Music4Humanity

Music4Humanity is a global music project aimed at inspiring humanity, focusing on enriching the lives of others through music and compassion. The kids involved in this hold fund raising events, music workshops, concerts, music therapy, docos and films, and create volunteer music programs all around the world!Josh explodes on stage wth smooth jazzy vocals and dreamy guitar fingers, cheeky or contemplative, flamboyant or melancholic; Josh Lee's music is littered with personality. Folky with space for funk, gypsy, roots, jazz and rock. Amorphous and changeable, but clear and elegant..
 Josh is currently living and gigging in Bristol, UK...

Help keep the love going...visit www.music4humanity.info

now...

Hanoi again, Hanoi again, jiggety jig!

First night back in Hanoi and I'm lugging a giant djembe on the back on a minsk motorcycle to a packed gig at a French bar...

Now another full moon has shown her round face, and I've wiled away my month in Hanoi with friends, festivities and some deep relaxation..and music, music, music

We played birthday gigs, belly gigs, cafe shows and couchsurfing events..

I've been loved up, surrounded, fed throughly and rested..

I've had pollution sickness, homesickness, travel sickness, minor mental illness..

And now, the next phase or border run, MALAYSIA!

Homeland...of sorts.

Mother, brother and family are waiting across the sea. It's been a long time between hugs...and I can't wait!

Homeless Hanoi - Mui and Pha

This is very special.




My good friend Chris told me about a homeless Vietnamese woman, Mui and her son Pha. For the last 5 years, Mui has been living homeless in Hanoi with her five-year old son Pha. They face many challenges, Mui is HIV positive and has a mental disorder.

The Vietnamese family culture dictates that when a woman is married, she leaves all to live with her husband's family. When Mui's husband was institutionalised with a mental disorder, Mui was rejected from the household.

The key word here is HAPPINESS. Although they have very little to survive, Mui and her son have love and happiness and refuse to let their situation get them down. Mui teaches Pha how to look after his environment, to recycle and all about LOVE!

Below are some photos from 'Companion in poverty' by Justin Maxon, you can find the full story and his comments on the photos here

Mui is a practicing Buddhist and said she is teaching her son happiness comes from within. They find their happiness in their simple affection for each other. Even though Mui and Pha face many daily challenges, they have an overwhelming sense of hope for the future.

Mui, carrying all the valuable possessions she owns in one bag, walks ahead of her son, Pha, while he runs to catch up with her.

Mui, a Buddhist, said she is teaching her son that keeping his head shaved is part of living a simple life which leads to greater happiness.

Mui recognizes how difficult Pha’s life is without a home and says that she likes to play with him as often as possible to keep his spirits high.

As she picks up a pile of old rice she found on the Long Bien Bridge, Mui said she is teaching her son how to pick up trash because she wants him to care about his environment.

Mui remains naked though it's not been explained why. I like to think it's because as a woman who has had her identity taken away, she believes she no longer needs to show the world she is a woman. She is simply a human. As a Buddhist she is pure. As a mother she is blameless. As a woman she is. She lives clothed in honesty.

A tightening net

I live in a Socialist republic..I know mail is opened and books and authors are banned from the country, I see people arrested on the streets, have read the propaganda leaflets, hear the propaganda loudspeakers in the morning, see the police driving around telling everyone to go to bed at curfew time...

..but for some reason it only perfectly crystallizes in my mind when the government does something that directly affects me..like ban Facebook!
Vietnam is making the transition from a totalitarian society to becoming more open, but its one-party regime still has a total authoritarian mindset. Vietnam has a history of internet censorship and is has always been quick to act and heavy handed on dissent.

Apparently, Facebook's ability to communicate and publicize is a new threat and 8 internet providers throughout the country received this note from the party:

“For security reasons and to fight against propagative activities that oppose the Party and the government, Department of Professional Technology – Office of Security Administration – Ministry of Public Security suggests that the addressed companies to apply technical methods to block thoroughly these following websites.”

