oh

how music can inspire me to write. i'm happy. and have been away again for the last two weeks in various places, I made my way up to the central region for the first time in my life. Wandered aimlessly and enjoyed the company of others. I was welcomed into homes, ate too much food for my own good, and was given pretty bomb ass tours of each city I went to by locals, even xe om drivers felt the urge to show me around the city (it was up to me whether I wanted to give him extra money for showin' me around the city, now that's friendliness I tell you.) Now here is a detailed account of my last few days since I feel like I don't do this enough. I do it rarely cos I know you folks are really lazy to read.



Read on if you'd like.


the central region was just so fucking sweet - Hue, Da Nang, Hoi An. Sweet like when a gentleman gives a jacket for you when your cold kind of sweet (which did happen). hahaha. Having made my way to three major regions of Vietnam I feel so accomplished! I laughed and smiled most of the way.

I arrived in Da Nang first and stayed at Hoa's place, a little backpacker's hostel by China Beach. I got to see the beach. Dreary clouds made Da Nang look mysterious. I found my way to Hoi An and wandered and bought a shitload of lamps. After a few hours I got to talking to locals, buying their stuff and they helped me find a bomb ass vegetarian rice place to eat at. I then moved into the home of some other people I knew and they welcomed me with good homemade food! They also had the cutest 4 year old kid name Tommy that continued to ask me how to say things in English.  I then hung out in Da Nang with my friend Tam and her bf Mark, who are ridiculously cute. I went to the International Fireworks Festival walked the bridges and roadways to get to my seat and was surprisingly moved by fireworks which coincided with music. (Japan had the best one for great music and also no cloudedness because they were clever, however the Vietnamese people CLEARLY loved the Vietnamese team for their superfluous use of heart shaped fireworks).  I learned that Vietnamese people really know how to flock to an event in an orderly fashion! I was shocked and amused. Although it may have seemed chaotic. They even had ambulances ready. Later had some discussions with locals about gender, and clearly it is still unfair. Ate some Indian food with Tam and Mark where I met a fellow Berkeley alumni. Next to us sat the fireworks team. I met a girl who can speak Chinese, Vietnamese and English just like me - the waitress introduced us. I learned that my Vietnamese was not good according to the waitress. As I walked out I said bye to the family w/ a Berkeley alumni and their child asked:

"Mommy, who is that?"
"It's a bear!"


and I hoped on a bus where I sat next to a strange vietnamese man who was inspecting my luggage tags. As we have a rather confusing dialogue where he didn't understand my Vietnamese - I slowly learn that he's Korean! Very strange. I think that was my first time in my life having a conversation with a Korean man from Korea (Other than my high school best friend's dad) His mannerisms amuse me. We said bye.

And I crammed into a sardined packed bus to Hue. I was quiet confused when I landed in the bus stop. I stood there looking confused. Then walked over to other buses confused. Then confusingly a lady took my luggage and put it on a bus.

"I didn't buy a ticket yet!"
"It's okay get on the bus!"
"Okay!"

I knew if i stood their looking confused for long enough someone was bound to help me or scoop me up to somewhere. A combination of fear of losing my luggage and feeling like something illegal was happening, I was squished into the back of the bus, made for 4 people to sit, we had 5 people sit. We paid for tickets along the way, and it was all on a trust system! or maybe the bus lady knew. Regardless I was snug. After passing by beautiful mountains and trees and AN AWESOME LONG ASS TUNNEL! (I felt like I was in America) I arrived in Hue in 2 hours, it was raining. I immediately hopped on a xe om to my hotel. Checked in. And then chilled for the night since I didn't know Hue too well and my friend was busy.

then Hue happened --

pictures will be posted soon once my friend brings me my battery charger that I forgot in Hue!

my bad

seeing that my blog is slowly turning into a tumblr (no offense to the tumblr kids) where things that entertain me make their way and I provide no real commentary, I will attempt to recount my last few months that have, in all seriousness, blurred by, just like the previous months before these.

November

Location(s): Hong Kong (post Halloween), Saigon, Long Xuyen, Rach Gia
Music: RATATAT, I Heart Hiroshima, probably some Lykke Li

Video:

Recap: I got pink eye. I freaked out and thought I would go blind, then 2 days later I started to think it was sorta cool, if you put aside the pain and eye boogers that came with it (thank you codeine). I thought I would spare you from pictures I took of my red eyes, but for those who dare, click here. Someone asked me if she looked into my eyes, wether she could get pink eye too, and she proceeded to avoid eye contact with me. With that being noted, RATATAT was well the eye disease. Somewhere in the month: I woke up stumbled out of bed into the park to see some damn meteor showers. 

A few mosquito bites later, none were seen, and I felt my bed calling me. Turkey day occurs. Earlier in the month I visited the homes of families who picked trash for a living, their existence was on trash, they played on trash, they slept on trash, they shopped in trash, and then trash had another meaning for me. This moment still leaves me a tad confused as I don't really know what to think. I consistently have contrasting experiences, from the loud honks of motorbikes to beating crescendo nights to things like this, where an eery silence fills the air because nothing else can.

December

Location(s): Saigon, Long Xuyen

Music: Lady Gaga, probably some Rilo Kiley, Animal Collective, and Bats for Lashes

Recap: I get lost with a xe om driver for nearly an hour. My cellphone doesn't have reception in rural areas. My ass hurts. Then Christmas occurs. I meet awesome folks. Friends begin to visit me. I fall in love with Vietnam more and more.

