**If you can't be bothered with all the hyperlinks but want to see my latest photos, click here.
An nyoung ha se yo!
Most of you probably know that that means "Hello!" in Korean. =)
Life has been super sweet and super blessed here in Asia. If you've caught glimpses of my Facebook or Twitter updates, you know that I've been traveling around a lot. Most recently, I spent 10 days in Korea. This trip included my brother MYK's performance at the Epik High concert, an interview with Joongang Ilbo (a major Korean newspaper), and a family getaway to Jeju Island. Oh--- and my uncle is now Prime Minister!
The interview / article about me is obviously in Korean, and I will do my best to try to translate it, but as my Korean vocabulary is rather limited, it will likely take awhile. If there's anyone who'd be interested in translating it for me, please let me know! ;)
To my boyfriend's delight, I returned to Hong Kong freshly inspired to (finally) try my hand at cooking! I've somewhat successfully made some Korean dishes (thanks to my mom and my brother's stellar girlfriend, Jung Mi) and some of my best friend Julie's dishes (veggies and noodles for Pad Thai soaking as I type).
It's been 2 months since I left Pure Yoga, and I have been living my once thought to be far-fetched dream of teaching yoga around the world. I now add Amsterdam, Shanghai, and Beijing to my list of cities where I've taught, with Sydney, Wellington (New Zealand), and hopefully other locations to come. I'll be sharing more details about this adventure very soon!!
With big love,
Leah
Monday, October 5, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Surfing the Vinyasa Wave with Simon Park + Julia Horn
My latest article as posted on The Source Asia.com.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Latest photos
Monday, June 8, 2009
9 June 2009: Awaken to Your Truth
I recently wrote an article for Hong Kong's Namaskar magazine about bringing more global consciousness into our daily habits, in an effort to embody our vision of a cleaner, healthier world, both within ourselves and expanding to our greater, tangible planet. In the article, I suggested replacing disposable plastic bottles with a more sustainable option, such as SIGG bottles. In response, a good friend and fellow yogi // truth seeker suggested that actually, SIGG may not be the best recommendation if a clean inner world is what we’re looking to create and maintain. She directed me to Real Green Girl’s blog, and since then, I have somewhat unsuccessfully been trying to unearth the mystery surrounding a debate that apparently has been ongoing for several years, completely unbeknownst to me – and I’m guessing, unbeknownst to most of us. (Unbeknownst is such a good word, I just had to find a way to use it twice!) (Thrice!)
I am not a professional researcher of facts (is that an actual job, I wonder?), a scientist or chemist; I am also not affiliated to any company that manufactures any sort of bottle, sustainable or not, toxic or not. I am simply a yogi, and to me, that means I seek the truth…I do my best to choose the middle, enlightened way closest to nature…I strive for balance…I try to keep my heart and my mind open.
I think it’s important that I share the above with you, so you know what inspired my amateur quest into all of this, and also so you can understand the nature of my so-called research and resulting suggestion to you. So, here it is…
Real Green Girl is adamant that SIGG is not trustworthy. A further read into her two blog entries dated 21 July 2008 and 6 October 2008 (which include external links and comments) will help you understand where she’s coming from, and perhaps even inspire you to do your own research, which is what I have been doing.
SIGG has never been transparent about what the inner lining of their aluminum bottles are made of. Aluminum, of course, has long known to be toxic, so in order for SIGG to make aluminum bottles, they need to line the interior with something non-toxic (or so one would hope). In January 2008, the President of SIGG, Steve Wasik, publicized a letter explaining that the formula of the lining was a secret because their 3rd-party supplier/producer of the formula had SIGG under contract to keep it confidential, to prevent copycat production. I managed to find a morsel of illuminating information through a company that sells SIGG products (and that assured me via email that SIGG was absolutely safe). This company notes on their website: “The special SIGG lining is not plastic - it is a micro-thin epoxy.“ Oh. Okay…but, what’s an epoxy?
Let’s hold that thought for a moment.
