So it's time to say goodbye... I've always hated goodbye's and this one really hurts.
It's been an amazing ride. During the last 6 months I've met some really nice people, led a very comfortable life, travelled in Asia and gotten to know Vietnam better. In short I've been happy living in Vietnam.
It'll be quite an adjustment to cross a street without 100s of motos coming right at me, to do my own laundry, cook and clean again, to enjoy the sound of silence, to study, to be exposed to temperatures under 15c and to pay 13 USD for mojito! I'm not quite sure I'm actually ready to leave, but nonetheless I am leaving.
I've seen how Vietnam's rapid development is changing everyday life in Hanoi. New shops pop up by the day, traffick is getting worse (as more people can afford a moto), KFC has opened two "restaurants" in Hanoi and soon you'll probably see McD, Starbukcs and Pizza Hut opening. It's globalisation people say, it's the way development works, when it works! Maybe they're right. I hope the development strategy will included preserving Vietnamese culture and traditions. I hope Hanoi doesn't turn into Singapore, which in my view has lost so much of its' Asian spirit. I hope the distribuation of the new wealth is not as unequal as it in China. I hope Vietnam is able to cope with the development.
I don't know whether I'll blog from my next destination, but I can reveal I'm going back to Scandinavia, but I'm not going home. If I do decide to do another blog on my Northern adventures I'll be sure to put a link on this one. It's going to be my 4th country besides Denmark since the summer of 2002 and I'm slowly beginning to feel more like a world citizen, which is good I suppose. One of my friends asked me whether I thought moving around from country to country in the pace I've done is hard - I don't think moving to a new country or adjusting to its' pace is that hard, but saying goodbye always is...
But it is the life that I've chosen to lead at the moment (some say once you're on the track you never get off it again), and I feel very privileged that I'm able to live this way.
I'd like to say thanks to the 15 somewhat readers a day that actually have tuned into this discount version of my blog (the Danish one getting the funny stories and the best pics). I hope you've enjoyed my Vietnam adventure as much as I have.
Goodbye Vietnam, I hope I'll recognize you when I see you again
Sunday, January 14, 2007
6 months in Asia
Tran Phu, UM, Pho,Lemon juice, Solace, Shopping, Bun cha, Little Hanoi, Teitur, "Xe om, em oi?", Tailor, Hanoi Taxi, Dragonfly, Ipa Nima Party, Spring rolls, Tiger Temple, Fruit shake, Foot massage, Bangkok, Traffick, Balcony Bar, Champagne brunch, Hoan Kiem, Sentimental journey, E-mails, Kuala Lumpur, Moto rides, Country side, Development, HAU, Hong Kong, Dim sum, Bia Hoi, Noise, Cultural differences, Christmas dinner, Markets, Bobby Chinn, Star ferry ride, Beijing, Humidity, Being Asian, Being European, Loosing my accent, Boat trip on South China Sea, Pollution, Nhuong our lovely maid, Graditude, Never cooking, Blog, Adventure, Puku, Sunday outings, Singapore, Friends, Rice with soy-sauce, Green Tangerine, Impatience, "Sorryyyy", Communism, Air con, Hoi An, Typhoon, Fresh Fruit, Hanoi Opera, Missing, Coca Cola, Happiness, La Place Café, Anh Khanh, Beautiful Beach, Highlands' Coffeee, Explaining myself, Embassy, Travelling, Female Power, Phu Quoc, Tiny dogs, Life in the streets, "Danskere på taget", Luna, Street food, Modernization, Rats on the roof, Waiting, Reckless transportation, Purchase power, Cocktails, Building sites, Reading books, Halida, Beauty, Cakes, Cofe, Squat toilets, Being ripped off, Handicraft, Caught in the middle, Bicycle guy in the street, Sushi, Rude people, Airports, Expat, West Lake, Uncle Ho, Luxury, Poverty, Contrast
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Personal record
Since end of June 2006 - 31st of December 2006 I've been on 21 different planes going to/from and within 7 different countries. That's a personal record!
