tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57642084585233323742024-02-21T00:15:45.220-07:00Jeff Warner~PHOTOGRAPHIC_blogFrom August through December of 2011, my family and I traveled around the world on Semester at Sea's Fall 2011 Voyage. During that time, this blog was devoted to photographic endeavors in 14 countries over those 111 days, though we are now back to reality after an amazing adventure!Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.comBlogger126125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-72080645894811518972012-01-25T13:48:00.003-07:002012-01-25T13:48:36.164-07:0011/11/12: Kobe, Japan<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We awoke to a drizzly day in the port of Kobe, and the four of us decided to head out with the Fowler family to the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens, where a gondola takes you up into the hills overlooking Kobe, where we could see the MV Explorer docked below. The Kobe region looks much like the Bay Area, with green hills rising nearly straight from the water, the temperate fall rain adding to the effect. <br /> </span><div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We ran across this container just lying on a sidewalk, and I have no idea what it was. They don't eat pickled turtle around here, do they?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirT6jMownDCrsJmm0q5ROGPoABI7CUC4m1T6oWFX6XBLMLoW9wsb_yiEYZWdRGJqAxCVvrAjD4wIyMl3yLMJmqEAoofLbbNM0MlxF4tg44sA-R_MfQHeuoN9UFCqBxkGmlYTbl4T4_aW8/s1600/111111-03.06.41_Kobe%257CJapan-IMG_3983.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirT6jMownDCrsJmm0q5ROGPoABI7CUC4m1T6oWFX6XBLMLoW9wsb_yiEYZWdRGJqAxCVvrAjD4wIyMl3yLMJmqEAoofLbbNM0MlxF4tg44sA-R_MfQHeuoN9UFCqBxkGmlYTbl4T4_aW8/s640/111111-03.06.41_Kobe%257CJapan-IMG_3983.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Warner and Fowler boys yucking it up outside a 7-Eleven, which are very common here on the ground floors of tall buildings.</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Our first order of business was finding an ‘English-speaking’ ATM, which wasn’t as easy as you might think. Having lived in Japan, Mike and Julie guided us through town to find a place to have lunch, where Tate had the misfortune of having miso soup spilled all over him (I felt even worse for our non-English speaking waitress, who seemed positively horrified that the poor little guy got a miso shower!).<br /></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhplbS0jlVIURqWFvMPrvmOrD_8OWb1UxnD2Qckzo2Fi4mRp2agvsCqlr7kROjgNU5mj6Ou7Ul3E8sgcN-pnemJN2X_jGwHmeiGToc_sztiPMeSVcocd_AGT8wdRl0R3XOT97KQ9YxFYpI/s1600/111111-04.48.41_Kobe%257CJapan-IMG_4004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhplbS0jlVIURqWFvMPrvmOrD_8OWb1UxnD2Qckzo2Fi4mRp2agvsCqlr7kROjgNU5mj6Ou7Ul3E8sgcN-pnemJN2X_jGwHmeiGToc_sztiPMeSVcocd_AGT8wdRl0R3XOT97KQ9YxFYpI/s640/111111-04.48.41_Kobe%257CJapan-IMG_4004.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is what the entrance to a Japanese parking lot looks like; the robotic system 'files' your car, then retrieves it when you want it.</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The town of Kobe is very clean and very modern, with no hint whatsoever of any earthquake-affected structures (other than the fact that many seemed recent); apparently the Port of Kobe was literally rebuilt from the ground up after the earthquake. Mike (firmly in the lead with map in hand) then led us to the subway, which took us a few miles to the base of the hills. Fortunately the clouds parted a bit so we could see below, and we had a nice walk down through garden paths and a lush, green forest, with great views of a waterfall along the way. Although Tate is usually warm, he was uncharacteristically huddled inside his rain jacket, and occasionally complained “I smell like miso soup!” Poor kid will probably never eat the stuff again. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view from the top very much resembled the view from the Berkeley Hills.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flower beds being tended to at Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Construction by large monkeys in the area?