October 18, 2009
Paradise Found...
...Well, I suppose that "paradise" is a judgment call, but the place that has been called "an enchanted land of aesthetes at peace with themselves and nature" certainly charmed me.
The surf definitely had something to do with it. Nothing on this scale, but some fun chest high waves at Kuta Beach gave me the fix that I needed to endure my final two surfless months in Saigon.
Having my first week off of work in over a year and a fresh mohawk helped to get me in vacation mode...
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September 2, 2009
How to Nuoc Mam
The other day, I put fish sauce on my breakfast porridge. I must be acquiring a Vietnamese palate - plain oatmeal was just too...Plain...
For those of you craving some fermented sea flavor to complement your dining fare, here is a three step guide to making your own nuoc mam, Phan Thiet style.
Mix fish and rock salt in a large ceramic vat. Cover.
Leave to ferment in the tropical sun for at least one year.
Bottle, label, and enjoy the fishy goodness...
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August 20, 2009
I Love HK
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China has good Feng Shui. The city is just about as packed with people in high rise office and apartments as it could be. However, it is easy to leave this Amazon of the world's concrete jungles. I went on an early morning run from my city hotel and quickly found myself running along a sleepy coast highway and swimming on a rocky, deserted beach.
Maybe that is not the kind of Feng Shui that $500 per hour interior designers in Shanghai and New York practice, but what I am getting at is that Hong Kong seems to have a nice balance of different elements. The city is very Chinese, but as a result of the centuries of British rule, there is a thriving Western community - not just expats, but people who have actually grown up in the territory. The city's cuisine also has depth and variety, everything from inexpensive noodle houses to the hautest of haute cuisine.
For now, I am enjoying the motorbike exhaust in your face, developing country chaos of living in Saigon. This city is a rebellious teenager, while Hong Kong is decidedly middle aged and settled. Hong Kong has a piece of my heart, and it is a place I could feel comfortable living when I am more settled as well. My Hawaiian friend who lived there last year even told me that there is some surf on the other side of the island...
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August 15, 2009
The Doctor's Orders
Thở bằng mũi - Breathe through your nose
The air in the streets of Saigon is suffocating - filled with exhaust from old two stroke motorbikes, soot from diesel container trucks, and construction dust. Driving home from work is the lung damage equivalent of smoking a pack of cigarettes. I hear that breathing through the nose is one way to limit the impact on the lungs because the hair in the nose filter some of the particles.
Oh yeah...A facemask is another option for air filtration...
Không đi giầy trong nhà - Take your shoes off in the house
Growing up in Hawaii, which has a strong Japanese influence, gave me the habit of leaving my shoes at the door out of respect. This custom is especially important here in Saigon, where the streets are filthy but homes are kept spotless. Moreover, many families dine sitting cross legged on a straw mat on the floor. All the more reason to kick off those grimy shoes at the entrance.
Không nhổ lông mọc trên mụn ruồi - Don't pull out that hair in your mole
Why? It may cause cancer. Not sure if I completely believe that, but the thought has scared me enough to start trimming my mole hairs instead.
Khi ngủ, không đặt tay lên ngực - Don't sleep with your hands on your chest
The heart is a fragile organ, and resting hands on one's chest for sleeping hours can put unnecessary pressure on the cardiovascular system.
Khi uống bia rượu, phải có mồi, đồ ăn - Make sure to eat while your are drinking alcohol
I am fine with eating a handful of salted peanuts while I am sitting at the bar with a beer. However, when drinking with some of my local buddies, I find myself having to constantly refuse the pieces of sausage, barbecued squid, and dried beef that they put in front of my face after every sip. Here, eating goes together with drinking. Apparently, it is better for the stomach, but I think that all that eating gives me a worse hangover than the beer...
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July 28, 2009
Guacamoleland
Ok, Ok...I know that it is unfair and probably offensive to characterize an entire country by one of its dishes. My patriotic pride would be undermined if someone asked if someone asked whether I was from the United States of Hamburgers...