Monday, January 08, 2007
The sound of silence
The other morning in bed feeling a wee bit hungover I thought to myself that Vietnam was really growing on me. Yes, I know it might not be the most obivious thought a Saturday morning feeling a bit sick, but the thought came to me 'cause I wasn't annoyed by the salesmen and women shouting in the alley outside or house even though the woke me up a good few hours too early for me to sleep my high alchohol level away. It sort of felt homey that they were shouting whatever it is they shout.
Last week a noise guy came to the embassy to measure the noise level. As the embassy is located right next to a big street with lots of motos and cars it wasn't surprising that the noise level in the front offices hit the same level as in a factory hall!
But I don't notice it anymore. The colleague I share office with has 3 phones and they're ringing most of the day. She'll be on one with the two others ringing. I don't even think about it anymore! Vietnamese have a more relaxed relationship with their mobile phones. They'll gladly keep them ringing when in a meeting or on the other line. Sometimes it's like they're enjoying their ringtones before answering. Back home it's almost embarrasing how much noise a ringing phone can make in a class room or at a meeting. In my previous workplaces there have been rules phones are to be switched off during work hours. Here it seems the rule is almost opposite. Noise is a natural part of my Vietnamese world.
I remember the first weekend I went back to my parents when I was at boarding school. Suddenly all the sounds I grew up with was infamiliar to me and I couldn't sleep. My boarding school was in the country side and silence was the only thing you could hear at night. Back home with my parents the city sounds souded louder than ever...
It's funny how you can adjust your perception of what is normal to whatever environment you're living in...
Last week a noise guy came to the embassy to measure the noise level. As the embassy is located right next to a big street with lots of motos and cars it wasn't surprising that the noise level in the front offices hit the same level as in a factory hall!
But I don't notice it anymore. The colleague I share office with has 3 phones and they're ringing most of the day. She'll be on one with the two others ringing. I don't even think about it anymore! Vietnamese have a more relaxed relationship with their mobile phones. They'll gladly keep them ringing when in a meeting or on the other line. Sometimes it's like they're enjoying their ringtones before answering. Back home it's almost embarrasing how much noise a ringing phone can make in a class room or at a meeting. In my previous workplaces there have been rules phones are to be switched off during work hours. Here it seems the rule is almost opposite. Noise is a natural part of my Vietnamese world.
I remember the first weekend I went back to my parents when I was at boarding school. Suddenly all the sounds I grew up with was infamiliar to me and I couldn't sleep. My boarding school was in the country side and silence was the only thing you could hear at night. Back home with my parents the city sounds souded louder than ever...
It's funny how you can adjust your perception of what is normal to whatever environment you're living in...
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Friday, January 05, 2007
Being a Danish Korean
Before living in Vietnam I’ve always felt weird whenever associated with Asian culture and values. Other bloggers have blogged about how they when people wrongly assumed they were Chinese or Japanese in the US. I guess their experience is somewhat different to mine as most of them are Viet Kieu (overseas Vietnamese) and when people wrongly take them for another nationality they’re labelled as belonging to another culture than the one they’re rooted into.
In Denmark most people assume I’m Chinese. I’ve always thought that was rather natural, since China is the world’s most populated nation, but it also made me think how little people know about adoption and where Asians in Denmark actually come from. American friends in Vietnam have asked me about “Asian community in Denmark”, but to my knowledge there are no Asian hoods in Danish cities as most non-Caucasian are from the Middle East or Africa. Where I’m from there are some Vietnamese (without having any statistical background I’d say maybe 100-200), but an Asian community as “China Town” or “Little Saigon” does not exist. Even though Denmark has huge integration problems compared to many other countries it is a fairly homogenous society. I know Danish readers might not agree, but my main subject in this post is not integration of immigrants, but me, the Danish Korean adoptee, currently living in Vietnam, and my view of being an Danish Asian in Denmark and in Asia :)
As far as I know most Asians in Denmark my age group (twenty-something) are in fact children (most of them girls) adopted from Korea. How many? One of the Danish adoption agencies state that from 1970-2005 3118 Korean babies where brought to Denmark to grow up. As there are two major agencies in DK and it’s bloody hard to adopt (lengthy application process and lots of tests) I’d guess the total numbers is roughly 5000 out of a population of 5.5 million people.
