Blog Break Broken

It's been a busy time at work and the blog's suffered for it. However, the balloons have finally gone up so it's business as usual.

Vietnamese clichés

- apart from the water buffallo and a bowl of pho this hits most of the cliché buttons.

Jogya Jaunt

We took a trip to Jogjakarta, a good test of how much Bahasa Indonesia was still lodged in the dusty crevices of my mind. Quite a lot as it turned out. I hadn't been to Jogya since I was in High School but it was still very recognisable, just more hotels now and becak drivers have cell phones.

Here are some obligatory holiday pics:

Temples

Carvings

Batik

Fashion advice

Beer

Good times.

Things that happen in Vietnam

After any amount of time living in a country most things start to seem normal, which indeed they are.

Dozing on the morning school run:


Dressing for sightseeing:


Getting comfy in the airport, note the matching fake Clark's sandals:


Moving large pieces of equipment around during lunch service:

All perfectly normal.

Watch repair

Pretty much anything can be fixed on the streets of Vietnam. Phone fixing and unlocking, bike repair, grey hair plucking, shoe repairs and so on.



Here a watchmaker does his stuff. An emergency visit was required when my watchstrap and the Man's both broke on the same day.

Rain falls in Saigon

On Friday I stopped work for two weeks. On Friday the rain started. Huge dark clouds and the odd clap of thunder followed by a short but heavy downpour. It rained on Saturday too for longer and more dramatically but by then we were safely tucked away in a restaurant having lunch and could indulge in one of the great pleasures of wet season - having one more drink while you wait for the rain to ease off.

It seems that nearly everyone with a blog in Vietnam's been going on about the oppresively hot weather, I'm no exception and I welcome the rain along with everyone else, at least for the time being.

I'm absolutely gutted that I didn't have my camera with me to capture the two boys in matching polka dot pink ponchos though. Still that's another joy of the wet season to look forward to.

Waiting for the Saigon rains

It's hot, sticky, sweaty, tiring hot. The rains haven't come yet but they're on their way and meanwhile I'm prone to the odd, very ladylike, trickle of perspiration. Sitting is hotter than moving when the air is so still but if the breezes start in the evening it's pure joy to be up on the roof with a cool glass of wine. The plants are dusty and even the tree frogs are feeling the heat.

Of course, once the rains start I'll be back to moaning about how little I suit a rain poncho.

Shocking

The Ho Chi Minh City Power Company has sealed off and cut off power supply to 61 ATMs after a 10 year old girl was electrocuted by one in District 1 on Mac Thi Buoi street.

Investigations by police in District 1 found an electric wire running across a set of stairs leading to the ATM. The wire, which was set up by Agribank to provide power and light, had many open joints and was leaking electricity.

A total of 61 ATMs were found with electrical problems as of Sunday afternoon. Tran Dung, manager of technical and labor safety at the company, said the ATMs had been isolated and their power cut. Most of the ATMs were set up by the banks themselves, they've been have been asked to fix their machines.

Many ATM customers of Vietcombank have reported experiencing slight electric shocks at the machine on Cao Thang Street, some when leaning on the iron door, some when typing the numbers in, VOVNews reported Sunday.

Full story

Personally, I've had no shocks from ATMs except for the shocking bank rates compared to what's available at gold shops and money changers.

Annual trip to Nha Trang

It's that time of year when I haul 40 odd assorted kids to Nha Trang for a week. Mostly beach games, swimming and Vinpearl amusements. There's very little time to take the kind of pictures I like best but here's a selection of snaps from the seaside.

I was knackered after the week and it's taken another week to get these uploaded, I now understand why parents like amusement parks and all inclusive resorts.

Altar Images

On Calmette, in District 1, is one of many Shrine Shops where you can buy house altars, statues, lights and everything else you could possibly need for your at home devotions.

I'm tempted but bright shiny things do that to me.