I love to reflect upon my time in a place, so it’s fitting that after a year as a expat in Vietnam I sat down and actually thought about what I’ve learned about Vietnam, Asia, and myself. It wasn’t an easy road, and until I met some local friends about 6 months in did things […]
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Back to DestinationsComing Full Circle
I spent the weekend going back to square one; back to where I started my life in Ho Chi Minh City. Let me back up a bit; I’ve been living out in a ‘suburb’ district for the last 6 months. Even though I have to come into the ‘city center’ (District 1) a few days […]
Motorbike Diaries – Vol. 17
Rush Hour Start from the Beginning – Motorbike Diaries Vol. 1 Resistance is Futile – Assimilation I’m not sure how it happened, but I’ve become one of them. I wear a jacket (which I’m boiling in), a mask, a poncho, ….I’m a Vietnamese motorbike driver. I’ve become used to being squeezed into small places and driving […]
The Motorbike Diaries – Vol. 15
Start from the Beginning – Motorbike Diaries Vol. 1 What’s in a Name? I’m going to state the obvious – I’m a girl. What I mean by that is I can exhibit typical girl traits at times; especially when it comes to my knowledge of cars. As long as I can remember, I’ve never really been […]
The Dust Bowl
I often wonder how many months the pollution and dust in Saigon will take off my life. For this reason, I can’t imagine living here long term. Hell, I imagine that living here long term is akin to smoking a pack of cigarettes a day! That may be an exageration, however no one really knows what […]
Leaving on a Jet Plane…Tonight!
Just a quick update – I’m on the move once again; I’m taking a vacation….yeah! Ever since I made the decision a year ago to come back to Asia and live in the area, I knew that one of the things I wanted to accomplish was to round out my Asia travel experience. There’s one […]
Adventure Eating
After 8 months here I finally found some Vietnamese friends who have taken me on as their ‘foreign friend project’. Meaning – they are helping me to see and experience the Vietnamese culture from a local perspective. It’s easy to experience the touristy side of Saigon, however I have found it hard to really integrate […]
Renewing a Passport Overseas
I decided to start the process of getting my passport renewed as many countries won’t let you enter if you don’t have more than 6 months left on your passport validity. I certainly didn’t want to be turned away at the border of Mongolia! Plus, I’ve learned that working through the American consulate while you […]
Durian – The King of Fruits
There are many hard things about living by yourself overseas…I may write a book about it someday if I can ever force myself to slow down long enough. However, this July 4th weekend highlights one of those many challenges; missing family. It’s my mother’s birthday, and my parent’s pending 50th Wedding anniversary, and my family […]
The Price of Being a Foreigner in Asia
I was out with a friend today shopping for camera equipment for my upcoming trip to Mongolia. I went to a local little camera ‘stall’ near/in The Tax Department Store (I won’t even get into what a terrible name that is for a store…that could be a whole post on it’s own). I was looking […]