I used to be somewhat offended by the assumption that I was Chinese and I always wondered why, since I perceive myself as Danish it shouldn’t really matter whether people label me as being Japanese, Chinese or Korean, but it does. Because even though I, as a Korean adoptee who came to Denmark barely three months old, have no emotional connection to Korean culture or society, I nonetheless am Korean by blood.
I’ve earlier blogged about how tired I am of explaining who and what I am since apparently everything comes down to the colour of your skin and some people almost are offended when I persist on claiming my European (cultural) roots. It’s like I’m abandoning my Asian roots. I’m not – I just never realised I had any besides my looks. But one thing I’ve learned during the past 6 months in Vietnam is being in a group of purely Asian people (who might all have grown up in the Western world), but before coming here I’d never been in a group of all Asian. And I think to some extent I didn’t want to be in an Asian group in Denmark because I was afraid I would be taken for an immigrant (no, I don’t think there something wrong with being an immigrant, but the fact is I’m not one in the typical sense of the word). During my years I don’t know how many people who’ve said to me – “I don’t even think of you as not being white”. To them it was a compliment and I can understand the meaning of that sentence, but somehow there’s also an insult in the words; being white means included, not being white means being excluded. I’m adopted, I’m Asian, but they see me as included.
Here in Vietnam I’ve made Viet Kieu friends, and no to be honest I have not made many purely local friends. But hanging out with Viet Kieus have given me the opportunity to be in group of people looking like me with almond eyes and black shiny hair (or greasy if you use wax). Living in Vietnam has been very different from my previous travels in Asia, in many ways I blend into everyday life ‘cause of my looks and many ways I don’t ‘cause of my Western upbringing. Yesterday sitting in a bar with all Asians, I realised that I felt quite comfortable with me being Asian, them being Asian – I did not feel I had to try to be “more Danish” so that people wouldn’t think I was Asian born and bred. I didn’t even care. I don’t know whether I’ll feel the same when in Denmark again, but I hope so.
Being comfortable in your skin is alpha and omega for allowing yourself to be whoever you are. Being an Asian adoptee in Denmark will probably always bring up some issues, because no matter how much you’re upbringing is Danish, you’re looks and biological roots are not. I don’t have the same cultural roots vested in a “home country” that Viet Kieus have. I cannot go to Korea to find “my roots” in the same way (if at all) since the culture I would meet there would not be one I’d find familiar in any way or identify with. I don’t speak the slightest Korean and I have no desire to learn, but I’ve come to learn that I am in fact Korean, I’ve even been told by American Koreans that I act Korean. I think it always bothered me to be labelled Chinese, because I knew I should take some pride my Korean DNA. Living in Asia has taught me a lot about myself regarding my Asian appearance, the pros and the cons. It has taught me to be proud of my Korean heritage – the heritage that I’ve also claimed I didn’t have. My Korean heritage is my Asian looks and even though it is not WHO I am since you cannot and should not boil an identity down to looks, it is the first thing people do when the meet you. I will always be Danish of heart and mind, but I’m only now learning to be Korean as well : )
In Denmark most people assume I’m Chinese. I’ve always thought that was rather natural, since China is the world’s most populated nation, but it also made me think how little people know about adoption and where Asians in Denmark actually come from. American friends in Vietnam have asked me about “Asian community in Denmark”, but to my knowledge there are no Asian hoods in Danish cities as most non-Caucasian are from the Middle East or Africa. Where I’m from there are some Vietnamese (without having any statistical background I’d say maybe 100-200), but an Asian community as “China Town” or “Little Saigon” does not exist. Even though Denmark has huge integration problems compared to many other countries it is a fairly homogenous society. I know Danish readers might not agree, but my main subject in this post is not integration of immigrants, but me, the Danish Korean adoptee, currently living in Vietnam, and my view of being an Danish Asian in Denmark and in Asia :)
As far as I know most Asians in Denmark my age group (twenty-something) are in fact children (most of them girls) adopted from Korea. How many? One of the Danish adoption agencies state that from 1970-2005 3118 Korean babies where brought to Denmark to grow up. As there are two major agencies in DK and it’s bloody hard to adopt (lengthy application process and lots of tests) I’d guess the total numbers is roughly 5000 out of a population of 5.5 million people.
