When the plane in from Singapore just landed here a Vietnamese lady told me she was sorry for my visit because at New Year the city would be so boring. That has not been a problem, but only because I can be entertained anywhere. The city is dead.
All of the local Vietnamese shops, restaurants, whatever .. and many foreign ones are closed and shuttered. That leaves lots of security guards siting in doorways and a lot of tourists ambling around.
New Year came and went. There were great fireworks over the river, and lots of firecrackers on the streets.
They have firecrackers that explode with bright glittery confetti that covered the streets the next couple of days. But the celebration was actually pretty tame. Subdued anyway, nothing like the wildness of Sinalog in Cebu.
The next day there were lots of very bright beautiful dresses on the women. And a lot of strolling around in them. For the holiday they decorated about a five block area with flowers and there was a large crowd promenading and the men taking pictures of the women.
This is a long holiday, four days off, which is customary in Asia. It is their biggest holiday and people need time to travel to the countryside because the first two days are supposed to be spent with the family.
These people are very friendly. It is their custom to say Happy New Year to each other on the new year day, and I had endless greetings and smiles everywhere I wandered. Seeing them off work I can say that they like to sit and drink tea, hot or cold with friends and family. They like all manner of games, board games of all kinds and card games. Card games everywhere. In the mornings there are discarded playing cards on the streets, I can only guess that if you lose it is the card’s fault.
They love potted plants, potted trees and any kind of flower.
It continues to be beautiful weather; beautiful blue sky, breezes, but between 10 am and 4 pm it is hot.
The tropical sun is brutal when it is overhead and I have had to use an umbrella for serious walking. And along a river/tributary where there is some breeze. Cathy says the differential between the current lows in Bemidji and the highs here is around 115 degrees F. She also says that living there we do not sweat enough .. she should be here.
I have had a few French and Italian dinners, there are many many restaurants and cafes.
And I am not starving because my little hotel has about an acre of breakfast bar.
But with things starting to open up again I was able to find a Vietnamese meal last night. It was Chinese like, eaten with rice bowl and chopsticks. Everything I had was good, but I really cannot say much after one meal. Except that the South African Pinotage I had with it was surprisingly good.
As always, a few bonus pictures:
This one means little to anyone but me, but I used to see these penguin trash receptacles all over China 30 years ago, and they were the exact colors.
Incomprehensible ceremony:
In the old newsreels during the war the river was always full of floating green stuff. And it is.
Road warier.
Local bully.
And I can never get enough of these local markets. (Don’t eat the fish, I walked along the river and have smelled it)
