Jeffrey’s Journey

I knew I was going to have another relapse at some point, but I didn’t know it would be so soon.

I’ve fallen off the wagon yet again. I had another shopping spree and lost control, but this time with CD’s. The whole time I was searching for my CD’s, in my head there was James Brown’s voice just singing ‘I feel good, na nuh na nuh na, I knew that I would now, na nuh na nuh na’ and damnit I did. To cut to the chase, I now have 33 new CDs I previously didn’t have.

To punish myself for this lack of discipline and willpower, I have decided to try and only spend 8 dollars total today. I think it’s possible, however I don’t believe I can do much more than read and eat a few sandwiches. That’s why I’ve decided to really try and capture some of the sights here in Saigon with my camera, images that a city hinges on to the point where it defines the spirit and vibrations of a city.

The Sights: When one looks around, one will see thin buildings, one after another, that resemble the shot of San Francisco’s famous row of houses (I forget what that row is called, but It’s the row that’s featured in Full House, but without the spaces on the sides). It’s natural to think that they are all connected and the same building, but when one looks up, the different heights of the buildings and the individuality of each become apparent. Also, the tidal wave of scooters during rush hour is really a sight. They are like a swarm of bees or a school of fish flying and swimming through the streets. I’ll try to get pictures.

The Sounds: The yelling of Vietnamese ladies are loud and intimidating at first. However, with some patience, they slowly become part of the background noise, almost soothing, like a sign that says everything is status quo when it’s heard.

The Smells: There’s not much distinct smells. Of course there’s the durian smell at markets, a smell that really characterizes South East Asia as a whole.

The Tastes: MMMM. Pho (Vietnamese noodle soup) is done perfectly, like an art. The blending of flavors and spices perfectly in a bowl of soup and noodles. Mint. Bean sprouts. Pepper. Raw beef. Chili. Raw egg. Sauce. Also, Vietnamese sandwiches are a treat.

The Touch: I don’t much like the walking on the streets. One always has to watch where they are stepping because it’s always wet and dirty. It’s been raining on and off every day for a while now.

And lastly, they last few days we’ve been hanging out with Vivian and Ann, the two girls from Switzerland we had met on our Mekong Delta Tour. We had a great time, and Chad and I were a bit sad to see them leave for home because we felt we were just beginning to become better friends.

In the last few days, I’ve been away on a trip to the Mekong Delta.

Was it cool? Yes, at some points. It was just soothing to sit in a boat and go through these narrow canals, watching how life is lived, literally in boats. Many people in the Mekong Delta live on boats that also serve as fronts for a shop. The boats will have a single long bamboo shoot sticking straight into the air. On this shoot, they will attach the vegetables and fruits, or whatever product they are selling. That way, other boats passing by will know what is being sold by a particular boat. If another boat was interested in buying, lets say, some pineapples and melon, they would dock their boats to the seller that had these particular products on the bamboo and look through their stock. It’s really quite Water World-esque, both dirty and beautifully rustic at the same time.

So the bad points… Well, for one, it rained for much of the time we were on these boats. The floating market, which is usually open, closed because of the rain. However, this little inconvenience wasn’t so bad compared to the long bus rides from hell. We spent way too much time on the bus. But I guess the two cute Swiss Chicks we met made up for it. Oh wait, the crazy British guy that complained the whole time, battering the 50-cent and American Culture neutralizes the presence of cute chicks. All in all, the experience deserves the grade of ‘pretty cool.’

Funny thing is, the best part of the trip for me, besides being on the boats, was coming back… home. I caught myself referring to our guesthouse as home several times during the two days we spent away from it. When Chad and I got off the bus and started walking to our guesthouse, I felt like we really started to sprout roots here, a sentiment that was quickly confirmed by the numerous faces that shouted hi or a whack on the shoulder during the short walk back. We were greeted by a witty girl from the travel agency we nicknamed ‘my wife’ (we discussed the prospect of marriage, and she playfully gives us the hardest time in the world when we are in there), the chubby woman who shouts in Vietnamese like she’s in an argument, always giving us a high-five, through the ally which our guesthouse is in, we were greeted warmly by the security guard, the little girls in our guesthouse who we play games with, and the family who runs the place, genuinely happy to see us back because we spend so much time with them. When I looked down from our balcony, the deliciously familiar sight of the 37 year-old MILF, who’s been my crush on the very first day, was right below. People are becoming recognizable, the drug dealers don’t pitch to us anymore, the taxi drivers barely offer, the hawkers don’t bother. It’s wonderful.

Right after this, I’ll be heading to get a liter of beer at the spot we always go to.

There are many reasons to visit Vietnam, but by far the most alluring one I’ve stumbled on is the beer.

It’s really an alcoholic’s paradise. If Bangkok was known for sex tourism, Saigon should be known for beer tourism. The local brew here costs 3,500 dong for a liter. 16,000 dong = 1 USD. To have this make sense to Americans, there are 3.8 liters in a gallon. That means a gallon of beer costs roughly 1 buck.

Yesterday, I drank more than 1.5 gallons of beer in 2 hours. I feel that I should apologize to someone.

Since coming to Saigon, I did manage to relax and breathe a little. I also visited the tunnels the Viet Cong dug to combat the Americans. That was an amazing experience. Crawling into the tunnels in pitch darkness, feeling lost, not being able to breathe, and finally popping out in another location in the middle of the forest was just claustrophobic and crazy.

Made it to Saigon!

Vietnam has always been a dream destination on my trip, and finally I’m here.

So far, everything has been awesome. However, I’ve been feeling tired and slow. I want to be in my boxers and smoke cigarettes in my room for a few days, and do nothing but listen to music. Yes, I think that’ll do it.

Despite the way I feel, I really think Saigon, and ultimately Vietnam, will be a great country to travel through and a great experience. So far it has been. The thought of settling down here for a while even crossed my mind.