I used to be somewhat offended by the assumption that I was Chinese and I always wondered why, since I perceive myself as Danish it shouldn’t really matter whether people label me as being Japanese, Chinese or Korean, but it does. Because even though I, as a Korean adoptee who came to Denmark barely three months old, have no emotional connection to Korean culture or society, I nonetheless am Korean by blood.
I’ve earlier blogged about how tired I am of explaining who and what I am since apparently everything comes down to the colour of your skin and some people almost are offended when I persist on claiming my European (cultural) roots. It’s like I’m abandoning my Asian roots. I’m not – I just never realised I had any besides my looks. But one thing I’ve learned during the past 6 months in Vietnam is being in a group of purely Asian people (who might all have grown up in the Western world), but before coming here I’d never been in a group of all Asian. And I think to some extent I didn’t want to be in an Asian group in Denmark because I was afraid I would be taken for an immigrant (no, I don’t think there something wrong with being an immigrant, but the fact is I’m not one in the typical sense of the word). During my years I don’t know how many people who’ve said to me – “I don’t even think of you as not being white”. To them it was a compliment and I can understand the meaning of that sentence, but somehow there’s also an insult in the words; being white means included, not being white means being excluded. I’m adopted, I’m Asian, but they see me as included.
Here in Vietnam I’ve made Viet Kieu friends, and no to be honest I have not made many purely local friends. But hanging out with Viet Kieus have given me the opportunity to be in group of people looking like me with almond eyes and black shiny hair (or greasy if you use wax). Living in Vietnam has been very different from my previous travels in Asia, in many ways I blend into everyday life ‘cause of my looks and many ways I don’t ‘cause of my Western upbringing. Yesterday sitting in a bar with all Asians, I realised that I felt quite comfortable with me being Asian, them being Asian – I did not feel I had to try to be “more Danish” so that people wouldn’t think I was Asian born and bred. I didn’t even care. I don’t know whether I’ll feel the same when in Denmark again, but I hope so.
Being comfortable in your skin is alpha and omega for allowing yourself to be whoever you are. Being an Asian adoptee in Denmark will probably always bring up some issues, because no matter how much you’re upbringing is Danish, you’re looks and biological roots are not. I don’t have the same cultural roots vested in a “home country” that Viet Kieus have. I cannot go to Korea to find “my roots” in the same way (if at all) since the culture I would meet there would not be one I’d find familiar in any way or identify with. I don’t speak the slightest Korean and I have no desire to learn, but I’ve come to learn that I am in fact Korean, I’ve even been told by American Koreans that I act Korean. I think it always bothered me to be labelled Chinese, because I knew I should take some pride my Korean DNA. Living in Asia has taught me a lot about myself regarding my Asian appearance, the pros and the cons. It has taught me to be proud of my Korean heritage – the heritage that I’ve also claimed I didn’t have. My Korean heritage is my Asian looks and even though it is not WHO I am since you cannot and should not boil an identity down to looks, it is the first thing people do when the meet you. I will always be Danish of heart and mind, but I’m only now learning to be Korean as well : )
Monday, January 01, 2007
Speed wedding
A couple of weeks ago I went to my first Viet-wedding. It was one of my co-workers who was gettig married and I'd asked her a ton of questions regarding the wedding, so I was pretty excited to go even though my other co-workers warned me that Vietnamese weddings were not fun at all.
Well, it was def rather different from a Danish wedding. The bride and the grooms' guests sat in two differenct sections of the room, I counted somewhat 400 seats so it was quite a big wedding.
While people were eating the ceremony with the rings being exchange took place and some family members gave a perfomance. After that the happy couple went around greeting the tables, everyone ate and chatted and around 45 minutes after arrival the first table of 20 people got up and left. I stayed approx 1½ hour and our table was one of the last to leave!
So no, my first Vietnamese wedding couldn't excatly be described as "fun", but I still thought it was fun to see how everything went about.
Well, it was def rather different from a Danish wedding. The bride and the grooms' guests sat in two differenct sections of the room, I counted somewhat 400 seats so it was quite a big wedding.While people were eating the ceremony with the rings being exchange took place and some family members gave a perfomance. After that the happy couple went around greeting the tables, everyone ate and chatted and around 45 minutes after arrival the first table of 20 people got up and left. I stayed approx 1½ hour and our table was one of the last to leave!
