Flying home

Cham island, Central Vietnam, December 2009

December emotional rollercoaster...
Flying home to loved ones, family and friends.
It's coming on Christmas. They're cutting down trees. They're putting up reindeer and singing songs of joy and peace...

Asian Cup

Vietnam won over Singapour.

Fiesta in HCMC. Nice to see the streets as lively.

Snack

Ho Lak, around Buon Me Thuot, Vietnam, December 2009

Looking for keys

Around Buon Me Thuot, Vietnam, December 2009

Lunch with friends

Di Thau Market, Northern Vietnam, November 2009

Le rire est le propre de l'homme disait Rabelais.

Heading home

Around Bac Ha, Northern Vietnam, November 2009

Map direction

Around Bac Ha, Northern Vietnam, November 2009

Motorbike trip up in the mountains. Beautiful landscapes and kind people.

Misty

Around Bac Ha, Northern Vietnam, November 2009

Collectively in love in Dalat

Dalat, Vietnam, Novembre 2009

Last August, a decree was passed banning a popular website we shall name X. It took nearly three months to be fully enforced, but now, no doubt about it... I wonder how long blogs will still be available. As I have been having some problems connecting lately to this site, I would say not too long.

Married in Dalat

Dalat, Vietnam, November 2009

In Love in Dalat

Dalat, Vietnam, November 2009

Back to civilisation. After having spent a week for work in the middle of nowhere, back in Saigon. Great experience though and in a way, beautiful place! Sometimes, you meet amazing people in places you would have never gone to, if not for work.

Tag Tieng Viet

Old town around Hanoi, Vietnam, Oct-Dec 2009

If I remember right, it means something like: careful/slowdown, children nearby.
Other than that, I have been told that some phone numbers are "pretty" and others ugly. Some business men/women even "buy" a pretty phone number. If I remember right, 8 and 9 are pretty numbers, 1 is ugly.

Au pas

Ho Chi Minh Museum, Hanoi, Vietnam, Oct-Nov 2009

Quite exciting, will probably be going for work in an industrial zone in the center of Vietnam for several days next week! This will be very different from working in the office in the city center of HCMC. But the countdown until Christmas break in France is getting even tighter... Time keeps on flying.
In the meantime, our Prime Minister is drinking champagne in Hanoiand is expected to do the same tomorrow evening in HCMC.
Grande grande effervescence autour de cette venue.

Enchevêtrement

Ho chi Minh Museum, Hanoi, Vietnam, Oct-Nov 2009

Uncle Ho

Ho Chi Minh Museum, Hanoi, Vietnam, Oct-Nov 2009

Motorbike balance

Around Hanoï, Vietnam, Oct-Nov 2009

Lovely w-end in Ha Noi... But back to Saigon past 3AM to be back in the office at 9AM.

Street fruits

Ha Noi, Vietnam, February 2009

Cuối tuần này em sẽ đi Hà Nội...
Funny how women tend to do the heavy work here. While generally xe om drivers and shoe shiners are men, street fruit vendors and (manual) garbage collector are usually women.

Bronzette

Mui Ne, Vietnam, March 2009

Un vent solaire sur les hanches, du jus de pêche sur les jambes...

Hugs

Ilocos Sur, Philippines, July 2009

Hug

Ilocos Sur, Philippines, July 2009

Coup de coeur

http://vivianmaier.blogspot.com/

Thanks to my friend Pierre, I have discovered a website with fabulous, beautiful pictures from a lady called Vivian Maier. The kind of pictures that blows you away. Sweet, funny, sharp, amazing... Littéralement, un coup de coeur.

"The website was created in dedication to the photographer Vivian Maier, a street photographer from the 1950s - 1970s. Vivian's work was discovered at an auction here in Chicago where she lived for 50 years but was originally a native to France. Her discovered work includes over 40,000 mostly medium format negatives. Born February 1, 1926 and passed away on Tuesday, April 21, 2009."

John Maloof, who has acquired the pictures and has kindly set up the website to share them is a photographer as well: http://www.capturemychicago.com/people/johnmaloof

The city which name cannot be pronounced

Edinburgh, Scotland, November 2005

Back to Vietnam: it's funny how Vietnamese are used to leave their front door open. Anywhere you go in Vietnam, the front door leading to the living room will usually be wide open. Even though I live in a building, my Vietnamese neighbors still do the same (and also still sing karaoke at the top of their lungs). But I do not mind it actually. I am surprised how much I have become much less sensitive to noise since I started living in Vietnam.

- or perhaps, I have already gone deaf...

Chunky God

Museum of Danang, Vietnam, March 2009

One of the statues in the Danang Museum with the curvy, joyful and dancing gods. It was nice to see a religion where the gods seem to have a blast. Work seems to be calming down a bit, nice feeling.

Eh beh, em o dau ?

Saigon, Vietnam, October 2009

Ouf, rassurée. Dans mes heures perdues, je pourrai lire Marc Levy en vietnamien (et découvrir où se cache la em).

Héméra

Angkor, Kampuchia, January 2009

Running after time flying.

