Weekend in Hoi An

Hoi An is a picture postcard town on the central coast of Vietnam and an easy getaway from Hanoi.  We spent a weekend of visiting the old town and playing in the waves.

The city was spared the ravages of bombing during the American War and has benefitted from substantial funding from Japanese cultural foundations for its restauration.

The coiled incense below is sold to wishers and burned in this pagoda. Inscriptions in Vietnamese and occasional other languages request favors, prosperity and other successes.

Our hotel was on the river. One evening we came back to our rooms to see these lanterns floating magically along in front of the hotel restaurant.  They were set afloat upstream and then collected a little ways downstream, creating a dancing light show in the pitch black night.
















Simple boats set out to sea in front of Cham islands.
















No cars allowed in the center of town.  This is a happy change from the honking and pollution of the streets of Hanoi.
















The weekend ended with dragonboat racing on the river in front of the hotel.  The banks were lined with spectators and racers waiting their turn.  Men's and women's teams lined up to paddle ferociously up and down the river.  All under the watchful, benevolent eye of Uncle Ho, pictured below - can you find him?

Long Bien Arts Festival

Next year, Hanoi will be 1,000 years old. Last weekend, the city kicked off a year of celebration at the 999 year anniversary. At the Long Bien Bridge arts festival, the art was not very prolific, but pedestrians were able to take a leisurely stroll without the noise and dust kicked up by the thousands of motorbikes that cross the bridge each day.

The bridge crosses the Red River. In several spots, there are islands in the middle of the river and every inch of these islands is covered with cultivation, flowers, corn, bananas and other unidentified vegetation.

On the sand bars along the river, you could see camps. Boats dotted the river along these encampments and some of the buildings of the neighborhood of Tay Ho look like they are about to slide down the embankment.

Caligraphy by a very finely attired, white-haired man. On the spot art.

Back in the day...

Today, anytime you take the train to go north of Hanoi, you will pass over the Long Bien Bridge. The long leisurly walk we took, gave us a nice perspective on the river and the city beyond its banks. Unfortunately, it also gave us an upclose look at the iron structure that has survived over 60 years of rusting and various wars. Apparently, this doesn't keep it from holding up this train.

One Saturday Morning

Still in PJs, playing computer games and watching cartoons with the friend that had spent the night, the kids were surprised to hear the sounds of drums approaching one Saturday morning. Outside, a parade of dragons was snaking its way through the narrow alleyways behind and around our house. The view from the ground floor was limited, so we raced to the top floor terrasse to get a better look.
A band of 30 or so drummers and dragon carriers both children and adult were gathered in front of one of the houses occupied by a Vietnamese family in our neighborhood. Were they being honored? Bestowed with good luck wishes? Solicited for refreshments (they did pass around something to eat)? After about 20 minutes the parade left our neighborhood in its normally peaceful state.


















Later on that day, biking down to the tennis courts, we saw the dragons majestically displayed in front of our local Dinh (community center). The Dinh was decked out in flags and banners. There were balloon sellers and hot dog stands. The empty comquat field next door had a kiddie train set up and loud music was blaring in between announcements.

It was a village festival. The ancestors were being honored and the living were presented with certificates of some sort.


Young people took advantage of the time to socialize, older generation wore the traditional attire and the kids reveled in the color and excitement. It reminded me of the fais do do's in Louisiana. I never really understood what the precise occasion was or what kind of "official" activities were taking place. What I did understand is that street parties around the world can be so different and so similar at the same time.

The Ladies of Hanoi

I only have one picture so far, but I will get more. It seems that these women are the recycling and/or retail distribution force in Hanoi. You can see them everywhere in the residential and downtown areas of the city with their plastic or paper treasures strapped to the bicycles in various ways.
This lady seems to be collecting paper and cardboard. When we moved into the house, some lady got rich off of the cardboard boxes and packing paper she collected in front of our house. When I saw a shop keeper fling 2 large plastic bags into the street, I thought, how could he litter right in front of his shop. Not 2 minutes later, a lady like the one pictured above came by and collected those 2 bags. What seems to be a careless disregard for cleanliness, is actually sorting out the recycling - Hanoi style.

The other activity predominant among the ladies on the bicycles is retail. They meander through the neighborhoods calling out to residents. Potatoes, brooms, feather dusters, flowers, wicker baskets all sorts of things. Here is a photo from a museum, but it gives you an idea how much stuff can be transported by the bicycle vendors.

Morning on Ho Tay Lake

We live on the edge of the Ho Tay (West Lake), and the children get the bus on the lake road every morning at 7:47. So we take in the sights as they wait for the bus. Yesterday the light was very nice and the lake was very smooth. A perfect photo op. The 2 main activities on the lake are fishing and rowing. No sailing, no jetskis, no water skiing. The relatively silent activities are a nice contrast to the noisy streets of Hanoi.

