hoi an pics 2

Ok... so I guess we did take quite a few photos on our trip.... only two more small batches to post.. I promise! These are a few more from Hoi An and the surrounding areas.

This was the giant Buddha on our excursion to the Marble Mountains... basically a set of mountains made of natural marble with caves/caverns that contain several temples. I am still grateful I did not slip and fall and crack my skull in some of the tight spots we had to scurry through.
The Japanese Bridge in Hoi An, one of the main attractions in the old town.
Oh yes... it's SuperBono!... I guess his do-gooder persona spans the globe! This was in one of the local bars.
Rice workers in a field.
The local marketplace... if you can believe it... scooters try to drive through here too.
One of the temples at the Marble Mountains.
Champa ruins at My Son, which is in the jungles of Vietnam. There were swarms of people there... not an easy feat, but I managed to get a few people-free shots. :)

collage: ceci n'est pas une pipe

My ode to surrealist René Magritte's painting "Ceci n'est pas une pipe"... I couldn't resist when I found this vintage image of a pipe. I don't smoke, but I find it strange that with the amount of people who do smoke, very few have taken up the old fashioned pipe... it smells a whole lot better than cigarettes or cigars.

hoi an pics

Some more photos from our Vietnam trip... this time images from Hoi An, a small town near the centre of Vietnam. Designated a Unesco World Heritage Site, the old town was quite and serene.

A view from the water. 
The view from our hotel balcony overlooked a rice paddy field... so every morning we would watch the local farmers tend to their crops.
One of Hoi An's specialty goods are their lanterns. At night there are rows of vendors along the streets all lit up with these colorful lanterns... it's quite mesmerizing in person, hard to capture in the picture.
There were a lot of merchants walking around town selling their wares... food and bottled drinks mostly. There were also a high ratio of tailor shops (you can see one in the background)... they would make anything you wanted custom fit... no joke - show them a picture of your fave designer dress in a magazine, and one day later you'll have it ready to go for a bargain.
There were an abundance of temples in the town too... at times, it almost felt like more temples than people.
Rows of spiral incense hanging from the ceiling of a local buddhist temple.
Rows and rows of cyclos lined up and ready to shuttle tourists around the town... only big tour groups seemed to ride them... we didn't end up riding one since everything was actually very close on foot ...they seemed more for novelty than practicality. Another batch of pics coming soon!

saigon pics 2

Some more pics from the Saigon portion of our trip... we love taking pictures of everyday things when we travel, since other people's ordinary is extraordinary to us.

An average utility pole in Saigon... they all looked like this. I would hate to be the utility person or electrician.
Merchants rolling racks of shoes down to the night market. They were rolling a bit too fast for me too browse though.
Assortment of tropical fruits at the Ben Thanh Market. I still haven't tried durian (the spiky one on the left)... it has a very very strong pungent odor, well more of a funk... but apparently it's supposed to be really tasty. It is banned in most all the hotels due to its funky nature.
A yummy gourmet Vietnamese sandwich (banh mi thit), soup, and coffee (not pictured)... all for $4.
Notre Dame Cathedral... yet another leftover from French colonial days.
A cute couple getting their wedding photos taken in front of the cathedral... and in true Vietnamese fashion, they are on a scooter!
More scooters!... people wear masks to protect themselves from pollution. A lot of women also wear masks, hats, long sleeves and gloves to protect themselves from the sun, since lighter skin is seen as more beautiful (I profess that I, in fact, did the opposite and tried to get a little tan). Will post more pics of other areas of our trip in a couple of days!

saigon pics

As promised, I am posting some photos of our recent trip to Vietnam. This batch is a selection from Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City). My overall impressions of Saigon - a huge vibrant city with elements of east and west. There is a mix of traditional street market culture juxtaposed with high end western luxury stores. Streets are packed with an infinite amount of scooters and constant hustle and bustle. Everyone here is super friendly and always happy to see you... the overall population is energetic and young (a huge amount born after the end of the Vietnam War in 1975). The food is awesome with a great selection of Vietnamese, French and other international selections. Would I go back?... most definitely.

Vespa by the Ben Thanh Market, the central market downtown.
Everyone has a scooter in Vietnam... and it feels like they are all on the road at once. Not uncommon to see a family of four (baby included) all riding on one scooter with their dog and shopping bags tied to the back.... I have no idea how they balance it all, but they do. We stuck to walking, since it was safer!
Inside the Ben Thanh Market in the fabric section. The market is a massive space that sells everything under the sun - fresh produce, live seafood, toiletries, clothes, shoes, watches, DVDs, fabric, jewelry... the list is endless. I had my first crack at haggling here.
Yummy spring rolls... just one of the many Vietnamese dishes we gorged ourselves on. Our average bill for a nice restuarant dinner for two (including appetizers, entrees, and two beers) was about $7 - 10. Beer was only $1... so needless to say, there was a lot of beer flowing on our trip.
A lot of colonial architecture is still present, leftover from the French.
Statue of Ho Chi Minh (or Uncle Ho, as he is also known), who led the Vietnamese Independence movement and established the communist-governed Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
Sunset on Saigon from our hotel rooftop. I'll post more photos soon!

collage: kitten chasing a bird

Ok... this jet lag business is getting a little bit ridiculous. I swear, my sleeping patterns are more like a cat these last couple of days. I wake up at 3 or 4 in the morning with tons of energy and then by noon I am in dire need of a cat nap. Yesterday night I fell asleep on the couch at 8pm, only to wake up at midnight to move to the bed and fall asleep again. Hopefully I can shake this pattern off soon!!

home sweet home

It feels so good to be home! Our trip to Vietnam was fantastic, but it does feel nice to curl up in our own bed. I am still walking around like a zombie trying to recover from my jet lag and now also trying to get back into the regular groove of things. So hard to get into work mode after a vacation!!! We're still going through all our photos, so in the meantime, I thought I would post a crafty item I bought while on our trip. She was so cute, I couldn't resist.... she is even wearing the traditional Vietnamese dress (ao dai)... I probably should have packed my suitcase a bit better though, since I kind of squished her conical straw hat.