Hanoi Morning

I have just come back from a wonderful early morning walk in the old quarter.  The quarter is just starting to come alive.  People of all ages on the street cooking Pho for breakfast.  The super fast chatter of Northern Vietnamese is heard everywhere.  It’s an amazing story of life unfolding before your eyes.   I have heard that the government wants to clean up this place and modernize the old neighborhoods.  The population density here is more than New York with no high rise buildings.  Humanity layer upon humanity, young and old, generation living with generation.  It figures that the government wants to get rid of the thing that brings tourists here to see it.  It reminds me of my years in Austin.  The things that made Austin “weird”, have been replaced with expensive high rises and slick trendy ultra modern bars.  Which of course look just the same as they do everywhere.  

Right now it’s still here and that matters to me.  The smells and the sight of women butchering pigs in the street next to the flower girls who are getting their bouquets ready for the day.  There is something here that pulls you in.  Nguyen Sieu Street is the place to go.  It’s very different here than the South.  Very little English is spoken.  How many times do you go to a place that you have no idea what is being said in the local language? Not often for me.  You can usually pick up a word or two but it’s tough here.   Still a smile and a respectful nod go a long way anywhere in the world.  

Only when it rains....

Southeast Asia during the rainy season is always a gamble.  Well, that depends on what you are gaming on.  A sure bet is that most afternoons you will have one of those real “ frog stranglers”.  You know the rain that has drops the size of baseballs, the ones that splash when they hit dry pavement.   If Uncle Ho was alive he would be backstroking to the central committee meetings today in Saigon.   It was amazing to see how people are at home in their surroundings.  Children playing in the rain and then washing their hair just to make good use of the extra water.  I guess there is a good reason why most Vietnamese wear little thin plastic shoes, they are underwater about half the year.  My personal favorite was the stunning woman in 6 inch heels about 8 inches deep in street water slogging along without missing a step.  A couple of hours and the rain had stopped and the streets were completely alive again.  Sitting with a cold Tiger beer is not a bad way to wait out the flood. 

Madame Woo

Everyone on Bui Vein Street knows Madame Woo.  She can be seen sitting on her stool outside 5 Oysters every night.  You see Madame Woo owns Bui Vein.  The card games are board meetings of sorts.  Each night with few different members looking nervously at their hands as the old lady looks up and down the street but never directly into their faces.  Beer sales, petty crime, the “nail” girls, all belong to Madame Woo.  Nothing goes without notice on the street or without her approval.   

Lazy Boy is her son and first assistant.  Lazy boy has a bit of a western face to him that hints of Madame Woo’s earlier profession during the occupation.  Today Lazy Boy seems to be somewhat of a thorn in the side of the matriarch but what’s a mom to do.  When summoned by the Madame ,Lazy Boy will jump on the bike and ride the 45 feet to the card game.   He will then return to his chosen place in front of the corner beer stand.  This is his power poise.   Tomorrow is Hanoi and another “Madame Woo”.  

Bui Ven Alleys

Bui Ven Alley Life

Bui Ven is a busy street filled nightlife, food, and “Nail Spas”.  It’s not a lot different than other streets in Southeast Asia these days.  Except, that there is a maze of spiderweb alleyways that run off the main street to a completely different world nestled between Bui Ven and a bigger street names Phan Tran.  Inside the narrow alleys there is a hidden community of shops, food stalls, day care, bike shops. and of course, daily living.  The width of these alleys is barely shoulder to shoulder and everyone is functioning in their front rooms or in space they squeeze out in the alley.  As you pick your way along you notice sleeping children in baskets and people cooking on small stoves like the ones omelet chefs work on at Sunday Brunch.   The smells and sounds are magnified in the light quarters and it gives you a sense of what must have been going on here for hundreds of years.  If you are ever in the neighborhood wander down to Bui Ven and maybe get your “Nails” done.  If you do don’t forget to summon up some courage and disappear into the maze that is really Bui Ven.

Shadow Man

Have you ever felt like this?   That you are a shadow on the wall and that you can only be seen when someone else’s light is shinning on you.  It’s kind of a heavy way to start a long trip but that is my mindset today.  After almost three days of travel I arrived in Saigon only an hour or so ago.  Nothing like todays “modern” air travel to get one in the perfect frame of mind.  Yes, I am a fairly seasoned travel and I know I should expect various debacles as one moves around the earth.  I am aware of “Murphy’s Law” and have experienced it first hand.  The crazy thing is it’s the people that kill me.  I was killed before I started this thing and have been murdered along the way all set in motion by one hour of rain in Tyler Texas...Yes friends Tyler has an airport.  The chain reaction was Murphy,  but the ass whippings along the way were people.  Trying to be helpful....some,  unresponsive?  Most...., Pleasant?  One...., completely incompetent?  ALL.    It seems to be the state of modern travel these days.  With all the technology comes a lack of knowledge.....I call it the “KEEPER OF THE SEQUENCE”.  The keeper is the one person that knows the steps in order to make some broad stroke of technology happen.  Say?  simply rerouting a ticket?  Or wait...maybe not canceling the ticket completely but providing all boarding passes....  How about rerouting a bag, not a bunch of bags...not at the last minute either but with enough time to go and swim it to London.  the “KEEPER OF THE SEQUENCE” never really shows their They usually hide in the dark on the phone at the end of a long wait behind the “service counter”  and only then will  they give their minions  just enough knowledge to move the board piece one square....Yes, that’s right, just one square.    

So, I’m in Saigon after a few days of travel without a bag in sight or even the idea of where it might be.  Now, I can take that in stride for the most part but having the “shadow” feeling seems to make it a little less paletable.   Besides my clothes are getting a little “agent orange” and there is a reason these amazing people were crawling  into  those tiny tunnels and winning the war....They are very small.  I have yet to see a John Wayne size outfit on the streets of Saigon.  

Please keep me in your thoughts and keep your light on until I can find my switch again.  

The Shadow