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This appeared to be Kobe's official 'symbol', or perhaps it is a representation of Kobe in Japanese?</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I’m sure you’ve heard how expensive it is to travel in Japan, but wow, I wasn’t prepared for it. Fortunately public transportation is relatively inexpensive, otherwise it could prove prohibitive just to get around, as even the most minimal of taxi rides starts at around $40. After catching a train back to the MV Explorer, we decided that having dinner on the ship would be the right thing to do, and, coupled with the weather, it wasn’t difficult to convince ourselves to stay in for the night. </span></div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-64190693545526223642012-01-24T17:52:00.004-07:002012-01-24T23:22:54.199-07:0011/9/11: China in the Rear View<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Upon departing the fantastical nighttime skyline of Shanghai, all I could do is stand on the 7th Deck of the MV Explorer and contemplate what China is today, compared to what I thought it was merely one week ago. That’s not to say that I had any radical pre-conceived notions or anything, but those of us of ‘middle age’ (I’ll let you put a face on <i>that</i> one!) have seen China grow from a country of widespread impoverishment to one with a rapidly-growing middle class, a country that in some ways now resembles the U.S. as it was in the late 1950’s. I might even argue that China is likely poised to undergo social changes of similar impact to what the U.S. experienced in the 1960’s, though that remains to be seen with the impending change of leadership that will occur during the next decade. <br /> <br />Those of us who were adults anytime from the late 70’s on probably has an indelible impression of the “Made in China” label. It became—and for many years remained—a sort of economic battle cry shouted out by both politicians and business owners alike, and over time morphed into a slogan that belied some intrinsic or unassailable assumption of inferior quality, deserved or not. We in the U.S. now simply accept the fact that many (dare I say, most) of our ‘stuff’ is made in China; examples abound, not the least of which are things like U.S. flags, etc. <br /><br />I believe that over time many of our western attitudes toward this country that few have visited have changed in some positive ways, although a basic set of fundamental scare tactics continue to be employed by those who have something more to lose than your ‘average’ American. We all have something to lose in this, but perhaps the nature of what is at risk is less obvious than some would have you believe. I don’t personally think that we should be afraid that China will soon flex its military might and choose to essentially start WWIII, nor can I envision them throwing their cards in on the world financial system and demanding repayment of debts gone by. I believe that they have learned through recent experience that their economy is inextricably intertwined</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">—as is ours—</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">with the world economy; what is bad for one is bad for the other. Many people might prefer us to believe that this is unacceptable, but I would have to necessarily disagree on that point. As Thomas Friedman posited in <i>The World is Flat</i>, globalization is a necessary and unavoidable progression, and it will occur however much we kick and scream, however much we deem it ‘unfair’ to lose jobs to foreign countries. <br /> <br />As far as we in the U.S. can see, long ago China started with the manufacturing of knick-knacks, and has progressed to replicating high-quality items inexpensively. Foreign investment in high-tech fabrication practically ensures that their skillsets will rapidly grow to challenge other more-developed countries, but it’s not this that should be worrisome to those interested in the long-term future of the West. It’s their commitment to raise their widespread lower classes up into the middle, their investments in national education that should truly worry Western politicians and zillionaires. It is only a matter of time before