With the cards pictured left, we now have residency in Vietnam! Something else to carry along with our passports and worry about losing, misplacing or getting stolen.
In a bit of Laurel & Hardy comedy mixed with some "wait till the last minute to get the most important thing you will need here" it was a process (as usual) to actually get these.
She holds the magic "stamp"
It's a long-ish story so I will spare you, but to keep it short, in order to get
these as well as re-register with the police in our district it took 3
weeks. 3 weeks to get a few stamps on a few pieces of paper.
Unbelievable. Graeme and I took a ride to the police station with our realtor (his first scooter ride!) to register and got to see first hand why things take so long. Nothing is automated at all and when the person with the magic stamp feels like using it then that is when you will get your paperwork!
Working it!
When Erin got back it was her turn to go to the police station to register. We showed up to the realtor wearing shorts and t-shirt. Shorts on women are a no-no in a government building. The realtor just so happened to have a spare wrap around skirt for her to borrow. Personally I think she looks great in floral! How about you?
Erin had the amazing opportunity to chaperone 62 Freshman students on a trip to Thailand! It is part of the "Week Without Walls" program they have (Soph's, Jr.'s and Sr.'s went to Honk Kong, Bali, Sumatra, Philippines). It's about visiting somewhere new, getting out of comfort zone, learning about new cultures, team building, finding oneself, yada, yada yada. When I was in middle school we went to Stokes Forest in New Jersey and basically slept in a cabin, starved and watched someone try to make a fire by rubbing two sticks together. These kids went to freaking Northern Thailand! They were at a resort called the Maekok River Village (www.mrvproject.com) that has and educational facility tied to it just outside of Chang Rai. It's in the Golden Triangle - bordering Myramar (aka Burma), Laos and Thailand.
Can I borrow your towel? My car just hit a Water Buffalo.
The area is rife with temples, hillside villages cut off from most civilization and scenery that needs to be seen to be believed. The kids were put to the test going on mega 3 hr mountain bike rides, having to build rafts and use them to get down the river, learn how to teach English then actually teach it to hillside village kids, spend the night outdoors camping in tents, plus many other activities.
The interesting thing is that these kids have grown up very privileged. Privileged as in they have always had a nanny, housekeeper, cook, driver, tutor, etc. in their lives to do just about everything for them. Aside from getting good grades, they have never had to lift a finger for themselves.
Guessing that isn't the NY Times...
She came back with many stories of them adapting and persevering. They even had a student take a digger on the mountain bike and end up with 5 stitches in her chin as well as massive black eye and super puffy cheek - only to continue the trip and participate in all the activities! (BTW - Erin went to the hospital with her - Emergency Room, stitches, cleaned up, meds - the works...all added up to $11usd. Graeme ended up in the Emergency Room once in San Rafael with a pom-pom shoved up his nose and for us to walk in the door and have a doctor look up his nose, and not do anything about it, cost us $1,200usd!).
While Erin was gone, Graeme and I were left to our own devices. One day we cruised downtown to hit the Ben Thanh Market and a playground. Well, two steps into the market Graeme was swarmed on by the female merchants. Took some heat off of me getting hassled to buy things but it sent him running for my arms the rest of our visit! I guess not too many blonde, blue eyed, 2 footers roll through there very often.
What size you need? Buy! Buy!
This is the type of market where they sell it all. Taking up a few city blocks you can get your knock-off True Religion, Levi's, Abercrombie, J Crew - you name it.
Roots. Take your pick.
Salmon looked really good
Squid-licious!
All shapes and sizes.
Flowers and carcass. Good mix!
Graeme was clinging for life to my neck so I was a bit limited in taking pictures. There was a really huge "food court" section with vendors mixing up the goods to eat on the spot.
I've been to a few markets like this and am used to the constant hawking of goods. This one wasn't too bad but we were there during a slow time of day and really not interested in buying anything so it was easy not to show interest and keep moving.
Can't get enuff of the prints
Some heart?
The trick is, to cut them way up high!
