The Mekong Delta, Viet Nam

Posted on March 9, 2015 by jaynezak

“Now without the bombs and gun shots, people can have a better sleep.“ from someone in the Mekong Delta.

The Mekong River has its origins in the mountains of Tibet, and it traverses six countries and 4500 km before spilling out into the Mekong Delta region of Viet Nam.

After the rainy season, the water is brown from the silt that has been washed into it upstream.

During the dry season the river becomes blue-green in color. There are many boats of different sizes and shapes traveling in all directions, including cargo boats, fishing boats, ferries, tourist boats and house boats.

Everything happens on the river including the floating market of Cai Bei.

All along the river, small huts are perched precariously on stilts so that the water at high tide does no more than wet the floor.

Some are in good shape, but most are ramshackle, and one wonders how they manage to survive.

During the Viet Nam War there was there was fighting there between the Viet Cong and the US Navy boats. After the war the Khmer Rouge attacked Viet Nam to reclaim the Delta area. This campaign precipitated the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia and later downfall of the Khmer Rouge.

The Mekong Delta is called the Rice Bowl of Viet Nam because most of the countries rice production comes from the Delta. They also have most of the country’s fisheries.

The towns along the river are fun to explore by foot or bicycle.

You will find French colonial architecture and delicious fruits and vegetables.

The Mekong Lodge is an interesting place to stay on the Delta.

It is reachable by boat and a good location for exploring the nearby villages and floating market. They are socially and environmentally responsible using eco-friendly materials for the bungalows, solar energy, rainwater, local ingredients and local employees. There is not a lot of English but it adds to the charm. Hand motions are the universal language and I am fluent in them.

I had a great foot massage in a bamboo chair outside of my room overlooking beautiful gardens and fruit orchards of longan, rambutan, mango, durian trees and flowers. http://mekonglodge.com

Another option are local guesthouses where you can stay with a lovely family on the Mekong.

I spent some time at Muoi Huong Tourist Garden (070 3859992) with their lovely family and highly recommend it for a wonderful local experience. (Binh Hoa Phuoc Island, Long Ho District, Vinh Long, Viet Nam).

I had a chance to talk to people in the Mekong Delta. What I noticed throughout Vietnam was some of the nicest friendliest people I met came from the Mekong Delta.

There is an interconnectedness that all Vietnamese have with past generations that we do not have. Every home has an altar to their ancestors with photos and their favorite things on it. The smell of incense used for prayer permeates the country (not so good for me because I am allergic to it). But I love the idea of it – how the smoke rises up to connect them with their ancestors.

They worship at communal houses.

They work hard. They are underpaid and they do not complain.

They have been helped by the efforts, work and suffering of previous generations and ancestors.

Now they are part of the present, with each other, working toward a future when others will pray and thank them.

Special thanks to my tour guide in Saigon and the Mekong Delta Mr. Nguyen Dinh Thanh. Thanh is smart, funny, intuitive, helpful and very knowledgeable about everything related to Viet Nam. I had the best time exploring the Delta with him and highly recommend him as a tour guide.

Di du lịch một cách an toàn,

JAZ

Art In Hanoi – Thanh Chuong Viet Palace, Viet Nam

Posted on February 27, 2015 by jaynezak

Art In Hanoi – Thanh Chuong Viet Palace, Viet Nam

“Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child — our own two eyes. All is a miracle.”   Thich Nhat Hahn

There is no right way to experience an art museum or gallery .

As a traveler who knows a little something about art, I always have a list of art work that I have to see in a country which I can check off in my brain.

But at the Thanh Chuong Viet Palace in Hanoi, I did not know the artist or his collection.

I did not know which was considered a masterpiece and which was not so I slowed down and looked at what I liked – what interested me and what touched me.

It is easier to make a connection with the art that way – when you don’t know what it is that you are “supposed to see.

It is a different experience when you choose what resonates with you instead of what is famous.

The palace houses Vietnamese artist Thanh Chuong’s vast collections of Vietnamese spiritual and folk art along with his modern paintings. (artist)

It is located forty kilometers from the center of Hanoi and covers over 10,000 square meters. There are thousands of cultural and historical artifacts from different Vietnamese dynasties which the artist spent his life collecting and storing.

