Quenching Our Thirsts

Juice - Vietnamese Style
Thank goodness I am travelling with my adventurous girlfriend. This trip is much better for sure with her jumping in and trying things. Today after breakfast she noticed a small shop that was selling juice. The mom and daughter looked very friendly and the juice looked good. Pingle pointed at a juice and they invited her in to sit on one of the small blue seats against the wall.

Of course, she was pointing at a juice for me. Then she pointed for another for herself. We sat up close and watched it in the making. Some water, some ice, a couple of scoops of mystery elixir and boom, we had two ice cold juices.

According to Pingle, it had a jasmine flower flavor and those berries on the bottom were lotus seeds. Apparently, you have to boil them for some time before they become soft. They reminded me of lychee in composition, but not in flavor.

What an enjoyable experience. We sat, drank our juices and watched the street traffic. As you can see, mom and daughter looked just alike, each with a beautiful smile.

Crossing the Street

The First Step is a Doozy
One other place that I am reminded of - Bombay. Why? The traffic - it flows like water - never a break. To cross the street is a task of mind over matter. You simply have to step out into it and let it flow around you. You're actually better off not looking, to be honest. Sounds counterintuitive but it makes sense - if you look too much you tend to stop walking and this is not a good move. The bikers anticipate that you'll keep moving and plan their paths accordingly. How long would it take you to step out?

Breakfast of Champions

Doing it Like The Locals (Kinda)
Today we got off to a late start, we slumbered until about 9:30am and then made our way out for some grub. We went to a westernized cafe where I ordered some Pho, which is what many Vietnamese eat for breakfast. It's a beef noodle soup.

You can jazz it up with some of these lovelies. I opted for the chili sauce at the bottom.

It was ok, not spectacular - but then again, Pho is pretty much just ok in all versions I've had. I was expecting it to be different here in Hanoi but it wasn't.

Beengueeno got a Banh My sandwich and first bite in she looked up and said "I miss Hanco's" which is a Vietnamese sandwich shop in Brooklyn. I knew that was not a good sign. I took a bite and agreed. I prefer Hanco too. However, not sure if this was just a bad version or how they taste here in Hanoi. The bread was way too crusty and hard and the bacon inside was tough, very tough.

Of course, I felt better once she got on her Crackberry. Some things never change. Hey, missus, you're on vacation, remember?

The view from the front window was interesting - the traffic symphony was in full voice. I enjoyed watching folks cross the street - I think I could watch that forever.

Pingle took this interesting shot of an old lady as she crossed in front of our window.

Hanoi - First Impressions

From Hot to Hotter
I sure am glad I warmed up with Singapore before coming here, at least the heat didn't totally overwhelm me. On our flight in the captain told us the weather in Hanoi was "sunny, humid and 96." That is quite a sentence to hear. On the ride from the airport there were endless rice fields, with a corn patch right in the middle of them from time to time. The humidity and haze combined to magnify the brightness of a sun that was somewhere up there, not to be pinpointed. The airport was about 27 kilometers from the city, so we slowly made our way from countryside to the dense, crawling metropolis. There were people riding motorbikes everywhere, each with various face masks to hide from the sun, pollution and grit. Remarkably, upon reaching the city, things seemes to become greener and shadier, if that makes any sense. We checked into our hotel in the old section of town. Here's a shot from our hotel window.

We unpacked and then hit the streets. The streetscapes here remind me of a mix of Bombay and Bermuda. Bombay because of the busy, honking, endless scooter and human traffic. Bermuda for the lushness of the vegetation and architecture.

Everything is busy here, even the trees look to be doing overtime.

The telephone wires looked like they've been layered on over the decades, more and more.

As you may have guessed, the bicycle is pretty big here in daily life, you see a lot of vendors using them to transport their wares. I don't think they actually ride them more than transport goods with them.

A block away is St. Josephs Cathedral - a vestige of French colonial rule. Another example we noted was the cafe where we had lunch - it used to be a convent. See it here.

