A Deliberate Life

The End...

Like most journeys that I have taken, this one won't end. The relationships I've started, the memories I've created, and culture that has changed me will continue to impact my life going forward. So while this will likely be my last post, it isn't the end of the trip.

However, my scrapes from jumping off boats and slipping on rocks have healed, my sunburn has peeled and stopped hurting, my butt has finally molded to the shape of the narrow motorcycle seats here, and I have colored my hair - it's time to go home.

Yes, I indulged myself yesterday afternoon and went to go get my haircut before I head back. And as my luck would have it, no one spoke any English. But somehow that just made it more fun as they tried their intro class English and I tried my phrasebook Vietnamese. And somehow, they convinced me that I just didn't need my hair cut, I also needed a scalp massage, a facial massage, a manicure, hair color, ear cleaning, and foot massage. So for a total of $10, I walked out a new man and the stylist's name and phone number. She kept saying "I love you" and that she was single and 30. Maybe it was the hair color....

Two days later:

I'm back in the world of cars, expensive food, and underwear, going through a little bit of reverse culture shock, and getting used to having sugar in my diet again. I couldn't help but smile today as I picked up my motorcycle from the shop and went for a quick ride into the mountains. It's been a wet spring here, so the hills are still green, the wildflowers are awesome, and the ride was incredible under clear blue skies and perfect temperatures. It took me a while to get used to my now seemingly huge motorcycle, and to be truthful, I kind of miss the small motos of Vietnam. However, I'm sitting here plugged into a fast internet connection, comfortable in my t-shirt and shorts without a fan or A/C, rested after a night without mosquitoes, and listening to my music on iTunes. I'm happy except for a bit of jet-lag.

When I started this last post in Saigon, I had many things left to post in terms of my experiences. Such as my impressions of the environment, politics, the legacy of the American War, and where I think Vietnam is going. However, as usual, my thoughts get jumbled after I'm removed from the environment and so this just may be a bit ugly!

Environment: Like most developing countries, Vietnam is struggling to protect what is left of its environment. The wars (including with Cambodia and China after the American War) and the debilitating poverty until doi moi in the late 80s left a legacy that is horrendous. Not much is left of the native forests and jungles as they have become prey for the land and wood starved population of Vietnam. The government is trying to protect what is left and create a culture of environmentalism that will attract more tourists, but they have a long way to go. Corruption and poverty continue to derail even the most ambitious efforts of the government and NGOs such as WWFand UNESCO. An example is a "trek" I took through a forest between two waterfalls.

The government built the path through an area that they wanted to turn into a local park, but the path only opened the area for rural farmers to move in and cut down trees in what was earlier a hard-to-access area. So I hiked for 4 km in a zone that looked what napalmed areas must have used to look like (see photo). Basically burned and dead trees surrounded by volcanic rock. It was a dreary sad trip. The next photo shows a tree that was inexplicably left during a recent slash and burn clearing for farmland, and it shows the drastically different scale of vegetation. It's tough to apply a developed nation's standard of ecology on a population that is very poor, and my hope is that as the economy continues to improve and the population growth slows (they have a limited child policy that encourages smaller families), they'll be able to preserve and/or recover some of the natural beauty that makes Vietnam special.

The relocation of Northerners to the South continues, with this photo showing a village recently (3 years ago) created around a dam. The government provided the land, the dam, and the coffee trees, and after a couple of more years of income the government will bring in electricity. This continues in the central highlands and other areas. One of the sad legacies of the war is that many of the hill tribes from this area that left to avoid either the battles or the Northern takeover in 75 came back after years in refugee camps only to find their lands confiscated and given to others. Much like the South in the US after our Civil War, there still exists an animosity between Northerners and Southerners despite the rhetoric coming from Hanoi about unity.

Many folks talked openly about their distaste for the current government, some of it quite vehement. And even though it was an unscientific sample, this was much more common in the South. Like other places, as people become more affluent they become more interested in a less regulated society that is less autocratic. Eventually they'll end up with a more democratic government but that is a least a generation away. Like most power structures, it is the older generation that prefers the current status quot, as they've paid their dues and now want to enjoy being at the top of the heap. They want to avoid the implosions of some of the Eastern European governments, and the oft repeated phrase is that they are around 10 years behind China in economic development and even with them on government reform.

The economy is dynamic and is having money poured into the country by foreign firms. For example, the dutch have financed and developed the flower industry around Da Lat that is now starting to challenge the more established powers of Colombia and some areas in Africa. The photo shows the many green houses that dot the landscape around Da Lat. The Japanese developed some lemon grass plantations, the Koreans are providing heavy industry factories and materials (almost all the heavy trucks and large buses are Hyundai or Daewoo). The US seems to be developing Vietnam's IT sector and recent articles are comparing it to a young India in terms of the talent/cost ratio. However, development continues to be hampered by corruption, lack of transparency in the accounting systems, and lack of intellectual property rights, all common problems in developing countries. The intellectual property right issue sometimes is very humorous, as the Vietnamese culture thrives on using established names without a second thought. The early success of Sinh Cafe in Saigon regarding tourist travel has spawned hundreds of other Sinh Cafes or agencies claiming affiliation with it. And the most humorous regarding an American brand is the bathroom accessories that state: "made to the American Standard." With the "made to the" in small print, all you see is American Standard, a popular brand here in the US. Just like Korea a few years back, they'll have to understand that companies don't want you ripping off their logos and they don't want to do business with you until you protect their brand equity. However, given the incredible natural resources and the cultural emphasis on education, I think Vietnam is going to be a dynamo in Asia after another 10-15 years.

