Cat Ba Island

Cat Ba Island was beautiful.

It was too late in the season for tourists to go to Cat Ba Island and the weather didn’t look like it was going to be all that great. But that’s what made it a perfect destination for us to get away from the city!

We took the train out of Hanoi to Hai Phong where we spent one night in a weird little hotel that gave us a room reminiscent of Ernie and Bert’s.


In the morning we took the ferry to Cat Ba.

The Island was so peaceful and the weather was perfect. We rented a motorbike and toured the island, stopping at a national park and a few beaches. Our hotel was clean, tacky and cheap and the staff were very friendly and helped us get our tickets for the ride home. We found a great restaurant too!





"Che" Bina

Andy the explorer

Remember Muddy Mud Skipper from Ren & Stimpy? Well it turns out after the success of the show he took his earnings and moved to Cat Ba for a permanent vacation.

The beautiful sunset on Cat Ba.


In our favorite Cat Ba restaurant.


The view of the pier from the restaurant at night.

"Cat Co Beach" the next day.


The hotel was so efficient that they employed all these ants to help clean the rooms. These little workers are seen here carrying away a cheez-um pringle crumb that we carelessly dropped.

In the mountains of the National Park.

Green Orange

In Vietnam, the oranges are green!

Back in the SRV

As we descended into the Hanoi airport a young Vietnamese guy sitting next to us got up to jabber with his buddy sitting behind us. They were standing up and looking out the nearest windows, delighted by their return to Mother Nam. They were standing when the plane hit the runway. As we taxied to the gate they were opening the baggage compartments and getting out their bags. Did they think we were on a train or a bus? What was this strange disregard for airline safety and passenger protocol that we’ve all come to rely on? Where was their sense of order?

This odd behavior only indicated that we were truly back in Vietnam. And oddly still, I was glad to be back. Of course this erratic display during landing was not the first sign of our return to Vietnam. When we boarded the plane we headed for our pre-selected seats, one next to a window, only to find an opportunistic Vietnamese guy who had already situated himself there. No big deal, we let him stay. The next sign came in the form of an alarming message from the captain that someone who had checked bags onto the flight had not shown up at the gate. So we had to wait for their bags to be removed. The temperature inside the plane was a humid 100 degrees, just like Vietnam, and we were going to be late. Our window-seat thief proceeded to shut the blind and fall asleep for the rest of the flight.

It’s hard to define what it is I like about Vietnam just yet. But I was eager to return. There are so many things that can drive you crazy, and often do, but there’s so much satisfaction in comprehending, and working with a society so difficult, and any sense of accomplishing the slightest assimilation is so rewarding that you forget about the hardships. It’s almost like an exercise that makes your muscles burn, and tires you out. It’s painful and exhausting, but in the end so very rewarding.

Bina had returned to the states at the end of August to seek proper medical care for her back. She finally received an accurate diagnosis in Wooster Ohio: A herniated disk in her lower back. Then she had a regiment of exercise and therapy to do until it got better. I spent September alone in Hanoi but joined her at the end of the month. (Thus the giant gap in my blog.)

I went to New York in time to attend my friends Tim and Linda’s wedding. (See Anita's pics on Pinknest )Then I went to Ohio to be with Bina. I spent a few weeks living in Cleveland with my friend Carolyn and her partner Heide. They own and operate an awesome café - Cafe Limbo - and an antiques shop in Shaker Heights. They also have a beautiful house full of art and antiques. It felt like I was living in a museum, but far more comfortable. Here’s a picture of the grapes growing on a giant trellis outside their back door. It was nice to be able to step outside and reach up for a handful of grapes whenever I pleased.

I found work with a small crew of housepainters and painted a house. The work was good and the money was much needed. It felt good to be outside and meditate on the repetitious work, although sometimes the boss wanted us to work faster so one couldn’t stay “zoned-out” for too long. (You’ll never escape The Man!!)

I spent a lot of time with Bina while she was getting better and even attended Navratri (an Indian holiday that celebrates Goddesses) with her family and friends at her uncle’s house. Here’s a picture of me with some Goddesses.

