We only spent a very short few days in Saigon, but wow, it made an impression on us. I'd love to go back when the kids are older, or at least a lot better at crossing streets.
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| Sidewalks are for losers. |
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Vacation in Vietnam, Part I: The Beach
I posted a ton of photos on Facebook of our trip to Vietnam over Christmas and New Year's, so I'll try to post some different ones here. First of all, I just want to say that if you ever find yourself in Mui Ne, Vietnam, than stay at the Grace Boutique Resort. It was the lovliest, family-run boutique ever.
Our time in Vietnam was dreamy. The weather was perfect, the food amazing, the people friendly and welcoming, and the non-stop tropical fruit smoothies delightful. I know for a certain generation of Americans, a vacation to Vietnam seems odd, but it is such a beautiful country that feels like it is really going places. People are on the move, busy, getting stuff done.
Our time in Vietnam was dreamy. The weather was perfect, the food amazing, the people friendly and welcoming, and the non-stop tropical fruit smoothies delightful. I know for a certain generation of Americans, a vacation to Vietnam seems odd, but it is such a beautiful country that feels like it is really going places. People are on the move, busy, getting stuff done.
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| Our drive from Saigon to Mui Ne. It wasn't far but took 5 hours. Mostly because of scenes like this. |
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Technical Difficulties
We have not forgotten you dear readers. We have much to share. But the internet keeps bouncing and the China firewall keeps getting bigger and Blogspot won't let me post photos right now. Aaagh.
We're still alive and well (despite some crazy smog), and will post more soon.
We're still alive and well (despite some crazy smog), and will post more soon.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
December in Shanghai
The past few weeks have been full of travel for Matthew, school holiday parties for the kids, and non-stop tai tai activities for Allison. But on Friday we're off to Vietnam (via an overnight in South Korea, of course), and we'll spend Christmas and New Year here:
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| We're kinda excited. |
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Thanksgiving Party
As most of you know, Matthew works for the Institute for Sustainable Communities, a US-based nonprofit that does great work related to climate change, environment, strengthening communities (oh, and did I mention that I worked there for a little bit too...). Because it's a US org, all staff get Thanksgiving day off. We thought this would be a great opportunity to have a Thanksgiving party for Matthew's Chinese colleagues and their families. Most had heard about Thanksgiving for years and even got the day off, but they had never had a real American T-giving meal and celebration. We had it all planned for Thanksgiving day until someone pointed out that just because ISC staff get the day off doesn't mean that their spouses and children get the day off too. On to plan b -- celebrating Thanksgiving on December 1st.
It involved a lot of cooking and cleaning and creative acquisition of ingredients (thanks Elizabeth!). We ordered two smoked turkeys from Bubba's BBQ. My sister smuggled in some fresh cranberries, fried onions, Stove Top Stuffing (good thing as it's $10/box here in Shanghai).
We had 30+ staff and family members from the Shanghai and Guangzhou offices, two turkeys, seven pies, 20 hand painted, hand turkeys, and one hilarious football game.
It involved a lot of cooking and cleaning and creative acquisition of ingredients (thanks Elizabeth!). We ordered two smoked turkeys from Bubba's BBQ. My sister smuggled in some fresh cranberries, fried onions, Stove Top Stuffing (good thing as it's $10/box here in Shanghai).
We had 30+ staff and family members from the Shanghai and Guangzhou offices, two turkeys, seven pies, 20 hand painted, hand turkeys, and one hilarious football game.
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| Some of the staff from Guangzhou came early to help cook. |
Monday, November 26, 2012
Weekend in Chengdu
We had a wonderful visit with my sister Elizabeth, AKA "Aunt Lizzy". As soon as she arrived , we whisked her away for a weekend in Chengdu. I'd heard nothing but wonderful things about Chengdu, and I wasn't disappointed. It's not really a beautiful city, but it's just got such a nice feel to it, and such great food, and PANDAS. We were also excited to see Naomi and Townes' former Mandarin tutor, Zoe, in Chengdu. She grew up nearby and recently returned to take a teaching job.
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| We weren't the only tourists at Tianfu Square. |
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| Watching candy animals being made at People's Park. |
Monday, November 12, 2012
In Other News...
Updates in no particular order:
We've had a long-standing leak problem in our apartment -- mystery water under the floor wicking its way up the walls in various rooms. Our landlady put us up in some fancy temporary digs while her contractors tried to find the source. We stayed only a few blocks away, but it felt like a world away. The area is more Western, more isolated, and more likely to make me lose my mind or burst into tears. While it had a very nice playground, I hated it. Made me appreciate our more Chinese neighborhood. I missed pajama man. I missed the fruit man. I missed the vegetable chopping ladies. I'm very glad to be home.
We've had a long-standing leak problem in our apartment -- mystery water under the floor wicking its way up the walls in various rooms. Our landlady put us up in some fancy temporary digs while her contractors tried to find the source. We stayed only a few blocks away, but it felt like a world away. The area is more Western, more isolated, and more likely to make me lose my mind or burst into tears. While it had a very nice playground, I hated it. Made me appreciate our more Chinese neighborhood. I missed pajama man. I missed the fruit man. I missed the vegetable chopping ladies. I'm very glad to be home.
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