Catching Up

A day after I wrote my last post, I found out that our stay in Latvia had to be extended. I won't go into detail, but in short, the matter was unexpected and we were forced to entirely re-route. The process proved to be rather taxing -- as those things usually are. When we finally did make it on a plane to South East Asia, it was taking us to Hanoi, Vietnam - about 1500km from our original destination point. And as we sardine-packed ourselves into a rusty minibus to the city center, and the heat, and smells, and the stomach-wrenching sound of the girl vomiting in front began to rapidly engulf us, Lionda and I just looked at each other and smiled. Hello Vietnam.

We spent the following week traveling down the coast of Vietnam to Cambodia (Ha Noi ---> Da Nang/ Hội An ---> Ho Chi Minh City ---> Phnom Phen). In total, we spent over 60 hours on trains, sleeping buses, taxis, and so forth. It felt a bit intense at first, constantly moving from place to place, but the unexpected detour turned out to be surprisingly fruitful and educational. With everything behind us now, there is a sense of appreciation for life's little complications. I feel grateful to have seen this unique, beautiful, and buzzing country, which otherwise we may have missed.

I can say that we especially enjoyed the food experience in The Old Quarter in Hanoi, where an array of low tables and plastic stools color every street corner. We even had fried noodles and Tiger Beer for breakfast. That is one of my fondest memories -- perhaps because it was so unlike us, and a reflection of our unwitting appetite to experience the food culture in its authentic form. We also took delight in the historic city of Hội An.

 

This is a video of us eating street food style breakfast in Hanoi, Vietnam.

 Now we are on Koh Rong island in Cambodia. Life is relaxed here, and most days Lionda and I read, write, or research future ventures. We've started to regularly practice together. Unless the weather conditions don't permit it, we wake up with the roosters and either head to the beach or a little vacant bungalow deck that we have discovered, and do about a 60-75 minute practice. I still don't have a mat, but plan on getting one at soon as I find the opportunity. When I was in Siem Reap, I visited the Peace Cafe, where I took yoga last time I visited Cambodia. They had the cheap (think Target-style) mats there for $18. Looking back at it, I should have just gotten one - it would have been better than nothing - but in the moment, it just seemed ludicrous.

So that was my best effort in summarizing the past month -- which really has felt like 6 months, due to the density of each day. I will make a better effort to stay more consistent.