So no, my first Vietnamese wedding couldn't excatly be described as "fun", but I still thought it was fun to see how everything went about.
Thursday, December 21, 2006
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Vietnamese performance
A couple of weeks ago I went to a perfomance by Anh Khanh, dare I say Vietnam's most famous artist? It was out at his house in Gia Lam - neighbour province to Hanoi. His house and the surrounding grounds are filled with installations, sculptures and paintings - and the perfomance itself was quite something. I cannot explain what was going on as my art interpretation is not advanced enough to understand him, so I'll let the pics speak for themselves.
Monday, December 11, 2006
Violence in Hanoi Streets
Last week walking down Hang Trong towards the lake two moto's stopped in the middle of Nha Tho. There were two guys on one moto - two girls on the other. One of the guys jumps of, pulls the girl-driver off by her hair and stars punching her in the face!
We start screaming "stop!" - others pull up by the side, but no one except the other girl does something to try to stop him...
The girls run towards the church in her high heals - he chases her, punches her till she's on the ground screaming. She gets up and runs and tries to hide between the rather big crowd and finally a guy pulls the violent man by his arms and stops him.
The girl has blood running down from her lips - she looks dead scared. We start walking again, stunned and scared. I've never seen anyone hit a girl like that. I have never seen anyone hit a girl in my life! I felt paralysed - afraid to butt in. Maybe it's an excuse, maybe an explaination, but I'm a girl, tiny of size and I wouldn't have the strength to hold him down and stop him. But what about the 20 something guys standing around just looking doing nothing? Why didn't they try to stop him?
I didn't understand what was wrong as the guy was yelling at her in Vietnamese, but it was obvious they knew each other - and maybe there's some codex here in VN saying you don't mess with other people's domestic affairs? I don't think there's anything in the world that justifies domestic violence and when you take it to the streets of Hanoi, you'd except someone to react, step in, try to help. I don't think I have a guy-friend who wouldn't try to step in if he saw a girl getting beat up in the middle of the street...
Why was everyone so passive? I don't understand....
We start screaming "stop!" - others pull up by the side, but no one except the other girl does something to try to stop him...
The girls run towards the church in her high heals - he chases her, punches her till she's on the ground screaming. She gets up and runs and tries to hide between the rather big crowd and finally a guy pulls the violent man by his arms and stops him.
The girl has blood running down from her lips - she looks dead scared. We start walking again, stunned and scared. I've never seen anyone hit a girl like that. I have never seen anyone hit a girl in my life! I felt paralysed - afraid to butt in. Maybe it's an excuse, maybe an explaination, but I'm a girl, tiny of size and I wouldn't have the strength to hold him down and stop him. But what about the 20 something guys standing around just looking doing nothing? Why didn't they try to stop him?
I didn't understand what was wrong as the guy was yelling at her in Vietnamese, but it was obvious they knew each other - and maybe there's some codex here in VN saying you don't mess with other people's domestic affairs? I don't think there's anything in the world that justifies domestic violence and when you take it to the streets of Hanoi, you'd except someone to react, step in, try to help. I don't think I have a guy-friend who wouldn't try to step in if he saw a girl getting beat up in the middle of the street...
Why was everyone so passive? I don't understand....
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
It's oh so cold
After Hong Kong I went on to Beijing where I for the first time since March felt really cold. The temp reached 0c at night and when I visited the Great Wall of China I could see my own breath piercing through the mist. I even bought a new winter jacket to keep the Chinese cold out ; )
After 6 days in Beijing I was looking forward to feel the warm humid Hanoi weather again and I was pleased when the temp showed 23c when I set foot on Vietnamese ground 11 pm. The humidity pressed against my body and I felt at home.
But oh, the joy only lasted a few days. After a hot weekend with the temp hitting a rocking 32c in the afternoon the following Monday summer was over and winter came in a flash! 19-23c is not much when you're used to 30c. The Hanoi winter feels cold and damp and last night I wore my grannie's home-knitted wollen socks, that's how cold I felt.