So, SIGG is adamant about having to maintain confidentiality regarding their formula, and perhaps on one hand, we can all understand that; it’s why patents and trademarks exist. What seems suspect is that after they made such a big deal about not disclosing their formula, in January 2009, they went and changed it! Devil’s Advocate would postulate that they changed it in response to the conscious public’s problem with their secrecy, and the ensuing suspicion that epoxy might be a fancy way of saying plastic. Plastic, of course, is currently under fire for being toxic, which is the reason a company like SIGG, offering (supposedly) non-plastic, reusable bottles has risen. According to the President’s update letter, their new and (supposedly) improved liner is called the SIGG EcoCare Liner, and he cites “innovation”, “technological advance”, and “sustainability” as reasons for the change. This new liner is “a bake-on, polymer powder coating.” Oh. Okay…but what, now, is a polymer?
Wiki says that epoxy IS a polymer, so even without understanding the chemical composition of these substances, I wonder if the liner perhaps hasn’t essentially changed? Could it all be clever marketing to confuse the average consumer who doesn’t understand this vocabulary? Wiki’s epoxy entry states: “Most common epoxy resins are produced from a reaction between epichlorohydrin and bisphenol-A” (aka “BPA”, aka the major culprit of toxicity in plastic!). According to Real Green Girl’s research, this synthesis results in an amber-colored solid. Furthermore, Wiki lists the common uses of epoxy and polymers, and these uses include paint, adhesives, and plumbing sealants.
(Ew.)
My friend and I inspected the inside of our SIGG bottles (I have four in my home!), and found that my older bottles have an amber-colored lining (possibly the result of the aforementioned synthesis of epichlorohydrin and BPA?) whereas her newer bottle has a silver-colored lining. It could be that hers has the new EcoCare Liner, which possibly is a true improvement, but I personally still don’t feel good about “bake-on polymer powder coating.” It’s like that Breyer’s ice cream commercial, where the ingredients are all words you can pronounce, such as “vanilla” and “milk”, as opposed to the ingredients of less natural brands of ice cream that list chemical names or codes of artificial flavorings and additives.
Sure, SIGG bottles may have undergone “independent” “testing” to ensure no “detectable” leaching, and an “independent” “PhD” may have offered his endorsement of these tests, but I can’t help but be reminded of those cheesy infomercials I used to watch when I was younger, totally convinced that a vibrating exercise belt was going to give me a six-pack if I just wore it around my belly for a few minutes a day. That “independent” “doctor” promised it would work...
So, now what?
I would love it if SIGG were more forthright and clear in their communications, and I wish I could believe their claims of safety and sustainability. But as I run all of this through my own personal filter of what feels right or wrong, I am leaning towards the latter. And I’m totally bummed, not only because I own several SIGG bottles, but also because I have been urging my loved ones to get their own. It seems SIGG has been exploiting my world of yogis and other health-conscious people, whilst they themselves may not be so conscious.
Still, I am aware that I may not really know what I’m talking about. So I offer my personal thoughts to you, and ask you to now move forward with what resonates with you. Perhaps we look in places other than Whole Foods and take Real Green Girl’s suggestion to go with Klean Kanteen’s food-grade, stainless steel bottles (or check out the 100% stainless steel options from Laken or even SIGG). Perhaps we all migrate to the mountains where we can drink fresh water from the source (but then, what about bugs and animal feces, right?!). Perhaps the only choice we can make in this situation is choosing the lesser evil.
Whatever you make of all this and ultimately decide, I urge you to run it through your own personal filter. There is so much divine and worldly intelligence within you. Awaken to that. And then think, speak, and act from that awakened place.
PS If you'd like to read my original article, please send me an email! Or download the PDF here.
I am not a professional researcher of facts (is that an actual job, I wonder?), a scientist or chemist; I am also not affiliated to any company that manufactures any sort of bottle, sustainable or not, toxic or not. I am simply a yogi, and to me, that means I seek the truth…I do my best to choose the middle, enlightened way closest to nature…I strive for balance…I try to keep my heart and my mind open.
I think it’s important that I share the above with you, so you know what inspired my amateur quest into all of this, and also so you can understand the nature of my so-called research and resulting suggestion to you. So, here it is…
Real Green Girl is adamant that SIGG is not trustworthy. A further read into her two blog entries dated 21 July 2008 and 6 October 2008 (which include external links and comments) will help you understand where she’s coming from, and perhaps even inspire you to do your own research, which is what I have been doing.