The war is something that haunted me the whole way. Being raised as an Army brat and being indoctrinated at an early age that North Vietnamese are the enemy and are bad, it was weird being in Hanoi and seeing the flag all over the place. I didn't find anyone that admitted any ill-will to me because I was American, and everyone pretty much leaves it as history. While most of the military camps and installations are gone, there are plenty of reminders of the war. Land mines and unexploded ordinance are still an issue in outlying ares, and people are aware of what Agent Orange (and White/Blue/etc.) have done to the environment and to people living in those areas. There are still the war memorials and various plaques commemorating various aspects of the war, all with an interesting slant such as the plaque regarding the B-52 ruins in Hanoi. These biases are slowly changing as the regime tries to attract more tourists and investors from countries that were involved in the war. However, they are still adamantly nationalistic and are very proud of their country and their country's history.

As for myself, as I reflect on this trip, it was definitely an incredible adventure that was a great blend of independence and spending time with people. Traveling by yourself always has the ying/yang balance of having many opportunities of meeting new people vs. having times of loneliness. However, as my previous post expounded, I met some great people and the other times were wonderful for reflecting on what the next step will be in my life. As of 7:30 last night when I landed, I have no plans going forward. I do have some ideas, and it is likely I'll be back in the corporate world for a year or two to replenish funds and sanity before heading to a variety of options that I'll be researching, including a doctorate or working for an NGO.

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading. My goal for this blog was three-fold: 1) to force myself to journal, 2) to keep people who worry about me informed as to the what/where/whys of the trip and 3) to hopefully recruit folks for my next adventure.... Anyone interested?

Postscript: You can find all the pictures of my trip at: http://www.fototime.com/inv/310CFCB60FE5476

Places or Faces?

It's hard to start this one, never mind finish it. You see, I'm sitting in a Saigon internet cafe (sort-of air conditioned!), thinking about the reasons that I love to travel. All that flies in front of me are the faces that I've met. The places, while sometimes stunningly beautiful, all fade without the faces that make the places someones home.

I think back to Hue and the last night I was there. A young man says hello to me on the street in the afternoon, and after polite conversation, we make plans to meet after dinner. We walk down to the river, and we talk about our families, our futures, and our faiths as the bridge slowly changes color, the floating candles drift downstream, and the tables around us slowly fill up with others enjoying the after-rain evening.

I think of the moto driver in Hoi An that befriended me when we watched a bicycle loaded on top of a rice straw truck get snagged by an overhead powerline and was left dangling 20 ft. off the road. We both laughed so hard and suddenly it didn't make any difference that we didn't speak each others language. Later, he took me to the beach where he left me at a relative's beach restaurant, and I found out their parents both died in the communist purge of Hue during the Tet offensive occupation. The remains of the family relocated to quieter Hoi An, and now they're stuck in the love/hate relationship with the influx of tourists.

I think about Mr. Luu, my guide in the central highlands. Born in the jungle to a Vietcong father and mother, his Uncle fought with the South Vietnamese army, teaching me that the war wasn't simple for many living here and that even for Vietnamese it was not easy to choose sides. He now makes a living as an "Easy Rider," trying to make enough money guiding tourists around on his moto to keep his children in school so that they don't have to be an Easy Rider. He is a great observer of life, and we shared many poignant conversations regarding Vietnam and it's future.

I think about the family in a new village in the central highlands. Relocated in 95 from the North, they have been eking out a living and now after 10 years and 5 children, they are starting to enjoy some luxuries such as a separate bedroom. Drinking coffee (ca phe den da khoung doung, which I finally figured out is how to get my black iced coffee without sugar) in their "cafe," the kids and I befriend each other as I use  my camera as the icebreaker. Soon I have them making faces and singing songs, and even managed to keep the youngest one from crying by  taking pictures of him and showing them to him. Hey, it worked on my goddaughter, and now I know it works across continents and cultures. We took turns singing songs and playing them back as a video on my camera, and it was neat just knowing that we could connect.

I think about the laborer who was kind enough to stop his work to show us the details of how to split rock. Then he even let a stupid tourist try it, and despite it taking me a bit longer than it would have taken him, I did manage to break a rock. It's nice to know that if I ever do eventually end up doing hard labor somewhere, I've got a head start in training! The government allows him and a friend to split rock at road construction sites, and he then sells the rocks as construction material. I'm sure he got a bonus by telling all his friends what a foreigner did today....

I think about the quiet stream crossing deep in the mountains, where Luu & I were taking a break. As we were sitting there, a couple of motos pulled into the stream and it went from mountain stream to the local moto wash. Then a bunch of women and children from the minority village up the road come down a mountain path and add dish washer, clothes washer, personal tub, and kiddie pool to the list of what the stream is to them. Again, the kids and I connect, as they probably haven't seen many other foreigners where they live, never mind one that is just "hanging out" at their water hole. One tries to catch my eye with his antics in the river, and I play along until his mother chides him for playing instead of bathing. Hmmm, that never happens anywhere else, right?

I think of the woman from Costa Rica that I talked with in Spanish on a boat in Nha Trang, talking about the difficulties of cultural differences in a relationship, especially when one of the partners was raised in a family-centric culture such as Latin American or Asian.

