I was looking back my past posts and I realise I wanted to share more of Vietnam than I orginally did. I mean, there were so many things I missed out because half of the time when I blog, I'm already half asleep.

So aside from the conferences and shopping for cheap Kipling bags (S$9 and S$16), we had the traditional pho and ate by the streets. I loved how the you zha gui despite being cold, is still crispy and when deep into the hot steamy soup, it's just plain addictive. We ate that for two consecutive nights but we went to two different stores so we were able to try the different types of pho. The first night was probably more heavenly as we had traditional pho for the first time, but I loved how the second night had beef brisket and the tenderness of it just makes my mouth water.


Traditional pho often with lime and chili.

One of the more surprising good food I had was the ice-cream. It cost about $6000 dong (about S$0.60) and even though it's supposed to be vanilla, it tasted more like coconut. No wonder the woman on the plane was recommending it.
The parlor was also filled with people eating the same type of ice-cream. The ice-cream had a smooth milky texture and it's made so that it's refreshing and not too sweet. Even the cone was incredible for I believe I never tasted a cone quite like it.

Next stop is the amount of seafood I had there. Prawns, squid, clams, octopus, fish, I think I had all of them. I loved the way how they cooked it with vegetables, it made every meal very healthy. There was something I couldn't get use to though, the bamboo soup. I mean, we're not even used to the smell although my gradnma will love it. Something to do with Thai blood.

Ah, that's another thing I wanted to point out. Somehow another, Vietnamese and Thai food are oddly similar. Even the cultures are about the same. From the strong women to the sour and spicy food they eat (lime and chili, two things they can't live without). Not to mention fish sauce. The amount of fish sauce I had? Huh.

Some of the other delicacies I had were bun cha (noodles with fish sauce), bun tom (shrimp noodles), che (?) - traditional dessert which looks really disgusting but tastes really great-, and of course the unforgettable Vietnamese spring rolls.


Traditional Vietnamese fried spring rolls with noodles and fish sauce.


Honey banana fritters

And since they were once colonised by the French, they made great baguettes which we had every morning for the first three days.

The Vietnamese translators were fun to be with. And I learnt new card games from them too. It is pathetic as we seem to always play the same games and even though I may not have peers who play the same as me, it was definitely an experience.

And the cruise was relaxing and enjoyable. A couple of us went on deck to sleep open-air below the stars. It was definitely a treat especially after a couple of intense days. And jumping into the 18 degrees celsius sea was surprisingly comfortable and cooling. I think the guys who went in half naked were shivering though and some of them made a quick escape after a canon ball.

The last night of the trip, I bunked in with two other people in a supposedly twin room. Sarali, Serene and I Skyped with Esther back in Singapore where we took pictures so that my friend can post on her blog. Three of us talked way past midnight before we finally fell asleep like the dead.

And so we came back to Singapore to see my parents waving at me. And I, being an instant chatter, told them my life at Vietnam and how I reluctantly came back.

Post edit: I forgot to mention. I rode at the back of a motorcycle and a Vespa. Sweet rides.

Class reunion was da bomb. I giggled my way through like a little school girl once again and ate to my hearts content. It was definitely a good evening.

Went down with PF and Jane to St. James whereby we totally stoned and did nothing while I drank my horribly diluted of Coke Vodka Coke. Just wanted to see what it was like and aside from the incredibly many reserved tables and heart thumping music, there wasn't much going on due to the early hour.

Anyway, we're supposed to head down for Play the week after they get back.

And my rash is killing me.

Stargate Atlantis, here I come.

Ah, crap. Matt Giraud was so disappointed for being in the bottom three. Can't blame him, I was pretty upset too. Poor guy.

Anyway, in case I haven't mention it yet, I've converted to become an Adam Lambert supporter. I still love Danny don't get me wrong, but Adam is a genius. His arrangements are amazing and I'm so awed no matter what the judges say. Yup, I'm definitely a fanatic of his and I know if I were in America, I would definitely be voting for him. I know my mum would too with the way she watches AI every week to catch his performance.

Ahhhhh!

Fan girling is definitely bad for health.

Peace yo.

First night back in my room and comfortable as it is I must say I do miss Vietnam. Perhaps is the reality of living with friends and bonds that were formed over the course of 10 days, or perhaps it's the realisation that time passes much quickly in hometown. Everything feels so rush even with an hour difference and intense the trip may have been, it was joyous, culturally educating and a remote sense of salvation.

Lying on my bed past 6pm makes me wonder whether the pass few days have been a dream. It seemed so surreal now that I'm in my comfort living zone and you wonder what happened to the days when I'm lying down on the deck and looking at the pluck-able stars.

