Anne's blog travel 06-07

Thursday, January 25th 2007

The days just go by in Hanoi. A few changes however as I have to change hotels today and will again tomorrow before I'm settled somewhere else. But it's all good. Time for a change.

The streets continue to be busy by day and busy again at night but differently. Go out at night and you see things which are invisible or not there in the day. It's fun going out without going out. No need to have a destination in mind as most of what's happening is happening on the sidewalk. Yesterday as I leave the lovely Sofitel Metropole Hotel (where I go to the gym once in a while), I hear my name called out: "Anne". And surprised I look around to see a Cyclo who I talked yesterday. He was asking me if I wanted a ride then and I declined but stayed and talked for a while. "Ahh, Nam" I reply surprised that he's remembered my name. "Where are you going?" he asks. "Just for a walk in search of lunch." is my reply. He wants to take me for a ride but I tell him maybe another day. I can't very well find lunch if I'm not actively walking the sidewalk.

I pick up my week's laundry in the afternoon which costs me US$2.25. I don't know if there are laundromats around but it's not even worth finding out. I'd rather give this lovely woman some business.

And close to the busy markets I find a place to have Bahn com-the sticky green rice cakes with yellow peas inside- I've become fond of. There is something very intimate in sharing food with total strangers on the sidewalks. The first gesture from the lady or man cooking is one to invite me to sit on the small stool she points to. She motions me around her. Then serves me the food which I eat in her company and whomever is also sitting and eating at the time. I cannot talk too much but in the smiles and gestures, we sort of understand each other. This lady charges me 2000 V Dong for something I've previously paid about 5 000V Dong. So I know when I'm getting closer to the real price of things. Still it's not much so I never haggle for food. Another lady nearby is serving the black bean sweet pudding so I have some of that for desert.

I bought a Vietnamese phrasebook in a bookshop. It's the lonely planet guide ( certainly a copy) which retails for 25 000 V Dong which is just over US$1.50. On the streets young men and woman have been trying to sell me this book starting at 80 000 V Dong. I tell a boy who comes to try to sell me one at the lake yesterday that I paid 25 000 for my copy. He smiles and tells me he buys them for 5 000 V dong (about US$0.30) so he could have sold me a copy for 20 000 and still made a profit. When this boy and another leave me, Kiem who has been watching asks if he can sit with me to practice his english and so he does. So much about reading by the lake but sometimes the best laid plans are just made to be changed.

Vietnamese is not an easy language to pick up as there is six different type of accents which can impart a different meaning to any word. I doubt I can learn enough in the short time I'm here to even have a basic conversation but I'll try.

Bye for now