The meat and seafood area's always fascinate me. I've been to markets where the stench and amount of flies will make you wretch. Not so here. Everything was very clean, well displayed and seemingly fresh. Not that I'd go for a pig heart or cow's intestine as an entree. You can definitely tell that no part goes wasted in these parts!
From here we hit the local playground and made some new friends. It's amazing how kids don't speak the same languages but can manage to play just fine together! Oh, what we can learn as adults from children...if only we took the time.
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It was mid-week so the park was pretty empty (these places are crazy
busy on weekends, filled with literally hundreds - if not thousands - of
kids) but we managed to find a few other toddlers and make a fun few
hours out of it.
Who's driving this thing?
Shake bro!
Um...now what?
My highlight was taking Graeme down to our 3rd floor promenade and getting on our skateboards! The place would make a killer skate spot and I am sure if I was 17 and didn't have my name on a lease we'd be kicked out of the building already because of skate-inflicted damage I would have caused! Really nice planters, gardens, benches...and some great views of the Phu My Bridge.
Shred ready...
I got him all geared up and he was styling with his skateboard from Purple Skunk in SF (Aunt Lizzie got this for him when he turned 1...just now starting to be able to use it properly - thanks Aunt Lizzie!).
We have butt-boarded a bit in the garage in California and he's ridden tandem with me a few times as well. This was his first real session. He had a blast! We were both super stoked.
He got to learn his first trick.
So daycare has kicked in and really helped our schedule and routine along. Last week they had a Parents Day where we could go and hang out for a bit while the kids played. They have so many toys and playthings there..it's amazing they are able to get them all because you know they had to fly all that stuff here over time. Incredible.
Stirring it up...
Before Erin left we celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival (aka Moon Festival). We didn't realize what a big deal it was until that night. Since our arrival there were stands on the streets everywhere selling "Moon Cakes". Imagine the stands on the roads that sell fireworks for 4th or July and replace the explosives with these ornate boxes filled with round cakes about 4 inches in diameter. Expats have dubbed them the "Fruitcake of Vietnam". Each cake has a different filling and it's pretty much anyone's guess what you are getting. You are supposed to bring them as gifts to people when you visit their homes. The boxes they come in are incredibly detailed and probably are more valuable then the cakes. Overall, the cakes are very expensive. Some in the $40usd plus range..
It has turned into a huge deal for kids. They make lanterns (Graeme made his at daycare) and there is all sorts of festivals and gatherings all over the city. The kids light the lanterns to help a man who is stuck on the moon and needs guidance back to earth. The mall by our house had a huge deal with thousands of kids showing up. Very loud, busy and crazy. Graeme was over it in about 2 minutes but he digs his lantern and his traditional Non La (conical hat) that he made, proudly showing them off to everyone.
Things here should be fairly chill and routine the next 2 weeks or so...then we head to Cambodia for a week's vacation. Hoping everyone is well and enjoying the change in seasons over there. Still hot and a bit rainy here, so enjoy the leaf-peeping, Santa Ana's and sunshine for us!
So a little over a week ago we woke Graeme up at 1a.m. to start our journey back to California for Brittany and Jason's wedding. With a 5a.m. lift off scheduled it wasn't too hard to get Graeme to sleep the first 1/4 of the journey...a quick stop in Hong Kong (possibly the most expensive breakfast we've ever had @ $70usd!!) and we were back in good old San Francisco!
Welcome back!
Our pick up service (Thanks Uncle Bob's and Auntie Mim's!!) were right on time and off we went to Lodi for the big weekend. It was a whirlwind. Tons of family, friends and fogginess due to jet-lag. It was so wonderful to get to see everyone and felt really good having everyone so interested in our adventure and asking questions about how things are going. The whole gang was there...prompting a family portrait of Erin's Mom's entire family - the first time they have all been in the same place in 12 years! So Cool!
Poolside view from the Bride/Groom table
I don't want to steal any of Brittany and Jason's thunder from their big day - But I have to post a few pics here from the day.