It includes all kinds of architectural elements, different houses antique and replicated, furniture from all periods, statues, a theatre for water puppetry and a beautiful restaurant.

Thanh Chuong comes from a talented and literary family. There is an altar to his father the writer Kim Lan and a room displaying his work.

The palace is not without its critics. The “House of Auspicious Clouds’ has been called an artistic theme park, and “an ostentatious display of wealth and social status.

It attracts local and foreign visitors who are interested in understanding Vietnam’s artistic and spiritual culture.

I loved walking around in this beautiful and very feng shui environment and finding all the old and new pieces together.

The lotus ponds, bamboo beds, mud cottages made you think of Viet Nam’s history. I liked his modern paintings, sculptures and the creative way he juxtaposed the old and the new.

When you spend time looking at something, you actually begin to see it.

A very special thank you to my guide in Hanoi Mr. Do Sy Quy. He was my first guide on this trip and set the tone for an amazing experience. “Buffalo Joe” is kind, friendly, funny, intuitive and very knowledgeable about Hanoi and Viet Nam history. I connected with him immediately and feel like I have a friend in Hanoi.

Di du lịch một cách an toàn,

JAZ

Agent Orange – The Legacy Of War In Viet Nam

Posted on December 10, 2014 by jaynezak

Agent Orange – The Legacy Of War In Viet Nam

“Vietnam was a country where America was trying to make people stop being communists by dropping things on them from airplanes.” Kurt Vonnegut

Agent Orange was one of the herbicides used against the Viet Cong by the Americans in 1961-1971. It was given its name from the color of the orange-striped barrels in which it was shipped. Agent Orange contains a very toxic dioxin compound. At the time there was an absence of any humanitarian laws about herbicides. The UN adopted a law in 1978 that prevents the use of herbicides that have long-lasting toxic effects on a case by case basis.

The goal was to destroy rural forested land and nearby crops depriving guerrillas of food and cover and clearing sensitive military areas. ^,The program was also a part of a general policy which aimed to destroy the ability of peasants to support themselves in the countryside, forcing them to flee to the U.S. dominated cities, depriving the guerrillas of their rural support base.

The campaign destroyed 5 million acres of land and mangrove forests and millions of acres of crops. It was later discovered nearly all the food they had destroyed was not being produced for guerrillas; it was only being grown to support the local civilian population. This contributed to widespread famine, leaving hundreds of thousands of people malnourished or starving.

Three million Vietnamese including their children have suffered illnesses as a result of being exposed to Agent Orange. Multiple health problems include, cleft palate, mental disabilities, hernias, extra fingers and toes, cancer, diabetes, birth defects, and genetic diseases. High levels of the toxic dioxin compound are found in the soil around the American military bases where they were stored and will continue to cause illness for the Vietnamese people.

Screen Shot 2014-11-26 at 12.16.28 AM For the past 52 years, the Vietnamese people have attempted to discuss this legacy of war by trying to get the United States and the chemical companies to accept responsibility for using such dangerous chemicals on civilian populations. The United States says the figures and testing are unreliable and have yet to accept any financial responsibility for the victims.

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The Vietnamese have established “peace villages”, which each host between 50 and 100 victims, giving them medical and psychological help. U.S. veterans of the war and sympathetic people have supported these programs in Vietnam. An international group of veterans from the U.S. and its allies during the Vietnam War working with their former enemy — veterans from the Viet Nam Veterans Association — established the Viet Nam Friendship Village^[1 outside of Hanoi.

We stopped in a place outside Hanoi where victims of Agent Orange wove artwork. As Americans and human beings, we need to support these places when we travel.

Though my family was always against the Viet Nam War, I feel the guilt of an American. I came from a country who fought for many years in Viet Nam. I guess they thought they were doing something good, but they weren’t fighting for their country and trying to protect their villages and children so after a while they left. I don’t really understand anymore why we had been there at all.

