♫ A foggy day in Ha Noi….. ♪

……sounds like the beginning of a song.  Anyway, yesterday was very foggy.  Winter is approaching.  I went up to the rooftop to hang some laundry (which somehow didn’t get quite dry…hmmm….) and here’s what I saw:         Mike and I are pretending we’re in Seattle…. nice picture of the Space Needle, eh? After hanging the laundry I went for a walk….. …..and … Continue reading ♫ A foggy day in Ha Noi….. ♪

Ha Noi Hilton

Yesterday Mike and I went to visit what we Americans commonly (albeit sarcastically) call the Ha Noi Hilton and what the Vietnamese call Hoa Lo Prison. It was originally built by the French in the late 1880’s during their colonization of Viet Nam and was used at that time primarily for political prisoners, i.e. dissenters of French rule.  Once the French were gone, it was … Continue reading Ha Noi Hilton

Thanksgiving Dinner, VN Style

Turkey is a specialty food in Viet Nam.  They call it ga Tay ~ Western chicken.  Or, more specifically, ga Tay My ~ American Western chicken…..and it’s not cheap!  But, honestly, most all other foods here are cheap, so spending a little more for a taste of home cooking on this special day was worth it……if only we could figure out where to buy it…..and … Continue reading Thanksgiving Dinner, VN Style

♪ The wheels on the bus go ’round and ’round… ♫

I’ve been feeling a bit flaky about not writing lately.  I just haven’t done anything!  Been staying at home ~ staying off my foot. Ordering food ~ gaining weight. Oh well, I lost a lot of weight in Thai Binh ~ I guess it’s okay to gain some of it back…..some of it.  So, since I don’t have any new stories to tell you, I … Continue reading ♪ The wheels on the bus go ’round and ’round… ♫

As Mike says…….

….”Give me convenience or give me death”……spoken like a true American. Okay, so having a sprained ankle is a pain in the, well, yeah ,…foot.  Doing any shopping for food or going out to eat can be a real hassle.  Plus….and this may sound weird, but……sometimes you just get tired of being stared at wherever you go (which is compounded when you’re hobbling around with … Continue reading As Mike says…….

Learned a new word and I’ve just gotta obnoxiously use it….

Well, I finally went to the hospital for my ankle yesterday….a week after I sprained the darn thing. I’ve been trying to ‘tough it out’, but it’s been really sore the last few days and I’ve been worried that maybe a bone was broken or fractured. My very, very sweet and kind landlady graciously offered to take me……and spend her entire afternoon with me……. just … Continue reading Learned a new word and I’ve just gotta obnoxiously use it….