Void of Inspiration

Finally, 100% Silk

Posted on August 11, 2011 by Author

I went back to the market today and indeed bought a dress made of 100% silk. It has been the running joke that when buying clothes in and around Asia the sellers will claim it’s one thing when the tag says another… but this time I checked the tag!

Taking an easy day, I wandered around the city just taking in the sights. Went back to the cafe that I went to with Chris and Matt but it just wasn’t the same without them! However it was a new experience alone and I thoroughly enjoyed it. They also have excellent WiFi which allowed me to eat dinner while I worked my day job.

Before work however I was able to update the site a bit. I added some bits to the World page, Ellipsis, Table and Document sections. Now I just need to work on adding a few new paintings which I should be able to get to tomorrow. But I’m still thinking of taking a walk over to the War Museum if I get up early enough. Than on Saturday morning it is time to move again, as I make my way south to Malaysia!

“You’ll say the world has come between us
Our lives have come between us”
– Deep Blue Something, Breakfast at Tiffanys

“And we will hustle, hustle, hustle to be free
Free from all the
Happy thoughts and smiles across the sea”
– Tunng, Hustle

“It’s strange to find such light
In such endless night”
– Tunng, Bullets

And what is your ‘friend’ price?

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Author

Today being the last day Matt and Chris will be in Vietnam, we took a trip to the big market in the center of town to wander through. It was more fun to haggle than I expected it to be! Haggling isn’t about getting the lowest price, it’s about getting a fair price and indeed we did. We eventually stopped to grab some awesome strawberry and pineapple smoothies and I snapped a few photos of the boys during their brain freezes. I can hear the laughter from them now when they eventually view this post! We had a ton of smiles that day as we toured more of the city on foot, back to the hotels. Before going off to work, I decided to join them for another movie at the café. The café has a free movie room on the third floor and makes many great drinks with fruit I haven’t seen since Hawaii. Who can really pass up a Japanese Sour Sop smoothie, honestly? Oh and I can’t forget that we had one last dinner together at our favorite restaurant on the strip (which is only our favorite because they had everything you could ever order with no need to go anywhere else – and was excellent food too!). But again, this has to be one of those times where you really wish you had more time to hang out, but as traveling goes, the time to part comes rather too quickly. Off to Tibet they go as I continue my discovery of Vietnam and eventually start my journey south.

Posted in Project | Visual, Project | Ellipsis | Tagged Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam | Leave a comment

Next time Matt doesn’t go first

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Author

I went to eat at Subway sandwiches for the sole reason being that it made me feel a little bit like being at home. While there, I happened to meet two awesome Americans – Matt and Chris – who are currently teaching in China but took a holiday to travel around south-east Asia. After going to see a movie – Cowboys and Aliens – we went on the local strip to grab a few beers. While chatting away we all decided to book a $5 tour to the Vietnam War ground the next morning.

A great day followed as we took a surprisingly air-conditioned bus an hour and a half away. Our tour guide was fantastic as he explained how they had outsmarted the Americans, never failing to look our way when speaking, as if to hint at us how horrible we helped make that war. Then we got a little taste of what the fighters actually went through. The three of us took turns testing out the hideouts, where you could only put the lid on with your arms straight in the air, enough to house one or two people underground.

As we made our way through the now grown over mess of holes where we dropped our bombs, we were shown many tactics of warfare that the Vietnamese used against us. Being there made me realize just how cruel war can be, just how scary the human mind really is. Though the tunnel system showed us how crafty the mind can be as well. Of course, when offered, we had to be the first ones to try out the 100 meter tunnels – Matt getting to go first and attempting to scare the life out of me along the way (never succeeding of course).

Instead of trying to trade cameras in the tunnels we all decided to just take pictures of each other and trade later on – so below are also some shots that I gathered from Matt’s camera. These pictures give a real good sense of what it was like to be there, but actually being there gave the best sense of all. I secretly wish that everyone would be able to experience what I have, for maybe it would finally sink in the horrors that we instill upon our fellow men. Just reading about it all in books or studying it in class cannot come close to the actual experience of being up in its face. Unless you are up in its face, you are only privy to third party awareness. The imagination can go far, but the first hand experience will always go the farthest.