Up On The Roof

When I lived in Vietnam I had a roof terrace, I miss that outdoor space now that I am in a flat without even a balcony. The closest I can come to outdoors is sitting on the window seat with the windows opened to maximum but it isn't the same. Our hotel in Jaipur had a roof terrace where we spent a lot of time with views of other people doing the same.

Edinburgh

Back in the old stamping grounds after four years in South East Asia. It's been a whirlwind of panic, frustration and tangled rules and regulations as we attempt to get travel, visas and banking all sorted out while still leaving some time to catch up and catch breath.

I've rediscovered how few people are out and about before 6am and still being on a Vietnamese waking schedule have found it a good time to get out and take some pictures. There's no doubt Edinburgh is a striking city.

Clouds

Palings

Lums

Lamposts

Castle

Cobbles and a rare personal appearance.

Land Development

Saigon has a new and nearly completed landmark, the Bitexco Financial Tower. It can be seen from all over the city and surrounds and even has a helipad on one side. Alas my picture doesn't do it justice but I'll get some better ones soon.

Large swathes of the city centre are also earmarked for ripping down and "improving". Not everyone is in favour of course and I've been told that the flags flying from the residential buildings at the top end of Le Loi are in protest to the planned redevelopment of that area.

Such a shame to see buildings of character go under the jack hammer but I doubt the mild misgivings of one expat blogger are going to make the slightest difference.

Saigon Spawning Season

Back in August I posted a picture of a strange roof creature. A fish shaped air ventilator.

And this week I took a picture of the same roofscape, they're multiplying.

I'd quite like a shoal of fish on my roof too but our landlord hasn't suggested one yet.

Giant fish in Saigon skies

Lots of houses have what I only know as chimney grannies. In the cold countries they stop wind coming down the chimney and blowing smoke back into the house. Here they do the opposite job and help vent hot air out of the house in form of natural airconditioning.

Most of them look like this:

However, I spotted this;

I must keep my eyes trained upwards on my travels to see if I can spot any other roof creatures.

Health and Safety at Work

Construction is still booming at least in the domestic market. Our street is ripe for development with lots of empty plots still up for grabs. The opening of the new bridge to District 1 has made the area even more popular and buildings are springing up all over the place.

Women play a large part in the construction industry, marigolds are the safety handwear of choice.

Piledriving is for men

in flip flops. This worker is unusual in that he is wearing an actual hard hat instead of a motorbike helmet.

As yet our house still sits surrounded by empty land, well not exactly empty, the spare plots have been turned to very productive use, but it will only be a matter of time before we too can enjoy the delicate sounds of hammering and metal grinding on the other side of the walls at 6am.

I just agreed on the lease for another year. I'd better enjoy the relative peace and quiet while I still can.

The Corner of Yersin

I've always liked this building on the corner of Yersin, it's on a triangular corner between the electrical goods emporium, Nguyen Kim and a recently opened branch of the upmarket bakery; Tous Les Jours. I expect this corner is ripe for redevelopment and hope (with little optimism) that the building stays.

Yersin is one of a handful of streets named after foreigners, the illustrious company includes other scientists in the same field, Calmette and Pasteur. Yersin is the discoverer of Da Lat as a healthy retreat amongst other things. The other foreigner often honoured in street form is Alexander de Rhodes who invented the Roman form of written Vietnamese, it's thanks to him that I can read, if not pronounce, some Vietnamese. Top linguist!

Suburban Saigon

What do you do when you get to build your own house and are limited only by the size of your plot?

Well this is an option:



Something a little more deco?


Fulfill your Barbie House fantasies?


Use up all the end of line paint in the shop?



Or go wild with stars, stripes and blocks of yellow:



Mine is a very restrained grey and white but maybe I could talk the landlord into a paint job. Tangerine and torquoise perhaps?

Phu My Hung

The Vietnamese "city of tomorrow", clean and well designed it doesn't feel like Vietnam at all. Streets are broad and shaded and parks are planted between buildings and between roads.



Roads are smoothly surfaced and often deserted.



Shops and cafe's have sprung up all over the place with new ones opening regularly.





It's a safe and clean environment particularly suited to families. The place would drive me up the wall.

Rotten Narrow Table Ox Depository revisited

It'a been a while since I blogged some random images of things that tickle me so I'll rectify that now. I still haven't eaten here but at least I now know that oop-la is fried egg.



Building is everywhere, sites are usually surrounded by drab green corrugated steel walls but this one near Pham Ngu Lau is particularly colourful.




Everything becomes normal after a while, see how normal five big boxes on a motorbike look.

But neatly packaged incense is pretty eyecatching.



And these guys are soon to become an extinct breed as the city authorities are banning them in the near future. If you want the thrill of an exhaust packed trip through traffic on a cyclo in HCM you'd better get a move on.



Finally, we bought ourselves a motorbike, well a scooter really, it has elements of a Barbie Bike about it but it's not a

Piaggio Super Best Fairy. I would have been tempted just by the name.

Singapore Quickie

A flying trip to Singapore for a medical appointment and a knicker buying excursion to Marks and Spencer didn't leave much time for taking pictures but I grabbed a few when I had the chance.

A few tall buildings:




These were taken from the roof of "Our Village" which Stephen still claims to be his favourite Indian Restaurant in the Entire World.

Some Lunar New Year decorations in the lobby of the Pan Pacific, we didn't stay there, we were on a budget this time but it was worth while going in to see what they had managed to do with their ridiculously tall atrium.



A BOGOF beer at Boat Quay



And a view of a very educational poster about the dangers of "double dipping"?



Double Dipping, just say "No!"


We managed to fit in some good meals before heading off to Cambodia, I'm back in March with work so I might managed to take some more interesting pictures then.