I use Facebook to alleviate boredom and share life ;) but I am sure there are many Vietnamese using it as a way to move forward, and progress includes dissent..how can the government decide to stop a country from moving forward..it's been said, the first condition of progress is the removal of censorship!

The internet is proving a major battleground between censors and dissidents in Vietnam..

Life on the farm

Imagine, 6am, soft morning sun glinting through your window. Chickens clucking, pigs grunting, birds and your sleeping partner shifting on the thin bamboo bed, preparing for a day of harvesting rice...Josh and I were lucky to experience a small part of Vietnamese village life.

Josh has only been here for 3 weeks but he already knows half of Hanoi..the Vietnamese half too! It was one of these connections that got us living on a farm in the middle of the countryside.

They have a small farm about 30 kms outside of Haiphong, a port city near Halong Bay. We managed to meet their entire extended family and were invited to a wedding (I was surprised it wasn't Josh's.) Even so poor, they were so generous, we gave them two huge flopping fish caught straight from the breeding ponds and food, but found it impossible to pay for anything!

After a difficult goodbye, we headed south..my rough idea was to go in a diamond shape, from Hanoi - Haiphong - Ninh Binh - Kim Boi Waterfalls - Hanoi. We didn't bring guides, or look at a map..so it didn't exactly turn out that way.

Giggling like loons we picked random buses from a station board or jumped on without knowing the destination. One took us to a town on the edge of the sea, we spent the afternoon whizzing around rolling hillsides in styyyyle..on a tandem bicycle!!

The part I enjoyed most was scootering from Ninh Binh to and through Cuc Phuong National Park. It's about 100 kms from Hanoi. And the landscape around Ninh Binh is delicious!

Huge, green monoliths jut out of the mountainous region...carved with rivers, lakes and scattered with peaceful temples. From the town it's 2 hours by bike to Cuc Phuong. We took it easy, explored streams, hung out with endangered monkeys and hundreds of brilliantly colored butterflies. Although it's a 'paved' national park, the happiness of the trees and animals would rival any Australia rainforest!

Ninh Binh was also nice, for a city. Happy dogs roaming the streets. It's my new measure of the kindness of a city's people, when stray dogs are friendly and well fed. Hanoi has a lot to answer for, considering they eat their strays..practical, but not too friendly.

Neither of us brought a camera..so until I can work out how to get the few I took off my phone...

...you'll have to imagine, a brother and sister on scooters, grinning wildly from ear to ear as the wind whistles past. Luscious rainforest all around, rice paddies, towering limestone karsts in the distance and long white winding paths ahead..

Full Moon Fiesta

Our friend works for a French NGO, and during the mid-autumn celebrations she organised a gala at Hanoi's National Pediatric Hospital.

A few foreign monkeys, including Josh and I, were invited to sing a little, dance a little and generally create a bit of fun for the kids and parents :)

My friend, Mienne, caught footage of the poi and drum performance! Enjoy *

Drumming and poi video

Mienne and Tab juggling

My scariest experience in Vietnam

Can a minsk travel 100 km held together with plastic bags and masking tape?
The answer is: Yes.. it can.

(And nope that's not the scary part. That's just a matter of fact.)

Our roadtrip started luscious and pastoral. 8 road warriors, my newly-arrived brother. A beautiful crew, complete with a cat packing a GPS grumbling through Vietnamese countryside, mountains, winding roads and tiny villages...

It wasn't till evening when we hit a bad patch of road my memory becomes clearer. One of the bikes didn't have a light and the road was quickly disintegrating into rocky chunks. It was hard to see and after the rain, tracks were slippery under the tires. There were a few times I thought I would be bumped right off the bike.

But, that wasn't the scary part.
We decided to stop, better for our asses and better for our bikes..some villagers (who definitely heard us coming) came out and offered us an abandoned school for the night. Not quite the woodsy camping experience we pictured, but considering the road..a great option. Surrounded by curious locals, we got comfortable, someone swept the floors and they even rigged up a bare bulb while we drew pictures for the cute kids on the blackboard.

But that's when things got complicated...

