Vietnam part I. "impressions of saigon"

we're back in seoul! what a rad trip it was, vietnam is a cool country. to share with you i will have to break the trip up into several parts, so check back soon! 

we decided several weeks ago to make this a pseudo writers retreat for the three of us, each giving little assignments throughout the day with about fifteen minutes to write on that topic. it was such a good exercise and we all loved it. we shared our writings and it sparked incredible conversation. it was easy and fun and times and challenging at others. our first piece was aptly titled "impressions of saigon", and i'll share mine with you now: 

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motorcycles everywhere, zooming by, crowding the chaotic streets. the hum they create is a sort of rhythmic din. i think there must be a  method to this madness. people everywhere just chilling out, moving slow or not at all to beat the heat. groups of two or three or five people hunched over their bowls of soup or leading on their motorbikes. saigon. the people seem quite friendly- but they want something from us. there are a lot of tourists- more than i expected, but they don't cramp my style. the buildings are perfect; old, cracking cement facades with what appear to be once opulent verandas, now house expats and young savvy travelers- those who are willing to put up with the needy pushers and stressful street-crossings. the food is what i dreamed it would be- only better! old ladies selling fruit and nuts from large baskets slung over their shoulders, a busy market with thousands of seats to choose from  and scores of culinary experts ready to serve up some of their culture. a culture that seems rich with flavors and bright in color. just enough attitude to be badass but not yet pretentious. 

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men and women and children even walk the streets at all hours of the day and night selling what they have to offer, fruit or all exotic varieties, soup from a push cart, sandwiches, sunglasses, ponchos, flowers, books or newspapers...anything! things are crazy cheap and i tried to pick some things up from these diligent salespeople. 

this is the NORMAL traffic in saigon, no joke. millions of motorbikes compete for space on the streets, and traffic laws? i think they exist, but not so sure. crossing the street is daunting at first, but actually became quite easy. 

we had a beauitful veranda that overlooked that Pham Gau Lau main strip. here we are being models and then the view by day and by night. 

in our adventureing around we came across this old poster store on one of the side streets. it was in a red building with a long and narrow hallway, we entered the shop, happy to feel their air conditioning was blasting. inside they sell original war propaganda signs and posters, so cool!