After lunch we made our way to Hoan Kiem Lake, the center of the old city. It is deep green and sports a necklace of parkland where many sit to enjoy slightly cooler temperatures. We sat down for an iced coffee in a cafe on top of a nearby building. This is truly a cafe society - they are everywhere.

After coffee we walked along the lake. This bridge joins to an island temple in the middle of the lake. As I took this photo and enterprising young saleslady commented on my photo skills to try to make a guidebook sale. I said thanks and moved on. Where was my girlfriend to shoo her away? Hiding 50 feet back. I teased her "hey, if you are with me they won't bother me since you look Vietnamese." She didn't seem to find that funny. She doesn't think she looks Vietnamese....

At certain corners of the lake, without cover from the shade trees, the sun was overpowering. I cannot imagine who would sit in these seats in the middle of the afternoon.

Another small temple in the lake, this one inaccesible. Thousands of Vietnamese, with a few tourists mixed in, sat lakeside under the trees, fanning themselves and sipping on various drinks. After our hour walk we headed back towards the hotel. We found a nice refuge - a massage spot that was air conditioned and shaded. When we walked in, the proprietor spoke to Puffin, but his accent must have been too strong for her to understand. Then a few of the ladies looked up from their feet massages to try. Still, we couldn't understand. Finally, one of them spoke in English. "Sorry, sorry, it's just that you look so Vietnamese that we thought to speak to you in Vietnamese." She looked over at me sheepishly. That was the best, there is no doubting it now. In Thailand, she gets spoken to in Thai, here in Vietnamese. Maybe we should try Cambodia one day.

Happy Birthday

Singapore is Forty-Four Years Young..,
Today is National Day, a celebration of Singapore's independence from Malaysia, just 44 years ago. Obviously, people have been here for many centuries, but as with most places, you tend to celebrate the last yoke you've thrown off. It has a pretty interesting history, including a stint as part of the British East Indies Co, check it out here. When I asked Pingle and her friends if we were going to the big parade they looked at me like I was loco. I guess it's the same as their asking me to go to New Year's in Times Square - way too crowded and ultimately not worth it.

So, we're going to go night cycling at around 9pm. We'll rent bikes and ride around somewhere and probably then eat a late supper. Tomorrow morning, we're off to Hanoi.

Singaporean Alarm Clock

Waking Up The Natural Way
It's early Saturday morning and I awoke to this little cutie banging away on her blocks in the living room. Jean's niece Giselle stayed over last night. It continues a theme from my flight yesterday. I arrived at the airport extra early (to avoid a luggage fiasco) and was immediately asked "would you like to fly tomorrow Sir?" Huh? What you talking bout? "We're overbooked Sir, so would you like to fly tomorrow?" Ummm, negative, I am on vacation - knock someone else off the flight. Turns out, some Australians were returning from vacationing in Paris and were connecting through Singapore. I think every one of them brought a 1 year old. So, back in seat 39H, surrounded by Aussie babies, without the TV working (of course not - it's Air France) I put on my eye covers and my noise-cancelling headphones and counted backwards from 3 trillion (which is 12 hr in seconds, I think.)

The Oldest House in Paris?

Just 30 Feet From My Front Door...
Who woulda thunk it.... apparently I live right next to the oldest house in Paris. I figured it was old whenever I looked at it, I just never imagined it was THE oldest. I've even eaten in the Vietnamese restaurant in the ground floor. I bet the builders never imagined, in the year 1370, that some strange looking people from another part of the world would open up a restaurant to serve a strange soup called Pho 600 years later. There is some debate on the internet whether this house or another a few blocks away on rue Montmorency is the oldest, but what I have realized is that I live in the original, oldest part of Paris.

Check out the old beams. What doesn't show well in the photographs is the way the facade tilts back from the street, more and more each story up.

