Bye, WHALE! Vietnamese fishermen gathered by the thousands to give a royal funeral and farewell to a gigantic dead whale. The whale was floating lifeless 26 miles off the coast yesterday before it was spotted. Ten boats full of fishermen spent a day hauling it ashore. The whale is referred to as "ngai" ("Your Excellency") which has an honorific translation used only when … [Read more...] about Farewell, Whale!
Travel
The New Year Isn’t Over Yet in Vietnam!
This may come as a surprise to Westerners, but it’s still New Year’s Day in Vietnam, and much of the rest of Asia for that matter. While the Western New Year tends to involve massive celebration on New Year’s Eve, it’s business as usual on January 2nd at the latest in many places. Not so in Vietnam, where Tet celebrations go on for at least a full week. Flights, buses and … [Read more...] about The New Year Isn’t Over Yet in Vietnam!
Vietnam’s Deadly Challenge: Crossing the Street!
In my opinion, Vietnam has the most “amazing” traffic in the world. If you have not had a chance to visit the country before, I could feel very safe to bet $100 that you cannot cross any major street in Saigon or Hanoi by yourself in a 15-minute period. Traffic signs are unclear; not everyone obeys the laws; and there aren’t any laws “set in stone” to follow. Sometimes you … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s Deadly Challenge: Crossing the Street!
American Engineers Reunite With Family After 50 Long Years
12.14.09 Guest Authors: Hang Nguyen and David Regenold Hang Nguyen and David Regenold live in Tempe, Arizona where Hang is a Principle Engineer with Intel Corporation and David is a design engineer with Marvell Semiconductor. They have two children, Nathaniel Regenold who is a Junior at Washington University in St. Louis and Jonathan Regenold who is in 7th grade at Aprende … [Read more...] about American Engineers Reunite With Family After 50 Long Years
Hoi An: A mordernized abridgement of a lost culture
By the time we flag down a local taxi driver who is sleeping in the car by the side of the road, the sun is already going down. From Danang to Hoi An is about 20 kilometers and he looks disinterested. Timothy convinces him to follow us to the house where we are planning to take uncle Quý with us for a night in Hoi An. I am getting used to the metal cushion-less back seat of … [Read more...] about Hoi An: A mordernized abridgement of a lost culture