Yes, I know 19c is not that cold and in Denmark I'd probably be out in my bikini the first day of spring with temp barely over 20c, but here my body has gotten used to the humid hot Hanoi weather and does not seem to adjust very well to Northern Vietnamese winter weather. I wear a jacket and a scarf to work even though it's just across the street. It helps that the scarf is a lovely soft deep purple pashmina that bought on my most recent trip to Thailand ;)
Feeling cold reminds me of winter in Europe and that this Asian journey all too soon is coming to an end. Time is flying...
More Beijing images here
After 6 days in Beijing I was looking forward to feel the warm humid Hanoi weather again and I was pleased when the temp showed 23c when I set foot on Vietnamese ground 11 pm. The humidity pressed against my body and I felt at home.
But oh, the joy only lasted a few days. After a hot weekend with the temp hitting a rocking 32c in the afternoon the following Monday summer was over and winter came in a flash! 19-23c is not much when you're used to 30c. The Hanoi winter feels cold and damp and last night I wore my grannie's home-knitted wollen socks, that's how cold I felt.
Yes, I know 19c is not that cold and in Denmark I'd probably be out in my bikini the first day of spring with temp barely over 20c, but here my body has gotten used to the humid hot Hanoi weather and does not seem to adjust very well to Northern Vietnamese winter weather. I wear a jacket and a scarf to work even though it's just across the street. It helps that the scarf is a lovely soft deep purple pashmina that bought on my most recent trip to Thailand ;)
Feeling cold reminds me of winter in Europe and that this Asian journey all too soon is coming to an end. Time is flying...
More Beijing images here
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Sorry, I've been lazy
...and enjoying life in Asia
So, here's a few pics from my recent trip to the amazing city of Hong Kong
Hong Kong island from the Kowloon side
Ladies market - which I actually didn't find too impressive
Hong Kong from Victoria Peak
South side of Hong Kong island
So, here's a few pics from my recent trip to the amazing city of Hong Kong
Hong Kong island from the Kowloon side
Ladies market - which I actually didn't find too impressive
Hong Kong from Victoria Peak
South side of Hong Kong island
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Thursday, November 02, 2006
How many people live in Hanoi?
I wonder how many people actually live in Hanoi city? I think the embassy website says 2,5 million, Lonely Planet say 3,5 and the locals say 5 million.
What is your take?
What is your take?
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Cook & Cook
I normally leave the food bloging to experts like Sticky Rice and Real Thai, but I'll make an exception.
So, back in Hanoi my family and I wanted to try some of the different cuisines available (besides Vietnamese food of course).
So one night my sister and I opted for Cook & Cook, a Korean style teppanayaki place off Ba Trieu. It turned out to be quite an experience!
Each table has its' own chef and ours certainly new some tricks. It was kind of a mixture between circus and cooking with beautiful food and entertainment with knives and fire as the result.
We had a set meal consiting of around 11 dishes (as far as I remember); salad and soup, scallop with vegetables in curry sauce, grilled veggies, chicken with vegetables, grilled fish, prawn cooked in red wine, Australian steak with vegetables, fried rice, noodles and fresh fruit. It was fab, just fab ; )
Video available here
PS: After the meal we chatted with the owner who informed us a new KFC was opening just across the street. He seemed quite cheerful about it which I didn't really understand.
Anyways, I promised him to recommend his restaurant which I hereby do!
So, back in Hanoi my family and I wanted to try some of the different cuisines available (besides Vietnamese food of course).
So one night my sister and I opted for Cook & Cook, a Korean style teppanayaki place off Ba Trieu. It turned out to be quite an experience!
Each table has its' own chef and ours certainly new some tricks. It was kind of a mixture between circus and cooking with beautiful food and entertainment with knives and fire as the result.
We had a set meal consiting of around 11 dishes (as far as I remember); salad and soup, scallop with vegetables in curry sauce, grilled veggies, chicken with vegetables, grilled fish, prawn cooked in red wine, Australian steak with vegetables, fried rice, noodles and fresh fruit. It was fab, just fab ; )Video available here
PS: After the meal we chatted with the owner who informed us a new KFC was opening just across the street. He seemed quite cheerful about it which I didn't really understand.
Anyways, I promised him to recommend his restaurant which I hereby do!
