And now the companion piece – the emotional highs and lows of a month in Vietnam.
I have already written about a quiet day on a boat in Bai Tu Long Bay, hiking in Ninh Binh, riding on a motorbike, and generally being surrounded by captivating architecture. But here are a few other highs from hanging out in Hanoi:
Continue reading Five Highs and Two Lows – Vietnam (Part 2)It is time for the next installment of highs and lows. In the categories of best Flying God Statue; Railway Bridge; Hike; Pagoda; and Elevated House, as well as best Cave, and Mausoleum – here are my picks for the Hanoi region of Vietnam:
Continue reading Five Highs and Two Lows – Vietnam (Part 1)While in Hanoi, a Story Slam appeared on our group’s calendar for a Saturday night, with the topic of “community”. I admit that my first reaction was that I would enjoy being in the audience to see my first slam. I then reminded myself that I am actively working on story-telling skills, so I really should volunteer regardless of my uncertainties of the format and the elusiveness of the topic. Below is a rough transcript of the story I told that night. Perhaps put yourself with another twenty people, in a second floor lounge at a Hanoi bar with rearranged, mismatched furniture and the sound of motorbikes coming in through an open window, to get a little bit of the ambiance and spirit of the evening….
Continue reading A Story About: CommunityIt was raining and chilly, and our planned activities were appropriately cancelled. We couldn’t go anywhere. We had spotty internet, if at all. Dinner wasn’t on the schedule for a few more hours. And it was possibly my favourite afternoon of the whole time in Vietnam!
Continue reading On a Boat in the BayToday’s Travel Tip: Don’t take good air quality for granted.
My current approach to traveling hasn’t allowed much time to think about the next destination, as I have tried to soak up as much as possible where I am actually living. This led me to land in Hanoi, Vietnam, rather unprepared for the air that hit me. An app that I quickly befriended is called AirVisual. Here are a few notes about my experience with it.
Continue reading Something in the AirFifth month with Remote Year, so fifth country – Vietnam. This is no where near South Africa, so I had a chance to find out if I actually have skills for long haul flights, or if the enjoyable 11.5 hour flight from Paris to Cape Town had been a fluke…..I think I did alright with Cape Town-Dubai-Hanoi, even having already acknowledged that the malaria pills were making me a little prickly. And when it takes 19 total hours to cross 5 time zones (only five???!), who knows what jet lag even means at that point! I had to stay somewhat focused to navigate the free-for-all of getting through the crowd blocking the first few customs windows, to find dozens more windows, still with lines – it is worse than guessing which line to pick at the grocery store. But once truly into Hanoi, I greatly appreciated being fully taken care of by the local team – giving me my new SIM card and taking me right to the door of my new apartment to start the next adventure!
Continue reading Welcome to Hanoi!
