PAST POSTINGS

Somewhere on the Delta

Mui Ne - view from the hotel, the open market, local fish sales

Fish stories after a long day out to sea - I know what I want to be when I grow up! - Just before sundown on the Great White Dunes

For an eternity, I'll sing to you, if you want me too... and even if you don't...

Here are some photos from Sapa... sorry but there will be only a few photos and little text due to the fact that at the moment I am working from a computer that has 64mb Ram and a slow connection.

Visited the Temple of Literature today... pics to uploaded tomorrow. Worth the visit, great courtyards, beautiful architecture, the interiors were lined with spectacular wood work and statues. We were treated to what I thought was going to be a private serenade for 50,000d. Soon after the money was given music started, about 40 people piled into the room... oh well, I guess it's all about sharing. We listened to traditional Vietnamese music and were even brought on stage to participate.

Side note - I switched hotels today. I was staying at the Hoa Linh Hotel for about $15us. My new friend Nga hooked me up at the Lucky Star for $10. In the grand scheme of things, $5 is chunk in Vietnam, and money is money... so I am grateful. no compromise in quality... but without free internet. Actually, the Lucky Star if a bit nicer. Also, I have a cell phone now... shat dup Ben! I'm all down for a dive into the abyss, but a brutha has got to stay connected.

I could have taken a bunch of cool photos of weapons and stuff... but my friend Ngoc Anh and I agreed that the art is much more interesting and was worth the post and the web space... enjoy.

There is so much to share... where to begin. I think I will take some time before I actually start to talk in detail about my comings and goings... so much is happening I couldn't even begin to keep up... unless of course I want to sacrifice sleep... and I don't. It's been a very interesting past few days, sick with a head cold, great... and I mean great conversations with very interesting people. I spent three hours yesterday talking with a women at Highlands Coffee House just about breathing and living in the now. Thanks Diana, well worth every second. Last night I went back to the local jazz club after having a very nice evening with a friend. There I met a nice women named Jackie. Jackie is doing business in Vietnam... and in no stranger to travel. She owns a purse design company based in NYC and specializes in Vietnamese silk embroidery. Heavy Sugar NYC It was satisfying to hear of her struggles in trying to set up a website and researching customs and import/export rule ands regs. Sounds like the frustrations I was having just meant that I was pretty much on track. I complained about the slow connections and the out dated comps and she just kind of laughed. Apparently this is the year that things have really stepped up in Vietnam. Last year there was no ADSL. After the jazz club we cruised to a place called the "Funky Monkey". If you were worried about where I will spend my Xmas Eve... well worry no more... this funky little bar will host a party with a DJ that specializes in spinning "House Music". Now that's what I call my kind of Xmas Eve. The conversation on California politics and our "Cough" current administration was great, just what I needed. A huge thanks Jackie for the info on terms used in VN that I hadn't heard, God knows I don't want to stand out anymore than I have to. We decided to walk in the cool Vietnam breeze at 1am in the morning. Was I nutz... I was in Vietnam... "man... that place is so dangerous" I'm telling you forget what you have heard... this place just feels right. Plus, if Jackie wasn't concerned... attractive... young... experienced in VN, and blonde... yah.. stands out like a... anyway... she didn't seem to think twice about it. After about a 45 minutes of pointing out sites (Hanoi Hilton) and sharing information, I walked her to her hotel and said goodnight. Before heading out, I had to check out the bathrooms in this posh palace in comparison to where I was staying... Oh man... liquid soap and paper towels... yahoo!

Alright party people in tha house... say hooo! this is for all you sexy people... celebrate this Christmas Eve at the Funky Monkey, Hanoi, Vietnam... wear a floppy hat and ya get in for half price.