While I'm at it, here are 2 totally unrelated shots.Nice Soviet propaganda style poster about the liberation of Vietnam from the French in 1954. At least I think that's what it's about.And a nice pack of banana leaves sitting in front of a small restaurant waiting to wrap up some Bahn Chung, no doubt. I haven't tasted this dish yet, but I will soon.

Holidays are Upon Us

As everyone in the US celebrates Thanksgiving, the holiday season starts. Every year, many people buy beautiful poinsettas to decorate churches, homes and holiday shopping displays. During a Saturday afternoon walk in our new neighborhood, I saw a lovely TREE with bright red blossoms. It was a Poinsetta!! Here you see the tree overhanging the lane. Above a closeup with a pretty butterfly. There is an abondance of very large and different types of butterflies in Hanoi.

You will also notice the multitude of electric wires. This is very common here. Apparently when a house gets hooked up to the circuit they add a wire. When something goes wrong, they add another wire. But don't take down the old wire. The result is a ton of wires that useless and forgotten. I read somewhere that over 50% of the wires are unclaimed. The city has asked people to claim the wires that they use. They plan to put all city center wires underground by 2010. The other interesting wire fact is that 4 men were sentenced to 21 years combined for stealing some of this wire and selling it for scrap. The conviction was basically a crime against the state as the wires are property of the government owned electric company. They are useless and unclaimed, but don't think that you can just take them!

Random Shots

Here are a few shots from the streets of Hanoi.

Ladies hanging out in front of what is called an Art Shop, but apparently sells everything but. They were having some sort of hair styling session. Check out the tiny plastic stools. These are very common on the sidewalks of Hanoi.


This is the side of some official building in the old quarter. The colors are really nice.



Apparently bicycles have been replaced by scooters and motorcycles as the transportation mode of choice. It is amazing what can be hauled on the back, front or footrests of these things. "La Vie" is the brand of locally produced drinking water.

Imagine the hustle and bustle of the picture above (honking the horn replaces turning signals, traffic lights and slowing down for all drivers here). Now contrast it with the serenity inspired by the photo below. Just on the other side of the portico is a little haven of greenery and meditation.

Finding a House

Our arrival in Hanoi has been an easing into life in Hanoi. We are starting out with a month in a serviced apartment in a very nice complex near the lake Ho Tay, Sedona Suites.

Complete with a pool, tennis courts and friends for the boys, life here is pretty easy.

Our plan is to spend this haitus looking for a house while waiting for our household goods to arrive from Dubai.

We looked at about 15 houses. Apparently there is a season for househunting in Hanoi, and this isn't it. The district we are looking at is Tay Ho which is located in the northern peninsula of the Ho Tay (West Lake) lake. The hotel is located in this area and it is a popular place for expats (European and American) to look for houses.

The houses are generally very tall and narrow - 3 to 4 stories with very high ceilings. The architecture is very much Euro-inspired. Combined with the luxurious vegetation that is possible here, the result can be very beautiful. This picture was taken at one of the nicer parts of the lakeside.

After visiting many houses, each with their special brand of "no way will we live here", we found the perfect place.

A small (relative to huge) house with views of the lake from every room, beautiful palms in the front yard, and very close to our beloved Sedona Suites, where we can join the club to take advantage of the amenities. I've met the current renters who have nothing but good things to say about the neighborhood, the landlords and the house. So we are very excited.

Our things arrive just in time for our Dec. 1 moving date.

For all Google earth afficianados, go to coordinates: Lat. 21° 3'38.25"N, Long. 105°49'9.41"E. That's our house's exact spot. The area is called Xom Chua.

Click around and look at the pictures provided. They give an excellent idea of the area.
This photo is taken from the small square lake just south of our house. Our house is directly behind the large house on the left. The vegetation in the foreground hides several small houses and gardening shelters. Our landlord lives in one of those. On the map you will notice green areas to the east of us. These are orchards where manderines, bananas and lord knows what else are grown. Very bucolic!

The Non-shopper's Paradise?

The next few entries will be comparisons between Dubai and our new home, Hanoi. This mirrors much of what I spew forth to anyone who cares to listen on a daily basis. So you're going to have to put up with it too.

One major difference is the shopping - or relative lack thereof in Hanoi compared to Dubai. Lack of shopping is probably not an accurate phrase. Because there are so few outlets of international brands, so few "full-service" shopping malls (and absolutely NONE with indoor ski-slopes), you actually do a lot MORE shopping because you actually have to SHOP to find stuff. Notably, food. There is alot of food in Hanoi, but not all of it is recognisable.