Two policemen arrived and they weren't happy we were there. They had terse words and attitudes, a huge comparison to the smiling people around us. Our friend, Lan Anh, did most of the talking while we produced what we hoped were harmless tourist smiles...

Vietnamese cop: Where are your passports.
Us (sitting on the dusty floor): We are tourists, our hotels have them.
Vietnamese cop: (looking at our friends..with fantastic logic) If you are tourists.. why are you Vietnamese?
Lan Anh: ..some smart reply..
Vietnamese police: You are tourists, you must sleep at our station. It's not safe for you to sleep here.
Us: (looking at smiling 8 year olds) ...Um...

Even with Lan Anh's incredible diplomacy, we had no choice but to saddle up and at a sombre, grey looking station they took names, grilled our friends, Lan Anh and Son, and told us we could continue on our journey in the morning.

Disappointing, yes..but still, not scary.

While on the way to the other station to sleep, our police escort suddenly disappeared. Strange, their headlights had been following us closely, so we stopped on the road... by chance next to a bia hoi! Beer, peanuts, more peanuts, a broken (and fixed) bike and more beer later, we realised the police weren't coming and headed out of town!

Being in the middle of nowhere, in the dark, crossing rickety bamboo bridges and water, the best thing was to find a secluded place, rig up hammocks and sleep. This, while decidedly drunken, messy and kind of farcical...was also not scary....

...Asleep, drunk, in a tree in a forest...in Vietnam..

What was scary was being shaken awake at 4am by Lan Anh...

LA: There are men with guns. I don't know who they are. They have guns.
Me: (drunk) Whaaaat?
LA: They have Son, I don't know if they are police, but they don't look like it. They have Son and they have guns.

And she disappeared into the dark.

I panicked. I could see a bright light in the distance, motors and hear angry men shouting. I rolled out of the hammock, and hid in the darkness of the bushes heart in my mouth...

Racing through my mind was the ridiculousness of hiding, the positives of hiding, and racing through my body fear and prickly bushes I had fallen into.. After what seemed like ages, brain cells kicked in, there were shouts that we should pack up camp, no gun shots and I shook awake the sleeping couple in the tree above me and we gathered our things as directed.

That was the scary part.
I don't think I have ever been so scared in my life.
My heart was in my throat the entire time. Thank god, someone had their head together and communicated we were travellers. Luckily, for us, they were local police looking for a group of Vietnamese hoodlums. They saw our bikes and mistook us. The gun in the end, was very small. And the men, friendly enough once they realised we weren't armed.
Our Vietnamese friend, Son, probably copped the worst, having to explain in the middle of the night face to face with angry men with guns..and Lan Anh again, ever diplomatic and sensitive!

The police were very friendly, much nicer than the first lot. They joked and smiled as they offered us cold, hard tiles to sleep on. We spent the night in the position we were meant to be in...on a cold floor in a station house.

In the clear light of day (at another bia hoi) we nursed hangovers and laughed about our situation... you know..that nervous kind of laughter.

The rest of the trip was wonderful, searching for imaginary waterfalls, swimming in rivers, and hanging out with goats and water buffalo surrounded by magnificent jungle..the kind of happiness one expects in Vietnam.

I prefer it that way, less police involvement, more swimming and jungle....

....and...we rode home with a coke bottle and sticky tape holding our engine in place..a massive leap of ingenuity (the moral of the tale being a minsk can pretty much do anything.)

And, also ... now that we can laugh about it..when travelling in the countryside, be aware of local law enforcement expectations, and carry a phrase book..

What's this...mid-autumn...again!

Mid Autumn has come..and gone! With all of the hooha and hoopla (and traffic) of last year. Only more...

Tet Trung Thu is my favorite Vietnamese festival. New Year is too big, Christmas too ugly. Mid-autumn is just right. Cool breezes are starting to sneak in, the city is overdue for a holiday and in the lead up the streets crackle with a buzz of excitement.

Plus the pagan moon-worshipper in me loves city-wide revelling under a full moon! And like any good pagan event, it's celebrated with fire, masks and myths!