I have finally found the means to update this site. A feat in it's self. As though it wasn't already enough that I was coming to a foreign land not knowing my head from my @#$%... I had... no... I get to figure out how to make their technology meet ours. Well the truth is I could have used the break and the time anyhow. Getting used to everything being pretty much new and different here has been a full time job. So... before I get into what a fantastic country this is... I have to talk about my quest to find MSN Front Page. First off, the internet connections here are much slower than I am used to. They vary from town to town and as you probably can imagine... they get much slower as you get to the remote areas. I'm pretty sure that everyone is on some sort of dial up in the mountains. I have no idea of how to find out what the connections are because every time I ask... no one seems to know what the hell I am talking about... Ok, Front Page, there are cyber cafes pretty much everywhere in Vietnam. All types and makes of computers... some look like an early 80's model. Most are equipped with a test version of XP. Every computer I have sat at has MS Office... ya.. everyone of them. But guess what... when you go to open up FP... the fricken file is empty... lol. So after asking, seriously, about a hundred times about FP and no one seeming to know what I was talking about... as though I was speaking a foreign language... yah like English.. hehe... I finally just said the hell with it. Well just yesterday, as luck would have it, I met up with one of my contacts that I had met online. His name is Trung... and this dude is filled with all the underground info I am looking for. Information and facts on Hanoi to make life easier. He told me where to acquire a copy of Office for about 40 dong... about $2.50 US. I made my way over to the seedy CD shop with my new friend Ngoc Anh... also a contact I made online. We were on our way to see Troy... in Vietnamese, and had about an hour to kill. Thank God I am good at sign language. My Vietnamese is still minimal and Ngoc Anh doesn't speak very much English... but we seem to manage. The first shop did not have what I was looking for... but I was able to convey my needs to Ngoc well enough and she was able to get an address to a place that specializes in Bill Gates garb. When we got to the shop... She said something in Vietnamese to the shop owner and then it was up to me do hand gestures and try to find buzz words that would find a commonality. Finally... "yes, yes, yes" the shop owner handed me 5 disks... said 40 dong... and we were on our way. So, I get to my hotel last night after a long day and attempt to load up my new CD's... guess what... the first CD of 5, it won't load. After about an hour and a half of that shat, and being sick to boot... head cold... I decided to call it a night. So, how is it that I am able to update at this time? Well call it Devine intervention or a stroke of great luck. After attempting to install again on a different machine and 3 more failed attempts, by chance I installed disc 2 instead of one. FRONT PAGE!!!!!... like I said before all these comps have some type off office loaded so all I had to do was install disc 2 and BAM!... update heaven.

Seriously, this is what I have mapped out so far as of 11/02/04: I will land in Hanoi and spend a couple of weeks in the city. My friend Tuyet will be coming up from Ho Chi Minh City. Ben has decided to fly in to Bangkok and hitchhike to Hanoi. From there, Ben and I will attempt to walk to Yen Bai. We figure this could take up a few weeks on foot. We will spend the Tet Holliday in Yen Bai with our new friend Hao. After Yen Bai, it's off to Tibet to chill amongst the mountain tops with the Buddhist monks, weather permits. We will work our way down from there back to Northern Vietnam. My hope is to spend some time with the Hill Tribes of the north and then head out to Ha long Bay

My journey begins in November 2004 and will go for at least one year. I could be out of country for as long as two years. I have made a promise to myself, no mater what happens, good or bad, I will definitely be back in 2007. At the end of this trip, I plan on visiting New Zealand to unwind and clean out. I have also given myself permission to come home at any point during this journey. I will fly into Hanoi the first week of December 2004. I plan on staying in Hanoi for the first few weeks to get used to my surroundings and explore the great capitol. I have also been told that there may be an opportunity to work in Hanoi with a tourism company... what a fantastic way to get acclimated.

After my time is done in Hanoi, I will attempt to walk to Yen Bai, where I will meet my first friend, Hao. Hao and I met online while I was attempting to make contacts in a Yahoo chat room labeled, Hanoi. As you can imagine, looking for contacts in a primarily Vietnamese speaking chat room, had it's challenges. I posted a general message stating "Hello, my name is Gary, I will be traveling to Hanoi at the end of 2004. My VN is limited at this time. I am seeking contacts in VN. If you would like to make a new friend in the USA, please contact me." I was surprised to find that I received quite a few interests. Hao stood out. He has maintained contact with me... encouraged me... and has given me his contact info, including a picture to identify him when I arrive. Lucky me to have met such a open minded individual prior to arriving.