One thing Hanoi has on Dubai is a plethora of beautiful, LOCALLY GROWN fruit and vegetables. During my first trip to the market here, I found myself asking 'where do these appels come from? What about these mangos and zucchini?' In Dubai it all came from somewhere very far away. Here, it's all cheap, beautiful and delicious! We love the Pomelos and tiny manderines that you see growing everywhere.

Bon Apetit!

GoodBye Dubai, Hello Hanoi

OH MY LORD... I cannot believe that it has been almost a year since my last entry. The past year in Dubai has been marked by many things, but little did I know that it would be my last. We are moving our expatriate adventure from the middle east to the far east. Just a little further and I'll be back home.

First, saying goodbye to Dubai was for the most part saying goodbye to great friends, and my brand new Ford Explorer... sniff sniff. We bought it in March 2008 and sold it in October. The first and probably last brand new car I will ever own.

But enough with the materialistic, mega shopping, biggest, best and most expensive mentality (not to mention the "screw the environment" attitude).

We will be immersed in the ancient history, culture and natural surroundings of Hanoi. Well, sort of.

Absolutely every single person to whom I announced our new move said "Wow, it is so beautiful there." - "Oh really? Have you been?" Some had, some hadn't, but they were all in agreement. It will be an exciting adventure and a beautiful new place to discover.

I'll keep you all posted as to whether this is true.

Keeping it Real

Only 70 years ago, Dubai was a sleepy pearl fishing village. A few huts on the edge of the water and that was about it. It was a time when the Bedouin way of life was predominant. Tribal rule, camels, sand - a little bit like Lawrence of Arabia, but less exciting (surely).

Today, ask anyone with a healthy TV habit and they will be able to tell you that Dubai is the "Las Vegas of the Middle East". Bright lights, fast cars and lots 'o the money.

Walking around the central business district in April reminds me of doing the same in Houston, Texas in July - minus the oak trees.
It's got that same "we got rich quick on some oil" feel to it.
And like in Texas, (or Louisiana) there is a very conscious effort to retain some of the authentic cultural heritage that makes the locals, well, localish. Texas has rodeos and "Cowboy City"; Louisiana has the Acadian Village and the Jazz and Heritage Festival.

Dubai has it's own Heritage Village and, among other things, shopping malls. Yes, they put heritage up anywhere they can.
This past Ramadan, there was a heritage show scattered among the retail outlets of the new Dubai Festival City shopping mall.

It featured the kinds of reconstitutions that you can see in some American Indian reservation museums, and displays like the ones at Acadian Village in Lafayette, La. Lifesized, mechanized effigies of horses, camels and their riders inhabited papier maché houses, and sold their wares in front of cardboard storefronts. But the culture and heritage was infused with modernity.

Shoppers could take a break to catch up on email in the hot spot in front of the Arabian Horse/Falcon display. Or you could sip your Starbuck's while examining the intricate creek life exhibit in the central plaza/food court.

These displays showed men in impeccable dish dashes (traditional white robes) and women in elaborate abayas and shelas (black robes and head scarves) in these "old-fashioned" living quarters and market places. Today, Dubai houses are sparkling mansions and markets are state-of-the-art malls with indoor ski-slopes, but the dish dashes and abayas are still the same.

The contrast between the old and the new is still palpable. The camel farmers live 20 minutes outside of the city. You frequently see a camel in the back of a truck with a colorful hand knitted muzzle on its nose, streaking down the highway between the skyscrapers.

The fishermen still repair nets on the beach. They sit in front of elaborate waterfront palaces, strings held between their toes as they examine the knots in their nets and scrutinize the bikinis strolling by along the edge of the water.

After watching the Discovery Channel extreme engineering report on how the Burj Al Arab was built on a man made island and was designed to resemble a sail boat, many people feel that everything built in Dubai is fake, a mere reconstitution of culture (or a ski slope). But that very reconstitution of the old among the new is the REAL Dubai. That's what Dubai is, for real.

Call of the Wild

Ok, ok, OK. I've had enough people comment on my lack of blogging to actually get back to it. I have to say that I was much inspired by my friend's blog, Paris Lights. This girl is a real blogger! Also, I was inspired by some actual exciting (relatively speaking, of course) events in my life.

Last Thursday, the cool weather and relative drop in humidity really made me want to get out of the city. Ideally, I would have liked to camp out like we did last November...

Ahhh, our camping trip of November 2006 (I really do suck at keeping up a blog). We struck out with 2 other cars (a minimum of 3 is required when going out - you'll understand why in a moment) to a spot discovered by an adventurous colleague of Philippe's.

It was a place where the wadi meets the dunes. The scenery is fantastic. Camels roam, the moutains seem to cut through encroaching dunes. And most of all, you can drive on the rocky wadi bed right up to the edge of the dunes. The best of both worlds, hard rocks for easy driving and soft sand for comfortable sleeping.