Current month: January

Location(s): Saigon, Long Xuyen

Music: Reverie Sound Revue, Zee Avi, a revisit to Arcade Fire & Smashing Pumpkins

Recap: I get food poisoning & my cellphone is stolen. Despite this, it's going to be a damn good year. I began it, by looking at my cellphone, since Vietnamese people don't count down. Mixed with interesting clubbing experiences, adventures with old and new friends comin' into Vietnam, site visits, and not really cleaning my room, this month has been a great doozy. Photos will be uploaded shortly. I'll end this entry with a video that I am currently obsessed with, for its great playlist of songs, and the simplicity behind it.

BOOMBOX from Ely Kim on Vimeo.

and

in the amidst of enjoying other cultures
how I still enjoy and admire the following
oh how they've accompanied me in this
adventure of mine:

thao nguyen

leslie feist

emily haines

karen o

jenny lewis

I've realized in all my confusion and excessive thinking that i've done while lounging around these ladies (and some more) have continued to keep me happy. after reading the blogs of other volunteers and admiring their blogging skills, i was thinking why i constantly push for the unconventional and vagueness, i don't feel like updating you, my reader in a simple mundane manner but for blogamusementsake here is a recap of my last few months with things that I don't find mundane and the music that went with it.

July

Location(s): Yamanashi & Tokyo, Japan & Chiang Mai, Thailand
Music: Stan, SF, ostooandell, Gregory & the Hawk

snippet of the show:

Recap: a wonderful time in japan even though money goes fast when all you do is go to shows, use their public transportation, and eat really really tasty noodles. i got to visit a berry good friend of mine from berkeley, sally kikuchi, and all her nutty buddies which i enjoyed as well. i got used to japanese culture really fast, with the head nodding and ignoring your surroundings, like drunk people passing out on subways. there was taiko class, bicycling alone for the first time and running into a bush, buying drinks from the superfluous amounts of vending machines, finding a dj shop with another via vol, Tony (of which he was ecstatic about), & tokyo police retrieving my laptop from an english bandit. overall good justice, good music, good food, fantastic people, many smiles.

thailand was where I got to meet the volunteers for the first time, too many people at once overwhelm me, but i do admire their different talents and dedication to volunteering. if only i got to know them better. i flourish the most in one on one situations but in a situation where hoards of people come together it doesn't work out. i also got to be interviewed on a radio station thanks to my friend Aileen and her magical networking skills. the listeners were cute and made me miss the radio, dj was also really nice and played whatever we wanted. oh and also learned how to teach english (ha). had alot of food adventures with aileen and jude, even if it meant we had to go to the same place three times. trial and error my friends and this would just be the beginning.

August

Location(s): Hanoi, Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), & Long Xuyen, Vietnam
Music: whatever that was on my ipod; probably some broken social scene, I got into a music rut because I was extremely distracted with my surroundings

Recap: i don't really remember this month, so many movements it was sorta these fast images that go buy. All I really remember is that I kept thinking "Holy crap, I'm in the homeland." Then there was: vietnamese language lessons, eating banh cuon excessively, dehydration, ha long bay with the Vietnam VIA crew, learning how to get on a motorbike, seeing Berkeley friends, drinking milo, eating vinamilk yogurt, a crazy taxi cab driver to end my time in Hanoi, scary monkeys, meeting family friends and some Saigon southern accent goodness. Then I arrived at my post.

September

Location(s): Long Xuyen, Saigon, Hanoi, Lao Cai, Sa Pa, Dong Thap province, other parts of An Giang Province, Vietnam

Music: my ipod and remixes from The Twelves

Recap: settling into a new city, meeting my mom's friends, cleaning things, making things mine, eating a lot of good food, picking up vietnamese, going on staff retreats, being humbled by people and their ways of life, questioning my own, a whole lotta absorbing things in (the people, the culture, the way of things, markets, finding food, getting used to time, etc.), and finding that the prevention of human trafficking is a really really tough complicated battle.

October

Location(s): Long Xuyen & Saigon (HCMC), Vietnam

Music: a revisit to The Strokes, Julian Casablancas, & various songs from The XX

Recap: a tad settled, after hanging out with many family friends, I met an aunt who generously brings me around to eat, invites me to her house for lunch, meet people, and kick start ping pong lessons with an instructor who once went to competitions with my grandfather. This in turn has caused my grandpa to call more than usual asking me about my ping pong skills. "When you return you better beat me at a game of ping pong" "Yes, grandpa I will" My aunt has an INCREDIBLE (I don't use this lightly) karaoke setup on the 3rd floor of her home, equipped with spotlights, moving color lights, GREEN LASERS (@ 2:21) AND SMOKE MACHINE. Work wise, some reports here and there and trying to figure out my fellowship project with a few visits to different orphanages.

Current Month: November

Location(s): good ol' Hong Kong & Long Xuyen, Vietnam
Music: Emily Haines And The Soft Skeleton; Metric; & some random remixes

Recap: I leave for Hong Kong at the end of October to celebrate one of my favorite holidays. A tad getaway/return to a place that I've missed for a long time. Accompanied by Lilo (& Stitch) and Mrs. Incredible, our costumes were pretty bad ass in my mind. Surprisingly, going back made me realize how my study abroad friends was what really made the city special for me. It was weird being back. A lot of things happen during that time just a mere two years ago. Seeing the study abroad kids currently was quiet amusing as I reminisced the memories of Hong Kong and made new ones with Sally, Tam, Milk Cow (Yvonne), Helen, & Lois. Now back to Vietnam, I'm trying to get more focused on my work, it's hard especially with language barriers, I need to make more efforts, my mind is still fried from the absorbing but can't stop! Much to learn, and still much to experience. I have these random freak outs as to "What am I doing with my life?" but I guess it's normal as I'm talking to my friends back in the states. "What we DOING?" my friend and I ask ourselves. Then our minds revert back to the current thing that is on our mind, "What are we going to eat today?"