I will begin updating this page with the details of my travel. I will be unable to update daily (I will be in the middle of the jungle, after all), however, I will be in contact and will make every effort to keep everyone posted as to my whereabouts and exciting adventures in a timely manner. I will also be holding 'chat' sessions through Roger Wilco (Free Download will be available) where you can ask questions directly. In between sessions, please feel free to post your questions on the Message Board.

10/7/04 Headed to Anchor Bay to do a final abalone dive for the season. I will post some pics if I get a desire to pull the digital out.

10/10 Benny is now in California! He stayed the night last night and we seriously pow wowed ova the trip. It sounds like he will be flying into Bangkok first, where he will spend at least 2 weeks. We will meet up in Hanoi and travel to Yen Bai where we will spend the Tet holiday. Taylor is still finalizing some business back home, but hopes to make it in time... we're pulling for ya Taylor.

   Hello.

   You have such a great opportunity there! I am not Ha-Noi person, but I left quite a long time ago, so I don't really know how much things change; so I can't really tell you how it'll be like at Ha Noi. But I'm going to give you general idea of what to expect:

   (1) The majority of Vietnamese people are poor (perhaps not at the Capital city Ha Noi--so I guess you don't really have to worry about this point that much but still keep it in mind)...so they LOVE to see foreigner...not to say those who would *steal* for a living...so my point is BE CAREFUL WHEREVER YOU GO AND DON'T CARRY UNNECESSARY VALUABLE ITEMS ANYWHERE IN YOUR BODY...UNLESS YOU HAVE A GOOD GRIP OF THE ITEMS WITH YOUR HANDS...FOR EXAMPLE, CAMERA, ETC....CARRY JUST ENOUGH CASH.

   (2) The sanitary is POOR--in most case...so ALWAYS DRINK BOTTLED WATER (even if you're in a restaurant, ask if they have bottled water)...IF CANNED DRINK, USE STRAW. PERSONALLY I WOULD SUGGEST YOU HAVE YOUR OWN CHOPSTICKS (if you know how to use it *_*)...WHEN YOU EAT.

   (3) DON'T FORGET REGULAR MEDICINES (TYLENOL, IBUPROFEN, ETC.) because the weather conditions there are quite different that your body may experience uneasiness for the first several days.

   (4) Do you have some spoken Vietnamese knowledge? It may be handy to know a few mon terms. If you need help, I would suggest you ask some young people, because in Ha Noi, young people do learn English in school.

   (5) If you have any opportunity and time, here are a few places you WOULDN'T want to miss: NHA TRANG, HA TIEN, HUE, Vung Tau Beaches (that's where my family used to live *_*) There are quite a few places that have BEAUTIFUL landscapes, rivers, structures, temples, etc.

   (6) There are A LOT of special Vietnamese cuisines that even Vietnamese in America wouldn't have the opportunity to eat...and some DELICIOUS fruits too that we Vietnamese got to eat but in canned storage--which don't normally bring out its original authentic taste....so if you have the opportunity to try them out...DO!

   Sorry, those are the few things that pop up in my mind when people ask about tips for going to . If you have any specific question let me know, I will answer honestly if I know; if I don't I will definitely ask my relatives and let you know later.

   I hope these help, and my, what a great opportunity you have there.

   Enjoy the trip and be safe too *_*
   ~Linda

11/02/04 Highlight to the weekend: Ran into an old friend at a coffee shop. None other than, local girl done good, Lisa Ling. Lisa is hosting "the Ultimate Explorer" for National Geographic. National Geographic Ultimate Explorer If you're wondering if Lisa is really as nice as she appears, and as beautiful too... the answer is... hell yes. Lisa, if you are reading this, Wow! What a coincidence that we are doing much of the same things in life... except she gets to hang with presidents of foreign countries, she's on TV, she gets to go all over the world and all expenses paid... and so forth and so on. Lisa, please let me know when a spot opens up on the crew. I know how to say "excuse me, where is your bathroom" in about a dozen different languages and possess a few other handy road savvy skills too. Oh yes, and I am willing to travel. The getting shot at may take some time to get used too. Anyway, it was a pleasure to see her again. I will definitely make it a point to watch the show. I hope it airs in VN.

11/23 Test run on my backpack. Too small... time to spend 6 hours at REI to find one that will work.