SIGG has never been transparent about what the inner lining of their aluminum bottles are made of. Aluminum, of course, has long known to be toxic, so in order for SIGG to make aluminum bottles, they need to line the interior with something non-toxic (or so one would hope). In January 2008, the President of SIGG, Steve Wasik, publicized a letter explaining that the formula of the lining was a secret because their 3rd-party supplier/producer of the formula had SIGG under contract to keep it confidential, to prevent copycat production. I managed to find a morsel of illuminating information through a company that sells SIGG products (and that assured me via email that SIGG was absolutely safe). This company notes on their website: “The special SIGG lining is not plastic - it is a micro-thin epoxy.“ Oh. Okay…but, what’s an epoxy?
Let’s hold that thought for a moment.
So, SIGG is adamant about having to maintain confidentiality regarding their formula, and perhaps on one hand, we can all understand that; it’s why patents and trademarks exist. What seems suspect is that after they made such a big deal about not disclosing their formula, in January 2009, they went and changed it! Devil’s Advocate would postulate that they changed it in response to the conscious public’s problem with their secrecy, and the ensuing suspicion that epoxy might be a fancy way of saying plastic. Plastic, of course, is currently under fire for being toxic, which is the reason a company like SIGG, offering (supposedly) non-plastic, reusable bottles has risen. According to the President’s update letter, their new and (supposedly) improved liner is called the SIGG EcoCare Liner, and he cites “innovation”, “technological advance”, and “sustainability” as reasons for the change. This new liner is “a bake-on, polymer powder coating.” Oh. Okay…but what, now, is a polymer?
Wiki says that epoxy IS a polymer, so even without understanding the chemical composition of these substances, I wonder if the liner perhaps hasn’t essentially changed? Could it all be clever marketing to confuse the average consumer who doesn’t understand this vocabulary? Wiki’s epoxy entry states: “Most common epoxy resins are produced from a reaction between epichlorohydrin and bisphenol-A” (aka “BPA”, aka the major culprit of toxicity in plastic!). According to Real Green Girl’s research, this synthesis results in an amber-colored solid. Furthermore, Wiki lists the common uses of epoxy and polymers, and these uses include paint, adhesives, and plumbing sealants.
(Ew.)
My friend and I inspected the inside of our SIGG bottles (I have four in my home!), and found that my older bottles have an amber-colored lining (possibly the result of the aforementioned synthesis of epichlorohydrin and BPA?) whereas her newer bottle has a silver-colored lining. It could be that hers has the new EcoCare Liner, which possibly is a true improvement, but I personally still don’t feel good about “bake-on polymer powder coating.” It’s like that Breyer’s ice cream commercial, where the ingredients are all words you can pronounce, such as “vanilla” and “milk”, as opposed to the ingredients of less natural brands of ice cream that list chemical names or codes of artificial flavorings and additives.
Sure, SIGG bottles may have undergone “independent” “testing” to ensure no “detectable” leaching, and an “independent” “PhD” may have offered his endorsement of these tests, but I can’t help but be reminded of those cheesy infomercials I used to watch when I was younger, totally convinced that a vibrating exercise belt was going to give me a six-pack if I just wore it around my belly for a few minutes a day. That “independent” “doctor” promised it would work...
So, now what?
I would love it if SIGG were more forthright and clear in their communications, and I wish I could believe their claims of safety and sustainability. But as I run all of this through my own personal filter of what feels right or wrong, I am leaning towards the latter. And I’m totally bummed, not only because I own several SIGG bottles, but also because I have been urging my loved ones to get their own. It seems SIGG has been exploiting my world of yogis and other health-conscious people, whilst they themselves may not be so conscious.
Still, I am aware that I may not really know what I’m talking about. So I offer my personal thoughts to you, and ask you to now move forward with what resonates with you. Perhaps we look in places other than Whole Foods and take Real Green Girl’s suggestion to go with Klean Kanteen’s food-grade, stainless steel bottles (or check out the 100% stainless steel options from Laken or even SIGG). Perhaps we all migrate to the mountains where we can drink fresh water from the source (but then, what about bugs and animal feces, right?!). Perhaps the only choice we can make in this situation is choosing the lesser evil.
Whatever you make of all this and ultimately decide, I urge you to run it through your own personal filter. There is so much divine and worldly intelligence within you. Awaken to that. And then think, speak, and act from that awakened place.
