On my last day in Japan: It is glorious weather – cool, bright and breezy, smelling of new green life. I am hungover from the previous night’s hot sake bomb marathon It is a Good Japanese Day; I can conduct my final bank transfer with ease and ask appropriate questions at the Post Office Bleary-eyed […]
Month: April 2009
Spring Ahead, Fall Back
It never quite feels like I’m really back in Japan until I hear my first shopkeeper scream, “いらっしゃいませ!!!” We arrived at KIX at 10 in the morning and were at Bob’s apartment by noon. Bob, who very graciously held on to all of our wordly effects while we were away, had also offered to put […]
Your 304-Word Vietnamese Mini Culture Lesson
The traffic in Viet Nam never rests. Motorbikes rev their engines at the stoplights – so many they appear to be contestants in a grand prix. When the signal comes, they careen through the narrow streets from what seems like several directions at once. Cars and pedestrians exist only as obstacles for their frenetic racecourse. If there are […]
Hoi An: An Old Town for You, a New Obsession for Me
There’s too much. There’s just too much. We’ve been here in Hoi An, an old city in Central Viet Nam, for 2 days and my mind just teems with images, smells and sounds. How can I write, though, when there are white rose wontons wrapped in delicate rice paper to be eaten? When there are […]
Duplicity
We arrived in Danang this afternoon; flight 4 of our 10-flight itinerary down. It’s only about 50 minutes from Hanoi to Danang but we soon discovered that the climate changed dramatically – cool and romantic in Hanoi; sultry in Danang. Upon feeling the first fat drops of sweat trickle down my nose, I steeled myself […]
A Cab Ride in Hanoi
It takes us maybe 20 minutes to get tired of the Ho Chih Minh museum. Sean was done the second an official back at the Mausoleum asked us where we’re from. I, on the other hand, was fine with the security checks, fine with the questions (“Obama!” said the official when I answered), and intrigued […]
Gobble Gobble
We arrived in Hanoi last night; a four-hour flight from Kuala Lumpur. Our in-flight meal was the delicious nasi lemak rice dish and our in-flight entertainment was the little girl sitting in front of us who spent most of flight engaging us in peek-a-boo. Our hotel sent a taxi to pick us up and we […]
Your 213-Word Mini Malaysian Culture Lesson
As in Japan, Malaysian moviegoers must choose their seats before committing to buying their tickets. The cashier shows you a seating grid and you choose. Unlike Japan, a movie ticket costs just 9 ringgit; about 3 US dollars. Because Sean has never heard of it, I am able to convince him to watch He’s Just […]
Do Not Disturb – Out for Vacation
A strange thing has happened to Sean and I since we’ve been on vacation. When someone speaks English to us, we answer back cheerfully. If we don’t know how to eat roti canal properly, we’re not embarrassed. If someone rushes to show us how to use an English language ticket machine, we’re grateful. All of […]