed to read 1,394,849 pages of my book.. while striking an asian pose
We go to an amazing cave.. made awful by bright blue, yellow, purple, and pink lights. It didn't look natural.. and it was a shame. So we drank a beer instead.
We arrived at cat ba island. I expected the worst. it's bad, but not as bad as I thought. we check into a hotel in which tripadvisor users absolutely hate. the power goes out. splendid.
we roam the streets looking for something to do. it's an eerie scene. there are people standing outside- everywhere. hundreds and hundreds of people- spilling into the streets. all Vietnamese. I'm tired of following around the boys. I'm not looking to get drunk and nor am I looking for girls. I find a handsome Frenchman my age named Pierre and he tags along and keeps me company with his travel stories.
If I could click my heels three times and be home I would. I'm getting tired of Vietnam. In the last 36 hours the locals are rude, I'm getting ripped off by every vendor, Ive been staying in awful hotels and not sleeping, and I haven't had a meal that looked appetizing.
click click click.
damn still here.
hacky sack in Hanoi with Sho
No city is like the other in Vietnam. The people are different, the vibe is different, the shops are different, the prices are different, the food is different.
After meeting a college friend, Sho, and his med school friend, Mike, at the Hanoi airport we jumped in a cab and were dumped off into the middle of madness. Motorbikes, street food, narrow streets and a humming energy was what I was breathing in Hanoi.
We bought tickets for halong, checked into a shitty hotel, and went on a walking exploration.
If you mix hacky sack with the 'birdie' from badminton you get some kind of weird kicking game they play in Vietnam. I bought a birdie and we got to kicking it in the park. Some of the locals joined us and we played until we were drenched in sweat.
Nothing else to write home about in Hanoi. It's aiiiite here. I've been here 5 hours and I'm ready to leave.
After meeting a college friend, Sho, and his med school friend, Mike, at the Hanoi airport we jumped in a cab and were dumped off into the middle of madness. Motorbikes, street food, narrow streets and a humming energy was what I was breathing in Hanoi.
We bought tickets for halong, checked into a shitty hotel, and went on a walking exploration.
If you mix hacky sack with the 'birdie' from badminton you get some kind of weird kicking game they play in Vietnam. I bought a birdie and we got to kicking it in the park. Some of the locals joined us and we played until we were drenched in sweat.
Nothing else to write home about in Hanoi. It's aiiiite here. I've been here 5 hours and I'm ready to leave.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Feeling lost, getting lost, being lost. And terribly alone.
I've lost track of the last few days. It's all been a blur. Traveling alone is hard, and scarier than I'm OK with at times. I always find a friend to chat with, to have a meal with, to share travel stories with... but sometimes in the middle of the day, standing in a crowded intersection of motorbikes and madness.. the loneliness consumes me entirely. It's hard to sleep at night. A combination of being concerned for safety and the loneliness. It's been a week without sleep and as the days pass and the weariness catches up to me - I lose track of time. I think of the last few days as a blur of frames:
* 2 more dives and I'm an advanced certified scuba diver
* A private yoga class on the roof of the dive shop. It's just me and the instructor.. so we make it a power yoga class and try to outdo each other. She speaks english with a thick russian accent. And as we do our sun salutations, I can hear the construction sounds of Nha Trang fade around me and hear only my breath.
* My stomach tells me it's time to go.. it's time to leave. And so I buy a bus ticket for that night and I leave Nha Trang and go to Hoi An.
* A 12 hour bus ride... listening to music and watching the moonlit ocean through the window... then blinking myself awake and watching the sunrise over the rice patties in Hoi An.
* A romantic town, with romantic streets, and romantic restaurants and cafes... and walking alone. Feeling lost because I don't know how to get to my next destination by the time I need to be there and lost because I don't have anywhere to sleep. I'm alone and I'm scared, and it's 6am.
* Dropping everything and dropping my worries and going to a cooking class. Walking through a market and being hypersensitive to every sight, sound, and feeling from the lack of sleep. The smell of the fresh lemon basil..the cilantro... the freshly caught fish... the colors of the exotic fruit.. all blurring past me as I duck under low hanging tarps through the central market. Then taking all of these fresh ingredients and creating 5 amazing dishes.
