Vietnam adventure in motion

A year flies by fast, doesn't it? This time last year we were in my birthplace; the bustling coastal city, Nha Trang, Vietnam. What an adventure we had, and how much Kien has grown and developed in 1 year is crazy!

Finally, one year later, here is a short film I made of our Vietnam experience.

Vietnam Experience from Lien on Vimeo. Music by Beach House, "Myth".

Here are my postcards from last year.

Blogging is a wonderful thing. It's my virtual scrapbook that I get to share with all my family and friends close by and abroad. Interwebs is cool, Man.

Long Sơn Pagoda

Sure it's a tourist attraction with a giant white Buddha that looms large high on a hill and one has to climb 152 odd steps to see it. If you've seen one pagoda you've seen them all, right?

From my grandparents house (which was confiscated by the government when they left Vietnam) the Buddha was clearly visible up on this will, and a constant reminder of my family's personal loss as a result of the infamous Tết Offensive in 1968.

Tết is a huge festival; new year, new moon, first day of Spring, optimism. It's also a time when the Viet Cong knew everyone would be in celebration mode and vulnerable, and a period when no attacks were supposed to take place due to a prior agreement to "cease fire". My uncle, my dad's eldest brother, went to the Long Sơn Pagoda that night in 1968 and never came home. My grandmother sent my dad up to the temple the following afternoon, and this was where my dad found him.



He had been kneeling and praying in front of the Buddha, and unbeknownst to him and other worshippers the Viet Cong were hiding inside the base, waiting to ambush. My dad found his body, slumped over but still in the kneeling position. My father was 20 years old, and he peeled his brother off the stone floor, put him on the back of his scooter and took him home. My dad was now the eldest child, and the responsibilities for the entire family rested on his shoulders from that point on.

Po Ngar Cham Towers

The Po Nagar Tower is the name of the main temple in a complex of Cham towers on a knoll at the river-mouth of the Cai River, 2km north of Nha Trang city. This holy place remains revered by locals, and an interesting look back into a time of the Cham people.

Hindu Philosophy believes that the world is the manifestation of God. A building like a temple is not just the house of the deity but it is the body of the deity. Hence the brick work and design of these towers are synonymous to other archeological Hindu religious structures.



The pediment above the entrance to the temple depicts the four-armed goddess, Durga, holding a hatchet, a lotus and a club, and standing on a buffalo.

The Po Nagar complex is situated on Cù Lao Mountain. We climbed the stairs, and at the top the outlook over the Cai River was spectacular.

Lots of relics up here for sale as well. I liked this carving of the water buffalo, but what am I going to do with a water buffalo?







I was beautiful up here.





It's rare for Kien to hang out with my dad somewhere other than the restaurant back home, so it's good to them interacting and enjoying each others company.









Birds in cages - everywhere you go you will find a bird in a cage, and only ever one bird per cage.



I love how colourful the river looks with all the boats and markets down there.

Life in Nha Trang

My dad used to tell me what it was like to live here back in the old days. Some of the stories sounded so idyllic, and he speaks about his daily rituals with such nostalgia it's hard to imagine that we were also in the midst of a war.

Life here still has remnants of past times. Even I can remember what it was like living here, and I was only 5 years old when we left. This is a snapshot of daily life.

Street stalls being set up at the crack of dawn.

When I was a little girl living here my grandmother used to take my sister and I up to the corner street stall for breakfast every morning. I have vivid memories of those priceless experiences.

Freshly baked baguettes.

These are everywhere, and they are crunchy and delicious.

Vietnamese coffee.

Thick, sweet, strong!

Fresh fruit sold on the street.

Have you ever had a durian? It is the most interesting fruit, and described by many as having a putrid odour and a texture similar to snot. Even Anthony Bourdain can't stomach this fruit, and that guy can eat anything - well, almost anything. I personally love eating this fruit - such a delicacy.

Delicious food.

I've taken lots of photos of food! Maybe I should do a post just about traditional dishes. We'll see. In the meantime this was our breakfast the other day.

Bánh cuốn (literally "rolled cake")



Trứng gà ốp la (sunny side up eggs, usually eaten with soya sauce, fresh chillies and baguette)

Busy Phở shop.

All this place sells are steaming hot bowls of noodle soup, any style of meat and/or offal.

Escaping the sun.

It seems all activity comes to a grinding halt between 2-4pm. It's hot, too hot to do anything, so most people find some shade and sleeps. You see it all over the city - life has paused for a bit.



And what do holiday makers do?

Health and safety.

What's that in this place?

Busy streets outside town.

On the outskirts of town we experienced a traffic jam.

Quiet streets inside town.

I'm not even kidding when I say that this isn't considered busy.

Watching the world go by.

What laid back looks like.