It's Amazing...

It amazes me, how quick time has flown by. No more than 2 months ago, Sonia & I were half way around the world in Vietnam. Experiencing its culture and investigating its artistic traditions. When we left, we knew we had experienced something profound and life-changing. Despite centuries of occupation and a brutal civil war, the people of Vietnam have shown us their amazing resilience and fortitude. All of which is evident both in their art and way of life. 

Sorry for the delay

As Sonia and I continue to travel and explore the folk arts tradition of Vietnam. It has become increasingly difficult to find the time to post a blog entry. Hopefully, time permitting, we will get to relive our memories through this blog, once we get home to the states. We will say though that having the ability to set our own itinerary has opened the proverbial door to a wealth of knowledge pertaining to Vietnamese Folk Arts. Provided some time, We will revisit it with greater detail following our return.  In the mean time here's a picture from the Dong Ho Painting Village and one from the makeshift studio of Contemporary Son Ta artist PhiPhi Oanh. Enjoy, and a big thanks to PhiPhi for allowing us into your studio.

The thrill of Ben Thanh Market...

I was told once that a trip to Ho Chi Minh City would be a descent into madness. After being here for 2 days now, I can agree with that sentiment. This city never sleeps. It seems that the city becomes rather lively at night, when the night markets in Ben Thanh open for business.



After a brief stay with my Uncle, we were dropped off at our hotel. Here at Hoang Gia Huy, we checked in and were given an opportunity to meet with our tour leader Tuyen and the other travellers participating in this tour. After the meeting, we had an opportunity to eat with our tour leader, which I turned down, since I had made plans to eat with my Uncle one last time before our tour kicks into full gear. While waiting for my Uncle to pick me up, I decided to venture out to the street market. Filled to the brim with screen printed shirts and aisles full of imitation goods, I made the decision to go searching for a camera bag and larger day pack. After walking around the market for about 30 minutes, I was able to nab a Deuter daypack and a Crumpler camera bag for about $35 or 700,000 dong all together. Are they authentic? Probably not. Despite questioning there authenticity, the bag's construction seems decent enough for my needs. Though I must admit, talking down the price for each item was rather fun. I also found out later that most of bags one finds in Ben Thanh should be talked down to about the 10-20 dollar price range. After my foray into the market, my uncle picked me up from my hotel to take me out to eat. After driving for about 15 mins through dense xe may (motor bike) traffic, we arrived at the restaurant.



My uncle did the ordering, I did the waiting. Far from the the touristy section of town, I was looking forward to dinner with my Uncle. He had mentioned that during the work day, the restaurant we were at would have a line winding around the street corner. After waiting for about 10 mins or so, a procession of food started to make its way out from the kitchen and onto our table.







Once the food had arrived, I dove in stomach first. Despite eating very similar items back home, I never had it with goat meat. I was pleasantly surprised with the fact that the meat was not particularly gamey. Stuffed to the brim, or rather close to it, I thanked my uncle for dinner. He took me back to my hotel and we exchanged goodbyes and parted ways. Well, until next time.

A Journey Back....

It's interesting to travel back to Vietnam, the home of my ancestors. Following our 3 day stay in Siem Reap, we took a one hour flight to Ho Chi Minh City a.k.a Saigon. Arriving about a day earlier than our scheduled tour, I decided to take that opportunity to visit my family in Saigon. I'm so glad that I did. We were treated to a delicious Vietnamese home style meal, that consisted of dishes such as Vietnamese hot and sour soup, fried freshwater fish, stewed fish,  pan fried shrimp, and the list goes on. My mouth salivates as I reminisce. Sonia jokingly fears that we will not have the opportunity to eat anything comparable. Following this post today, Sonia and I will join up with our tour group in our hotel. From there we will have the opportunity to see the splendor of Saigon a.k.a. the NYC of South East Asia. Hopefully, later on today I will have sorted and post our pictures of Siem Reap. Until next time.

Goog morning or Goodnight, depending on what part of the world you in. Talk about a time difference, flying for 18 hours or so, has left Sonia and I with a 12 hour time difference between Siem Reap and Houston. At the time of this blog entry, it is 6:24 am in the morning in Siem Reap or 6:24 pm in Houston, TX. Sonia and I are really excited about the first wing of our Southeast Asian adventure. Looking forward to Angkor Wat and its relationship to Ancient Cham culture. Look forward to photos and such with my next post. Until then.

So the journey begins...

I have started several blogs through out the course of my life. But none of them have ever mananged to exist beyond several postings. Maybe, it's due to "life" or maybe it's due to other pertinent things that take precendence over a blog posting. Either way, Sonia and I will be posting throughout this blog as we venture our way through the south east asian country of Vietnam. Though our trip won't take place until the summer of 2012, I felt it necessary to develop a routine of sorts, at least in regards to posting a blog entry. Before I go, Sonia and I would like to thank Fund for Teachers for making this oppourtunity possible. THANK YOU!!!