Shutting it All Down

Or the Police Will?
I went by one of my favorite patisseries and wasn't all that surprised to find them closed for the annual vacation. I was kinda confused about the sign though. It seems like it was posted by the police - see the upper left corner. These signs are everywhere now. Ironically, this is high tourist season, they arrive in droves just as everyone else leaves. Seems to me that only the very touristy restaurants in the most touristy areas in Paris don't leave for vacation. We went to the left Bank close to St Germain yesterday afternoon and it was absolutely loaded with tourists. Not so my local neighborhood - quiet and everything that isn't run by the Chinese is locked-up, shut down and not to be re-opened until late August.

Taking Advantage of the French

To Get More Traveling In...
The French really do disappear for the whole month of August, or at least most of them disappear for most of the month. It's already started. Some of my colleagues are gone and won't reappear for 5 weeks. Officially, the project I'm on goes dark for the two middle weeks of August. So, I'm taking advantage - I am off to Asia to explore with Pingle. First up, to Singapore on August 6th. A few days later, we're off to Hanoi for 4 days. Then, a weekend trip to Melaka, Malaysia (which is a few clicks south of Kuala Lumpur.) Melaka is famed for its food - a cuisine called Peranakan - which is specific to the Chinese who settled in the area. I then have another week in Singapore to do nothing but play golf and relax. (Pingle has to work - wahahahahahahaha.)

How's Your Spanish?

Stumbling Through Another Language...
I was pretty excited to go to a country where I could actually speak the language - or at least that was the idea. I was determined to speak no English while in Spain and almost managed to. Of course, Pingle thought I knew every single word on every single menu and I was good enough to ask questions like "do you have this as a high-heel in mauve in a size 37 1/2?" Of course, I couldn't handle complicated stuff, but overall - not so bad. It's all in the brain somewhere and I think stumbling through French on a daily basis is good practice for not caring that you sound like an idiot.

We did lots more walking around on Saturday evening. Matter of fact, after some shopping on Saturday and Paella for lunch we took a Spanish-sized siesta from about 2-5:30pm. Pingle was all raring to go back out and I warned her - it's TOO early - it's still hot out. But there we were again, back out in the heat, ducking under every shade we could find. Luckily, in Seville they put up shades almost everywhere - like the one below.

In a plaza not far from our hotel we saw a wedding party just leaving the church. It must have been close to 100 degrees and there were the bride and groom, dressed to the nines, standing at the top of the church stairs in the sun waiting patiently as their friends seranaded them with endless song. Their coach waited nearby - the horses looked annoyed and hot.

We made our way to Santa Cruz, the original heart of old Seville. It reminded me a lot of Venice - tightly packed colorful stone housing with alleys so narrow that the sun couldn't force its way in. To walk in those alleys is to experience natural air conditioning - they had to be 20 degrees cooler if not more.

In Santa Cruz we also hit snack paydirt - a place that specializes in churros and hot chocolate called Calenteria.

If you've never had a churro - I feel sorry for you. Not the nasty ones you get in the local fair in the USA, but ones like these. Deep fried dough - dropped into boiling oil only after you order them, tossed in sugar and dipped into a cup of hot, melted chocolate. Yes, this is something worth going to Spain for. I think we ended up coming here 2 or maybe 3 times.

Heading back towards our neck of the woods, near the Giralda, we plotted and mapped out our escape from the sun. We scraped along walls and took turns that brought us further away from our destination, but that was ok, we weren't scorched. Of course, after many blocks of feeling smart in the shade, our chess moves ran out. We had to cross a large open square with no shade and walk along another block that was blazingly hot. I cannot imagine being out in the Seville sun for longer than a few minutes. It brings into absolute clarity the sanity of the afternoon siesta - I will never doubt its logic again.

Just a few hours asleep, out of the heat, under the rumble of air conditioning and you're a new person. You might even pose on the staircase of your suite, flash a peace sign and grin a big smile. At least, that's the effect on some of us....

After Breakfast Nap

Because That's What You're Supposed to Do, Right?
Right after we ate we rubbed our bellies and decided to go back to the hotel for a quick nap. Why? Spanish living, remember? We did manage to navigate around to the plaza behind the cathedral. This expansize, open space proved to be a sun gauntlet later in the afternoon - it throws no shade at all. The buildings on the left are the leading edge of the original settlement - a neighborhood called Santa Cruz which is a maze of small cobblestone streets and tightly woven stone buildings.