I think of stumbling across a soccer game while bicyling on the outskirts of Hue and suddenly noticed that there were non-Asians playing. It seems that a tour guide for this German group had set up a soccer game between Germany and Vietnam, complete with uniforms and a referee. I had a good time watching for a while and talking with a few of the non-playing Germans. The Vietnamese were losing 0-2, and from what I could see, it was a gift they were giving the Germans. Nice to see friendly international competition!

I think of my "family" in Hue that provided me with many valuble things including laundry, Mr. Cu, sinh tos, hiking companionship, rides on a river boat, music video production, the best darned place to eat ice cream in all of Vietnam, and wonderful conversations about almost everything. And that's the whole gang including  Meo before her litter was born. Doug - I'm still working on the global hunger problem and I hope you've got the other ones under control.

I think about the myriad of other travelers that I've met along the way, ones that I have much in common with and ones that I don't. Regardless, being able to share stories is I believe one of the richest experiences between humans. No matter what type of trip I'm on, something always happens that makes you go hmmm. Sharing that just helps see many more points of view. For example, there were five of us trying to come to grips with this picture I took in the "chicken village" near Da Lat. We were trying to come up with a humorous caption, and even though we came up with a few, I'm putting it out there to the readers of this blog to come up with some suggestions. I know the talent is out there, so don't be shy.

Made In Vietnam, part II

Welcome to Made in Vietnam, part II. I've arrived in Saigon, and now am going to try and catch up on the last few days spent wandering around on a motorcycle in the Central Highlands. Mr. Lu'u was my wonderful guide during this jaunt, and as his biz card states, he is "fully licensed guide - fully insured - safe." Well after a few beers last night and meeting his family, I found out that he has no license and no insurance. You just gotta love Vietnam! He took me to many places in the country side and showed me different facets of life in Vietnam.

The first stop was a farmers house where he showed us the important things such as the still for making rice wine, the setup for making tofu, and the other chains in recycling on a farm (rice from the still feeds the pig whose waste fertilizes the coffee whose husks burn to heat the still). The only downfall is that the pig ends up drunk most of it's life.... The wine and pigs are sold in the town market to supplement the income from coffee and other crops.

Concrete pots, used for exterior bonsai and other plantings, are made in another small shop. The young men can make around 4 large pots a day, and the older women paint them in preparation for selling in nearby towns the concrete pots other pottery from further north.

Next was a mushroom farm. Sawdust from rubber trees past their prime is mixed with limestone, heated in an oven, then impregnated with mushroom spores and hung in a dark hut for a couple of weeks. Mushrooms start to sprout, are clipped off, dried, and sent to Saigon about once a month. The spent packages are then are mixed with new raw materials and the cycle starts again. The oven is again fueled by coffee bean husks.

A couple of more stops showed various steps in silk making. The first stop showed the spinning process where the silk is drawn from the cocoons, washed, dried, and packaged for shipment to Saigon for dyeing. The photo shows the cocoons floating in cold water (after being soaked in hot water) as the strands are collected on the spools above. The worms and remainder of the cocoon are then used as, yep, you guessed it, pig food.

Then we stopped by a farmer's shack where he, in addition to regular farming duties, raises the silk worms in his one room house. Feed them with mulberry leaves grown around the house, they grow and need to be divided every week or so. Meticulous cleanliness is required to avoid disease and predatory insects. When they are ready to spin a cocoon, they are put on a bamboo screen (made by yet another neighbor that specializes in bamboo products) that provides enough surface area for the spinning and makes harvesting easy. They can send the cocoons with the larvae or wait till the butterfly emerges, which gives them access to more eggs for the next round.

My culinary interests were peaked by the pepper and cinnamon plantations. The pepper plant is a vine, and gives one crop a year. The peppercorns are dried in the sun and sent off to be processed. The cinnamon comes from the bark of mature cinnamon trees, which can be harvested after 8-10 years. This makes them the favorite local "retirement plan," where the farmers hope to be able to have an income once they are older and can't keep up with the demands of other crops. It was an amazing surprise to bite a leaf of the cinnamon tree and taste the unadulterated-with-sugar taste of real cinnamon. The interesting part of this crop is that unlike other products, the vast majority of the cinnamon is exported, so I couldn't find a souvenir package to bring home!

No visit to Vietnam would be complete without seeing a rubber tree plantation. The French (thanks, Michelin) started massive plantations back in the late 1800s in an attempt to make Vietnam a self supporting colony (oops, I'm sorry, they called it a "protectorate"). Anyway, now they are in smaller scale farms in the central highlands. The trees start to produce after 6-7 years and will produce for around 30 years before being cut down and replanted with new trees. The dried sap was cool, but the cinnamon tasted better.... And yes, that is my trusty Honda steed in the background. From Soviet era two-stroke to brand new Japanese four-stroke!

The last one that I'll mention is also a bridge to my next post. We stopped at a small pagoda where women nuns run a center for worshiping a woman Buddha. In a small room off to the side, three "pre-nuns" (okay, I know there's a correct term, but it ain't in my head right now) were making incense. The photo shows the completed sticks drying in the sun. They use sawdust and "sticky bark" (one of those words that just didn't translate well) as the base and roll on incense that has been made on site. The bamboo stick is dyed on site as well, using a native root gathered by the hill tribes as the coloring agent. Each woman makes around 1000 a day working on average 4 hours. You can do the math: they crank! And they make a grand total of: free room and board at the pagoda. That's right, they do all this work for the privilege of having a place to sleep and eat away from the troubles of life that brought them to the nunnery. .