China begins to overtake Western countries in <i>ideas</i>; our ability to innovate at the highest levels and think ‘out of the box’ to create something new will soon be novel no more. <br /><br />Agonizing over lost jobs or even lost industries is short-sighted at best, especially considering that our future generations are effectively being flushed down the toilet by failing to re-imagine our country’s public education system in this rapidly developing world. The fact that in this day and age the Supreme Court can decide to open the floodgates on private money flowing into the political system, while budget cuts to public education continue to increase at alarming rates is a repulsive paradigm that cannot be taken lightly. But, of course, ‘our kids’ will be OK, ‘we’ have the means to ensure they are well-educated. But, don’t neglect to consider that the median household income in the U.S. is a mere $31k. How many families do you know who live on so little? Increasingly, ‘our’ impending situation is not so different from countries we not long ago deemed to be ‘Third World’. <br /> <br />There is, however, one fundamental difference: ‘we’ seem to have forgotten how to invest in our future, and it’s been enlightening to discover that countries with relatively little to invest are keenly focused not on today, but on a decade or two down the road. <br /> <br />'We' should be so lucky.</span><br />
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</div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-37772995795150981792012-01-24T13:11:00.001-07:002012-01-24T13:11:24.632-07:0011/8/11: Shanghai, China<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After leaving Ghuangxi Province and arriving in Shanghai the previous night, the contrast was stark. I was now smack in the middle of a very large, very modern city, the MV Explorer having sailed here from Hong Kong with my family onboard while I was away. Hong Kong’s skyline was impressive, Shanghai’s even more so. It was a bit strange returning to the ship, as most of the crew had been relieved in Hong Kong, and there were now few faces that I knew, especially in the dining rooms, where virtually all ‘our’ crew had gone home for two months.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laundry rods are hanging outside practically every window of every building, everywhere in China, even highrises!</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heidi, Reade, Tate and I got out to walk Shanghai along the riverfront, and we paralleled The Bund (the former financial ‘hub’ of Asia) as we found our way to a large market, the Yu Yuan Bazaar. We left the riverfront (an area busy with tourists), and meandered into the streets of Shanghai, where I was immediately mesmerized by a very old-looking neighborhood surrounded on all sides (for miles?) by relatively new construction, mostly highrises. As I was already lagging far behind, I couldn’t stop to take much of a look, and it gnawed at me (the way missed photographic or experiential opportunities often do) as we progressed toward our destination.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quite literally: 'bird eggs'. Apparently you eat one for good luck; any more, and it's bad luck.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jackfruit; unfortunately, we didn't think to try any.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These young ladies were very interested to talk to Reade and Tate, and made it a point of asking if they had girlfriends.</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We made a pit stop in a Starbuck’s, then had a great Chinese lunch followed by a pomelo I’d bought on the street and stuffed into our pack. The shopping was entertaining (Angry Birds paraphernalia, anyone?), and although we had come to see the Yu Yuan Gardens, the admission price was a bit steep, considering how little time we had to spend there before this evening’s ‘on-ship’ time prior to leaving for Japan. We saw some stuff we didn’t want to eat, some we did, and a whole bunch of items in between (wigs appear to be popular here in China). The boys were hankering to go back to the MV Explorer and play ping pong, so since Heidi had to get back for clinic, I decided to meander my way back toward that ancient-looking neighborhood to the south.