[TEXT] txt1: “This morning I went for a walk in a pottery village.” txt2: “I was actually looking for a coffee shop and I didn’t know that I was in a pottery village. I kept seeing pottery studios and weirdly no coffee shops.” txt3: “Bat Trang is a traditional crafts village. There are many different kinds of crafts villages in Vietnam and pottery is just one kind.” txt4: “I’ve never seen so much pottery in one place. It was a…
I did my visa run by land this time. I booked with a company that manages the trip for foreigners doing this. We got on a sleeper bus in Nha Trang. I had never been on a sleeper bus before. I rode in that 10 hours to the Moc Bai border near Saigon. At Moc Bai, I stood in lines and went through all the exit and re-entry procedures. After that, we had to drive all the way back to…
When humans sleep, their minds dream. Human dreams aren’t the only dreams though. I’ll tell you what other minds dream. Octopi dream. We know that octopi dream because their skin changes color when they are dreaming. Their color patterns while sleeping reveal what they are dreaming about. For example, it may be they are hunting in the dream if their skin shows the same color patterns. Rats also dream. When rats run through a maze, brain cells fire in a…
I was invited to join a group that was going to someone’s farm for a picnic. It was about an hour out of the city. They had prepared many different foods for us. There was a sour green fruit that I didn’t know. I got to walk around in an orchard. There were many species of fruit tree growing there. It was a fun trip! Q. tell me about a memorable meal you had. Q. what is something that you…
Since we came to Phan Rang, my cat has been really scared to go outside. In Thai Nguyen we used to go out and play a lot. Now she just wants to stay home. But it’s not good for her health to stay home all day. So I want to expose her to the outdoors little by little. This will help her get used to Phan Rang. I got a new cat backpack. It has a clear plastic window so…
I saw grapes for sale and bought some. The seller said that they were grown in Phan Rang. I wanted to try them because I know that this region produces grapes. I’ve seen grape fields around here. The koi fish at the coffee shop all expect me to give them food, I think. They’re all gathered and they’re looking at me. They look like delicious dumplings. Q. What does your region produce? What do you produce? Q. What do you…
Every day this week I’ve gone to the cafe to work on my computer. The weather has been nice. I took the cat to the cafe today. I had been leaving her home because new cities are scary for cats, but now she is ready to ‘đi chơi’, I think. The staff at the coffee shop all do crochet. Whenever business is slow, they pick up their crochet hooks and yarn. One of the staff made this necklace for my…
I got off the train in the new city. The sun was very strong. The air smelled like a coastal city. The first meal I ate was banh canh. It was pretty good. It was different than the banh canh in Da nang. I have since found that this city has a lot of different foods. I went and bought a box and some sand at the pet supply store. My cat used them. What a relief. I was afraid…
I took the train from Hanoi to Phan Rang. I had been considering going by plane, but I ended up taking the train option. I’m glad I did. I was hesitant because I thought it would be exhausting. It wasn’t too exhausting. I was in a bed. I slept or watched Youtube the whole time. The whole ride lasted 27 hours and went most of the length of Vietnam. It feels like a long distance in a way that it…
I’m out of town now. I moved out. On the days leading up to it, I felt anxious. I couldn’t stop thinking, and I didn’t get much sleep. On the morning I moved out, I finished packing and cleaning. I took a photo of my full suitcase and my empty room. I said farewell to the people I met. Finally, I got on the bus to Hanoi. Q. What is your first thought when you wake up? Q. Have you…