If you made it this far without being bored to tears, you can tell my business interests are perking up on this tour of the countryside. I usually am asking them various questions like their raw material costs, their markets, how they decided to grow one thing or another, and it all boils down to the fact they are all hard working entrepreneurs trying to make a life for themselves (well, except for the nuns). The central highlands saw a lot of fighting in the war, and afterward it was populated by many northerners being given land after the war trying to ease the pressure of population growth in the North. The jungles are all but gone except in remoter areas, and the land is literally covered with coffee trees provided by the government in an attempt to jump start the rural economy. Vietnam is now the second leading producer of coffee (after Brazil), and I believe it after seeing miles upon miles of coffee trees.

The next post (either tonight or in the morning) will cover some of the people that I experienced during my trip. And somehow, truth is always stranger than fiction....

What is Culture?

I post these thoughts as a pause before I hit the motorcycle road again. Much of my travels are to enjoy another culture and learn from what is different from my culture. Sort of a "sharing best practices" approach to it, but knowing that unfortunately you can't have it all. For example, one of the reasons I enjoy Latin cultures and Asian cultures is the importance of families and community. However, I must admit that to change in this direction would mean giving up some of my independence.

During my time in Hue, I visited two classes. One was a class in American culture taught by Julie, one of Doug and Cindy's teammates. It seems that understanding culture is important to understanding the language, and so they are asked to teach culture classes as well. Walking into the class, I hadn't really thought about how to teach a culture or even how to define a culture, so in the interest of sharing the experience with my readers, at the bottom of this post is the exam Julie gave to the class at the beginning of the period. I looked it over while serving as "assistant proctor" and laughed when I realized I would find it hard to answer some of the questions. It started me down the road of trying to figure out what is culture and what is unique about the American culture and why. Note: I love the picture of the class because it shows how all the guys are in the back row (click for bigger image). Not unlike the U.S., right?

For example, one of the students wanted to know why the American police are not corrupt. Good question. Other than stating that some are corrupt, all I can say is that we believe that officials should be honest. Now honesty can be a relative term depending on the person, but I definitely would argue that American officials are some of the most honest in the world. I know there are folks that will argue that, but the U.S. is definitely up there in the rankings. So why is that? I leave my readers free to ponder that.

Other qualities such as independence are harder to define, but still amazingly unique as a whole in this world. Some may consider traits such as competitiveness a negative, but our culture still attracts many people from around the world. I'm sure many folks from other countries would like to comment on this, so I'll leave the better educated experts and people outside the American sphere of influence to continue any discussions.

Note: There are two versions of the test, mainly to prevent cheating by the students. Maybe another area where cultures influence what is appropriate and what is not? And also, thank you to virtual-doug's mystery blogger for re-typing this in for me!

Quiz #3A    Name___________________________________
15 poínts
Read each question carefully, give a short answer and do not look at your neighbor’s paper.

Values & Beliefs
1. For the following situation, tell me what cultural value the American person’s behavior reflects and tell me what you would do to get the American to ask appropriately in Viet Nam.
SCENARIO: Your American friend tells you, “I want to practice my Vietnamese.  Let’s go to the market.”  At the market, she struggles to ask for something so you assist her by speaking for her.  She seems angry. Why? (2 points)

Families
2. What is the purpose of a family in America? ________________________________________________

3. What value is illustrated by the fact that most American children have their own room and never sleep in the same room or bed with their parents? ___________________________________

4. Give three possible explanations for the following situation and then put a star next to which explanation is probably correct.  Brian and Jenny Ault’s son asks them if he and his wife and two children can live with Brian and Jenny for a while because he has just lost his job.  Brian and Jenny agree, but after 2 months of living together, they tell their son and his family they must move out.  Why?  (4 points)

Sports
5. Why do Americans like to play individual sports so much, like swimming, running, and mountain biking?   What American value(s) do your reason(s) illustrate?  (2 points)

Education
6. True or False.  There is no tuition to attend public schools from Kindergarten to 12th grade and it is compulsory for students to attend school through the age of 16.

7. List two specific differences between college campuses at an American university and at a Vietnamese university.  (2 points)

8. Explain how students are able to pay for such expensive college tuition in America.  Then explain what American value that represents.

Quiz #3B      Name___________________________________
15 poínt Read each question carefully, give a short answer and do not look at your neighbor’s paper.

Values & Beliefs
1. For the following situation, tell me what cultural value the American person’s behavior reflects and tell me what you would do to get the American to ask appropriately in Viet Nam.
SCENARIO: You invite an American tourist to visit your school and you’re embarrassed when he shows up wearing shorts.  You say, “Here, people usually don’t wear shorts to school.”  However, during his second visit, he’s wearing shorts again.  Why? (2 points)

Families
2. How has the relationship between a husband and wife changed over the last 60 years?

3. What cultural value is illustrated by the fact that many children get to choose whether they want to live with their mother or father when their parents get divorced? ___________________________________

4. Give three possible explanations for the following situation and then put a star next to which explanation is probably correct.  Mr. Brian Ault's mother’s health is now failing because she is 85 years old.  Brian has decided to put her in a nursing home (a special type of hospital where old people live, so they have nurses nearby) Why did Brian make the decision?  (4 points)

Sports
5. Why do American parents want their children to play on organized sports teams, like basketball, football, and baseball teams?   What value(s) do your reason(s) illustrate?  (2 points)

Education
6. True or False.  The goals of public schools is the U.S. are determined by the federal (national) government.  The federal government also pays money to operate public schools.