Three doors and two lampposts

Citadelle Hue, Vietnam, 2009

Morning Dreaming

Vigan, Philippines, July 2009

Instead of a two week holiday in the Philippines with my sister, a working week-end in Saigon.
Though instead of reading Vietnamese tax law, am reading an article with beautiful pictures of the the Gobi desert, "where the sky seems to swallow you"...

Sau cơn mưa trời lại sáng

HCMC, Vietnam, September 2009

After the rain, comes the sun!

A little yellow but a little bit blue

Cat, HCMC, Vietnam, September 2009

Tet Trung Thu.

It is the mid-automn moon festival here in Vietnam, with moon cakes being offered everywhere.

I hope the month of september is not supposed to announce the rest of the year. Bad news from Paris keep hitting me here in Saigon. Bad news from the Philippines too. Not so enthusiastic news here. And now a typhoon devastating everything on its way.

Troi oi. Sometimes, not so easy not to feel a bit blue.

Après la pluie

Quan an ngon, HCMC, Vietnam, September 2009

A Vietnamese restaurant for once very popular with both Vietnamese people and expats. However, I have heard that like many nice buildings in District 1, it will soon be knocked down to build new office buildings. In any case, a new QAN with a similar architecture is soon going to open at 160 Pasteur. The vinegar hot pot is exquisite.

Shoes and cafe sua da

HCMC, Vietnam, September 2009

Vietnamese (chic) shoe shop.

Altars are nearly everywhere in Vietnam: houses, pubs and even the "billards" in front of the office have one...

Iris

Opera house, ceiling, Ho Chi Minh City, September 2009

Saturday night was my first evening at the opera of Saigon. After a crazy taxi ride to get there right on time, we realized that we left the tickets at home. The charm and patience of S got us in though.

We had a very nice evening. We purchased the tickets without knowing what the program was as it was written in Vietnamese. It ended up being contemporary dance and the choreography seemed a little influenced by Philippe Découflé.

Dance and theatre. Beauty and laughter.

And comes the ponytail back

Little girl playing in a temple in Siem Reap, Cambodgia, January 2009

Picked up S at the airport last night. The road to the airport was blocked because of construction work going on. Of course, the cars decided to ride on the big sidewalk instead. Suddenly, a huge noise. Flat tyre. We hit a big rock which was in the middle of the sidewalk. Therefore, I was slightly late at the airport, but late enough for the whole Filipino info connection to be set off ;) Always amazed how that really works well.

We have already reached an agreement for the w-end, S shall lead the shopping activities and I shall lead the food activities.

Shaved head and no more ponytail

Angkor Vat, Cambodge, January 2009

The sun is back in Saigon.

Ceci n'est pas Magritte

Pagode des parfums, Hue, Vietnam, August 2009

My good friend from the Philippines is coming over this w-end to shop and eat. Though I do not care much about the first activity, I am hopeful we will focus on the second. Starting to prepare myself to eat for more than 48 hours.

Other than that, Stephen Fry noted that it is a cliche that most cliches are true, but then like most cliches, that cliche is untrue.

Meanwhile, rain continues flowing down the sky here in Saigon.

Classical beauty

Con Dao, Vietnam, August 2009

It's been raining cats and dogs lately.

One of the brothels right in front of my window office had some sort of blessing this afternoon. Lucky money was thrown out by the ladies and the pimps and fake money was burnt on the sidewalk.

From my somewhat conservative practice, straight from my window, there are two brothels stuck in between a luxurious cafe and a bakery. Under the cover name of "billiards", they are actually quite lucrative businesses which start work as soon as it is dusk. Around 6PM, despite the soundproof windows, I hear the ladies calling customers in. Seeing by the window guys pretending to hesitate and be forced to get in by their friends or colleagues is actually a daily sight here. Traditional (and universal) profession, I guess.

Smiling chubby buddha

Around Dalat, Vietnam, February 2009

Nuages bas

Con Dao, Vietnam, August 2009

Gravity and chocolate cake

Citadelle, Hue, Vietnam, July 2009

For dinner: delicious salad, lasagna and home made chocolate cake or the advantage of having a great flatmate who knows how to cook and bake.

Perspectives

Bridge somewhere on the way from Ben Tre to My Tho, Vietnam, July 2009

Poetic night ride

Danang, Vietnam, March 2009

The Museum of Danang on Khmer art is a very nice one with joyful curvy gods smiling, dancing and laughing.

Meanwhile, yesterday night, a xe om (moto taxi) started reciting a poem of Verlaine while driving in the streets of Saigon after I had told him I was French.

Are you talking to me?

Con Dao, Vietnam, August 2009

Picture taken by M of the little insect on his straw.

The window, the well and the boy

Con Dao, Vietnam, August 2009

Little blue house

Con Dao, Vietnam, August 2009

Incens

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, August 2009

People in the temple were really welcoming nonetheless I always feel a bit uncomfortable taking pictures in religious places, specially when it is not my religion. It feels odd to suddenly snap pictures of what often represents so much more to the believers.

Little chinese temple between my home and my work. Beautiful, very peaceful and which calls for contemplation.

(And to top it all, nice food served on the walkside of the temple.)

Playing chess

Con Dao, Vietnam, August 2009

Fishnet

Con Dao, Vietnam, August 2009

A beautiful island with nearly no tourists. Beach, mountain, trekking, swimming... Great time with a great friend.