PS If you'd like to read my original article, please send me an email! Or download the PDF here.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
25 January 2009: A journey into new lands at the Lunar New Year
It is my last night in Vietnam. I write to you from a lesser known city called Da Lat, encased by surprisingly rich pine forests reminiscent of those found in California...dotted with glistening lakes...simply and breathtakingly beautiful.
I have been traveling with my friend Karen, combining a yoga training/retreat (led by one of my teachers, Twee Merrigan) and a journey into new lands. Our travels began a couple weeks ago in Saigon (aka Ho Chi Minh City), with a rude awakening reminder to not be naive little tourists. Though we'd been warned of swindlers, we had been in the country but 10 minutes before getting cheated by an opportunistic taxi driver. He came right up to us and asked if we needed a taxi into the city. We already knew that it should cost about 8 USD but when he told us that it cost 500,000 Vietnamese Dong, we became flustered as we struggled to figure out the conversion. We had just exchanged our Hong Kong Dollars and were still trying to wrap our minds around the exchange rate (2,120 HKD = 1,000 VND or 17,500 USD = 1,000 VND…whattttt???). Karen, much better with numbers than I am, quickly did the math in her head and said he was asking for 30 USD. He said, “Nooo! It is 9 USD!”, making her second guess herself. I stood by totally useless as he grabbed my suitcase and ushered us towards his cab, saying, “9 USD Okay? Okay?” He then literally took the Dong out of my hands, and we were well on our way before we pulled out our BlackBerrys to use the calculator function to confirm that yes, Karen had been correct in her mental calculation and yes, we had just gotten ripped off.
Doh!
We stayed at the Saigon Mini Hotel, a boutique hotel that seems typical to Vietnam. These hotels resemble townhouses, having about 4-5 stories; the first story is like the main floor of any home with a living room and a kitchen and the guest rooms are on the floors above. We stayed in their most expensive room at 50 USD/night. The Saigon Mini is technically a “business” hotel, but it was homey and clean, the staff helpful and friendly. It’s a bit off of any main road, which is nice in a loud and busy city like Saigon.
Armed with the Luxe guide, we walked around town, doing our tourist duty by visiting the Cathedral (closed around noon, so we didn’t get to go inside), the old Post Office (straight from the ‘50s), and the Reunification Palace (could have skipped this one). Ton That Thiep was our favorite little area, with a sweet little spa called Jasmine where we had a massage, a hair wash, and a mani/pedi all for about 45 USD. Such a treat! The best part of our stay in Saigon was the food. We had delicious, fresh, healthy, and super inexpensive meals at Quan An Ngon, Bun Ta, and Cha Ca Hanoi: all DEFINITELY recommended! Other than that, it’s just about walking around and people-watching on major streets such as Le Loi and Dong Khoi, and at Tao Dan Park. Oh, and learning not to get run over by the gazillion motorbikes going in every direction with very little discretion! Strangely, though, I noticed there is an order to the disorder of it all, and you could even say there is an art to weaving in and out of the thick traffic, a dance, if you will. My Budokon teacher Kancho Cameron Shayne once explained the art of practicing martial arts as not being about competition or violence, but rather a skillful dance between two beings, totally present and aware of each others’ intentions and movements. You could say crossing the streets of Saigon was sort of like that. Plus plenty of loud, unnecessary horn honking.
From Saigon we went to Hoi An, a beautiful beach town outside of Da Nang (which itself looked rather uninteresting). Our retreat was held at the Palm Garden Resort, which was just lovely…right on the beach (a vast shoreline of super soft white sand), huge pool, beautiful grounds. Food at the hotel wasn’t exceptional, though, and communication (in general here) was pretty tough. The weather was a comfortably warm 25-ish degrees Celsius most of the time, except for the very first night, which was a freezing 17 degrees – the coldest Hoi An had been since 1975!
The training/retreat was so perfect. Thank you to wonderful Nicky of Breathing Room Yoga for putting it together! Every morning began with a Prana Flow Master Class (sometimes practice would be over 4 hours long!), and the Teacher Training on Energetic Alignment was on the first 3 days. Twee is a senior teacher of Shiva Rea and the Prana Flow tribe. She has been on her Soul Connections Tour over the past couple years, traveling all across the globe to share her love and knowledge of yoga. She is a highly inspiring and inspired teacher, truly embodying the flow of yoga in all of life. I encourage all yogis to seek her out if she’s ever in your town. Please follow the hyperlinks for more information.
