The Word According to Judy
I’m so excited that Molly asked me to do a post on her blog! She wanted my take on Vietnam from when I visited back in March. It was an awesome trip. I’ve never traveled much and never outside of the U.S. I was worried about that long flight, but a little Xanax and about 5 movies made everything OK! And, I want to tell you...if you ever get the chance to fly Korean Air...do it! They are absolutely wonderful. Customer service is their name! Some of our airlines could take a few pointers from them! How the flight attendants stay so gorgeous over that long flight is beyond me. I looked like I’d been wallowing around for days....my hair looked like a rat’s nest...but, they looked just as put together at the end of the flight as they did at the beginning of it!
My arrival at the Vietnam airport was a little scary because, of course, I couldn’t understand a thing they were saying to me and all of those uniformed men were a little intimidating! I had given the uniformed man all of my paperwork, but he still wanted something else! Abbie had breezed through and was on the other side while I was becoming more agitated by the second. The only thing l had left to give was my boarding pass. He took it, but kept shaking it at me and talking. He finally just waved me on through and I was soooo thankful! When I got to Abbie, she told me that he wanted my boarding pass. Turns out I was giving him my boarding pass from Atlanta to Seoul, not from Seoul to Vietnam. It would help if I would wear my glasses!
The traffic made one of the biggest impressions on me. I would never be able to drive in Vietnam...what am I talking about....I could barely walk across the road! The cars and motorbikes and pedestrians were everywhere, going every which way! I was scared to cross the street because I just knew I was going to get run over. The girls said I always looked like a deer in headlights when I was trying to cross. Molly kept giving me pointers...”just walk naturally, don’t run...they are judging how to get around you!” What kind of advice is that when you can just reach out and touch them as they whiz by on all sides???!!!! So, my impression of the traffic was “crazy, crazy, crazy”...and the fumes were pretty bad from all those vehicles! They must not do “anti-pollution” on their vehicles!
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| Motorbike's carry more than people here. |
My next impression of Vietnam had to do with the people. I actually felt at home there because I could really look people in the eye! The Vietnamese people, for the most part, are short like me. It was wonderful to not be the shortest person around! And, we could take a few lessons from the Vietnamese on weight control! I can’t recall seeing a single overweight person....they were so thin, but strong and fit. All of the people I came in contact with were super nice. They were very welcoming and cheerful. I tell you, the Vietnamese are pretty ingenious people. They know how to carry anything and everything on a motorbike! We have to have a big truck to haul a few small things, but they can load a daybed on a motorbike and off they go! It was incredible.
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| First meal with chopsticks--ever! |
My favorite thing about Vietnam was probably the food. It was awesome! Before I left home, the Passport Health nurse told me not to eat at any little street places because I would probably get sick. Heck, I must have the intestinal fortitude of an elephant! Now, of course, Molly knew the really good street food places so I’m sure that was the reason I never got even a little bit sick! I remember the first place we ate. When we went in, Abbie and I kind of looked at each other like “I know we can’t be eating here.” The pots were just piled up in the corner, I wasn’t sure if those chopsticks in the cup had been used by someone else. I wasn’t sure those pots had been washed in a sanitary manner. But, yes, we did eat there.....and it was delicious!!!! I got over that “clean” factor in no time....just put the food in front of me and I was going to town on it! Now, I was a source of hilarity for the Vietnamese women who were watching me try to eat with those chopsticks! I know why they are so thin, it takes forever to eat with those things! Abbie and Molly would be almost finished with their meals and I’d be maybe a quarter of the way finished with mine! But, by the end of the visit, I was getting a lot better with the chopsticks! The food was really excellent....and so inexpensive. The three of us could eat for about $4.00...great food and a lot of it! That would be unheard of in the U.S.! I like pho, but my favorite meal was bun cha. Delicious!!!
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| Crazy electrical wires in the street. |
I have such a limited view of the world, and Vietnam was nothing like I expected it to be. I was expecting jungles and rice paddies, but instead I saw restaurants, businesses, dress shops, and modern buildings (and some wild and crazy electrical wiring!). I even saw a zpizza which we just got in Lexington! I had so many wonderful experiences in Vietnam. Ha Long Bay was gorgeous. It was interesting to wander around the shops of Hanoi and visit some of the museums. I’d like to return to visit the southern part of the country. I hear the beaches are beautiful. All in all, a wonderful experience! I’m ready for more travel!
Very entertaining post, Mama, and it brought back some really funny memories. I can still see you trying to scoot across the road. You were trying to appear calm, but I could tell you were screaming on the inside.
ReplyDeleteIt took me a minute to figure out what kind of word zpizza was ... then I remembered it was a restaurant we saw. That was the first time I'd ever seen one.
Molly, Kozi has offered to be a guest blogger if you're interested. It might be in your best interest to turn him down. ;)