Cousin's in the shade
Graeme and his cousins, Avery and Piper, were the flower girls and Graeme was the ring bearer...Graeme (almost) made it down the aisle all by himself and (almost) made it through the entire ceremony. The girls performed flawlessly (as expected!).
Too cute for words...the 3 amigo's!
The day was an all out family and friend affair and was put together by Family and Friends as well. The amount of work that went into this wedding was phenomenal and the end result was nothing short of spectacular. Not a detail was missed. From photo booth, to a dessert table that covered any and all sweet desires to BBQ cooked on-site in a race-car trailer converted into a kitchen......the kicker? Fireworks. Yes, real fireworks! Not a few sparkly things shot off the back of one of your buddies trucks. No. This was a firework display on par (and probably better than most) July 4th presentations put on by communities across America. It was incredible! I do feel sorry for anyone in attendance who hasn't gotten married yet and plan to as I believe they just blew their budgets on their future wedding plans because, of course, their wedding will have a firework display as well!
Mother of the Bride
Here comes the Bride
They do!
Captain Graeme will get you there!
Earning his wings at an early age..
On our flight over Graeme earned his first visit to the cockpit as well as his wings. He was very eager to show them off to Nan and Poppy. This was the only part of Customer Service that United Airlines got right the entire trip....
Erin flew back to HCMC early, after only being in USA for about 4 days! Graeme and I stuck around the rest of the week. Was a great time to connect with Family and Friends outside of the wedding craziness. Graeme got to spend some quality time with some of his Grandparents and Great Grandparents. It's very cool that Graeme is able to experience Great Grandparents. It's not too many that can. He has 5 Great Grandparents and got to spend an extra couple of days with his G-Nan and G-Pop in California (Erin's Grandparents). Being his Father and watching him interact with the generation that started it all is a great feeling for sure.
So Graeme and I headed off on our own to travel 1/2 way around the world. A 30 hour journey door-to-door. I've never traveled alone with him on an airplane, let alone this far. To date he has a ton of flying experience for his age. He usually is asleep upon takeoff and as long as you have some snacks, a stack of books and a lollipop hidden somewhere he is the easiest travel companion around. I was a bit worried though on this one. Turning around after only a week, jet-lag, flying with just me....it all could have added up to a disaster!
These toys rule..connect magnetically.
Well, it was the opposite of disaster. He is such a wonder to travel with. I really believe he makes it easier. Aside from having to carry everything (along with Graeme sometimes), his inability to acknowledge the drudgery and toil that lays in front of you on such a long trip lends itself to focusing on the positive things.
Delay at the gate? No problem. Find another human your size and run around in circles until you fall over from exhaustion.
Surrounded by people chattering in foreign languages you don't understand? No problem. Walk right up to them, get their attention and ask "What's your name?"
Have a few hours to kill before you need to get to your gate? No problem. Let Graeme push the stroller and navigate the human traffic while searching out every people-mover in the terminal.
Making friends across the world...
I remember travel pre-Graeme. Getting to your terminal early, finding your gate and being ecstatic that there was a bar right next to it and free WiFi! Flash forward to post-Graeme. As excited as I may have been before for the bar, multiply that by 100 and you have the level of happiness reached when you discover a kids playground next to your gate! SFO has one now in the United (domestic) terminal. Our return took us through Tokyo and they had 2 kids playgrounds in the terminal we were in. We hit them both. An added bonus were family bathrooms. Great to get freshened up with and not have to squish into a gross stall of a men's room (why are guys such slobs?).
Might not look like much here, but it was alot to carry!
Miss Sienna Puppies!
In our absence, Miss Sienna Puppies is being lovingly taken care of by Brittany and Jason. To see her so happy upon our return makes us feel so good. She is obviously being loved to death by those two! We rest much easier at night knowing that she is in a happy place, being doted on and appreciated for the love she provides in a home.
That said, it's really tough to say goodbye to her for the second time in 6 weeks. Same goes for the rest of our family and friends. While we have just started our adventure here it may have been even tougher saying goodbye this second time around. Maybe it's because we know there isn't a scheduled encounter 5 weeks away. I am not sure. But I know it was not easy and at the same time it felt right to be heading back to our budding lives in HCMC.