Di du lịch một cách an toàn,

JAZ

Wet Towels In Asia

Posted on December 6, 2014 by jaynezak

Wet Towels In Asia

“I am not the same having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world.” Mary Anne Radmache

Japan is a country of specific etiquette. Correct manners are very important to the Japanese. It’s very easy to embarrass yourself in Japan as an American. I started my Asia trip in Japan and as is their custom I began each meal with the wet towel. Japan is a society of cleanliness. It is a culture of bath houses and onsens. You have never seen so many people brushing their teeth and gargling (Japanese are obsessed with gargling as a cure for everything) in public restrooms. They carry handkerchiefs in case there is nothing to dry their hands with in a public restroom.

The towel is called an o-shibori. A typical o-shibori, made of cloth, is dampened with water and wrung. It is then placed on the dining table for customers to wipe their hands before or during the meal. The o-shibori is often rolled or folded and given to the customer on a tray. Even if a tray is not used, it is usually rolled up into a long, thin shape. Cold ones are used in summer and hot ones are used in winter.

Airlines, also give out disposable towels containing a sterilizing agent such as alcohol or chlorine dioxide. Traveling on different Asian Airlines, the smell wafts through the plane as everyone rips open their towels as soon as they are given them.

The custom continued in restaurants and airlines in Thailand, Viet Nam and Cambodia. It is interesting because these are countries with unclean water and questionable sanitation. There is something civilized about the understanding between the patron and the restaurant that your hands must be clean before you eat.

I wondered why we did not have that concept in America. Do they just assume our hands are clean? Do they not care?

I like the towel. For me it means to stop and focus on what we are doing now. We are about to do something important. We are about to have a meal.

Fly safe,

JAZ

How to Make A Pearl In Viet Nam

Posted on December 2, 2014 by jaynezak

How To Make A Pearl In Viet Nam

“Quotations are sometimes valuable pearls but original thoughts can be priceless treasures” unknown

Ancient Chinese literature refer to pearls as originating in the brain of a dragon and being so lustrous as to be visible from a thousand yards. In Ha Long Bay, the Bay Of Descending Dragons is The Ha Long Bay Pearl Farm.

Until the early 1900’s, natural pearls were accessible to only the rich and famous. It was during this time that Japanese researchers discovered the techniques that could be used to cause oysters to create pearls “on demand.” Oysters create pearls as a defense mechanism. If an irritant, such as sand get inside the oyster shell, they secrete a substance around it which forms a pearl. The Japanese discovered that if you surgically insert an irritant directly into the body of the oyster this will produce a perfect pearl.

The man who finally joined the various technical processes with smart business sense and worldwide marketing, was Kokichi Mikimoto. He is credited with almost single-handedly having created the cultured pearl industry.

Today pearls are affordable and available to all. Cultured pearls share the same properties as natural pearls. The only difference is a little bit of encouragement by man. (Shopping – Halongpearl.com.vn)

Di du lịch một cách an toàn,

JAZ

Ha Long Bay, The Bay Of Descending Dragons, Viet Nam

Posted on November 23, 2014 by jaynezak

Ha Long Bay, The Bay Of Descending Dragons, Viet Nam

“Heroes take journeys, confront dragons, and discover the treasure of their true selves.” Carol Pearson

Ha Long Bay is considered to be the most beautiful vista in Vietnam. It consists of 1,969 islands and islets situated in the Gulf of Tonkin.

This area is known for its spectacular seascape of limestone pillars. Ha Long Bay has been recognized as a World Natural Heritage Site by UNESCO.

The literal meaning of “Ha Long” is “Bay of Descending Dragons”. A local legend says that a family of dragons was sent to defend the land long ago when the Vietnamese were fighting the Chinese invaders. The dragons thought it was so beautiful that they decided to stay upon what is now Ha Long Bay.

It houses a great diversity of ecosystems including coral reefs, freshwater swamp forests, mangrove forest, small freshwater lakes, and sandy beaches.

The islands feature beautiful grottos and caves with interesting stone formations and hidden ponds.