Around the other side of the plaza are the outer walls of the Alcazar - a royal palace that was originally a Moorish fort.

We used the Alcazar exterior walls to hide from the sun later in the day, it came quite in handy.

Living Spanish - Style

Cuz We Were Scared of the Sun...
What is living Spanish-style? Simple, avoid the sun and heat at all costs. As I said earlier - the forecast was for the temp to be in the hundreds. This place is deep in the south of Spain, nearer to North Africa than to the rest of Europe and it's a desert, pure and simple. So, do as the Spaniards do - get up early, get stuff done, hide from the sun during the hottest part of the day and then come back out at night. We rose at 7am and went out venturing for some food. As you can see from the photo below, the Spaniards ain't no dummies - they build the buildings close to each other for max shade and even string up shades between the buildings to block the sun.

Seven in the morning proved to be a bit too early for breakfast, nothing was quite open so we strolled around a bit. Turns out, our hotel was smack in the middle of everything. To be honest, "everything" wasn't so much - this is a small city with a huge cathedral near the center that dominates and a small "old town" section. We got a few shots of the cathedral, known as La Giralda just as the morning sun was coming up.

It's a smart looking cathedral, ornate and impressively oversized as compared to its surroundings.

There are signs of Moorish influence all around. The doorways, the windows, the architecture.

After about an hour we made our way back to a cafe called "El Horno San Buenaventura" which roughly translates to the "Oven of St Good Travels." The place has been open since 1385 supposedly - seems kind of a stretch to me. Anyway, I got a plate of eggs with ham and toast. Sounds rather ordinary, doesn't it? Anything but. The eggs were super-fresh with vibrant yellow yolks and the ham was Bellota. They feed the pigs nothing but a diet of acorns to make this ham. It is divine. After breakfast - back to the hotel for a short siesta.

Sevilla - Day One

Warm Arrival
After a quick 2 hr flight and no immigration or customs (we flew from one European country to another) we were in a cab headed towards downtown. As we passed a lit-up stadium I asked the cabbie what was going on. "Sevilla versus Juve" came the reply, which I found hard to believe. But it was true - Juventus was in town for some European cup match and were still playing late at night - it was close to 10:30pm. We arrived at our hotel, dropped luggage and I convinced Pingle to go out for a bite. Just two blocks from our hotel we found a small tapas bar called Bodeguita Romero. I ordered some fish croquettes and Pingle got an order of fried prawn fritters (tortilla de camarones.) I liked mine but she didn't like hers so she tried again with an order of shrimps wrapped in potato threads. That one was a winner.

We then went wandering across the river and found a lively fair. There was plenty of drinking and partying going on. There was an official "fair wine" but we didn't try it until the next day. We simply walked around and took in the sights and sounds.

As you might expect in Spain, there was live music. We stopped near a stage at the end of the bridge to take in some singing. An older lady was belting out a typically tragic song about her lover leaving her for a younger woman, or something like that. I tried to take some video footage but I don't think you can make out much. After a while the sleepiness began to hit. We made our way back to the hotel and dropped into a deep sleep.

Trip Upcoming!

And It's Gonna Be Hot

This weekend Puffin and I are going to Sevilla in southern Spain. We're celebrating being together for a year. Or, as I look at it, I am celebrating the fact that she's not completely sick of me yet. Anyway, what kind of idiot books a trip to Sevilla in mid-summer? The weather forecast is for the low 100's during the day. Yep, I'm a dummy. We're gonna have to live like Spaniards - hang out late at night while it's cool, take a few hrs sleep, get up early to eat breakfast, take a long siesta and start it all over again the next day. I look forward to dusting off my Spanish, doing some sightseeing and eating some good Spanish food. I will definitely have some Paella (a dish or saffron rice with all kinds of seafood added.) We leave Friday night and get back Sunday night.