It was mind blowing to hear first hand from everyone how they are reading our blog and following Graeme's adventures. It really means a lot to us to know that our support network at home is there and rooting for us! Thank you to everyone for the support and the love that you are constantly sending our way!
So, we are not scheduled to head back to the States until next summer. Until then we have a bedroom with a Queen sized bed, bathroom and plenty of couch space with your name(s) on it! Book the trip. You will not be disappointed. There are only so many times in life you'll have a connection in this part of the world so please do take advantage of it!
Graeme goes back to day-care tomorrow morning (jet lag permitting) and we are looking forward to finally getting ourselves into a much-needed routine.
Keep an eye out for more posts with Vietnamese craziness...and who knows what other countries we can fit in??
So, like most of you, this was a three-day weekend for us. No, they do not celebrate Labor Day here. Nor does Erin's school. It was Vietnam National Day, celebrating their independance from France. There are a ton of French influences left behind in Vietnam (Pho, the national dish has French origins!) but they don't seem to be so keen on the times when the French were here. But, I'm no history major or politco....
So, also like most of you, we headed the beach this weekend! We took a train up to Mui Ne. It's kind of the "Jersey Shore" of Vietnam. Just trade guido's for Russian tourists and you can get the idea! It was Graeme's first train ride and our first adventure out of HCMC since getting here. Traveling by train is a great way to get around in Vietnam. The terrain and roads are a bit rugged, traffic laden as well as we are not allowed to drive here anyway so we'd be hiring a driver (not exactly expensive)...the ride to Mui Ne is about 3 1/2-4 hrs by train, 7 by bus or 4-5 by car. Almost a no-brainer. The train can take quite a bit longer depending on the day and the stops and the condition of the train. For this trip we lucked out and hit it in about 3 1/2 hrs each way. We booked "Soft Seats" in the "Aircon" berth. So, we got airplane style seats in a car with a/c. Food carts dart up and down the aisle once in awhile so if you didn't bring snacks you are covered...
Circa 1950-ish?? Felt like it on the tracks!
The ride was fairly uneventful - kinda want it that way. We were the only blondes in our car (getting used to that!). Graeme garnered his usual over-attention but no one really overdid it so that was nice in such an enclosed space. The trains are definitely not of this century and I'm guessing from the middle of last century. My chair was stuck in the recliner position, not that I minded!
How you like the Giants chances this year?
We pulled out of Saigon and it's amazing how close to peoples homes you are. The tracks cut straight through city blocks. You could high-five them or maybe even grab a snack off of their dinner table if you were quick enough!
Dragon-fruit "trees" for days!
Lots of great scenery out here...
You quickly hit the countryside and realize how beautiful it is here. After spending the past 5 weeks in a city of 8 million (they think) people it was great to see some green land and blue sky. We traveled through farm country for the most part. Spectacular to see. Aside from the Dragon-fruit orchards we have no idea what we were looking at! All kinds of trees, plants, crops all lined up for miles and miles into the hillsides. The Dragon-fruit trees are just as unusual to look at as the fruit they bear.
Dragon-fruit - usually white inside tho..
If you've never seen one just look to the right ;) For as exotic as they look they are that bland. I don't really get it. Maybe because I am expecting a super strong taste and it just isn't there? Erin digs them. We usually have one in our fridge...The "trees" they grow on (above) are really cool looking. They take like about 6 of the vines they grow on (that look like aloe plants) and have them climb a post about 6ft tall. They then grow over so that they look like a tree and the fruit hangs off the vines. We saw miles and miles of these orchards.
Don't miss the hole...
The bathroom on the train was gnarly interesting. Not the first "hole" I've had to use. I will say, it was the first "hole" that went directly to the outdoors and was moving at the time of use. Be careful next time you go for a walk along train tracks ;) The hose you see in the picture are in most bathrooms - another French throwback. It's the Vietnamese version of a bidet. Or, in this case, a great way to hose down the entire bathroom before you use it!