The way to see Ha Long Bay is on a Vietnamese boat or junk. There are many options to choose from in all price ranges. I think one night is good but you can do more as well and explore many caves and beaches.

I was on the Paradise boat. ( http://www.paradisevietnam.com). It had good food, a relaxed atmosphere, a helpful friendly staff, tai chi, cooking lesson and luckily good weather for the boat to go out. ( captain, manager – very helpful)

Our first stop was exploring Amazing or Surprising Cave. I can’t remember the name. It was amazingly surprising.

The next day we took small boats or kayaks to explore some of the smaller areas.

There were monkeys.

I was the only American on the boat and I got to experience this amazing place with people from Taiwan, England, Korea, Brazil and Australia. Not everyone spoke English but we were all having the same connected interaction at the same time in this beautiful place. Travel, experiences, education and knowledge always make the world seem smaller.

Di du lịch một cách an toàn

JAZ

Things I’ve Learned In Viet Nam

Posted on November 16, 2014 by jaynezak

Things I’ve Learned In Viet Nam

“If in our daily life we can smile, if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it. This is the most basic kind of peace work.”

Thích Nhất Hạhn

It is spelled Viet Nam in Viet Nam in English and it seems to be spelled Vietnam in the US.

Vietnamese New Year is everybody’s birthday. Vietnamese measure age by the number of lunar years you have lived.

Vietnamese weddings have seven to eight hundred guests. The groom’s family pays for the wedding. (The men like our tradition better) It can be as cheap as ten dollars a head. The custom is to do the wedding above their social standing. (that sounds familiar)

Instead of bells, traditional gongs are used to call the Vietnamese children to school.

Although Vietnam is a developing country, it has a literacy rate of 94%.

Viets make up the largest ethnic group. Nam means south country. Vietnam means country of southern Viets.

Fifteen per cent of Vietnamese language is French ,fifteen per cent is minority groups and seventy per cent is Chinese.

They get along well with the other ethnic groups because Vietnamese believe that they are all people who” came from the same box”.

Among all developing countries, Vietnam has one of the lowest unemployment rates.

Korea is the biggest foreign investor in Viet Nam followed by Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan.

They are the number one exporter for black pepper and number two exporter for cashews, coffee and rice.

Three big things in a Vietnamese life is getting a wife, building a house and buying a buffalo. ( I guess for non villagers that means a job now)

Vietnam is crawling with Australians. it is a four-hour flight. They know everything – who the best tailors are, where to get glasses made, good guest houses. Even if it is their first time, they have that information from their friends.

Beauty Treatments are everywhere.

No you have not had the best Banh Mi sandwich of your life unless it is on the side of the road in Saigon or Hanoi.

Same goes for Vietnamese coffee.

Ruou ran (snake wine), a Vietnamese specialty of rice wine with a pickled snake inside, allegedly can cure any sickness.

If an older person wants you to drink with them, you have to show respect and obedience and comply. Older people appreciate respect and obedience much more than ability and success.

Gambling in casinos in Vietnam is illegal for local people but legal for tourists and expats.

One million Vietnamese dong is close to about fifty dollars. You feel rich all the time in Vietnam because all your bills are in denominations of several thousands.

When a guest comes to your house, the more meat you prepare, the more important the guest.

Buddhism here involves a communal house to worship the ancestors They practice a Theravedic Buddhism which includes Taoist and Confucian teachings. (altar a house in the Mekong Delta)

Vietnamese believe in the Lady Buddha.

The communist attitude toward Buddhism and all religions greatly influenced the less strict practice of any religion in the country.

Vietnamese believe that Happy Buddha is a sign of good luck and good deeds. Starving is not the only way to become Buddha.

They believe in burial. When they are able to, they bury near their houses so they can watch the house.

The Vietnamese language has six different tones. A change in tone changes the meaning of the word. This makes their language somewhat difficult to learn.

Dog meat is relatively popular in Vietnam Probably not where you are eating.

Vietnamese don’t take a shower in the morning. They prefer to take a shower in the evening.

Teenagers in Vietnam love anything Korean – food, music, hairstyle, clothes, etc. Yes, K-POP is a big thing here.

