Hanoi, Vietnam

My friends Tom and Nick were right; Hanoi is pretty sweet. The city is crowded and hectic at times, but the landscape is strategically and comfortably interrupted by large parks and lakes. Additionally, although there are still motobikes everywhere, the streets are lined with large, shady trees. This combination gives the city a busy but really nicely paced and comfortable feel.

The pace of life seems to be a little slower than in Ho Chi Minh, and for this I am extremely grateful.

Tonight Ezra and I attended the concededly touristy but obligatory performance of the water puppets. This art has been in practice since the 11th century. At times I wondered why I didn't listen to my friend Angela, who--in a chance but completely welcome lunch I had in Hoi An with her, Ezra, and Matt, a friend from O'Melveny last summer--advised me that it was difficult to watch scene after scene of "Dance of Ox and Fish." At other times, I was enthralled with the artistry of the puppeteers. The show wasn't too long, so it did not have the chance to get too boring.

Afterwards, we went to Bobby Chinn's, a restaurant that would rival any gourmet designer pan-asian fusion joint in the good old US of A. Service was impeccable, as there were teams of servers with earpiece walkie-talkies keeping secret service style watch of our table. No joke. After dinner we retired to the back room, where dimly lit sofas and trip-hop music accompanied the Egyptian water shisha on each table.

Finally, we spent about an hour at a Vietnamese jazz bar. The jazz was solid, although it wasn't as good as the jazz I heard in a converted military bunker in Prague. That's another story though....


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A quick note on the events in the US. I have followed to the extent possible the tragedy and loss in New Orleans and in large parts of Mississippi and I truly hope that better days are coming soon. I feel like I have incomplete information about what is going on there, but my thoughts are with all who were there, who have experienced pain because of the event, and who are there now to try to help with the situation. Honestly, I know it sounds trite to say that it is surreal considering how often I portray my international travel as just that, but it has been unsettling to know that in my removed situation, and as I have all these unbelievable experiences, there is much suffering so close to home.