You may remember me marvelling last year at beautiful floating lanterns let off around the city...well, they are dangerous, create litter and are now banned..surprise! But, I found a guy who took me to the back of his dingy shop..hehe..and with a prayer, we set it off from my balcony. A little scary considering the houses below my apartment all have thatched roofs..

This year I was lucky enough to have a chocolate mooncake magic'd up for me...yep, magic mooncake.

I organised our mid-autumn event and put on a great show for the kids! We put on our masks, decorated, reenacted a myth of a golden carp who swims through the dragon's gate to becomes a flying dragon...nice!

((And much better than the traditional story of the moon woman who accidentally urinates on a holy tree!! Go figure, I wasn't going to explain that one to my four year olds, no matter how traditional it is.))

All the same, hoopla, traffic, the coming of winter..I really like mid-autumn!

...and here's the link to my post last year in case you didn't know just how cool it was ;)
http://happylittlefeet.blogspot.com/2008/09/mid-autumn-moon-festival.html

Backpackers & Guesthouses in Hanoi

To begin with in Hanoi, you'll probably want to stay around the Ho Hoan Kiem area..this is where you'll do most of your shopping, see the most of Hanoi city life and get harassed the most by local touts and sellers of bananas and pineapples!

I haven't stayed in many hostels or backpackers but I have friends who have and these places below seem like the best picks for many budgets and many levels of comfort...

Hanoi Youth Hotel
It's located on a very busy road, but it's smack bang in the middle of the district! My good friend Cedric works there and it's slowly becoming a real funky place to be with a pool room, lounge and pretty good food downstairs.. bargain, because you'll definitely get a better deal...
33 Luong Van Can St
Hoan Kiem District.
T: (04) 3828 5822, (0167) 274 2493

Hanoi Backpackers
It's really, really clean and has dorms. A pretty damn typical tourist place without a trace of originality, privacy or love...but cheap and in a really good location. It's tucked in a corner near St Joe's cathedral..but is pretty easy to find!
48 Ngo Huyen
Hoan Kiem District.
T: (04) 3828 5372

The Drift..um, yeah..again..soulless..but it's clean
42 Truong Han Sieu St
Hoan Kiem District.
T: (04) 3944 8415

If you can afford to pay a little more, I would recommend Vinaway Hotel. It's called the 'Freaky Hotel' but some of our more gregarious couchsurfers. Vinaway is a pretty bizarre hotel and has great, great, great staff who will help you with anything. Plus, it's down the road from Chris' place..so you can drop in for a tea of meditation! See his CS profile here" target="_blank"

52 Le Van Huu Street, Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi.
Tel: (84-4) 39433845 - Fax: (84-4) 39448409
Email: vinaway.hotel@gmail.com

Taxis in Hanoi

It should go without saying that 90% of taxis in Hanoi are cheats..and yet, why do I still get cheated?

It seems some taxis drive you around the block, others blatantly 'forget' to use the meter and others have simply tampered with it.

Ok, so how to get around being ripped off completely. My suggestion is to get a bike..but here, who knows how you'll go. The next best option (the only option really) is to use a reputable taxi company (like the ones listed below).

1. Don't go with the tiny green taxis you see zipping around
2. Ensure the meter has a clear, unbroken box around it
3. Watch the streets on your map
4. Ask the driver approximately how much before you get in

Here's a list of good taxi companies in Hanoi, hope it keeps you out of trouble!

MaiLinh Taxi - 04 3822 2666
Hanoi Taxi - 04 353 5353
Taxi CP- 04 3262626
Hanoi Tourist Taxi -04 3565656

A School Year in Nam!

Can you believe it's been so long..

I've become comfortable life in a culture so dissimilar to my own. For the most part this year, my lesson been a journey on how to love. But I've learned many things.

For the past 365 days I've learned to live uncomfortably, let go expectations, withhold judgment, adapt my communication style, function in intense humidity. Bargained, acted, and smiled my way to new friendships, food and work.