As we approached the spot, clouds appeared. The first we'd seen for 11 months. As the wind picked up and we approached the dunes, the car ahead of us slowed to a stop in what appeared to be a puddle of sand. It was a large puddle, and by the time we realized what had happened, we too were up to our axle in sand.

We were already near the edge of the dunes, so we pitched the tent as the rain started and decided to dig out the cars later.

In the end, the rain only lasted 20 minutes, the cars only needed a little digging and pushing and we spent a lovely evening looking at the stars.

The best is the morning, though. Coffee in the desert with the sun coming up over the mountains.

So last Thursday, these last images were clear in my head as I called around to drum up 2 other cars for a spur of the moment camping trip.

No go for the camping, but an expedition of 6 cars was going out for some desert driving and sunset picnic on Friday - we were welcome to join.

Based on our singular previous experience, Dune bashing consists of taking your car out into the desert and then digging it back out. Last Friday's trip only reinforced this theory. This time with body damage to prove it.

Here's the bullet point version of what happened:

• Drove to the edge of the dunes - let some air out of the tires for larger wheel coverage
• 2 attempts to top the first (not so impressive) dune - second one was successful only with the help of 6 locals who were driving by on quads when we were teetering at the top
• Got stuck
• Dug it out
• Got stuck 10 meters from the first place we got stuck
• Yanked it out with another car - busted the front grill
  
• Waited for the other 4 cars that got stuck to get unstuck, restuck, unstuck
• Drove back over the first dune back to the edge where we started
  
• Set up the picnic and watched the sun go down

Total distance traveled into the desert: 2 kilometers
Total dunes bashed: 1 (and to be honest, it bashed us)

No photos available due to a feeling that if I started snapping pictures, the car wasn't the only thing that was going to sustain damage....

So, maybe in another year, we'll try again.

To Be or Wadi Bih

Having a 4X4 in Dubai is almost an obligation. Our first reason for justifying a gas guzzling Ford Explorer was to have an imposing (safe?) vehicle on the Dubai highways. The traffic accidents I see here are some of the most spectacular I've every seen.

The second, and maybe truer reason is to be able to set out on the weekends and explore some terrain. Dune bashing and Wadi bashing are popular passtimes here. Dune bashing consists basically of bringing your car out into the desert and getting stuck in the sand (at least this has been OUR experience). If you're an experienced and daring driver, you can create your own roller coaster ride on the dunes. So far, we haven't been tempted to try this ourselves. One trip with a tour guide was enough to scare the kids into wanting to stay on more level ground.

We have, however gotten into Wadi bashing. According to wikipedia, a wadi is a dry riverbed. In the UAE, a wadi is a well maintained path running through the mountains that happens to follow the path of a river.

Last weekend, we went to Wadi Bih (pronounced BEE). It's a route that traverses the Hajar mountains from the Arabian Gulf on the west to the Omani Gulf on the east. It has some amazing scenery - alot like the grand canyon in places. This is a photo from the highest point on the drive, 1000 meters.
The most fascinating thing in these places are the areas that are cultivated, the shelters made of rocks and signs of habitation in general. You always think, what made people want to live here? We stopped at a terrassed area for our picnic.

The guidebook said that these terrasses date back to the 1300's. Through time, they have been maintained and cultivated, providing a lovely picnic area for tourists of the 21st century.

I would love to be able to say that we were all alone and cut off from the rest of civilization, but as we ate, we saw no fewer than 20 cars go by, about 6 of which stopped to do the same thing as us... get away from it all in the oasis.

Christmas in Dubai

You might wonder how the Christian holidays are handled in a Muslim country where about 80% of the population is foreign. Christmas in Dubai is all about the shopping. The malls are veritable shrines to the Christmas (shopping) spirit. This year the season coincides with the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) - the emirate's answer to it's dwindling oil reserves. The pic is one of the Christmas tree at the Wafi City shopping mall. At this mall there was a Santa grotto where you could take a photo with the big guy and follow a treasure hunt for a chance to win a sleigh full of presents (sleigh not included). This was pretty savvy on their part. In looking for the clues, I discovered some shops that I had never seen before.

Christmas day is not a national holiday, so if you want to spend it at home with the family, you have to take the day off. Same goes for boxing day - that British holiday for which noone can explain the name. All of the hotels and restaurants have special Christmas buffets which seem to be a pretty popular alternative to home cooking.

We opted for the home cooking. After the excessive lunch, we walked it off along the beach near the Burj Al Arab. We watched the barges peacefully blowing sand onto the "World" island project ...

and the sun setting behind the world's most expensive hotel.


Now that Christmas is done, we can go out and take advantage of the DSF sales and do the shopping thing all over again. Come to think of it, Christmas in Dubai is a lot like it is in other, Christian parts of the world.