So is karaoke.

When Vietnamese drink tea or water (or anything), they always leave 5 to 10% in the cup after drinking. They don’t empty their cups. There are many lovely teas – jasmine,ginger, peppermint, licorice and Palm leaf to name a few.

According to the Vietnamese News, taxis are a stain on Vietnamese hospitality. Ho Chi Minh City distributed leaflets warning tourists and are wondering if that would help. Mai Linh and Vinasun are the most reliable taxis.

An estimated ten million motor bikes travel on the roads of Vietnam every day. You will be painfully aware of the mass use of motorbikes here. They crowd every alley, curb, and sometimes sidewalk. This is because in Vietnam, not only are bikes relatively cheap, but they’re easy to fix, and they run for many hours on just a few litres of gas,

Vietnamese take a nap after lunch. This means driving from twelve to one pm is really quiet and smooth. Yes, no traffic jam!

They wear helmets not to be safe on the roads but in order not to be fined by the police/traffic officers.

Nobody respects pedestrian lanes crossing here. The trick is be assertive and don’t stop crossing no matter how scary and also pray.

Every family has 2 or more motorbikes and they are parked on the ground floor. Sometimes the living room is a garage at the same time.

The Vietnamese peasant cared nothing for politics in war-time. They leaned toward those who harassed them the least. (American bunker near Danang)

The truth about this very special country is that you can’t really understand it without visiting it. Seeing the different Vietnam landscapes at sunset, sailing down Halong Bay and the Mekong River, watching the fishermen throw their nets in Hoi An, seeing the families on motorcycles after school, the water buffaloes in the rice paddies and the women in the triangle hats , drinking Vietnamese coffee, tasting the food and feeling the resilience, sense of humor and heart of the people are all things I will remember. It’s a mixture of images, sounds, and even smells and textures that can’t be compared to anything else in the world. (Phu Quoc sunset)

Di du lịch một cách an toàn

JAZ

Ten Reasons To Go To Southeast Asia

Posted on October 21, 2014 by jaynezak

Ten Reasons To Go To Southeast Asia

“What we think, we become.”- Buddha

Angkor Wat –the largest temple in the world is a big bucket list item for me.
Best quality fakes.
I like seeing monks walking around and not just at temples – at the airport, on their cell phones, shopping, in the mall, on public transportation etc.
Street Food. I wish that I was as adventurous as my food hero Anthony Bourdain, but if it’s cooked, or has a thick skin like mangos and someone else eats it first, I will try it.
I like condensed milk in my coffee.
Some of the most beautiful beaches in the world are in Southeast Asia, and since the beach season never ends, you can live in a state of perpetual summer (like Los Angeles where I’m from)
Chaos – crowded cities with motorbikes and skyscrapers. Contrasts – people working in triangle hats in green rice paddies.
Amazing Asian photo opportunities for my new Asian camera.
Culture and History – different Eastern traditions, lifestyles, fashion, beliefs , languages, ancient temples, the Vietnam War and the terror of the Khmer Rouge.
Buddhism was recently voted the best religion in the world International Coalition for the Advancement of Religious and Spirituality (ICARUS) Joanna Hult, Director of Research for ICARUS said “It wasn’t a surprise to me that Buddhism won Best Religion in the World, because we could find literally not one single instance of a war fought in the name of Buddhism, in contrast to every other religion that seems to keep a gun in the closet just in case God makes a mistake’” I love Buddhist countries. The best part of the story is they can’t find a Buddhist to accept the award because “The Buddhist nature is in everyone.”

Fly Safe,

JAZ

Travel Well, Fly Safe

Travel

Category Archives: Viet Nam

The Mekong Delta, Viet Nam

Art In Hanoi – Thanh Chuong Viet Palace, Viet Nam

Agent Orange – The Legacy Of War In Viet Nam

Wet Towels In Asia

How to Make A Pearl In Viet Nam

Ha Long Bay, The Bay Of Descending Dragons, Viet Nam

Things I’ve Learned In Viet Nam

Ten Reasons To Go To Southeast Asia