7. List two ways studying in an American college classroom is different that studying in a Vietnamese college classroom.  (2 points)

8. Describe where American university students live and explain what American value that illustrates.

A Room With a View

Aaah, the cool mountain air. After a rather hellish but mercifully short bus ride, I arrived in Da Lat yesterday to a merciful gust of fresh and cool wind. The sweat from the combination of vinyl seats and the fact that the buses turn off the air conditioning when climbing and the route to Da Lat is 50% climbing, finally dissipated into the dry, cool air and put a huge smile on my face. After almost 24 hours, I'm still happy with the cool air a balm to my still sunburned back. It's kind of a neat pattern, and I call it the "no significant other" burn. Essentially anything I couldn't reach by myself is burnt to a crisp. What is really a bummer is that I can't reach it to put anything on the burn to make it feel better. Oh well, so goes the life of single hedonistic beach bums.

My room is the first in Vietnam with a view other than the neighboring building, and I must say it is pleasant to wake up and see this great expanse of sky in front of me. Certainly makes reading and relaxing in my room seem more of a pleasure instead of a punishment. The swallow seems to be the city bird here, and it's wonderful watching them swoop in mass right outside my balcony at dusk and dawn. They must keep the mosquito population down!

I was met at the bus by a member of the "Easy Riders," a bunch of guys that learned English before or during the war and now offer their services as guides in the Da Lat area. Mr. Lu took me to my choice of hotels and then sat me down to figure out if he could get more business from me. Well, you know me and motorcycles. He didn't have to work very hard to get my business. Tomorrow we'll head out for a four day three night tour of the Central Highlands by motorcycle, and though he wasn't pleased, I did manage to convince him that I wanted my own. So one last chance to get off the tourist path and enjoy Vietnam without the Western food and other backpackers. However, that also means that I probably won't have access to the internet until my last night in Saigon.

As a footnote, I actually met my first American woman traveling alone. The very day after I commented to my UN friends that Americans just are not quite as adventurous as the boat load of English, Australian, and mainland European travelers that think nothing of coming here for three months between high school and university or for summer breaks.  There's probably a link between the American risk-averse culture and this phenomena, but that's for more educated folks to figure out. So thanks, Delia, for representing the adventuresome side of our nation.

The horror...

Okay, so I couldn't help use at least one reference to Apocalypse Now. I've got it out of the way, and I can go forward with the titles...

I can't even say why this is titled as such, other than the fact that despite my careful budgeting for a massage every day, I have been unable to indulge since Hoi An. It seems my little slip at the top of the waterfall in Bach Ma gave me a good deep bruise on my back, and today, just when I was thinking about braving the torture (it hurts so good) of a massage, I go and get a nice sunburn. I know, mom, I should have known better. I guess I just don't do enough snorkeling to realize how much white pasty flesh you expose when you're looking down at all the cute fish. And I'm sure the sand volleyball sessions didn't help either. Anyway, I'm about to leave Nha Trang, the self titled massage capital of Vietnam, without sampling some of the expertise. The vendors tend not to take no for an answer, and I had to turn down a pedicure and foot massage as well. So, I leave the Tiger Balm experience behind me as I head to the blessed coolness of Da Lat, where I hope to spend most of my remaining time. Somehow the idea of Saigon (oops, sorry - Ho Chi Minh City) being a very hot, very large, and very crowded city just doesn't appeal to me after the smaller cities.

I've now been on the "tourist open tour route" for a few days, and I'm already missing the daily contact I had with the Vietnamese in Hanoi and Hue. However, that doesn't stop me from trying.... I arrived from Hoi An yesterday after the right-of-passage overnight bus trip, bleary eyed and in need of a shower and sleep. This bus trip, unlike the overnight from Hanoi to Hue, did not have people laying down in the aisle. Instead, we had luggage packed all the way up to the front. It made getting in and out a bit difficult, and some crazy people with window seats (who shall remain nameless) actually used the window as an exit at some stops.

After my morning refresher, I rented a moto to cruise around Nha Trang, and found plenty of development. I counted 6 new hotels being built on the main drag, and these are all huge multi-national type of hotels. At the current end of the beach front road, there is a golf course and resort being built that will rival anything in developed countries. It will be interesting to see what this place looks like in 5 years.

I then went to a few sites, a Cham temple and a Buddhist temple. The Buddhist temple has this huge white Buddha on top of a hill, and you can see it from almo st the whole city. This Buddha is to honor all the monks who self-immolated themselves during the 60s and 70s to protest then President Diem's intolerance of Buddhism. Seems that he felt religion got in the way of patriotism. Sounds familiar? The only reason I'm mentioning this is because of an interesting experience. As I walk in, I'm accosted by the usual post card and trinket kids, but at least they wore nametags and seemed "official". Then, as I started the climb up, I'm handed a bundle of incense. I tell the girl that I don't want it, and she says to take it and pay when I come back if I use it. Sure, OK. So on the way back I'm reading a bunch of collected wisdom from Buddhist texts, such as the goodness of virtue, do not get angry, respect your elders, etc., and I'm thinking that regardless of what is True, they should be nice guys. Well, I get back to the bottom and low and behold, I still have my incense. So I give it back to the girl, and while keeping this post rated PG, she told me where I could go and what I could do to myself because I didn't buy a 20,000 dong bundle of incense. Kind of blew my feeling of peace and oneness with the world!