With it's location in between trains it was super loud and bouncy in there. Graeme inevitably had to go and (lucky for me) it was Erin he wanted to take him. Well, it was "too loud" in there for him so he chose to hold it. This led to a little mishap in his nap but he stood up to the challenge awhile later and conquered the hole! By the time we were waiting to take the train home we asked him if he had to go and his response was "No Thank You, I am waiting to go on the train"!
Sunrise over Mui Ne
Mui Ne is the general name for an area of about 2 or 3 old fishing villages turned into resort areas...very narrow white sand beach, mellow surf (Oct-Jan is the high season and the wind picks up pretty good making this the mecca for Kite-Surfing in Vietnam. So many Kite shops, rental and lesson places around), warm water (was lower 80's while we there) and faces south into the South China Sea.
Beach was busy at Sunset
We went low-budget but stayed right on the beach. Our room was about 50ft from the waves hitting the sand. Great to hear as you are falling asleep and waking up! It's not the place you go to find undiscovered beaches but for a quick weekend get-away from the city it fits the bill just fine. It was the low season (very hot and no wind for kite-surfing) so town was pretty dead - that said it was still super busy. I'd hate to actually go there when all the resorts and restaurants we saw are filled to capacity!
The last time Graeme spent this much time in the ocean was when he was about 7 months old at the Jersey Shore. He's had an hour or two here or there (San Diego, Mexico) but nothing like a few days in a row with waves et al.
He LOVED it! He charged the surf. Over. Under. Through. He'd take the waves on any way he could get them. Even got him to bodysurf a few in with me a little bit!
The surf the first 2 days was perfect for him. Low-ish tide from about midday on...water was clear and really warm. Got to see some cool jellyfish and other sea creatures. There was this really cool thing that looked like a caterpillar but I have no idea what it was..they were all over the place. Googling around, turns out they areSea Mouse. Crazy little creatures for sure...
The beach was pretty bitchin' for sand castles too. Perfect sand since it was under water at high tide....
The fishermen here were non-stop. High tide was early morning and they were literally fishing 20 or 30 feet from shore. With the amount of boats and nets out there not a fish had a chance! Surprised there are any left! Really cool "tub boats" called Coracles were going toe to toe with the larger plank-style boats. Watching these guys row up and down the beach dropping and retrieving nets all day long was making me tired! Thank goodness the ice-cold beers were only .66 cents usd :)
The restaurants in town were really good. I should rephrase that. The restaurant we ate every meal at was great! Went there for lunch on arrival from a recommendation and were so satisfied we ate every meal but one there! For a resort town the prices here were rock bottom. I was expecting the usual gauge but not here. It was significantly cheaper then our district in HCMC (probably shows you how over charged we are living in an ex-pat district). Lunch and dinner running us about $10-$20 total (with drinks). Consider the train tix were $15 roundtrip for Erin and I and our room was $50usd/night and you've got a nice affordable weekend away to escape the city once in awhile!
OK, OK, OK - I'll get to the lady behind our seat....
So, yeah. This happened...
So we start the ride home...get our seats. Not unusal for someone to be in your seat. Either they overbook or there are hanger-ons or the train workers are sitting wherever they can...this woman was in our seat Then she moved to the wash-bin area just out of the pic to the left. So we start moving and one of the train guys brings her a fold up chair (you can just make it out to the left). Didn't think much of it. Until about 1/2 hr into the ride she starts heaving vomit into the sink and garbage next to her seat. Great! I was hoping it was just motion sickness...flash forward about an hour and she decides to cuddle up on the floor behind Erin and Graeme! Classic! I guess any port in a storm??
Each day as Graeme and I take off on our bicycle I ask him "What silly stuff do you think we will see today?" Guess I need to start asking him that before every train ride as well....
Leaving in about 1 1/2 days to go back to California so the blog will go dark till we return.. We are very excited to see friends and family and to celebrate Brittany and Jason's wedding day! Not sure what we are going to do for cell phone coverage while we are there so if you want to connect email will be best. Erin is coming in hot and leaving on Monday morning (9th) while Graeme and I are staying until the 13th.
