Past month or so....

Propane delivery during the monsoon

It has been a while since my last entry, over a month.  I suppose that is a sign that this is becoming part of my daily life now.  It is starting to feel a more comfortable and routine to me. We have done many things and explored new parts of the city.  We were shown a fabric district with many stores carrying fabric of all kinds and for cheap.  While we were there, it poured and the streets flooded.  It was fun to sit in a coffee shop and watch the cars, bikes and scooters try to navigate through the small pond that had formed in the street. Now we need to take it to a tailor and get custom made clothes.  I think the largest adjustments here is the lack of convenience that we’re used to in the U.S.A.  Many people in the U.S. are accustomed to going to one place to get groceries, clothing, toys, house hold needs and so on.  Here you have to go to separate stores or districts to find what you need.  We have to plan out our route if we need to look for something for the house or to get groceries, some of which don’t have fresh meats, thus leading us to yet another market.  It can become an all day event, but if you embrace that, it can be fun.  Unfortunately, Krisy has been feeling ill from the first trimester of pregnancy, so she either doesn’t last long or doesn’t come.

fabric market

Two guys on a bike enjoying the flood

people navigating through the flood

One major thing we did since the last entry is we went to the capital of Hanoi & the beautiful Halong Bay in the northern part of Viet Nam.  It is about a two-hour flight from HCMC to Hanoi and a four-hour bus ride from Hanoi to Halong Bay.  We planned the trip not initially realizing that it was a big holiday weekend.  September 2^nd & 3^rd are important days for most of the Vietnamese people; the 2^nd is their actual day that they gained independence from the Japanese/ French.  September 3^rd is the anniversary of the death of the person who led them to their independence, Ho Chi Minh.  Being that Hanoi is the capital, the city was packed with people to celebrate and to go the very Russian looking mausoleum to see “Uncle Ho” as they call him.  Krisy and I took a cyclo or bike taxi to the mausoleum, but the line was longer than any other I had ever seen, so we passed on seeing his embalmed body.  Nearby is the One-Pillar pagoda and Văn Miếu, or the temple of literature (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Literature). It was the first university in Viet Nam, which was founded in 1076!  It was an amazing place and to see where the scholars taught Confucianism on stone tablets 934 years ago.  Hanoi was interesting and different that Saigon in that the people would frequently ask to take a picture with us.  We don’t know if they were in from the countryside, but it is definitely a different vibe in the north. 

Line to see "Uncle Ho"

A Viet girl and me at One-Pilar Pagoda. Peace

Krisy with the tablet at the Temple of  Literature

Flags flying high for Independence Day in VN.

Hanoi at night before fireworks

We were in Washington D.C. for our Independence on the 4^th of July while on our 3-week motorcycle trip across the U.S.  I paused and thought that it’s not often that people get to be in two different national capitals on the opposite side of the world for Independence day in the same year. This year also marks the 1000-year anniversary of the city of Hanoi.  The celebration was fun to see.  People celebrate similar, they watched fireworks, ate food from street vendors at a street fair, laughed, and loved those around them. As the firework show ended, people flooded towards the exit streets on foot and some on scooters.  It seemed as though all of the streets converged into one intersection and the crowd came to a halt.  We were packed in and it only took one person to fall forward or start pushing before things got bad.  I felt the crowd starting to sway and surge, so I got my pregnant wife out of the situation.  There was much more to do and see in Hanoi, but we only had a couple of days before we went to Halong Bay. 

Halong Bay is considered a world heritage site by UNESCO and like many amazing places on Earth, it is a huge tourist destination.  I would relate it to the same feeling I had when I first saw Machu Picchu in Peru.  As we arrived to the bay there were tourists everywhere, many, many more than I had imagined.  The pictures make it look so pristine, untouched, and undiscovered. The docks where all of the boats depart is busy, it smelled and is polluted from the byproducts of tourism. It got better as we were on our boat and headed to the heart of the bay.  The steep limestone formations that rose out of the water were similar to those in Peru, because they seemed to rise out of nowhere.  It was breathtaking to see the calm waters with limestone formations coming out of the water for as far as the eye could see.  For thousands of years, people have made their livelihood fishing in Halong Bay and continue today.  At one point our boat stopped at some caves similar to many in the U.S. and we got out and hiked through them with all of the other tourists.  They were amazing, but we both have seen similar caves back home.  We then went to an area where we could kayak and because Krisy wasn’t feeling well, I went solo.  It was nice to get closer to the water and I was able to get a better look at some of the families whom live on boats there year round.  I didn’t want to violate their privacy, but as I got closer, almost every one of them would wave at me almost as if they were inviting me over.  We stayed on the boat one night and after the boat anchored, some of us went swimming before dinner.  

A friendly fisherman

Typical Halong Bay boat called a "Junk"

The trip ended the following day and we started on the four-hour bus ride back to Hanoi, which didn’t settle well with Krisy.  She wasn’t feeling well by the time we got back, so we ate and I wandered around by myself for a couple of hours.  The celebration was still going on and there was live music and a large street was closed off with booths selling things to the locals.  The following morning, Sunday, was the day when all of the farmers, butchers and whomever else, come to town.  People had live fish, fresh veggies, were chopping meats and so on, it was fun to see before getting back on our flight to HCMC.

Fruit on its way to market

Butcher

Fish Massage

So, first off, just got back from a massage. It was 1.5 hours for 200,000 Dong or $10!  