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Holiday in Thailand
My family came from Denmark to visit me and we spent 5 days of our holiday in Thailand.
I love Bangkok - shopping heaven, good food, lots of fruit juice from the street vendors and life in the streets after 10 pm!
But besides the joys of big city life we also went for a one day trip to Kanchanaburi, probably best know from the book and film "The bridge on the river Kwai".
The highlight of the day - besides walking on the brigde, riding on the "death train", getting cooled down in the mist of a beautiful waterfall and having a lovely Thai lunch surrounded by mountains - was a visit to the Tiger Temple.
As you can see below I actually got to pet a tiger. As a matter of fact I touched 3 full size live tigers!
More pics from Thailand here
I love Bangkok - shopping heaven, good food, lots of fruit juice from the street vendors and life in the streets after 10 pm!
But besides the joys of big city life we also went for a one day trip to Kanchanaburi, probably best know from the book and film "The bridge on the river Kwai".
The highlight of the day - besides walking on the brigde, riding on the "death train", getting cooled down in the mist of a beautiful waterfall and having a lovely Thai lunch surrounded by mountains - was a visit to the Tiger Temple.
As you can see below I actually got to pet a tiger. As a matter of fact I touched 3 full size live tigers!
More pics from Thailand here
Monday, October 09, 2006
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Building, noise, buidling
If you are in Hanoi construction sites are just a part of the regular street scence. They're builing, building, building. Come to think of it it's actually pretty amazing how many buildings. big and small (but mostly big), that are shooting up everywhere in different parts of town. Building = noise! A lot of noise in an already pretty noisy city.
So this morning (after being out till 3) I wake up 'cause they're breaking up the road infront of our house. Mind you, this was 7 am in the morning on a feking Sunday! I'm used to noise from my landlords' kids running around infront of the house, the motos' noise from the street, the kid next door who plays the piano 4-5 hours a day and only knows "Für Elise", people shouting in our alley 'cause they're selling fruit or want our old magazines - I'm used to noise! But this was just too much. I put in my earplugs and hid myself under the duvet. Little did it help.
The horrible sound of them breaking up the concrete road with an air drilling hammer penetrated my vague attempt to sleep and made me long for my bed back home in Denmark on my quiet street a dark October morning covered by my warm duvet - where all you can here is the wind and the rain pouring down...
Who've thought I'd ever miss that?
So this morning (after being out till 3) I wake up 'cause they're breaking up the road infront of our house. Mind you, this was 7 am in the morning on a feking Sunday! I'm used to noise from my landlords' kids running around infront of the house, the motos' noise from the street, the kid next door who plays the piano 4-5 hours a day and only knows "Für Elise", people shouting in our alley 'cause they're selling fruit or want our old magazines - I'm used to noise! But this was just too much. I put in my earplugs and hid myself under the duvet. Little did it help.
The horrible sound of them breaking up the concrete road with an air drilling hammer penetrated my vague attempt to sleep and made me long for my bed back home in Denmark on my quiet street a dark October morning covered by my warm duvet - where all you can here is the wind and the rain pouring down...
Who've thought I'd ever miss that?
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Does Viet-teens driving motos have a death wish?
So I'm sitting a Balcony Bar this Friday after a long week at work enjoying a nice drink chatting with a friend watching the Hanoi evening traffic around Hoan Kiem Lake.
Motos, a few bicycles, taxis and the kings of the Viet-road, buses swirl in between each other passing by under me. Business as usual. But then - something is disturbing the somewhat peaceful pace of Hanoi traffic - 2-3 motos with teens chasing each other zig-zaging in and out. Need I say practically no one here wear a helmet? Bumbing into another road user knocking yourself and the other person out of balance creating a potential accident is almost bound to happen. Even though these kids are born and raised on the streets and used to navigating through Hanoi traffic this does not make them over-human when it comes to avoiding accidents.
I know they're teens, trying to empress each other or the girl on the back of the moto, pushing boundries, but they seem more fearless than I remember me and my peers did 10 years ago.
Officially 11.000 people were killed in Vietnam traffic from 1st of January 2006 - 12th of September 2006. That's an average of 66 people a day! Someone told me the real number is around 3 times higher....
