Mmmm, foooooooood

Just discovered a Vietnamese food blog which is worth checking out:

Stickyrice

The author does a much better job of documenting his eating-adventures with pictures than I have, which is great because now I'm off the hook! I encourage you all to browse through his posts to get an idea of some of the crazy delicious foods available here in Hanoi.

Best Laid Plans

I had the day off from work yesterday, and I had a grand plan to take my camera out and walk across the city, taking photos and sampling new street foods along the way. I drove to work to park my bike in the garage, and headed for the meat and produce market behind the school. I wandered through the stalls looking at the multitude of colorful fruits and vegetables; trying to match the animal to the many cuts of raw meat up for sale. Since it was quite dark in the market I didn't bust my camera out quite yet. Instead, I walked across the street to "fabric road," which is exactly as it sounds. Denim, khaki, cotton, jersey, synthetic; plaid, floral, pinstriped, polka dotted; you get the idea. Of course I'm eager to capture this array of color and pattern in digital form, so out the camera comes and... the battery is dead. Whaaaaaaaa? My photo excursion turned into a day of wandering around the city with a heavy-ass, unusable camera in my bag, tortured by a little voice in my head whispering, "Well that would have been a cool photo..." Will have to charge the battery and try again!

On the flip side, I woke up in a great mood this morning and decided to have a leisurely day of running errands and doing art projects until I go to work later tonight. I drove to the Tay Ho neighborhood to browse its selection of convenience stores stocking hard to find Western goods. Ooooh! Fruit by the Foot! Nutella! Old Spice deodorant! (Lots of high-end Western style businesses, cafes, and restaurants in Tay Ho; it caters to the upper-class set of Westerners living in Vietnam working for multi-national companies, foreign governments and embassies, etc.) The proprietor of Yuki's translated the yogurt labels for me so I could figure out which one didn't have any added sugar, score! Will be adding "không đường" to my ever-expanding Vietnamese vocabulary.

The vocabulary I'm most eager to acquire has to do with food: I want to know what I'm eating! When it comes to trying new foods, I've found that I'm adventurous when I'm with other people who can offer suggestions or translate the menu; eating with my students the other day I tried snails and fertilized duck eggs - would not have done that by myself! There's something comforting in a friend saying, "Come on, try it, I think you'll like it!" Or maybe it's a peer-pressure thing. But often when I'm by myself I chicken out - I can't translate the menu, so I don't know what to order; I'm afraid of ordering something gross and having to eat it anyways to save face; I stick to the "tried-and-true" items I've had before and know are good. So this morning, as I drove down the street and saw groups of Vietnamese people enjoying their meals, I thought, "Fuck it. Time to be brave. You will try something new. You will pick a place, sit down, and eat whatever they are serving. You will try something new, all by yourself!" And what do you know. It was really good. Bun (noodles) with deep-fried tofu, dipped in shrimp sauce, with a side of nem (deep fried spring rolls filled with meat of some kind) makes a great breakfast. The lady running the place was really nice. Another patron graciously offered me a cigarette. The meal cost $1. Overall a great success!

Now off to a neighborhood cafe for some strong coffee, people watching, and reading. Have an idea for an art project later that will be like a grown-up version of cutting snowflakes out of folded paper. This is my life now. How did this happen???

Hanoi by Motorbike

In a city overflowing with noise and energy, driving a motorbike through the tangled and crowded streets is by far the most intense way to experience Hanoi. As if mastering the basic mechanics of acceleration, braking, and balance aren't enough, you have to be able to operate your bike in a crush of other bikes, each of which is controlled by a driver who is much more experienced, aggressive, and reckless than you are.

Rush hour is the WORST. You inch along in a flood of bikes, oftentimes navigating around SUVs which act as plugs in the narrow streets. The noise of honking and broken mufflers surrounds you. Regardless of the weather, it's hot as you sit in the crowd, because exhaust is pouring out of every bike, meaning you're inhaling a cloud of fumes, smoke, and grime at every stop light. Because maneuvering a bike is hardest when you're going slow, you teeter each time you have to slow down for a red light, or a stopped taxi, or some other unforeseen obstacle.

The three most valuable things I've learned about driving so far:

1. Drive in a state of constant anticipation and awareness. You can NEVER take your eyes off the road. Whoever is in front of you has the right of way, so if they cut you off or pull a u-turn right in front of you, it's your responsibility to avoid an accident. You need to be on constant watch for puddles, potholes, bicyclists, pedestrians, other motorbikes, cars, busses, and so on. They can come at you from any direction, at any time, without warning. Stimulating!

2. Don't assume anything. The "rules" of the road here are suggestions at best. You still need to look out for oncoming traffic when you're driving down a "one-way" street. Just because you have a green light at a busy intersection doesn't mean that cross-traffic is going to stop. There's really no such thing as right-of-way or yielding here. It comes down to something like a game of chicken - who has the bigger vehicle, who's more aggressive, who's more steadfast in their course. Needless to say, every time I make it to my destination I let out a little sigh of relief.