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Entering this neighborhood gave me a dank glimpse of what life must have been like for many—if not most—people in China up until the rapid cycle of development began in the last decade or two. Very, very small shacks and sheds with red tile or corrugated metal roofs, central walkways between rows of buildings, the occasional community bathroom. Each little apartment (I hesitate referring them as houses) had a water basin and countertop right outside the front door, and it seemed kind of like the present-day ‘water-cooler’ back home, as people were in close quarters doing what they had to do, chatting, or not chatting, moseying in and out of their front doors. This neighborhood was clearly very, very old, though I really had no concept of just how old it was. The people there seemed to keep it quite clean despite the fact that some of the buildings were practically falling apart, and there were far more bicycles in this area than I’d seen all day.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh56f3hAooeNJfr3FYyk3CMl28aPCr0uNBe4pchn_W9cVbGiiuixHuuoPEM579itoieDrLmv5OrpL1qwYxaw6l8C4NNVVAy6e-myVOQrhVqFblUUUsliNpUXeRFWdemqOxZb7585XaMX24/s1600/110811-07.41.47_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh56f3hAooeNJfr3FYyk3CMl28aPCr0uNBe4pchn_W9cVbGiiuixHuuoPEM579itoieDrLmv5OrpL1qwYxaw6l8C4NNVVAy6e-myVOQrhVqFblUUUsliNpUXeRFWdemqOxZb7585XaMX24/s640/110811-07.41.47_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8855.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeRirS0uYpcNc4Y4JH7DnG_u7nW2QYrCAJPUdir7-M7aO_6sf9Qr9bLwxaIjfTTc2hbu4PfwZFSLzSMgQyne1UmlnKWdHoFISvj9gziIw_-22uJqKaPBAXy9tjaftzbrxTUVMtONAGF00/s1600/110811-07.44.50_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8868.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeRirS0uYpcNc4Y4JH7DnG_u7nW2QYrCAJPUdir7-M7aO_6sf9Qr9bLwxaIjfTTc2hbu4PfwZFSLzSMgQyne1UmlnKWdHoFISvj9gziIw_-22uJqKaPBAXy9tjaftzbrxTUVMtONAGF00/s640/110811-07.44.50_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8868.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I’m not sure how long this enclave along Yuelai St. will last given its proximity to the ongoing redevelopment going on in Shanghai, so I guess I’ll have to check in with Google Earth occasionally to discover this little neighborhood’s fate. [31°13.376’N, 121°29.793’E]</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhF7tevmLBsa_kEkC8Vndr7tB4cQVztWXnpkp1PsV4T3jVygIHBT2KGmxyngQbDA4Z3xpIu-u61Bxon5b_Eqt73F5pAWE7vXB_fQklqBvOI28lNuVjWP9sCB1Wy8V0QXqs2qcQ7aPHbmc/s1600/110811-07.58.25_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhF7tevmLBsa_kEkC8Vndr7tB4cQVztWXnpkp1PsV4T3jVygIHBT2KGmxyngQbDA4Z3xpIu-u61Bxon5b_Eqt73F5pAWE7vXB_fQklqBvOI28lNuVjWP9sCB1Wy8V0QXqs2qcQ7aPHbmc/s640/110811-07.58.25_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8911.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ever feel like a traffic cone in the streets of life?</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDm7-qUWPGEDb5nq4pUuw1sRdo7Msoa6ShOCYCh5mqe3DFBljch0aH6SAN_ET0y8arzCAoXQbv8I0njwNSvZ_zxIvJb5CPE2ipyH_YyyN7aIYAEZgIk070jW8OyAdlh7aYOqPCSEzeuCw/s1600/110811-08.02.17_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8934.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDm7-qUWPGEDb5nq4pUuw1sRdo7Msoa6ShOCYCh5mqe3DFBljch0aH6SAN_ET0y8arzCAoXQbv8I0njwNSvZ_zxIvJb5CPE2ipyH_YyyN7aIYAEZgIk070jW8OyAdlh7aYOqPCSEzeuCw/s400/110811-08.02.17_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8934.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2B4z0oeW986fDxW5D57-gfVwZg2FdnmE8_SAHBJGtxgqczL_1_Qr6IvdB_qbSoI8NayKZ6BYlR0NLDgU2v4MwUAhE5uw-u6igLXvP1HukrW3GMGiqjI1hrvBF0IgBUcv_iQRH0ozfvtQ/s1600/110811-08.15.48_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8954.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2B4z0oeW986fDxW5D57-gfVwZg2FdnmE8_SAHBJGtxgqczL_1_Qr6IvdB_qbSoI8NayKZ6BYlR0NLDgU2v4MwUAhE5uw-u6igLXvP1HukrW3GMGiqjI1hrvBF0IgBUcv_iQRH0ozfvtQ/s400/110811-08.15.48_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8954.