One other ever present thing in Vietnam that accompanies the traveler is the wonderfully cheesy music. There must be an official "Tourist Music Standard," because everywhere I go I either hear 60s & 70s folk or instrumental Muzak favorites such as Yesterday, The Girl from Ipanema, and some Christmas tune. The Christmas theme also carries over to the street vendors, who seem to love the monochromatic electronic tones found in cheap trinkets, and of course they're all Christmas tunes. Just kind of bizarre walking down the beach at night seeing the popcorn vendor dole out bags of popcorn to the tune of Silver Bells.

For one of my cooking classes, the owner deftly changed the CD when we sat down and we were entertained for 3 hours to John Denver, The Carpenters, Olivia Newton-John, Bob Dylan, and even a special Captain and Tennille tune. Needless to say, I was humming along but my 20-something companions were a bit lost except for Olivia.

Then today topped it off. After lunch, the the crew of the boat that was taking us around the bay put together a very rag-tag band and proceeded to bless us with very bad music, but it was live! They went around and asked where everyone was from, and then did a song from that country. The Canadian was peeved when they said it was the "same same" as the US, but not near as peeved as the Kiwis when told they were the "same same" as Aussies. The best of the day was when the two guys from Sweden challenged them to sing a song from their country, and because of the bad sound system, they couldn't understand that the band has one song with a bunch of la la las that they use for obnoxious tourists from small countries. The rest of us understood, but because they thought the song was really Swedish and were trying to figure out what song it was, they missed the point completely!

So that's it from Nha Trang, as I only have one more night to avoid the party scene that permeates this place. And at the risk of sounding like a smug stick-in-the-mud, I don't understand why people travel to places like Vietnam and then just want to hang out with people from their own country, eat food from their own country, and dance to music from their own country, with the only concession being that they drink the local beer because it is so much cheaper than the imports. Just can't seem to complete a post without some ranting about something!

Made in Vietnam

Freakin' internet. Just wrote a complete blog only to have it trashed by the shitty connection here in Hoi An. Just when I think I'm getting used to this place, it throws me a curve ball that makes me long for the reliability of other cultures. Oh well, what's another hour in front of a computer? Needless to say, this time it will be a shorter entry.

Hoi An is a place that time and war simply forgot, only to be discovered by the tourist trade in the 90s. It was an old trading post for the Chinese and Japanese around 150-200 years ago, and their old trading houses and homes are still around. So now it is a handicraft and artist center, buoyed by the reputation of being the place to get custom made clothes made. Much like Hong Kong quite a few years ago, you can walk into a store, select the fabric, select the style, get measured, and return the next day (same day in some cases) for the first fitting. So, knowing that I bought my last suit over 12 years ago for grad school interviews, I have ordered a new suit and two shirts as my remembrance of Vietnam. Everything will set me back around $100, so I don't think I can go wrong. It was great putting on a shirt that actually fit both my neck and my arms at the same time! Now I'll have additional items in my closet that say Vietnam, and chances are you have plenty as well, giving that Vietnam's largest growth industry is in clothes and shoes.

I have to say that it is also really interesting watching grungy backpackers go into the changing rooms and come out in business attire. Makes me realize that most of my fellow travelers will have to enter the reality of the business world eventually.

Since Hoi An doesn't have much of a reason for being outside of its architectural treasures and the tourist trade, they have tried to create an atmosphere of a constant festival. The have a "Full Moon" festival once a month, and then they started a "Saturday Night" festival, and now have added a "Wednesday Night" one. So essentially, you're guaranteed a night of incense, no motos, and traditional music twice a week. The incense seems to be a major addiction here. Everyone burns it everywhere, all the time, and I do have to admit I have started to get used to it, being almost startled when I smell a fresh breeze without it. Ron - I may be joining you in your hobby.

I'm learning to take occasional breaks from the penny pinching world of budget travel, letting myself enjoy a few indulgences. Here's a section of my journal describing one of them in a local pattissarie run by a local French family:

"Sitting in a rattan chair, breezes from the ocean drifting through the cafe, watching the condensation lazily roll down my iced coffee as the sharp cocoa taste of the chocolate tort slowly mellows in my mouth, only to be replaced shortly by yet another cream topped morsel"

This indulgence, followed by a sugar and caffeine buzz that lasted well into the evening, cost me $1.80.  It's a rough life....

And now seamlessly blending the Made in Vietnam theme with the food thing, my other discovery here has been cooking classes. In my mad preparation for the back-from-Vietnam party, I came across this wonderful idea and have enjoyed two classes so far. Not only are they informative, entertaining, and delicious, they're a great way to meet attractive single women other people and to practice my flirting conversation skills. One of the pictures shows my fellow classmates from the second class, Ronna and Anna. I now have the knowledge for preparing the cuisine, but I'm still trying to figure out where to find banana leaves in the Bay Area.

I was adopted by an Australian group during my trip to My Son (say mee suhn), the "holy land" of the ancient Cham culture, and heavily Indianized culture that thrived in Southern Vietnam until the Nguyen dynasties. I was eavesdropping with their guide, and was slightly amused at the indignation that the Australians exhibited after being told that the US bombed the area during the war (and showed the "bomb craters") and destroyed most of the temples that had survived for almost 1000 years. They found out I was American and after I told them what the guide had left out (that the VC were using it as a camp thinking that the US wouldn't bomb it), we proceeded to have a great discussion on global politics and armed struggles. They were all old enough to remember the war and told me that they were told they'd be at the end of the domino stack, which puts the reason for the war a little closer to home than most Americans. I loved talking with them, as they seem to grasp the idea that Vietnam was and is a very complex place and that there are no simple explanations or analyses that do the subject justice. Martin - you would have been right at home here, as they reminded me of your intelligent views of the world.

