photos of vietnam 2
some more photos from vietnam. these ones are from hanoi, in the old quarter.
tortoise tower, hoan kiem lake, downtown hanoi
street vendor selling ramboutan, bananas and pineapples, hanoi
some of the fruits available in the markets in vietnam
dragon fruit (the pink one), rambutans (the hairy red things), mangousteens (the brownish fruit) and a variety of oranges
water puppets
they are used in puppets shows where the stage is water and the puppeteers are standing behind a screen moving the puppets with poles that are under the water
photos from vietnam
since i now have time to go through the 10 000 photos i've taken, some will be posted from the last few countries i've gone to. here are some from vietnam, definitely one of my favourite countries that i went to on the trip.
fishing village in halong bay, northern vietnam
water vendor in halong bay
junks in halong bay
the return
so i'm back home! it was about minus 10 when i got in yesterday, coldest i've had since last winter. the ground was covered in snow so i was really excited about that. a bit jetlagged since i've been on the computer since 5:30 this morning! and looking at all the things that have been sent home this past year and the postcards all over the walls of the house just amaze me. i can't believe that it's over and i can't believe that i've actually gone around the world. it will eventually sink in.
a bit of everything
i had a blast the rest of my time in greece and will definitely be going back. i met so many ppl from around the world and even from my neighbourhood. one guy lived on ampere, about 5 streets away from me, when he was studying in montreal. now that's a small world! i managed to get to delphi where the oracle once decided the faith of the world while being high on nitrous oxide (so they believe). i got to thebes, city famous for the setting of the oedipus rex tragedy, the only greek tragedy i've ever read (thanks to enligh 30). and there is nothing of interest in the town, the one museum is closed for reconstruction and there are just a few ruins but nothing of interest. so i read at the train station for 2 hours before going back to athens.
the only damper on the trip to greece was the morning of my flight to london. i was checking the internet to see if my flight was on time and read emails from my mom saying that my grandmother was in hospital and the next one said she had died. it's not exactly what you want to read in the morning or ever. i'm just impressed about all the emails pouring in from all the ppl across the world that knew her and that were very saddened by her passing. it's incredible how many ppl you meet in 90 yrs of life. and how she seemed to have a good influence on them and they on her. so for the ppl reading this in edmonton, i'll probably be out there in the spring at some point for the memorial service.
on brighter note, i've completed my round the world trip. i checked out the greenwich meridien (meridien 0) the other day just outside london. it was rather satisfying just standin ghtere and realizing how far i had travelled and learning inthe museum next to the meridien how travelling was so incredibly complicated just a few centuries ago. i met up with a friend i met in athens who was in london for 2 days and enjoyed seeing the city with someone this time around and realizing that there is so much to do here. so a little more time in the uk, spending the last of my money and then back home to the cold and the snow and my own bed.
10 things i learned in greece
1. greece has a special alphabet which is hard to understand
2. stat mech can actually be useful when travelling in greece cause you know that special alphabet
3. baklava are the best pastries ever in greece, not as sweet as at home
4. there are pastry shops everywhere except when you want to buy some baklava
5. sunday is the day that ruins and museums are free to visit
6. everywhere in greece is the site of either a ruin or a famous battle
7. winter schedules really reduce the hours things are open
8. don't ever believe the winter schedules given to you by the tourist information desk
9. greece is the only country when entering some religious sites you have to wear a skirt (as opposed to covering your head in mosques and covering your arms in churches in italy)
10. it's a really cool country