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO65LoIa8704uHwK5W1ks4oxBTPsxgqHS9frGQqi7lm9qKFb_9w-84udRWVIMH__XsMdf8Gk3tfkmhHHpmy1RzpSHD8ltnG-N5GGLH2asei8TWwlCQ0Yw5vJNMdvfp8V0CoiyL4upsRpI/s1600/110811-08.25.53_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8997.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO65LoIa8704uHwK5W1ks4oxBTPsxgqHS9frGQqi7lm9qKFb_9w-84udRWVIMH__XsMdf8Gk3tfkmhHHpmy1RzpSHD8ltnG-N5GGLH2asei8TWwlCQ0Yw5vJNMdvfp8V0CoiyL4upsRpI/s640/110811-08.25.53_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_8997.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-hBW1JayQKpfi12jYG2OLKYrMFZgsJ2D_GmAMjyFMGgvQRCqae65BCgdBBRFKxH__cVjQgPdBvyjd7vg8SE2xOeTaHfpJ0yJdvgE7EKUsl1-zT5pzxu8p2gqKItxKdmYsFhRT7jpWM0s/s1600/110811-08.41.29_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9020.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-hBW1JayQKpfi12jYG2OLKYrMFZgsJ2D_GmAMjyFMGgvQRCqae65BCgdBBRFKxH__cVjQgPdBvyjd7vg8SE2xOeTaHfpJ0yJdvgE7EKUsl1-zT5pzxu8p2gqKItxKdmYsFhRT7jpWM0s/s640/110811-08.41.29_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9020.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I count seven discrete buildings here, looking at the high-res image in Lightroom.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbMVUnc8gEDmP54QtjTdiGbyz09ouIlG6AmB8jaM3Zs-xW98UYCs_sT6OGC5ZYeHXmc7oChSk0fUP7KkoLwy7-ZpqBl2aYeNdSGqu_ahqVvZvNwyM9ZIQ5K1jrW19XaVOD7HlpLMOHFOo/s1600/110811-08.42.49_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9027.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbMVUnc8gEDmP54QtjTdiGbyz09ouIlG6AmB8jaM3Zs-xW98UYCs_sT6OGC5ZYeHXmc7oChSk0fUP7KkoLwy7-ZpqBl2aYeNdSGqu_ahqVvZvNwyM9ZIQ5K1jrW19XaVOD7HlpLMOHFOo/s400/110811-08.42.49_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9027.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A member of the Party.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcCijpiK4BAhjWrsL_nbcE3aCgDNofDQCAnI5qjFfQhlnBG6k5TU2XuA3fWKfjFLTrUyA6YT0T8BOa8GdOnJfn6XdvdxFNnuqC_2_t4uppdqAVANpluOJKYQjtou4fbNSJytFYlorOhc/s1600/110811-08.46.06_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9033.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcCijpiK4BAhjWrsL_nbcE3aCgDNofDQCAnI5qjFfQhlnBG6k5TU2XuA3fWKfjFLTrUyA6YT0T8BOa8GdOnJfn6XdvdxFNnuqC_2_t4uppdqAVANpluOJKYQjtou4fbNSJytFYlorOhc/s640/110811-08.46.06_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9033.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The MV Explorer and it's rather incredible berth in Shanghai.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4sscTdqfoHORl57j0QFdHWJg6oYB_14oUtXDUpr_wdu9OEQzz-nfeZs4WUjMHxwzvyDPkCGWktRERDoGbgkrTSJXqzjXW6pqdmZgJrdMRSCdpLAAQDBxtLM3Ob1z-aFlHU766xlBdivw/s1600/110811-09.06.02_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9048.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4sscTdqfoHORl57j0QFdHWJg6oYB_14oUtXDUpr_wdu9OEQzz-nfeZs4WUjMHxwzvyDPkCGWktRERDoGbgkrTSJXqzjXW6pqdmZgJrdMRSCdpLAAQDBxtLM3Ob1z-aFlHU766xlBdivw/s400/110811-09.06.02_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9048.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anyone seen the manual for this camera? Anyone?</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFzMdjcNELp-03DTcFhdge1uvKGdk-R6NaFirXt43qUkQlmCluLGQ-owdQOXWCJPsRk4TKNM-bfInwJnJkvq18-feS9q508dj7pQwQJwP4o1OwHPlFczNkgEqjr-TaUf7OktcZBIgx10Y/s1600/110811-10.00.39_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFzMdjcNELp-03DTcFhdge1uvKGdk-R6NaFirXt43qUkQlmCluLGQ-owdQOXWCJPsRk4TKNM-bfInwJnJkvq18-feS9q508dj7pQwQJwP4o1OwHPlFczNkgEqjr-TaUf7OktcZBIgx10Y/s640/110811-10.00.39_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9111.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJLJ7mKXRGCQatyQArEe9Ty1Gk4ZLNLtrK0b6QTnnmc2PnC8Iv3JMg_zSVxFTw0bhdPpOeT9R7TzmqfNCggTb4bU28r3bqesBpcWz8sK33MKvuYPdBF1VND-l7VOeqrOc5nOuUkM04A64/s1600/110811-10.12.58_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9127.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJLJ7mKXRGCQatyQArEe9Ty1Gk4ZLNLtrK0b6QTnnmc2PnC8Iv3JMg_zSVxFTw0bhdPpOeT9R7TzmqfNCggTb4bU28r3bqesBpcWz8sK33MKvuYPdBF1VND-l7VOeqrOc5nOuUkM04A64/s640/110811-10.12.58_Shanghai%257CChina-IMG_9127.