14 things I've learned... a random, mixed bag (maybe I'll add more later when it's not so late)

1. Every human encounter is a unique and singular experience that will never recur in the same way ever again

2. To wipe my chopsticks before using them (even though it does nothing)

3. That I love children immensely and will be a good mother

4. That the world is very small and people can be very similar in fears, desires and flaws as well as love, compassion and open mindedness

5. That you can very easily welcome people into your life..you just open your door

6. To stop looking before I cross the road

7. I am not my friends, my false expectations, my partner or my bank account

8. If I want happiness..wisdom.. I have to continually seek and create it

9. Vietnamese are proud of their culture and sometimes feel a little sorry for Westerners (even though they also desire BMW's)

10. If a Vietnamese quickly and happily accepts when you offer a price, it's usually too high

11. Local wine is good, local vodka is pure acid

12. Always bargain hard, but remember there is a point you could be taking food off someone's table

13. Love can be found everywhere and anywhere if it is found within yourself first

14. No matter how small your budget, you can go from one backpack to an apartment full of crap in a short space of time...

I've learned to be extremely patient, find something positive in every interaction and did I mention extreme patience? It's been an intense year. But the more intensity the faster the learning.

'THE' Traffic

I realised I haven't posted about traffic here! Hmm, strange, when you arrive it's the first thing you notice and the ONLY thing you talk about. And it's nuts.

After almost a year, the 'flow' still baffles me. It's like a metal ballet, like walking on water... it's surreal how a system based loosely on the simple adage 'don't HIT anything' can possibly work, and yet it does...mostly.

Take a look at this youtube link to see what I mean.... then... a few tips!

www.youtube.com/crazy_hanoi_intersection

Haha, ok mum don't freak out. It's organized chaos, seemingly insane...and yes, it is a little. But there is method to the madness, it takes a while to get 'driving eyes'...the rule when driving is - take care of what is in front of you and the other guy will do the same. Strangely, it works.

As a pedestrian, remember drivers judge where you are 'going to be', not where you are when they see you. With this in mind, although it goes against every instinct, DO NOT STOP when you see a bike or car coming straight for you.

1. Walk at a slow, consistent pace
2. Don't make any erratic movements - yes, even if there is a pile of something disgusting in your path.
3. Try not to make eye contact - difficult at first, but it gets easier
4. Don't wear earphones, being able to hear the traffic is a good thing sometimes
5. Remember, they have brakes. And they do/should/usually use them.

^. And finally, just take a deep breath and step out. You'll be surprised.

Jobs in Hanoi

Wanna know the worst job in Hanoi?

Yep, you guessed it...

... EGG DELIVERY MAN!

I tried to find a photo to aptly describe the ridiculousness of this job on Hanoian streets. Because the traffic here is something else... let alone the quality of the roads.

Anyway, about a month after I arrived, I saw the most amazing thing. A motorbike covered in thousands of eggs stacked high in crates. The delivery man was literally surrounded back, top and sides, by eggs.

The look of sheer terror on his face was unforgettable.

(And I thought teaching 30 five year old's required concentration.)

Renting accomodation in Hanoi

So you want to move out of the backpackers and into a nice place like mine! Hehe, it's a nice place... The easiest way is to check out the classifieds on the New Hanoian website, there are tons of expats and teachers looking to share accommodation!

You can easily find second hand furniture to make your place nice. However, most apartments and houses come with furniture already, usually fairly tacky Asian armchairs and coffee tables.

The real estate market in Hanoi is very erratic. "Investors" (speculators) have built too many "high end" "luxury" residences, that most Vietnamese people cannot afford. Many are renting luxury abodes for much less than they would like to foreigners willing to pay higher prices.

A 4 bedroom apartment in Ciputra can be had for $1000 when the original asking price from any real-estate agent would be $2400. A three bedroom can be had for around $800. Agents usually ask for one months rent in advance.

Be careful in Hanoi when choosing property as there is an enormous amount of construction in this town! You don't want to end up with a jackhammer next to your ear at 6am...but mostly this cannot be avoided..as my poor friend Mal found out moving to three different houses with the same problem!!