Swimming in the sea was awesome, despite the currents it was fun, especially with the 18 degrees Celsius temperature. This trip has told me how intense some things can get, and perhaps I can't cope with pressure as well as I thought I can. For my excuse, I would like to think the human influence that has affected me and being the emotional person I am, I tend to get a little insecure in which I try to cover for it in other aspects.

Life is tough, I know, we all know. Truth is, deep down inside us we're all scared of something, it's just the question of 'what?'

We let emotions get the better of us occasionally, and at times I find it hard to curb the abrupt and unexpected clog up of throat. And I wonder why, cause it seldom happens. Perhaps cause I just want to prove myself so badly that I stutter and hesitate and pressurize myself into trying to be something better.

I should quit thinking myself as so great, it's a horrible job.

As it is, I'm closing my eyes soon enough. So I'll leave you here.

As it is, I'm sitting here on the bed of my dodgy hotel writing this post in Hanoi, Vietnam. It's been fun 'squatting' down eating pho by the streets whereas the cloud of dust rises in the air. The pollution is pretty bad sure, but the weather is so soothing and much better than Singapore's own hot and humid climate. I guess we came at the right time.

The traffic is like China, whereby traffic lights are a miss thing. But it has been thoroughly enjoyable and although it's supposed to be an educational trip, it feels as though I'm on a holiday. Oh, and I learned Vietnamese with the greatest translators, and not to mention I rode on a motorcycle. Sweet.

Tomorrow will head down to Qang Ninh so that we can have a home stay in the village. No hot water probably, but oh wells, we'll definitely try the village life. I guess in a morbid way, I am looking forward to it. Though let's just say I do prefer the comforts of home.

Well as they say in Vietnamese,
tam biet!

Okay, I'm leaving for Vietnam in a few hours and as scary as it is going without a parent, I'm actually pretty excited. It is supposed to be an educational trip but from what I see in the itinerary, we got plenty of fun too. Oh and we're staying on a cruise for one day! With kayaking- probably. As it is, I'm going to take a bath now, hopefully I don't forget something.

Hah. Esther and Kenneth really have a sense of humor. So we met up and have Mexican before heading down to eat Island Creamery for dessert.

And then here ye come the presents. They first presented me a book. A book about robots. A book about Bionicle. A book about Bionicle called: Journey of Takanuva. Ah wells, bestest classmates joke, included with receipt and price tag. And since I found it amusing, I thought was a pretty original gift. And then, I found out it was meant to be a gag gift when out appears The Godfather DVD. Seriously brilliant.

But honestly, I really appreciate it because it's a present that reminds me of them. And it makes me smile and giggle till now.

Thanks guys, really appreciate it. :)

Way with the dancing. This guy is very cool (in such a sense that he is very sporting):

Oh god, Eastern Promises was so. good.

And undeniably, very sexy and eerie.

Not to mention it makes you curse and swear, and go 'ew.'

I'm going to watch it again, hopefully when I'm not constantly distracted or being distracted. Kinda spoils the mood.

Oh. And a very sexy Viggo.

I feel my blog lacks the soul it once had. Probably from trying too hard to blog and saying the right words all the time.

So now, I'm going to stop; blog with my heart again instead of my mind.

Sometimes, you just feel betrayed about the trust you give a person. Sure, perhaps when one feel its family, they feel that they should share it around. But when you specifically mention not to bring it out, you can't help feeling betrayed, even if it seems childish and petty. You feel angered and at times taken aback and although it's not really tragic, these emotions still run wild within you. And you feel as though you can't trust the person again.

Isn't it a hard subject?

There are times when you feel you can't argue your case, when all your words dry up and you are just talking nonsense. You ramble but you have no idea what the hell you're talking about because everything just seems unimportant. And at times you feel hollow, like there's an empty gap that can't be filled even when you talk about it. You practically well- gaggle.

Sometimes the only way you can escape everything is when you build a fantasy in your mind. A place where you write your own stories that are up for imagining. For me, I'm too lazy to write, so I just picture them in my head imagining sketchy faces and smooth dialogue. These stories are always cropped up in my head, but when it all comes down to grammar, vocabulary and punctuation, I just struggle because they're such a hassle to write. And it's this feeling of incompetency that puts me away from writing.

After all, I do enjoy pleasant writing, and hates it when there are grammatical errors all around. Who is to say one won't enjoy it? I guess it's a slow build up and I'm reading around to improve my writing. And despite setbacks around, hopefully I will be able to write a story over 10 000 words one day.

Carrying skis up and down are giving me the most horrible biceps ache ever. I can barely even lift anything, and everything just hurts whenever I try to carry something heavy.

And, seriously, I have to cure my absent mindedness. I'm always so lost in my little world that I tend to forget my more important things i.e. my hand phone. And without it? It feels like part of me is missing. Technology these days can kill a person. Seriously.