Artviet Travel DiariesArtviet Travel DiariesArtViet Coverage of Vietnam Cities and popular sites from North to South by means of diaries, photos and short stories mixed with popular legends. Articles
A Trip of Their Own
2008-02-18 02:00:00 Hanneke Van Nistelrooij.Letter from Holland.February 17, 2007 (8:16 AM) Hello T. and family, Thank you for your email and the nice pictures! We have been back to Holland for almost two weeks now, and although the weather is less cold than in Canada, we miss the nice weather in Vietnam. We had a great trip altogether with a lot of highlights: beautiful Halong Bay, Perfume Pagoda, the tombs and citadel in Hue, the waterfalls in Buon Ma Thuot, the buzzing beehive that is Saigon and the tranquility of tropical beaches at Phu Quoc Island. When collegues and friends ask about the trip, it takes us a lot of time to explain about everything. It is so hard to describe the impact of what we have seen and done in a few words. Fortunately we didn't encounter any ghosts in Buon Ma Thuot (or may be we did, and didn't recognize them). It was a very beautiful place, nice to visit because there were not many tourists. In fact, I don't think I have seen any other foreign tourists at all. We were... More About: Trip
Year of the Rat
2008-02-07 02:17:00 The year of the Rat is coming. Like it or not, we all have to embrace it as another new year. As for the prospects, "the Year of the Rat is ruled by the cold of winter and the darkness of night. It will be marked by speculation and fluctuations in the prices of commodities and the stock market; the world economy in general will be affected one way or another starting with a weakening US economy followed by stock markets plunging into turmoils after shares nosedive in Asia". But what is exactly the Rat, in the Chinese Zodiac?. Honestly speaking, after browsing through many websites, I become more confused about the "Virtues" of the Rat. And for what it brings for the Year to come, little specifics are highlighted but a whole lot of generalities are presented with vague exceptions and "mise en garde". For those who were born under the sign of the Rat, it's wise to look for the right Fengshui Master who can predict the future, but for a practical person like me, I have my own way t... More About: Year of the Rat
Love Letter, Not mine
2008-01-05 08:32:00 This post is about a love letter, but it's not mine. Exactly one year ago, today, I was standing in the hall of Vinh Hung Resort with all the luggages well packed. As the cab was late for the airport, I sat at the bar on the riverside, just killing a few cups of tea. The waiter who served me looks very familiar. He identified himself as the eldest son of Thành and Xuân, whom I met a couple of years ago.Indeed, Thành used to work for an art gallery but was laid off at the height of the SARS crisis. Xuân, Thành's wife worked from home as a hair dresser: she was detected with an ovarius cancer, the year I came to Hoian but has recovered marvelously well ever since. Trung is his name, and he remembered well the day, I first stepped into their house. He sadly told me that soon the whole family will be relocated due to Hoian new urban development program. Basically, streets will be widened, and their house might be torn down in exchange for a modest compensation. Knowing that I w... More About: Love , Letter , Love Letter , Mine
Editor's Year-End Note
2007-12-30 05:01:00 As the Year -End nearly unfolds, fresh memories of last year celebration in Phan Thiết, vividly come back to me. It was Exactly ONE YEAR ago Today, I was on the unspoilt romantic beach of Mủi Né. Images of those good moments are so alive as I can still hear the sound of waves rushing to shore... There has been a lot of snow in Montreal, comparing to last year's same period of time. Walking in the snow is as fun as walking in the sands of Mủi Né, but the feeling is quite different, and shoveling snow is more a duty than pleasure during these days when snowstorms are very frequent. While snow brings both leisure and miseries to us, storms and flooding in the Southeast of Asia and in Vietnam killed hundreds of people, ruined many houses and facilities. It is almost unthinkable to hear that people were mauled to death by a tiger in a San Francisco Zoo , whereas in Vietnam, villagers and tourists ran for their life after hundreds of crocodiles had escaped from the farms which ... More About: Note , Editor
Cats and Dogs, Pet or Meat
2007-09-14 04:17:00 Stray Cats : Lillie, Pipie, Mimie In this post, Thierry reveals his most recent experiences with those 3 stray cats (kittens), his deepest reflexions about animal's gratitude towards his decision to shelter them. He also presents a dark outlook of pets mistreat in Vietnam and in Asia where domestic animals genrally do not receive the kind of protection and care found in most of civilized countries. Cats and dogs, Pet or Meat ? Coming soon to Artviet Travel Blog. More About: Dogs , Cats and Dogs
Cyclomania, Cyclo Manners
2007-08-04 00:56:00 The cycle rickshaw is known in vietnam as CYCLO. Also called as Cyclo-Pousse, it was first brought into Vietnam via Phnom Penh around 1940. The Saigon daily La Presse indochinoise dates its entry more precisely to January 1937. The following pictures show the Cyclo Driver Bargainning, Transporting, and finally Resting ... Event Related Link(s):Annual Saigon Cyclo Challenge Event organized by The Saigon Children's charity. More About: Manners