Good luck!

209 Doi Can Street

I'm saying goodbye to Alley 209 Doi Can and packing my backpack... again.

My next place will be the fourth house I've lived since July. Still searching for a place to plant my roots I suppose...I was never one for share house living.

From the start I've lived around the Ba Dinh area. It's only 15 minutes to the city and best known for the distinct mausoleum, rollicking Ete bar and the many language schools.

I'll be sad to leave this three storey gorgeous French style home. My room is on the ground floor and if you've read the post about my 'bird's nest' bedroom on Van Bao street, you'll understand ground floor living is a nice change.
http://happylittlefeet.blogspot.com/2008/08/home-in-hanoi.html

The house is surrounded by fir trees with a pond in the center of community style housing. Huge turreted French houses with gabled windows rise above it. It's all very peaceful and safe.. geez and I'm moving from here in to an ex brothel!?

I move into my new apartment in TWO days, gosh, I am very excited. I've been dreaming of the space since January. Lots of work needs to be done, but I've always loved a fixer upper! Plus, it's located above the Buddhist meditation center. I'm looking forward to many good vibrations floating up through the floor.

But for the meantime, it's packing the stuff one seems to accumulate so quickly, contacting the taxi tai company and figuring out how one moves furniture out of an alley that cars and trucks can't squeeze down...

Please wish me luck. Moving house in Hanoi, you NEED it!

Taxi Tai - 04387313131
(Trucks are ordered by dimensions (meters) large and small, and be aware, they don't speak English.)

Spa-licious

In the hectic lead up to Tet I took some time out to have a ME day :) Luckily, this is a very easy task living in Hanoi.

I went to the local spa. I don't really need to say more.. but I will anyway...

I began with herbal indulgence, bathing in a large wooden barrel filled with a steaming mint and herb concoction. After relaxing it was into a spa bath with a tea, herb and ginger soak. Then shuffled into a steamy sauna with a ginger foot bath/soak ready and waiting.

After the cool shower was divine, being towel dried by someone else, a wee bit awkward. But they are too brisk for you to have a second thought. Then whisked into a pleasant smelling room for the massage of a lifetime.

Hot towels, a cucumber facepack, head, face, arms, legs, back, stomach everything massage. All finished off with a nice warm shower and ginger lemon tea to revitalise you.

All for 150, 000 (a little less than $10).

I'm liquid... and doing this next week!

I forget the name ~
78 Duong Yen Phu
Hanoi

Drumming at Puku Cafe

It seems our group is now called, da da da...The Bongos! As that's how we were introduced by the Vietnamese MC.

We were invited to play at a fund raising event, raising money to ensure kids in remote villages have access to schooling, including transportation, books, pens, clothing and proper health and nutrition.

Puku Cafe is a hidey hole cafe, frequented by expats and locals, and well known in Hanoi for ambient decor and ridiculously good food! Last night it was packed to the rafters with musicians, photographic exhibits and Vietnamese supporting a great cause.

Afterward, the group, still in a drumming mood, wandered down to Hoan Kiem lake to play in the green evening lights...until the police came....which is always to be expected!

Puku Cafe
60 Hang Trong
Hanoi


Photo The Bongos from Dat Tie Suc and David Pricco.

The Art of Tet

As Hanoi disintegrates into Tet madness, Vietnamese scramble in preparation for the most important festival of the year. Best described as Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, moon worshiping and everybody's birthday combined!

The Vietnamese dedicate an entire week to this new year celebration, a time for family, food and harmony to welcome in a new year. It heralds the beginning of the lunar calendar and the beginning of Spring. Surprisingly, Vietnamese follow the solar calendar during the year and on the first night of the full moon they switch to the lunar calendar.

All seemingly confusing, so don't bother asking what actual 'day' Tet is. Just know you'll probably be given 10 - 12 days off sometime between the 17 - 30 Jan. It's really time to simply go with the flow.