It was much different than a massage back home, this place is nice and they incorporate thai, swiss, indian and other techniques.  Let me describe further.  Swiss massage, many know of, but they use their hands to get underneath shoulder blades, seemingly between your joints, and relax the face and scalp. Thai massage is the use of the foot, and the masseuse holds onto a bar fixed on the ceiling to avoid applying too much pressure.  One would think that a eight pound lady couldn't apply much pressure, but I was surprised as I was wincing with borderline pain.  I didn't think it was that different, but the way they work their feet on your back seems to feel like it hits spots that the hands don't.  One foot is working your calf region, while the other is on your upper back.  I am not sure, but it seemed like the masseuse was doing the splits on my back.  The next was Indian (I think).  It was mostly the use of knees and almost uncomfortable straddling of your back. Since Krisy had the prenatal/ light touch massage, she said she looked up and was wondering what the heck the lady was doing.  I had never had someone massage me with thier knees, but it was circular motions on the back.  We were then sat up, served some tea, then laid back down and they gave a really great leg and foot massage.  

It was this very interesting place that also has a fish massage. Yes, fish.  You can stick your feet into a big fish tank that is full of minnow size fish that eat the dead skin off your feet and legs.  I am usually up for whatever, but once they started swimming all around nibbling at my feet, I couldn't deal with it.  I thought that it would be too ticklish for Krisy and was surprised that she eventually was ok with it.  She let those little guys do their thing and I just watched.  

By the time we left the place, we were hungry and found a Texas BBQ restaurant.  With so many expats here, a wide variety of food is plentiful, so we decided to have a little piece of the U.S.  We went with other co-workers, so were able to see everything on the menu.  The meat was falling off the ribs and the BBQ sauce was pretty good,  even my Buffalo wings were pretty good.

For around $30 we had a night that would've been over a couple hundred back home.  It was a good way to end a really busy week.

Today marks about 25 days of living in HCMC, and it's crazy to think that we've been here almost a month.  It has been a whirlwind couple of weeks, but hopefully things are settling down a little bit.  Krisy's morning sickness, which lasts all day, has made traveling on the weekends a little impossible, but hopefully it's over in a couple of weeks and we can start to see the country a little more.

The city starts to wear on a person, and I think that it's time for us to get out soon.  There is so much to see and explore in the city, but the constant traffic, horns, pollution, and everything else, starts to tire anyone that's used to having nature in their life.  At least there are tons of places to get a good 2.5 hour massage for under $20!!!
The people here are very friendly and it never really feels unsafe.  I have been to some places in other countries that just feel like something could happen, but here feels a little better.  There are tons of ex-pats here and because of this, there is a wide range of good restaurants to choose from. The small motorbike, usually under 150cc's, is the life line of this city.  The people can do or carry just about anything on these scooters.  They make deliveries to job sites, take the entire family to school and work, carry livestock, tourists, and some of them are even crafted to be somewhat of a pickup with a front that has two wheels and half of a truck bed. A great pictoral book on this is "Bikes of Burden," by Hans Kemp.

The city is in the middle of a boom.  There are cranes across the skyline with new, luxurious buildings, like the one we live in, are going up left and right.  Believe it or not, it feels the exact opposite from back home where the economy is fairly stagnant. I am not saying that it's a better place or that it's a wealthier country, but if you are an entrepreneur, this is a great place to be.  I heard a report that it's one of the fastest growing economies in the world next to China.  I doubt it will be any time soon, but bubbles eventually burst, so hopefully, it levels out a little.
The people are hard-working, resilient, and always seem to be going.  Although there is a language barrier and I'm new here, people seem friendly for the most part.  Before we moved here, the question of how they would react to U.S. citizens came up quite often.  I can assure you that it's much more welcoming than places I've been in South or Central America.
Although there are many memories of the war, the country and the people have tried to move forward and not dwell on it.  If you visit the War Remnants Museum (formerly the War Crimes Museum) then you will see that it's not forgotten, but just part of their past.  Keep in mind, that this country is well over a thousand years old (gained independence from China in 930AD) and before the U.S. war here, the French had colonized and occupied it for around a hundred years.  So it seems that there are more ill feelings towards the French and China then the U.S.

There are tons of foreigners here.  Many from the states, the U.K. and mostly from Australia.  The country, or at least HCMC, is witnessing a huge change.  Highways are being built, more and more cars are on the streets and the skyline is moving up and out.  As I look out my window, I see a 66 story skyscraper being built.... that's larger than any in Denver!  Someone told us that just before they broke ground the developer bought a personal helicopter, so he wanted a helipad added.  As the building touches the sky, there is now a helipad hanging off the side, so he can land at his office. It looks similar to that building in Dubai.
It is a great time, maybe the best, to be here.  We can still go to areas and witness how older Vietnam might have been, but can also go get a good meal or anything else we need.  This is also good, because the health care has come a long way and now that we're going to be having a baby here, that is very important.

Since two weeks ago when we found out that Krisy was pregnant, things have started to soak in and allow us to become more comfortable with having our child here.  We went out to a neighborhood today called An Phu, where a large ex-pat community lives.  We noticed tons of young parents with both young babies and older children that looked like they've grown up here.  There are lots of resources, good people and good health care ran by the French.
Now all we got to do is hope Krisy feels better soon, so that we can get out and have more to show you all!