I'm off to a couple of days R&R in Nha Trang tonight, on yet another overnight bus trip. I just can't get enough of the small seats and cheesy Vietnamese pop music....

After that, it's on to Da Lat and some more mountain exploration. I hope to have more reliable internet connections, and for those that are thinking of traveling here - avoid Yahoo email and go with G mail or something like that. There's either a filter on Yahoo domains here in Vietnam or the sheer number of Vietnamese that use Yahoo email overwhelms the pipe to this part of the world.

All the Hue to San Jose

Okay, so I couldn't wait to use my entry into the "worst pun on Hue" contest. I've hit the midpoint in my journey here, and now instead of on my way to Vietnam, I'm on my way home. And its a technicality that my home is in Palo Alto, not San Jose.

This is a poignant afternoon, because the thunderstorm came early and actually sprinkled a few drops of rain on Hue. I was sitting at my "usual" cafe, drinking a coffee Sinh To (think blended ice, sugar, and coffee beans), reflecting on my journey so far. I'm addicted to this drink (thanks, Doug - like I needed another addiction), and comes in any flavor as long as it is natural.

Regarding my addictions, I'm happy to report that I've managed to get through most of the mornings without coffee, but the ready availability of Wrigley's gum (darn that capitilistic imperialism) has resulted in my 4 pieces a day gum habit becoming a standard in Vietnam as well.

Tomorrow I head off to Hoi An, leaving behind me the friends and places of Hanoi and Hue that I have come to know and be comfortable with. In front of me is a typical backpacker itenerary of several two or three night stands before I end up in Saigon. These types of stops are always harder for me, as I miss what I achieve staying someplace longer, such as knowing the street vendors, the cafe operators, the hotel workers, xe om drivers, and other folks that I can wave and smile to knowing that I'm not just a new face in the crowd. I'm not fooling myself. I'll move on sooner or later and they know it, but it is a neat feeling when you walk out of your hotel and you feel like you're walking out into something familiar and comfortable, not foreign and unknown. That is when I truly relax, which is what this trip is all about. Feeling rested is getting harder for me as I get older, and I think I'm finally getting there with a combination of low stress, afternoon naps, and cheap beer.

There are also the times when I wish I wasn't here, mostly when I try to walk the city at night but end up being interrupted at least once a minute by cycle drivers and xe om drivers wanting to take me someplace, usually somewhere that has "loud music" and "pretty girls cheap". I need to find a female traveling companion just so I can walk the streets unmolested!

The rain here in the city was interesting, as I watched ponchos come out of nowhere. Suddenly almost all of the moto drivers were wearing ponchos, with the front over the front of the moto (including the handlebars) and the back covering the cargo or passenger. The passengers seemed to choose between being completely covered (they don't make two head holes) or just covering their shoulders to keep their heads in the fresh air. The shops secured their doors against the gusts of wind, the street vendors covered their goods with tarps, and the sidewalk barber simply walked across the street to seek shelter while his chair and mirror got wet. The rain stops, and all is back to normal but with a delightful breeze and decidedly cooler temperatures.

This is what I enjoy about traveling. Making friends, learning the language and culture, and simply observing everyday life. However, it is hard when traveling by yourself to not seek out other travelers for easier same-language companionship, and for the first time on this trip I have no contacts going forward. It should be an interesting journey towards home, and already the "just two more weeks" idea is going through my head. I figure that it would only be around another $300 to stay two more weeks, and that seems ridiculously small. So who knows, maybe I'll be heading to Laos for a while....

Land of the Screaming Leeches and No Lawyers

Greetings again from Hue. In a respite from the heat and the city life, I headed to nearby Bach Ma National Park with Hanh, a fellow English teacher of Doug and Cindy. Formerly a French resort and then a US helicopter base, it is now one of the most impressive National Parks in Vietnam. The summit is around 1900m, so it was nice to get away to the coolness and green of a sub-tropical forest.

The trip started with a jeep (though I use the word loosely, as the vehicle was some Soviet Bloc era 4x4 that didn't have much of a suspension) ride 12 km up towards the top. Hang and I started up a path that at first we couldn't find, and after we found it we started climbing up to the summit. After the first overlook, we continued on what I assumed was the path, following and old jeep path long overgrown and subject to random landslides. After the clear path slowly dwindled to nothing, I came to the brilliant conclusion that once again, I was lost in a National Park in a foreign country. Fortunately, it wasn't hard re-tracing our route back to the overlook. Unfortunately, I was introduced to Hang's fear of anything that crawls or bites, as she screamed and grabbed my arm once she discovered she had attracted one of the native creatures of the park. In the midst of the screaming (something like "Its a leeeeeeeeeeeeeech!") and hopping on one leg, I was able to figure out that she had a leech on her ankle and she wanted me to somehow remove it while she hopped up and down. After this mission was accomplished, we did a check only to find other ones on our shoes heading up to juicier opportunities. After another session of hopping and leech removal, we found the real trail and continued up to the peak. She wears her wounds proudly and made sure that Cindy saw the bite mark and blood on her socks when we got back to Hue.