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-83274219037929642442012-01-23T14:37:00.003-07:002012-01-24T22:21:50.333-07:0011/7/11: Yangshuo, China<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />This morning found me out again at 6am, wondering if the sun might actually ‘rise’ out of the haze. I climbed to the top of Xilang Hill at Yangshuo Park, where a pagoda at the tip of a spine of rock overlooks the business end of Yangshuo. Although the sunrise was something less than spectacular, the location gave an almost ‘aerial’ view of the hustle and bustle of daily life unfolding before me on this morning. I took the opportunity to capture some long-exposure images of street life from above, and then proceeded back down the narrow, steep, winding stairs and pathway that led to the main park. Older gentleman could be seen playing cards, people walking or sitting, middle-aged women dancing in a large group, many people eyeing me oddly, probably wondering what I was doing there. In turn, I wondered about them, and contemplated what changes they’d witnessed in this ‘little’ town over the last decades of relatively rapid development in Asia.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBsE_sjTlCV5ug8Scq-lkSk4RUWZK5BVKFviYDgd7uOrdYM28PE0Hcai9YNBJiYNj3mLL4_a4ZlWUqpLJPCJDbNRp8XrSE9b2wE8SGTR9DkNmDJxM419e3-lbrhDK1eEJRXeoAALSxepg/s1600/110611-22.44.22_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8349.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBsE_sjTlCV5ug8Scq-lkSk4RUWZK5BVKFviYDgd7uOrdYM28PE0Hcai9YNBJiYNj3mLL4_a4ZlWUqpLJPCJDbNRp8XrSE9b2wE8SGTR9DkNmDJxM419e3-lbrhDK1eEJRXeoAALSxepg/s640/110611-22.44.22_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8349.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yangshuo by dawn.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC-bqPfCNJ_MSJQm5p_SXftsMONXfTqGrlSs-BB97s1ITaIJeWhMxYARHe5PBSjTK7NAiIbZBMbfEosJtUnkn3v8w3rp8DPefDu97iilvLDebIikm2RKbF_SQlfUe2MTlUM0FUIs2m-Pw/s1600/110611-23.21.47_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8422.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC-bqPfCNJ_MSJQm5p_SXftsMONXfTqGrlSs-BB97s1ITaIJeWhMxYARHe5PBSjTK7NAiIbZBMbfEosJtUnkn3v8w3rp8DPefDu97iilvLDebIikm2RKbF_SQlfUe2MTlUM0FUIs2m-Pw/s640/110611-23.21.47_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8422.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho8ikCtsg4R54rlMx21Teu5TPhZeZwUwk2SrSHagYIyMttwox1nr4CMKiifKT6aXPeAOEge7wWPTXHVlgrJgAWFMflGzAV5jGZAxsDSvN6PHFouGmsI9QGyaKDcItOfHcbBO4TqV9iWBQ/s1600/110611-23.35.54_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8449.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho8ikCtsg4R54rlMx21Teu5TPhZeZwUwk2SrSHagYIyMttwox1nr4CMKiifKT6aXPeAOEge7wWPTXHVlgrJgAWFMflGzAV5jGZAxsDSvN6PHFouGmsI9QGyaKDcItOfHcbBO4TqV9iWBQ/s640/110611-23.35.54_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8449.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The highest pagoda on Xilang Hill, Yangshuo Park.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBfr3C3fHI3JCR2oozVSBG7H3-1eheiLSTgfdgM7kZXEHhpRBzuS_c1TrrsvooecvGAZmlrbUunxNygWUsqQQUsLFYP8zVzg2sThxKMYu3DER1ycv5dRyAorPdzZx3MP5EBEUk7gCutn4/s1600/110611-23.56.25_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8489.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBfr3C3fHI3JCR2oozVSBG7H3-1eheiLSTgfdgM7kZXEHhpRBzuS_c1TrrsvooecvGAZmlrbUunxNygWUsqQQUsLFYP8zVzg2sThxKMYu3DER1ycv5dRyAorPdzZx3MP5EBEUk7gCutn4/s640/110611-23.56.25_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8489.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lockstep.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilpTklHG4GQ_5uIBALn62wHTy29fjJ46wsotxBNorUoScG8vyhuLO-y5drm7XI9l-p2AFh3qV7OdH2Up0N8iwG8lcAGmdAjG7Ym0nh8w19PcrZ2IJPRzFSqYK9jNh2TOZKa3qtQNDFb08/s1600/110711-00.02.35_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8512.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilpTklHG4GQ_5uIBALn62wHTy29fjJ46wsotxBNorUoScG8vyhuLO-y5drm7XI9l-p2AFh3qV7OdH2Up0N8iwG8lcAGmdAjG7Ym0nh8w19PcrZ2IJPRzFSqYK9jNh2TOZKa3qtQNDFb08/s400/110711-00.02.35_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8512.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitx8IkY_ELwZrp1CDbR3IWd1PKkRiAGrylfenfHC11NGUIpml8j-5g_2gvJPrbANR_yuLUgzj5X90nMy5a8KmdY8uOdvlujmud4hQGkv3O-bEhE9IaM-ZdPF0_Vi6Y1PqX3FE1DoWY7M0/s1600/110711-00.10.36_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8551.