However, I must say that when I think of Mexico, I think of food. No, not Taco Bell or even Baja Fresh which is tasty yet Gringo-influenced Mexican cuisine. Instead, I am talking about real homestyle Mexican cooking: tacos de cabeza con salsa de habanero, frijoles refritos tradicionales (yes, with plenty of lard..), and chiles rellenos. Plenty of guacamole on the side...
The week of meetings with industrial park developers, plastic and metal manufacturing companies, and local officials near Monterrey, Nuevo Leon was an intense one. However, the guacamole made it worth it all. Now, it's back to my Mexican cuisine-free existence in Saigon. The thought has definitely crossed my mind to stick around and open my own taqueria on Dong Khoi street. Any interested investors out there?
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July 22, 2009
36 Hours in Cali
I have to start this entry with a shout out to my boss - thanks for proposing that we stop in LA on our way to Mexico for work! Thirty-six hours in the shadow of the Hollywood sign gave me enough time to accomplish my two goals - meeting my parents for breakfast at Urth Cafe and surfing Malibu with two of my best friends.
Ok...This is not really a photo of Malibu. The waves were small last weekend, and I probably could not even get barreled like this anymore after a year of living land locked in Saigon...
Anyway, given my boss' generosity for arranging this stopover, I wanted to show him around, especially since this would be his first time to the US. For the Americans / Californians out there, how would you welcome a first time visitor, originally from Spain and now living in Vietnam?
Here is what I came up with - a cruise down Hollywood Boulevard, beers and burgers at Hooters, and shopping at a trendy mall in Manhattan Beach. From this glimpse of the US, he will probably think that we are a vain, consumerist lot of 300 million, but that is fine with me - we had a blast...
Searching for "Hooters" on Google yielded much livelier images, but I decided to go with this safe - yet suggestive - company logo...But again, back to the Cali stopover. After living in Vietnam for over one year, it was incredibly sweet to hug my mom and ride waves with my best friends back in California. However, during brief stay, the nomad in me (who seems to be increasingly vocal and influential) was excited to get back on an airplane and step on to unexplored territory...
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July 12, 2009
Thành Ngữ Việt Nam
I bought this shirt because the Vietnamese words written in Chinese-style calligraphy looked cool...
It turns out that the words constitute a Chinese proverb that made its way to Vietnam over 2,000 years ago (according to my Vietnamese teacher). As a result of millenia of intermittent Chinese rule and constant Chinese influence, Vietnam's government, education system, and even family structure are similar to those of its big brother to the north. Until Alexandre de Rhodes transliterated the Vietnamese language into its current, Romanized alphabet in the late 18th century, the literate classes used a version of Chinese characters as their own writing system.
So, that explains the origin of this Vietnamese proverb, or Thành Ngữ Việt Nam, but what wisdom does it offer? A discussion with my Vietnamese teacher yielded the following interpretation:
Dục tốc bất đạt...
Literally, "in wanting quick success, one will not succeed." An appropriate reminder for my instant gratification conditioned American mind.
Here are a couple more Vietnamese proverbs that I like:
Ông ăn chả, bà ăn nem...
Literally, "while the man eats chả (grilled chopped meat), his wife eats nem (pork hash wrapped in banana leaf)." Any ideas about the meaning? This one stumped me - I thought it had something to do with men and women having different tastes. My (patient) Vietnamese teacher finally shared that it describes a married couple who each have a lover on the side. In this society where people marry young and divorce is still frowned upon, I suspect that man and wife having "different tastes" happens more often than one might expect...
Mất sổ gạo...
Literally, "to lose one's rice ledger." The decade after the North Vietnamese kicked out the US and completed their "reuinification" of the country was a tough one economically. Soviet-style central planning meant that families were allocated a set portion of rice, which they obtained by presenting their ledger - probably to a local communist party official. In this time of food shortages, "losing one's rice ledger" could mean that the family would go hungry. Today, it seems like most people get enough to eat here in Vietnam, and my Vietnamese teacher explained that people now use the phrase to cheer up someone who is looking dejected by asking, "What happened - did you lose your rice ledger?" I like asking myself this question - makes my problems seem minor by comparison!
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