Saturday - having coffee with friends I mention this reoccuring incident in Hanoi traffic; teens driving crazier than what is percieved normal in this country. Horrified I listen to one of my friends who has lived in Hanoi for 12 years tell a story of how the Viet-teens challenge their driving abilities and death to the max: At night, in the deserted streets of Hanoi they apparently race against each other. That in itself is in my view nuts, but the story gets worse. In order to prove their dare-devilness they set the breaks out of function.... (bet you're shaking your head now) - the girl sits behind the boy which is normal, but the boy is blindfolded and the girl acts as his eyes! This must be the most stupid thing I've ever heard! Does these kids want to die?
I know I sound like a very old women sitting in my rocking chair pointing my cane at the telly rambling about "kids today", but honestly I don't understand this need for adrenalin when you might end up hurting other people - worst case scenario - taken another persons' life. Rock climbing, sky diving, bungee jumping - be my guest - do what gives you the kick and makes you feel a live, but why I ask do are you willing to risk another persons life as well?
Motos, a few bicycles, taxis and the kings of the Viet-road, buses swirl in between each other passing by under me. Business as usual. But then - something is disturbing the somewhat peaceful pace of Hanoi traffic - 2-3 motos with teens chasing each other zig-zaging in and out. Need I say practically no one here wear a helmet? Bumbing into another road user knocking yourself and the other person out of balance creating a potential accident is almost bound to happen. Even though these kids are born and raised on the streets and used to navigating through Hanoi traffic this does not make them over-human when it comes to avoiding accidents.
I know they're teens, trying to empress each other or the girl on the back of the moto, pushing boundries, but they seem more fearless than I remember me and my peers did 10 years ago.
Officially 11.000 people were killed in Vietnam traffic from 1st of January 2006 - 12th of September 2006. That's an average of 66 people a day! Someone told me the real number is around 3 times higher....
Saturday - having coffee with friends I mention this reoccuring incident in Hanoi traffic; teens driving crazier than what is percieved normal in this country. Horrified I listen to one of my friends who has lived in Hanoi for 12 years tell a story of how the Viet-teens challenge their driving abilities and death to the max: At night, in the deserted streets of Hanoi they apparently race against each other. That in itself is in my view nuts, but the story gets worse. In order to prove their dare-devilness they set the breaks out of function.... (bet you're shaking your head now) - the girl sits behind the boy which is normal, but the boy is blindfolded and the girl acts as his eyes! This must be the most stupid thing I've ever heard! Does these kids want to die?
I know I sound like a very old women sitting in my rocking chair pointing my cane at the telly rambling about "kids today", but honestly I don't understand this need for adrenalin when you might end up hurting other people - worst case scenario - taken another persons' life. Rock climbing, sky diving, bungee jumping - be my guest - do what gives you the kick and makes you feel a live, but why I ask do are you willing to risk another persons life as well?
Monday, September 25, 2006
The perfect wedding photo
A couple of weeks ago I biked to the Museum of Etnology with two of my housemates.
Although the museum itself was quite interesting I discovered another interesting subject to blog about; The perfect wedding photo. There were brides and grooms everywhere - each with their own photo-team lined up to do makeup, light and so on - posing at all the minority house trying to catch the most beautiful photo to remember their special day by. It looked like posing as happy newlyweeds was very hard work! In fact they neither of the couples looked too happy about the whole situation besides when the flash was pouding against them. But I guess in the years to come it will be good to look back at that day 2 weeks before the acutal wedding where you were running around the garden at the Museum of Etnology trying to look as happy as ever while 3 other couples were waiting in line to catch the spot next!
Although the museum itself was quite interesting I discovered another interesting subject to blog about; The perfect wedding photo. There were brides and grooms everywhere - each with their own photo-team lined up to do makeup, light and so on - posing at all the minority house trying to catch the most beautiful photo to remember their special day by. It looked like posing as happy newlyweeds was very hard work! In fact they neither of the couples looked too happy about the whole situation besides when the flash was pouding against them. But I guess in the years to come it will be good to look back at that day 2 weeks before the acutal wedding where you were running around the garden at the Museum of Etnology trying to look as happy as ever while 3 other couples were waiting in line to catch the spot next!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
