Today

I am getting ready to depart Ho Chi Minh City soon and trying to visit some of the friends I have before saying goodbye. This afternoon I went out with my friend Mons from Denmark who used to be my neighbor. Now he lives far away from the center with his Vietnamese girlfriend who is a haridresser. While we were eating the delicious lunch she prepared for us the conversation turned to the possiblility of tattoos. We decided a less committed act of preparing for a new adventure would be dyeing my hair black. We tried it and voila!!! You can see the results on the next page.

Not a Tattoo

A New Installment

I have once again slumped into neglect of this blog and so this is my response to a request for a new installment. I guess one reason that I have not been writing lately is that things are pretty much as usual at this time. In Vietnamese language I would say, "Toi binh thu'o'ng.", just to show off a bit, and that roughly translates to, "Same ole, same ole." My language classes are very challenging so I spend a lot of time practicing and studying Vietnamese, but I am becoming a bit more conversational every day.

Unfortunately I have had pretty annoying sinus trouble for about a week which has prevented me from enjoying swimming. Every day I think the next day I will feel well enough to resume swimming, and I am hopeful tomorrow will be the day I get back to the pool. I have really missed the exercise and the refreshment of the cool water. It's really getting hot and this is only the beginning. Well, at least I won't have to mow the grass in this heat.

I know that I promised more pictures so yesterday I set out to take shots of some of my hangouts here, and the batteries in my camera were dead. I was going to lunch at one of my favorite restaurants, a vegetarian place with a Buddhist Tibetan theme and Vietnamese style veggies. I really wanted to share a glimpse of this place with you, but alas, battery trouble. When I placed my order at the restaurant I changed my mind about something and thought I was cancelling one selection. I guess I did not get my point across and I ended up with three yummy dishes, much more than I could eat. I still have leftovers in my fridge which I will eat tonight.

I guess everyone is aware that April 15 is looming in the near future, so I have decided that now is the time for me to make the long trip back to America to take care of my taxes. I am not looking forward to the marathon flights back and I hope that I will find a way to take care of taxes more easily next year. My planned routing at this time looks like I will leave Saigon at 8 PM on April 1, fly to Bangkok and connect there to Shanghai. I will have to spend a whole day in Shanghai before catching American Airlines to LA at 9PM on April 2. I arrive in LA late afternoon on the 2 April (Remember I gain a day because I cross the IDL.), connect to Miami and take the early morning flight on April 3 to Tampa. I am hoping for an opening on a Japan Airlines flight from Saigon to Tokyo which would make a much easier trip, so please keep your fingers crossed that I get lucky.

Well, as I mentioned above, "Toi binh thu'o'ng" (Same ole, same ole) Ahence the dearth of news. Just being here is an adventure, and I usually have more than one or two amusing surprises every day. I am sorry not to have posted in a while, since one reason for the blog was to let you know I am still alive. Let me assure that I am alive and well in Viet Nam.

Back In School

Co Thuy

This is Miss Thuy, my teacher for Vietnamese. Today was my 5th class so I am beginning to make simple sentences, and I even had a light bulb moment when I put together two words to form the Vietnamese word for "now". That may not sound too exciting but I was very pleased with my creation. This language looks fairly uncomplicated when written but the pronunciation is really difficult. I mentioned earlier about all the accent and tonal markings in written Vietnamese, and each mark indicates a rising, falling or loop de loop sound you make when speaking. Fortunately each word is only one syllable and grammar is not complicated. That's the good news, according to my teacher.

I have heard other westerners speaking the language fluently, so I think the same is possible for me to accomplish. For the first time since arriving here 4 months ago, I actually said something in Vietnamese to someone and was understood. I am very excited to be making a little progress in communicating.

On to more mundane matters, I have begun swimming seriously for one hour a day. It is really hot here, even until 7 PM, so swimming provides a respite from the heat and a workout for the bod. I have gotten my arms and legs in pretty good condition and I am working on those stubborn love handles. When I finish my swim I have the greatest natural highs I have ever experienced. I showed pictures of the pool previously, but the story of the complex where I swim is worthy of repeating. During the French occupation of Viet Nam this was the French Country Club and must have been a ritzy place. I love that it is now known as the Labor Club, antithetically to French Country Club.

I am still taking guitar lessons, but guitar has taken a back seat to my language course. I enjoy belting out a rockabilly version of "Jamablaya", "Tennessee Waltz ", "Amazing Grace", plus a few others and so far the neighbors have not complained. Relearning to play the six string was a good idea, however for ease of transport I will get a recorder and try to play it. I am traveling light these days.

The time is drawing nigh for taxes which I need to return to America to handle. I am able to file as late as June 15 since I am out of the country, but I am thinking of heading that way in early April. I have a short list of things besides taxes to do while there. Some of the thing on my list include Mexican food, ice cream, grits, new phone, computer, watch. Hmm! Half my list is food. Maybe I should forget the nachos and enchiladas. Also I am getting a bit of a shopping list from Vietnamese friends.

Well, that about does it. When I seriously committed to moving to Asia I made a proviso with myself to use this opportunity to improve myself in as many ways as possible. I think I am on the right path, and again I want to say how grateful I am for all the forces that put me here. I kind of like myself better than ever before, so I guess of all the ways I could improve, that is about the best of all. The journey goes well. Thanks!

Sneakers and Grits

I need to return to America to tend to taxes before April 15. I have been checking flights to come home and since I fly standby I am not seeing any options so far that seem to be satisfactorily underbooked for me to try. Still traveling to America in the near future is on my to do list and I am looking at many routings.

Some things I am anticipating back in the USA are buying some sneakers, not easy for me here where most shops don't carry size 11 (size 46 here). Also I want to buy a new computer, an iphone and a watch. It is easy to find a Rolex or Tag Heuer here for about $30, but it is a safe bet they are not real. I am also looking forward to eating grits, baked potato, ice cream and steak, but most of all I want to see family and friends whom I love and miss.

I have enrolled in a Vietnamese language course. My two lessons so far have dealt strictly with pronunciation. If you have ever seen written Vietnamese ~ ` ' and other markings my keyboard does not make are included with most words and indicate inflection and tones which are so difficult for foreigners. All words are only one syllable so once I learn to speak correctly vocabulary ought to be easy to learn. Just so you have an idea of cost of living here, I paid $200 for 20 hours of private instruction. My class is about 1 mile away and walking there is a good chance to review mentally my assignments. I now walk around with a little notebook in which I make notes and I usually find a friendly Vietnamese to help me if I have questions.