Hanoi has a dream-like quality, floating through the end of the solar year. Hanoians are shopping to impress with delicacies, new clothing, new furniture, traditional cumquats trees. Driving in Hanoi has become like walking through an orange grove. Supernaturally bright orange cumquat trees and peach blossoms lining the streets or strapped to the back of motorbikes.

The myth or superstition attached to these plants is probably similar to the one that recommends releasing a fish at this time of year to appease the Kitchen Gods!! hehe. I hadn't thought about the fact there might be kitchen gods out there...ever.

Traditionally expats take this opportunity to leave! Flying of to more exotic locations like Thailand or Indonesia. Considering that during Tet, the whole of Hanoi shuts down and closes up shop, it may have been wiser to flee the sinking ship. But since the budget doesn't allow for Thai beaches just yet, my first Tet will be spent with the few friends left in the city.

I'll be soaking up the quiet ambience of the surprisingly peaceful city and relaxing!

Chuc Mung Nam Moi!

Harvest Festival

The organic farm held their first harvest festival today! Action for the City and the community arranged a big do this month and invited us to play. I've just hopped off the motorbike and I still can't feel my backside...hahaha.

The morning began in the fields armed with machetes and plastic bags. Kids and dogs running around rows of corn and trellises. We walked into a melee of families, foreigners and farmers sharing a home cooked lunch in the commune courtyard under a pink gazebo. Silver pots bubbling with vegetable soup, colorful sweet sticky rice, fried nems, fresh spring rolls and yes, more corn, but oh so good corn :)

After lunch and harvesting we played drums and listened to the farmers sing traditional songs and tell us of their stories and struggles. For most families it was a big gamble to go organic, some pulling up their only source of income, rice paddies, to grow vegetables for the first time.

I was surprised to learn organic farming in Vietnam is rare. Remember Australia's reaction to the introduction of DDT? We loved it! That's about the point Vietnam is at the moment. These farmers are incredibly brave to go against the grain, so to speak... an extremely un-Vietnamese thing to do.

So, I'm home.. feeling tanned from winter sun, with good colour on my cheeks, full of open space energy and buzzing from all day smiles!!!

Mmmmmmmm!


Click here for Rau Thanh Xuan website

Festival Photos
Click here to take a look!



Photo Women Harvesting from Lan Anh.

Get a hobby

If you've ever wanted to be a multilingual, jazz guitar playing, belly dancing martial artist who cooks a mean Pho noodle soup... you've come to the right city!

With so many extracurricular activities offered in Hanoi it's hard to simply choose ONE to do. (Although it seems the favored past time of the average expat drinking more than anything else.)

I'm a huge fan of accumulating pointless knowledge. Over the years I've learned more than my fair share. Let's see.. skateboarding (a lost art), stilt walking, pan pipes, guitar, crochet, fire twirling, basket weaving, oh and my recent favorite a hell-bent desire to perfect contact juggling (yes, I loved The Labyrinth), none of which I can perform with any skill.

Anyway, for the eternal procrastinator you may find yourself learning a language (Spanish anyone?), tango, Shaolin kung fu, Viet cooking, performance art, photography etc etc the list is endless.

... there are even drinking clubs... if your average weeknight/weekend bar crowd just isn't dedicated enough for you, join the Bia Hoi Appreciation Society.
http://newhanoian.xemzi.com/en/group/show/21/Bia-Hoi-Appreciation-Society

For art lovers Hanoi is scattered with arts museums, galleries and alternative art and photography (it's big here, everywhere you see dudes wearing khaki vests with serious lenses rivaling small artillery).

There's the Geothe Institute, the Cinematheque, bowling, roller disco, Tay Ho amusement park, karaoke, opera house and jazz clubs...

My favorite way to spend a Sunday afternoon is to hoof it down to tree covered Lenin Park and spend an afternoon in the sun with fire twirlers and drumming circle or hang around a little later in the twilight to perfect that Thai Chi stance with a personal teacher.

www.newhanoian.com
Hanoi Grapevine

Hanoi Cinemateque

Apsara Dance Studio
Nghi Tam

Lenin Park - Cong Vien Thong Nhat