* A sigh of relief in meeting (by chance) a traveler from SF who is a friend of a friend. Being thankful for having a friend that shares a place I call home. And intoxicating ourselves on laughter and wine into oblivion over an amazing meal.
* A knock on my door at 530am and a smiling face delivers breakfast and alerts me that my private car has arrived... and after having been in Hoi An just 24 hours I'm swept away on a plane
* Hearing my name from a familiar voice and I turn to see an college friend, Sho - I'm at our meeting point at the right time in the right place.
I've made it. Hello Hanoi.
* 2 more dives and I'm an advanced certified scuba diver
* A private yoga class on the roof of the dive shop. It's just me and the instructor.. so we make it a power yoga class and try to outdo each other. She speaks english with a thick russian accent. And as we do our sun salutations, I can hear the construction sounds of Nha Trang fade around me and hear only my breath.
* My stomach tells me it's time to go.. it's time to leave. And so I buy a bus ticket for that night and I leave Nha Trang and go to Hoi An.
* A 12 hour bus ride... listening to music and watching the moonlit ocean through the window... then blinking myself awake and watching the sunrise over the rice patties in Hoi An.
* A romantic town, with romantic streets, and romantic restaurants and cafes... and walking alone. Feeling lost because I don't know how to get to my next destination by the time I need to be there and lost because I don't have anywhere to sleep. I'm alone and I'm scared, and it's 6am.
* Dropping everything and dropping my worries and going to a cooking class. Walking through a market and being hypersensitive to every sight, sound, and feeling from the lack of sleep. The smell of the fresh lemon basil..the cilantro... the freshly caught fish... the colors of the exotic fruit.. all blurring past me as I duck under low hanging tarps through the central market. Then taking all of these fresh ingredients and creating 5 amazing dishes.
* A sigh of relief in meeting (by chance) a traveler from SF who is a friend of a friend. Being thankful for having a friend that shares a place I call home. And intoxicating ourselves on laughter and wine into oblivion over an amazing meal.
* A knock on my door at 530am and a smiling face delivers breakfast and alerts me that my private car has arrived... and after having been in Hoi An just 24 hours I'm swept away on a plane
* Hearing my name from a familiar voice and I turn to see an college friend, Sho - I'm at our meeting point at the right time in the right place.
I've made it. Hello Hanoi.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Paradise Found
Rented a 'nicer' bicycle and went on another trek thru nha trang. Wandered into the oceanographic institute and looked at the bizarre aquariums. It's mid 90s and after riding another 10 km up the beach I was looking for a place to stop. A bunch of Vietnamese locals starting hollering at me 'you! you I be waiting for... darling!' I died laughing and rode on.
stopped at a perfect spot in the shade and enjoyed the view while eating some local fruit. a 20-something year old Vietnamese girl approaches me and in broken english says 'me and my friends want have beer you with' - and she points to a group of her friends sitting in the park drinking Vietnamese beer (333). I join them and had the most entertaining hour of my life. as we drink beer, the girl translates all the nice things the boys want to say to me... which is funny because translating what they want to say into english is funny, and the girl has bad english - even funnier. we drink beer eat mangoes, rice crackers, bread, and a Vietnamese version of beef jerky.
riding down the coast again I head to louisane brewhouse. the dive shop told me not to go here because it's too expensive... which is exactly why I went. yes I will play $1 for a comfy lounge chair right on the beach, yes I will pay $2 for their amazing New Zealand brewed beer, and yes I will sit here the rest of the day listening to my iPod because I'm surrounded by tourists with apple products!
stopped at a perfect spot in the shade and enjoyed the view while eating some local fruit. a 20-something year old Vietnamese girl approaches me and in broken english says 'me and my friends want have beer you with' - and she points to a group of her friends sitting in the park drinking Vietnamese beer (333). I join them and had the most entertaining hour of my life. as we drink beer, the girl translates all the nice things the boys want to say to me... which is funny because translating what they want to say into english is funny, and the girl has bad english - even funnier. we drink beer eat mangoes, rice crackers, bread, and a Vietnamese version of beef jerky.
riding down the coast again I head to louisane brewhouse. the dive shop told me not to go here because it's too expensive... which is exactly why I went. yes I will play $1 for a comfy lounge chair right on the beach, yes I will pay $2 for their amazing New Zealand brewed beer, and yes I will sit here the rest of the day listening to my iPod because I'm surrounded by tourists with apple products!
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