3. When in doubt, honk. Honking is pretty much constant here. It has more of a "heads-up" connotation here than at home, where honking usually communicates anger or irritation. If you're passing someone who is going slower than you, honk to let them know they better keep going straight rather than unexpectedly swerve to the side and crash into you. If someone is about to pull a u-turn in front of you and you don't plan on stopping, honk to let them know they better wait a minute. If you're coming to a blind corner and you have no idea what might be waiting for you on the other side, honk. If you run a red light, honk. If you think someone in front of you is about to do something crazy, honk. Pretty much plan on driving with your thumb on the horn at all times.

As crazy as it sounds, it's still great way to get around. Gas is cheap - I've probably only spent about $10 on gas since I've been here. And if you can avoid rush hour, it's actually quite nice to take a leisurely drive around the city. I love driving home from my late nights at work - 10pm and there are very few other bikes on the road, so I can cruise home and have a nice breeze blow away the heat of the day. Driving in monsoon rain is another story...

Meet Poppy

My newest roommate, Poppy. She is just a few months old, and extremely adorable. Not sure of her exact breed, so I'm excited to see what she looks like as she grows up. Let the joys of puppy-ownership begin!

Meet Poppy, a set on Flickr.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

A brief selection of some of the shops that line my street, Doi Can.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, a set on Flickr.

So many updates, where to start? Things here have been busy as ever; just had my first week of work at the language center. Taught Mon/Wed/Fri evening; my classes are a mix of adult learners from about 16yrs-25yrs. They are a total blast! The first questions they ask me are always the same: Where are you from? How old are you? Are you married? Very typical questions to expect in Vietnamese culture. Learning all of their names is my current goal - really putting my Vietnamese pronunciation skills to the test! I'm really excited to work with these students over the next several weeks; apparently at the end of the course they usually like to take their teacher out for food, drinks, and karaoke - score!

Another highlight of working is getting to meet all the other teachers. Mostly an assortment of American and British natives; some are newbies to Hanoi like myself, others are seasoned veterans of a year or more. They've already informed me of a great place to get Vietnamese coffee near work, as well as a delicious place to get baguette sandwiches with an incredible assortment of meats and cheeses. I'm trying to cultivate interest in a sort of "food club;" basically, getting a group together once a week or so and pooling our collective knowledge of Hanoi's top food-spots (both Western and Vietnamese) to ensure maximum culinary enjoyment. Mmmmm... eating... always my favorite way to discover a new city!

This weekend I was graciously invited to the wedding of a woman I worked with at the Hanoi International Kindergarten. Nadia and I, along with a few other school staff, made the 1.5 hour drive to her home-village by motorbike - needless to say, my butt fell asleep and my face was super grimy by the time we got there. The beautiful bride introduced us to her family and we sat, visited, and had tea in the courtyard of the family-compound. Truly a world away from Hanoi - we were surrounded by green fields and open sky. Our group then enjoyed a huge meal and drinks in one of the houses beyond the courtyard. Some items on the menu: hard-boiled quail eggs; grilled pork with sesame seeds; bean and pork soup; julienned vegetables garnished with peanuts; rice; pate; and a sweet rice-dough pastry for dessert. As Nadia and I were the only Westerners present, we elicited quite a bit of attention from the children; I made faces at them and they ran away laughing hysterically. Once finished eating we walked back through the courtyard (now filled with 100+ guests) and across the street for some karaoke and tea at a local cafe. My rendition of "Gangster's Paradise" was pretty awesome. Finally, we hopped back on our bikes for the long journey home. Been in Vietnam for a month and I've already experienced a traditional wedding! Feeling very lucky.

Other bits of random news: 1. I found a great pool/gym near my house, so I can finally add some lap-swimming and cardio to my daily routine. (Gotta balance out "food club" with "exercise club.") 2. My landlord, who is awesome, has repainted the entire interior of our house! Everything looks so fresh and clean, it's wonderful. 3. My roommates got a puppy! It's super tiny and adorable; some kind of Vietnamese breed, so it will be interesting to see what it looks like as it grows up. Pictures will be posted soon, I promise.

That's it for now. Been a bit lazy about taking my camera out, but hopefully will take/post some new photos soon. Miss you all!

My Life as a Work in Progress

Here are the much anticipated photos of my new house! I've been there about 5 days, really enjoying exploring my new neighborhood. Living with an Australian guy, and Australian woman, and her Vietnamese boyfriend. She sings in a band which covers Hendrix, Stones, Stevie Ray Vaughan, CCR, Iggy Pop... pretty much a total jam session from start to finish. Love it!

Now that I've got a home-base, my next task is to make it a little more my own. Keeping an eye out for wall decorations when I'm out wandering. Also mapping out the neighborhood for all the essentials: so far I've got a lady at the end of the alley who makes some kind of deep-fried banana thing; a lady East on Doi Can who makes a killer doner kebab; my own Papa Roti and Papa Roti Mexico (with chocolate inside instead of butter!); ice cream, bia hoi, bun cha, the list goes on. Need to find a swimming pool to compensate for all my snacking!

So here's the tour:

Digs, a set on Flickr.

Stay tuned for a photo tour of the neighborhood (it's been raining all week, so haven't had a chance to get out with the camera recently). Off now for some coffee and a snack before heading back to the Kindergarten. Be sure to check out the website for Hanoi International Kindergarten if you would like to see the school and some of the wonderful students I have spent the last two weeks with. I will miss them!

Hanoi International Kindergarten: http://www.hik.edu.vn/