We stopped back in New York for a couple of days on our way back to Vietnam and juiced up on all the things we knew we were going to miss for the next five-or-so months. We ate our favorite foods and drank good scotch and wine. I even provoked a few New York-style arguments just to enjoy the flow of the English language. (Cursing is so beautiful in its subtle tones.)

So it’s been a whirlwind month, and now we’re back in Hanoi for Halloween. Bina and I both love Halloween so it’s hard to be spending it in a place that doesn’t even know what it is, but that’s ok, it’s not so different from many of the other things we take for granted. Anyway, we may still put on masks and go door-to-door asking for candy. We just have to figure out how to say “Trick or Treat”.

The Minsk Affair

Since Bina left I’ve been having an affair. I had feared that being here alone would make me do some crazy things, as solitude tends to do with the restless, but I never expected this.

This is a Minsk motorcycle. My affair.



Everyone in Hanoi has a motorbike of some kind. Mostly they’re scooters or mopeds, but some people have motorcycles. The Minsk is an old Russian-built motorcycle that you’ll find all over Vietnam but mostly in the countryside. The people in the cities hate them. In fact, the Vietnamese really look down on the Minsk. Not only are they considered an old vestige of Russian influence, but they’re big, dirty, loud and smelly. However, there are a few Minsk loyalists that really can’t live without them, and this is what makes the Minsk so unique. In fact, the Minsk has it’s own fan club. It’s called the Minsk Club and it’s incredibly active.

Hanoi Minsk Club

I acquired this Minsk by calling a number posted in a café. The girl selling it said she would rent it if nobody wanted to buy it so I went to see it. My goal was to get out into the countryside and explore some of Vietnam’s more scenic wonders. I envisioned myself an Easy Rider with the winds of freedom blowing in my face, a romantic adventurer “finding myself” and being one with the road. (I still haven’t been out of the city limits.) But my starry-eyed dreams persist nonetheless.

I’ve recently decided to join Bina back in the states until she’s recovered from her back injury. I miss her too much and can’t continue this affair any longer. Despite all the Minsk can give, it’s no match for the allure of Bina. I haven’t told the Minsk yet. But it’s been a fleeting fancy for both of us and we must end it. But it has been a fun ride.

National Day!

Last weekend was National Day here in Vietnam. National Day, September 2nd, encompasses several accomplishments for the Vietnamese including the ass-kicking of the French and Americans, as well as holding out from the Chinese for so long. It also includes celebrating Ho Chi Minh’s birth, death, first gray hair and the losing of his virginity. It covers 60years of these kinds of accomplishments and the Vietnamese celebrate it with more pride than you can imagine.

I started the day out early and went to see the parade. I shot a ton of pictures, which I’ve included here for your amusement. It was a great parade. It reminded me of the Independence Day parades we have in the states but without the bands and clowns. Instead, they paraded lots of communist propaganda and giant portraits of Uncle Ho himself. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good dose of communist imagery, full of proud working people championing solidarity, but give me a bright red fire truck instead any day!

Here's a float that depicts a great sense of symmetry.

More "Ho"s than a brothel!

This little kid was so funny. He was full of mischief and kept throwing a soda can into the parade to watch the marchers trip over it.

Long Live Uncle Ho!! (Even though he's dead.)

Lots of people turned out..

The proud armies.

Our wonderful monks!!

Big crowd on the parade route.

It's a parade!!

The intellectual elite.

Here's a picture of an old Green Beret that turned up for the parade. You can see him next to the other foreigner in the background. He's probably still registered as an MIA but doesn't realize it. Anyway, he was really enjoying the parade.

We love Ho!!

Goose-steppin'

More Ho.

The Silk Army.

"Put your conical hats in the air, wave 'em like you just don't care!"

A flag for patriotism.

Power to the people.

Chrystler Tower? No, a communist float!