What Four Pigs Bring You, in Sapa
2007-07-12 21:12:00 Pigs Salute at Ban Ho Entrance Gate in Sapa In the Western World, with many marriages ending up in divorce, more and more couples ask themselves what it takes to get married and to make it last. Some even wonder why should they bother getting married. In Vietnam, marrying the right man to get abroad is more problematic than getting divorced. The emigration obsession is so high now that it becomes a lure for many young girls to rush into a blind lifetime decision. For young men, getting married is hardly speakable when the social requirements for an engagement could not be met. If you are not an expatriate or a foreigner, you may find many challenges to overcome. The Murphy law about dating in Vietnam has shaped the way young women set out their criteria. Like in any modern societies, the guy must be educated, has a well paid job and projects himself as a trend follower if not a trend setter: always calls his date on a latest cell phone model, takes her out with an expensive motorcy... More About: Pigs
Streets of the Rising Sun
2007-03-11 14:06:00 Morning at Ben thanh rotary in Saigon It's sunday morning as the sun is glowing through my window glass. Though I did'nt mind changing my clock to align with DST, I managed surprisingly well to raise my ass up off the bed right on time for breakfast, with Highlands coffee I brought back from Vietnam. In canada, we observe the DST (Daylight Saving Time) and change our clocks some time between midnight and 3:00 a.m, on the second week of march. For weekdays, it might be hard to get up one hour earlier for work, but for weekend, there is little effect on my sleeping habits nor on my evening activities. As I am about to finish my coffee, vivid memories of my last journey in Vietnam come back to me in a such manner I can hardly tell myself I am having breakfast in Saigon or in Canada. Streets of Saigon, Streets of Hanoi have its own manner to start the day, but in general, they all wake up at the rising sun. Though the country does not observe the DST, each street has its mornin... More About: Rising Sun
Pho Hien, the forgotten city
2007-03-01 17:28:00 As the Vietnamese once said about Phố Hiến, it ranked first among the country major cities, second only to Thăng Long, the Capital of Đại Cồ Việt(*), the Very Big, Big Vietnam. Indeed, Phố Hiến once played a major role as a busiest trading port, but after two centuries of its establishment, it changed from being one of the most bustling commercial center to a small town with nostalgic old traits... Going on a trip to Vietnam is something everybody is talking about these days. To visit places like Phố Hiến, one might wonder what it has to offer in terms of vestiges and attractions. My most recent stay in Vietnam dates back to early January of this year, and Phố Hiến (*) destination was on my itinerary. That idea was thrown in at the last minutes to close my journey in the Northern part of Vietnam, with a location in Hưng Yên 60km south east of Hanoi, a site rarely mentioned by tour operators. Using the national Highway 39A, running through rice and corn... More About: City , Forgotten
Legend of the Love Market
2007-02-05 21:02:00 Time is precious and True Love has always been scarce. In modern societies, Escort Services often help remedy to those problems by offering for a fee, the pleasant company of a mate for your convenience whenever it's for business or personal. In Japan, professional married couples who could not agree on a timetable to share their holidays together, usually turn to "Husbands and Wives for Rent" services to pick up a companion to fill up the place of the missing partner. "No woman no cry", now that the Japanese have found a reason to revamp their Geisha concept adapted to the modern life: the selected partner can have a matching social / professional profile on demand, to guarantee a durable and joyful relationship, at least for the moment of the service fulfillment... Not long ago, before embarking on my first trip back home, I have heard stories about the Love Market in Sapa. It's a city that lies on the Hoang Lien Son mountain pass in the northern part of Vietnam, close to the ... More About: Legend
Mui Ne Sand Dunes and Kids
2007-01-20 22:43:00 "Kids of Phan Thiet Earn what they did Slide with my Kid I love the kids For what they did!" Pham Do Trieu We Took in a jeep tour of nearby sand dunes at sunrise on the last morning of December 2006. There we did some plastic wobble-board dune-surfing with little help from "The Kids of Sahara" (later they were paid generously instead of 30 cents per board) . It was fun for Etienne and Annabel, but it was hard work walking up for another ride!. The sand dunes in Mui Ne also called the Sahara of Phan Thiet, Vietnam could bring out playful moments for the family. More About: Sand
Back to Hoi an - Trilogy