Hoi An’s city center is known as Ancient Town, because much of the city’s original architecture has been maintained and turned into shops and cafes for tourists. It is – as all the guidebooks say – completely charming, and the vibe is chilled out and laid back…perfect for this native Californian! Meals in town were simply amazing, particularly the Hoi An specialties of Cao Lau, White Rose (delicately made dumplings), and Fried Wonton. Loads of fresh veggies adorned all plates, and practically everything could be made vegetarian. Our favorite spots were: Mango Room, Ly’s Café 22, Hai Café, Red Bridge Restaurant, and Cargo Club (aka our drug dealer, as their Vietnamese White Coffee was so addictive that we went back day after day for more). Most of these restaurants overlook Hoi An River, which runs along one side of town. There was also this BBQ spot on the beach near the resort where we had some of the freshest seafood ever, especially the squid, which we ordered seconds of before we finished off the first order.
The one thing I could have done without was the evening cooking class at Hai Café. The food at the restaurant is delicious, but the class left much to be desired. It was not at all “hands-on”, as everything was already prepared before our arrival, and we basically watched the chef do it all. Apparently, the full day sessions are much more involving and interesting. The one thing I wish I did do was a bike ride through the rice paddies. A couple of the other girls went, and their photos were just amazing.
I celebrated my birthday in Hoi An, complete with a "sacred chant Twee learned from a Hungarian woman" (ie “Happy Birthday”), balloons, a sunset boat ride down the river, gluttonous chocolate mousse cake, and everything courtesy of my tribe – the whole entire day! It’s Twee’s birthday rule, and I was happy – and so grateful – to oblige. I’m still so high and happy from all the love…not to mention the nearly 200 emails/texts/Facebook messages I have received. Wow! Seriously, I feel so loved, and so humbled by everyone’s thoughtfulness. Thank you for thinking of me!
And so we have found our way to Da Lat, a mountainous area about 300 miles (45 min flight) from Saigon. Like California, much of Da Lat is covered in farmland. Apparently many western fruits and vegetables that don’t normally grow in Southeast Asia, like strawberries, are grown here because of its dryer, milder climate. Fruit here is exceptionally sweet, and we’ve been treated to heaps of pineapple, mango, watermelon, dragon fruit, passion fruit, bananas, and pomelo for breakfast. BREAD is so delicious all over Vietnam, and I’ve definitely taken advantage of that, as it’s very hard to get proper bread in Hong Kong.
We’re staying at Dreams, another boutique hotel that is rated #1 on several travel sites, even before the uber posh Sofitel. We decided that 25 USD/night was too good to pass up. It’s fine…clean enough, with hot water and a recently renovated bathroom, but the bathtub leaks and I dropped a piece of cracker (ok, maybe it was a few pieces…) and in no time we were visited by ants. The included breakfast I mentioned above is fantastic though, and the service is very good. Still, I think next time I will pay twice as much and stay at the Novotel. We had a great Sunday brunch there, as well as high tea at the Sofitel, which were each only 15 USD! Everything in Vietnam is so cheap, but in 13 days, I still managed to spend over 6 MILLION Dong! (Can you figure out the conversion?)
Other than food, Da Lat is about relaxing and strolling around. Whether you take a simple walk around the artificial (but still lovely) Xuan Houng Lake right in the center of town, or take a more intense trek up Pinhatt Mountain like we did (even though we requested a relaxing, easy walk) to take in an incredible view, there are many ways to enjoy the natural beauty of the countryside. It’s been a perfect way to decompress our yoga’d out selves, in preparation for our return to Hong Kong on Lunar New Year’s Day. I’m looking forward to reconnecting with my man, my friends, and my students, and to more birthday and New Year celebrations!
Gratitude to the beautiful country and people of Vietnam...
Cheers to the Year of the Ox…
Big love to you!
PS 200+ photos here! I suggest viewing in the Detail option as you'll see about 20 photos per page and can pretty quickly scan through the album.