And speaking of leeches.... After lunch we headed down to the 5 "lakes" trail and quickly found ourselves hiking along a small creek. We soon found out that the translation of lake was rather inadequate and would be more accurately translated into "pool." Regardless, we started descending into this canyon where the trail was a suggestion at best, essentially boulder hopping, cliff walking, and rock climbing aided by this lovely railing/guide-rope/rappelling-line that was made out of three to four small strands of rusted wire, anchored by being wrapped around various tree trunks, roots, and anything else that looked relatively stable. I heartily enjoyed myself, while Hang was a bit more cautious but still made it without difficulty. It was an amazing descent through a pool strewn canyon, the pools deep enough to swim in and the rocks big enough to lounge on. I then realized that this type of adventure is typically only in places where the lawyers haven't managed to drive up liability insurance, and everyone understands that they participate in these activities at their own risk. Now, before I get flamed by any lawyers, I know they serve a vital function in our economy and I respect most of that. However, I stand by my observation that way too many things in the U.S. simply are not available or are cost prohibitive due to liability insurance. So I relish in the opportunities that exist in developing countries where you can enjoy adventurous activities without the "Life Without Risks" approach that dominates the U.S. Without devolving into a diatribe, let me just state that I think most people spend more time worrying about unknown and low probability risks such as SARS, avian flue, and plane wrecks than known and familiar risks such as getting into a car everyday. Let's just say I was glad I was in Vietnam today and had the opportunity to see first hand this wonderful place called Bach Ma.

Towards the end of the hike, amidst pealing thunder, the skies finally opened up and poured down a hard but warm rain that gave me my first free Vietnam shower. We were at the top of a 600m waterfall, and the effect was surreal. After refreshing our senses, the rain stopped and revealed a fantasy land of flowing fog, lasting until we climbed out of the valley and back to the main road.

In a land known to hold animals such as bears, tigers, monkeys, and other large mammals, we could only claim to see countless butterflies, two turtles, frogs and some birds despite our best monkey calls; Hang's was more a hoo hee, while mine was more like whah whah whah. And to Hang's great relief, the rumored giant cockroaches never did attack.

But, it was nice to see a park that was seemingly well prepared to educate the Vietnamese regarding ecology, bringing a country whose natural habitats have been scarred by war and illegal logging, farming, and poaching for almost 50 years back to place where they can protect their unique habitat and the life that exists within it.

And for all those lawyers out there, please don't hesitate to rant about ignorant American backpackers romping through foreign countries spouting ill-informed opinions about life, the universe, and everything.

The Real Vietnam

The day started off with a Virtual-Doug blog research trip, with Doug and one of his students visiting some of the people that you see every day here in Vietnam. People such as the bicycle repair men, the street vendor, the cyclo operator, and the bread salesman.  Doug was doing research for one of his blogs, so I won't steal his thunder on the specifics, but it is always interesting to me to find out more about the people that work on the margins of society. One of the reasons I enjoy coming to countries like this is it reminds me of how little we really need to get by.

I could fill pages of how cheap things are here. Beer for $.25/glass or the expensive beer for $.75/bottle, serviceable modern hotel room for $4/night, a dang nice (better than Holiday Inn!) hotel room with A/C for $11/night, 4 hour personal moto driver and guide for $10, and hour long massages after a sauna, soaking tub, and shower for $8. However, all things are relative. Most of the folks that Doug is talking to make around $1-2/day. Seven days a week and 52 weeks a year puts that at around $400-$500/year. Sobering. Yet, they make it happen.

As a traveler, I am always wanting to discover the true essence of a country, trying to soak in the culture as I pass through by going as local as possible without going crazy. This means trying to connect with locals as much as possible, avoiding many of the haunts of backpackers, and venturing out to where there may not be any tourist sites but where I can see the "real" Vietnam. But, the problem is always deciding what is the real Vietnam. Is it the young students learning for the first time how to think for themselves? Is it the veterans of the wars still trying to silence the ghosts of combat? Is it the party member with the important job and nice house? Is it the newly entrepreneurial factory owner churning out clothes for you and me? Is it the farmer who struggles with weather, avian flue epidemics, and foreign competition? Is it the 30 year old who is caught between idealistic capitalistic youth and entrenched communism? Unfortunately, it is all of these and more.  Vietnam is going through change at an incredible rate, and it will be interesting to see how the people adapt to a world that is more modern, but also more cruel in demanding personal responsibility.

Doug and I were discussing today about how hard it is to teach what a foreign culture is, as part of understanding the culture is living in it and being a part of it. Much like a foreigner gradually loses their awareness of differences after a few years, I think the traveler is on a similar curve. After a while, the adjustments come and you stop noticing. It is all relative, and I've enjoyed comparing notes with Doug and Cindy regarding the difference between living and traveling in a foreign country. Somehow, knowing that you'll be back at home in a few weeks stops you from having to deal with some of the finer (and often most exasperating) points of the culture.

I've enjoyed my break here, as I've been able to relax a little bit of my discipline about immersing myself in the culture. For example, after my long bus trip from Hanoi, I was waiting for Doug and Cindy at a local cafe and I indulged in what I call travel comfort food: M&Ms and a Diet Coke. Somehow, it helped ease the stress of being in a strange place, not being able to speak the language, and not having taken a shower for 36 hours.

Regarding the language - I can now count, say hello, goodbye, thank you, and I'm sorry, give simple toasts and say "bottoms up", and actually recognize enough food items on a menu to not starve. I've managed the streets as a pedestrian, a bicyclist, and a moto driver. And I haven't pissed off anyone in a uniform yet. Things are looking good...