2006-12-05 01:33:00 Part I - I Discovered Hoi an. I first walked into Hoi an late in january 95, when the sun barely showed up after an intermitant rain. That was a few days after I left Hue, where I enjoyed the most, contemplating the immensity of the Imperial citadel, wandering from one court to another, in search for the spirits of the Nguyen Dynasty's 13 emperors. It was almost as fascinating to visit Hue and its historical sites, and one can't stop wondering what will be the next destination to go, back both in time and in space. And I landed in Hoian like Michael Fox in "Back to the future" movie. The city has the characteristics of an old quarter named after FAIFO, the oldest port which traded with Japanese, Chinese and Europeans merchants way back in the XIII century. Its traditionnal architecture showed undeniably the passage of time, with its old houses, temples and pagodas once inhabitated by those traders. And there is the legendary Japanese bridge built in 1593. According to an old man... More About: Trilogy
Save the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey
2006-11-17 01:24:00 The project came to my attention in a most unusual manner, early morning Oct the 9th, in Saigon. While browsing thru the Vietnam Economic Times, my eyes were set on a monkey photo, posted at the left corner of a two page report. And it was all about preserving wildlife animals in Na Hang(*). The animal looked so much innocent and inspired a great deal of sympathy. The more I browsed for news to read, the more frequent I was brought back to the same page, just like a bookmark effect. As the rain didn't stop as I had wished, I stayed on a bit longer, digesting Vietnam latest news update. Obviously breakfast at the hotel instead of a Phở with Sister Hang as planned: time for a coffee and another coffee, a good cure for jet lag and a reason to let time go by without wondering "Who'll stop the rain"... The young scientist as depicted in the PORTRAIT, showed a lot guts and determination to manage the project which ended in 2005. Bettina Martin is her name and she worried about the ... More About: Monkey , Save
The surging turtle at Hoan Kiem Lake
2006-11-14 19:13:00 SAPA a missed rendez-vous Unlike 2004, where I was caught in the traffic for hours when Viet Nam played host to the ASEAN Trade Fair, I came this time to Hanoi, a month earlier before APEC began. Needless to say, my plan was to stay at most 2 days in the city before taking off for Sapa. But the course of life often took me to a different path... Café Des Arts-In search for the artist. Hunting for the artist I was looking for was not an easy task in Hanoi, not mentionning the deception of having a steak medium cooked, not well done and not to my expectations at the Café Des Arts. It was somehow an opportunity to talk to Gérard Gastel, the owner of the Café, and have the privilege to share with him, the merits of his success after 9 years in business, a reward of hard labor and sacrifices. But very little information about the artist specializing in lacquer was given to me. Gérard could not be seen after I finished my steak as he left quietly "à la Jean Bruce". Not surprisingly... More About: Turtle , Lake
Highlands Coffee Syndrome
2006-11-12 17:18:00 Going out for a coffee is more fun during these days in Saigon. As an alternative to hanging out at the Sun Wah Café Central, or perhaps lamenting endlessly at the sound of Trịnh Công Sơn music, with languor and nostalgia at traditional coffee bars, Saigonnese have transformed themselves into "Highlanders". Not to be mistaken with Christopher Lambert armed with a sword in the "Highlander" movie. They are just having coffee, Café Trung Nguyên brandnamed as Highland Coffee , undeniably in Crayola-colored chairs, with pop music soundtrack and a trendy ambiance. The "Starbuck mania" seems to sweep the whole country, from Saigon to Hanoi. It's Highland Coffee shop at every street corner, and one cannot resist the temptation of having a cup of coffee at a price nearly one US dollar, a luxury only middle class citizen can afford. Globalization has found its way to Vietnam!. But it has no way out. It has been observed recently that Highland Coffe is never served on major fli... More About: Syndrome , Highlands
Mui Ne beach
2006-10-31 21:15:00 It is found on Highway 706, and features sweeping sand dunes and beautiful palm trees. The beach is shallow, the water is clean and blue and the sun rarely hides behind clouds. Located 24 km north-east of Phan Thiet, Mui Ne is a fishing village as well as a nice tourism area in Binh Thuan Province, Vietnam. More About: Beach
In Hoi an, I discovered the Artist
2005-08-29 16:15:00 I met TuDuy during a trip to VietNam in summer 2003. It was on a quiet river side in Hoi An, under the palm trees that the artist talked about himself. As a person of the country side, he has landed in arts for the transparency he manages so easily in portraying rural women beauty in different life scenes. Not only he conveys marvously the emergence of his subjects' feelings with simplicity and directness but also adds a touch of freshness in his colors. As a result, the figurative meaning of the nature elements he wants to set the viewver's focus on, leaves no room for misinterpretation. TuDuy has been painting for more than 30 years, he spoke of his art as creating some kind of magic thread--ties that bind us together with the loved ones. His source for inspiration came from the deepest memories of his childhood. In his own fashion, the subjects were painted with serenity, grace and realism reflecting beautifully Cham influence and Impressionism french art movement. TuDuy is a g... More About: Artist , The Artist , Artis |
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