I have been traveling with my friend Karen, combining a yoga training/retreat (led by one of my teachers, Twee Merrigan) and a journey into new lands. Our travels began a couple weeks ago in Saigon (aka Ho Chi Minh City), with a rude awakening reminder to not be naive little tourists. Though we'd been warned of swindlers, we had been in the country but 10 minutes before getting cheated by an opportunistic taxi driver. He came right up to us and asked if we needed a taxi into the city. We already knew that it should cost about 8 USD but when he told us that it cost 500,000 Vietnamese Dong, we became flustered as we struggled to figure out the conversion. We had just exchanged our Hong Kong Dollars and were still trying to wrap our minds around the exchange rate (2,120 HKD = 1,000 VND or 17,500 USD = 1,000 VND…whattttt???). Karen, much better with numbers than I am, quickly did the math in her head and said he was asking for 30 USD. He said, “Nooo! It is 9 USD!”, making her second guess herself. I stood by totally useless as he grabbed my suitcase and ushered us towards his cab, saying, “9 USD Okay? Okay?” He then literally took the Dong out of my hands, and we were well on our way before we pulled out our BlackBerrys to use the calculator function to confirm that yes, Karen had been correct in her mental calculation and yes, we had just gotten ripped off.
Doh!
We stayed at the Saigon Mini Hotel, a boutique hotel that seems typical to Vietnam. These hotels resemble townhouses, having about 4-5 stories; the first story is like the main floor of any home with a living room and a kitchen and the guest rooms are on the floors above. We stayed in their most expensive room at 50 USD/night. The Saigon Mini is technically a “business” hotel, but it was homey and clean, the staff helpful and friendly. It’s a bit off of any main road, which is nice in a loud and busy city like Saigon.
Armed with the Luxe guide, we walked around town, doing our tourist duty by visiting the Cathedral (closed around noon, so we didn’t get to go inside), the old Post Office (straight from the ‘50s), and the Reunification Palace (could have skipped this one). Ton That Thiep was our favorite little area, with a sweet little spa called Jasmine where we had a massage, a hair wash, and a mani/pedi all for about 45 USD. Such a treat! The best part of our stay in Saigon was the food. We had delicious, fresh, healthy, and super inexpensive meals at Quan An Ngon, Bun Ta, and Cha Ca Hanoi: all DEFINITELY recommended! Other than that, it’s just about walking around and people-watching on major streets such as Le Loi and Dong Khoi, and at Tao Dan Park. Oh, and learning not to get run over by the gazillion motorbikes going in every direction with very little discretion! Strangely, though, I noticed there is an order to the disorder of it all, and you could even say there is an art to weaving in and out of the thick traffic, a dance, if you will. My Budokon teacher Kancho Cameron Shayne once explained the art of practicing martial arts as not being about competition or violence, but rather a skillful dance between two beings, totally present and aware of each others’ intentions and movements. You could say crossing the streets of Saigon was sort of like that. Plus plenty of loud, unnecessary horn honking.
From Saigon we went to Hoi An, a beautiful beach town outside of Da Nang (which itself looked rather uninteresting). Our retreat was held at the Palm Garden Resort, which was just lovely…right on the beach (a vast shoreline of super soft white sand), huge pool, beautiful grounds. Food at the hotel wasn’t exceptional, though, and communication (in general here) was pretty tough. The weather was a comfortably warm 25-ish degrees Celsius most of the time, except for the very first night, which was a freezing 17 degrees – the coldest Hoi An had been since 1975!
The training/retreat was so perfect. Thank you to wonderful Nicky of Breathing Room Yoga for putting it together! Every morning began with a Prana Flow Master Class (sometimes practice would be over 4 hours long!), and the Teacher Training on Energetic Alignment was on the first 3 days. Twee is a senior teacher of Shiva Rea and the Prana Flow tribe. She has been on her Soul Connections Tour over the past couple years, traveling all across the globe to share her love and knowledge of yoga. She is a highly inspiring and inspired teacher, truly embodying the flow of yoga in all of life. I encourage all yogis to seek her out if she’s ever in your town. Please follow the hyperlinks for more information.