The Lotus Club

We met this guy named Peter at a house warming party for one of our friends. Nobody really knew whose guest he was, but he was very friendly and liked to talk. He invited us to go with him the next day to a Pagoda outside of town. Well, actually he just told us he was coming over to pick us up in the afternoon! It was a little suspicious and we couldn’t get a straight story out of him as to what, exactly, we were going to do at this Pagoda. "We're going to meet about helping disadvantaged people of Vietnam and discuss ways in which to help,” He said. “There’s going to be a party!” he quickly added in hopes of coaxing us. It felt like we were being recruited into a cult.

The next day Peter called early in the morning and we missed his call. But then he called twelve more times so we finally spoke with him and told him where we lived. We decided to take a giant leap of faith with this guy and let him take us to his cult leader and feed us the cool aid or whatever.

We met him downstairs and climbed into his van. Sitting in the back, crunched together like kidnapped children were three young girls who had also been recruited for the ride. We introduced ourselves but there was very little talking all the way to the Pagoda. Did THEY at least know what we were doing?

It seemed very strange and Bina and I had already decided that this was a big ruse to basically bring us foreigners to the Pagoda and ask us for money. We remained dubious until we got to know Monk Huan.

It turned out that this Pagoda we were brought to does some really incredible charity work with HIV / AIDS patients and was looking for more ways to help a broader range of people. They wanted our advice on how to make the program better. That was it, they wanted to pick our brains about how real NGO’s do it and what we think could be done to help. They even had a name for the “club”; it was called the Lotus Club, named after the lotus flowers that grew in the little pond next to the Pagoda.

It was a really nice place. Monk Huan was a real character too. He had this huge smile and seemed really peaceful. That is, until this cute little puppy walked into the room and was quickly escorted out by Monk Huans foot! I guess the dog wasn’t part of the club.

After the meeting was over we were given a tour of the Pagoda and fed a delicious vegetarian meal prepared by the monks. Vegetarian meals are rare in Vietnam so this was a real treat. One of the ideas the Monks have for the Lotus Club is to open a vegetarian restaurant on the grounds to help raise more money.

Bina and I have both agreed to help out the Lotus Club with different tasks. I’ll try to take some pictures of the Pagoda grounds sometime. In the meantime, here are a few pictures of the meeting and the meal.

The Nikko Hotel

We’ve been spending a lot of time at the Nikko Hotel. Not because we’re staying there, but because they have an awesome outdoor swimming pool.

Bina’s been using it as therapy to help her with her back and I’ve just been coming along to enjoy the water and relaxation. We usually go in the evening, around 8:00pm, and are lucky enough to be alone most of the time. It’s so peaceful and quiet. It’s a shallow pool made for doing laps mostly, but there’s a hot tub next to it and beautiful palm trees lining one side. We’ve been to several hotel pools around Hanoi but Nikko is by far our favorite. It’s a Japanese hotel so it’s run very efficiently, cleanly, and with great attention to design and detail. There are Jacuzzis in both locker rooms and they always give us a bunch of towels and robes. There’s even a collection of disposable razors, shampoo, and combs available! It’s like a Metrosexual’s dream locker room!

Here are some pictures of the pool. They’re very dark but then, like I said, we only go there at night. The shadowy figure you see is Bina.




There are also a couple of restaurants in the hotel and one night we decided to try one. This is a picture of my (New England) Clam Chowder and Curry battered calamari! It was really delicious at first, but the more we ate the calamari the more suspicious we became of its freshness. Bina was sick the next day.


But regardless, we love our regular visits to the Nikko. The people at the hotel are really friendly. Of course, sometimes they’re a little too friendly. One time after we went swimming I was in the locker room changing and this Vietnamese guy was standing next to me getting dressed as well. All of the sudden he starts singing “Hello” by Lionel Ritchie! It was a little creepy but the thing is “Hello” is like a modern hit here in Hanoi. (For some strange reason. Other western pop hits include Simon and Garfunkel’s “Sound of Silence” and anything by Celine Dion.) Anyway, so I didn’t really know what to say or do while I was standing there naked next to this guy crooning “Hello” so I just curled up into a ball and started weeping. No, just kidding. I got dressed and left after the second chorus. Despite my discomfort he did have quite a melodious voice. He’s probably a karaoke champion or something.



So if you come to Hanoi and you want to go swimming, the Hotel Nikko is your best bet.