Hoi An’s city center is known as Ancient Town, because much of the city’s original architecture has been maintained and turned into shops and cafes for tourists. It is – as all the guidebooks say – completely charming, and the vibe is chilled out and laid back…perfect for this native Californian! Meals in town were simply amazing, particularly the Hoi An specialties of Cao Lau, White Rose (delicately made dumplings), and Fried Wonton. Loads of fresh veggies adorned all plates, and practically everything could be made vegetarian. Our favorite spots were: Mango Room, Ly’s Café 22, Hai Café, Red Bridge Restaurant, and Cargo Club (aka our drug dealer, as their Vietnamese White Coffee was so addictive that we went back day after day for more). Most of these restaurants overlook Hoi An River, which runs along one side of town. There was also this BBQ spot on the beach near the resort where we had some of the freshest seafood ever, especially the squid, which we ordered seconds of before we finished off the first order.
The one thing I could have done without was the evening cooking class at Hai Café. The food at the restaurant is delicious, but the class left much to be desired. It was not at all “hands-on”, as everything was already prepared before our arrival, and we basically watched the chef do it all. Apparently, the full day sessions are much more involving and interesting. The one thing I wish I did do was a bike ride through the rice paddies. A couple of the other girls went, and their photos were just amazing.
I celebrated my birthday in Hoi An, complete with a "sacred chant Twee learned from a Hungarian woman" (ie “Happy Birthday”), balloons, a sunset boat ride down the river, gluttonous chocolate mousse cake, and everything courtesy of my tribe – the whole entire day! It’s Twee’s birthday rule, and I was happy – and so grateful – to oblige. I’m still so high and happy from all the love…not to mention the nearly 200 emails/texts/Facebook messages I have received. Wow! Seriously, I feel so loved, and so humbled by everyone’s thoughtfulness. Thank you for thinking of me!
And so we have found our way to Da Lat, a mountainous area about 300 miles (45 min flight) from Saigon. Like California, much of Da Lat is covered in farmland. Apparently many western fruits and vegetables that don’t normally grow in Southeast Asia, like strawberries, are grown here because of its dryer, milder climate. Fruit here is exceptionally sweet, and we’ve been treated to heaps of pineapple, mango, watermelon, dragon fruit, passion fruit, bananas, and pomelo for breakfast. BREAD is so delicious all over Vietnam, and I’ve definitely taken advantage of that, as it’s very hard to get proper bread in Hong Kong.
We’re staying at Dreams, another boutique hotel that is rated #1 on several travel sites, even before the uber posh Sofitel. We decided that 25 USD/night was too good to pass up. It’s fine…clean enough, with hot water and a recently renovated bathroom, but the bathtub leaks and I dropped a piece of cracker (ok, maybe it was a few pieces…) and in no time we were visited by ants. The included breakfast I mentioned above is fantastic though, and the service is very good. Still, I think next time I will pay twice as much and stay at the Novotel. We had a great Sunday brunch there, as well as high tea at the Sofitel, which were each only 15 USD! Everything in Vietnam is so cheap, but in 13 days, I still managed to spend over 6 MILLION Dong! (Can you figure out the conversion?)
Other than food, Da Lat is about relaxing and strolling around. Whether you take a simple walk around the artificial (but still lovely) Xuan Houng Lake right in the center of town, or take a more intense trek up Pinhatt Mountain like we did (even though we requested a relaxing, easy walk) to take in an incredible view, there are many ways to enjoy the natural beauty of the countryside. It’s been a perfect way to decompress our yoga’d out selves, in preparation for our return to Hong Kong on Lunar New Year’s Day. I’m looking forward to reconnecting with my man, my friends, and my students, and to more birthday and New Year celebrations!
Gratitude to the beautiful country and people of Vietnam...
Cheers to the Year of the Ox…
Big love to you!
PS 200+ photos here! I suggest viewing in the Detail option as you'll see about 20 photos per page and can pretty quickly scan through the album.
Monday, October 6, 2008
6 October 2008: plastic bottles?
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
ps Randy Pausch
I'm sure you've all already heard of Randy Pausch's Last Lecture... I had, but I hadn't checked it out until today. (I'm nursing a cold so I'm lounging around at home seeking internet inspirations.) Wow. Love it. Love him. I highly recommend checking it out if you haven't already. There's also another great lecture called Time Management. You'll find both here.
Sending so much love and gratitude to him and his family. (Randy passed away in July.)
Sending so much love and gratitude to him and his family. (Randy passed away in July.)
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