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitx8IkY_ELwZrp1CDbR3IWd1PKkRiAGrylfenfHC11NGUIpml8j-5g_2gvJPrbANR_yuLUgzj5X90nMy5a8KmdY8uOdvlujmud4hQGkv3O-bEhE9IaM-ZdPF0_Vi6Y1PqX3FE1DoWY7M0/s640/110711-00.10.36_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8551.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The stairway and path leading to the top of Xilang Hill, Yangshuo Park.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of several pagodas at Xilang Hill.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilCuNlE3KSgNwCdlxmYgN1zC6urX0_1x3MigJB6dVOR_36AS6tkXJAWNmxP7KCKn6VXqqHDOX_gEdTDviQp9gncA9tShplS7ZnP6y75beMET-tElHnGQ0YsXGYZCQdrF0WOjFplWZ_Iqc/s1600/110711-00.36.08_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8610.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilCuNlE3KSgNwCdlxmYgN1zC6urX0_1x3MigJB6dVOR_36AS6tkXJAWNmxP7KCKn6VXqqHDOX_gEdTDviQp9gncA9tShplS7ZnP6y75beMET-tElHnGQ0YsXGYZCQdrF0WOjFplWZ_Iqc/s400/110711-00.36.08_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8610.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The park was clean, except for this corner of it where abundant detritus was found floating in a semi-stagnant branch of the pond.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidaO2vvt5eVg0nsTPqf7kooImRTd2Ql5cE5gTVc_rZn7iw0USfNSFyI_F1_2MM7ArL03T_bVaSwzOPJuzqEy7J5yxuQOr9rMOH5_0ZD4cmLWPHxPKNVUDrUBPJ-e5s5_34-ATNGfCiAEE/s1600/110711-00.39.59_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8617.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidaO2vvt5eVg0nsTPqf7kooImRTd2Ql5cE5gTVc_rZn7iw0USfNSFyI_F1_2MM7ArL03T_bVaSwzOPJuzqEy7J5yxuQOr9rMOH5_0ZD4cmLWPHxPKNVUDrUBPJ-e5s5_34-ATNGfCiAEE/s640/110711-00.39.59_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8617.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Watching.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw16HAGFU46H2ls03FiNs8QrOZsVqh2tJMZrM-M4UNCtqvhElXPK7F7EYzueLb5wanTOCdnqKnSn3u2eLjQz4wUAbQwy7jHr3XxTHS00WstICowLyAzunsbJcvnG1bJMzBHTSsqJsKSD0/s1600/110711-00.44.46_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw16HAGFU46H2ls03FiNs8QrOZsVqh2tJMZrM-M4UNCtqvhElXPK7F7EYzueLb5wanTOCdnqKnSn3u2eLjQz4wUAbQwy7jHr3XxTHS00WstICowLyAzunsbJcvnG1bJMzBHTSsqJsKSD0/s400/110711-00.44.46_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_8620.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My photographic perch, the pagoda on top of Xilang Hill.</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Prior to leaving I took a last opportunity to try and score a scarf I’d had my eye on for Heidi. The problem was that the two vendors who sold them seemed to have no interest in parting me from my money, a very unusual situation thus far on this voyage around the globe. Even after browsing for several minutes, no one came up to ask if I wanted to buy, and given the relatively inflated price tag compared to most other things in China, I started to think that perhaps bargaining was out of the question for this particular item in this particular venue. I finally engaged a younger female sales person, leaving the older male to remain sitting at his counter. Having run a bit low on yuan, I ended up bargaining by adding in the last several U.S. dollars I had been toting around in my wallet, ‘just in case’. The man behind the counter seemed either disenchanted or dully amused by my rather pathetic bargaining tactic, though he eyed the U.S. dollar bills with a curious gaze, almost like he’d never seen one before, inspecting them closely. I thought it odd, West Street having been such an attraction to tourists from around the globe for quite a few years, now; it was formerly a popular destination for off-the-beaten-track backpackers, but is now clearly a major attraction to the ‘new’ Chinese middle class.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxvHvTwaoPHA4E4EfHbYiVjXxFcI5boWT6E2DJLRl_ucDS92SVge07tm_y4AIKXx_ikSDOh8V9MDf_JhdpdKOsx9by7Ui4Cy-kAIpXdBBqKcTV3xDiTe4lUiVEISvSDo1lapsXEKbG_E/s1600/110711-02.39.07_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_3943.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpxvHvTwaoPHA4E4EfHbYiVjXxFcI5boWT6E2DJLRl_ucDS92SVge07tm_y4AIKXx_ikSDOh8V9MDf_JhdpdKOsx9by7Ui4Cy-kAIpXdBBqKcTV3xDiTe4lUiVEISvSDo1lapsXEKbG_E/s640/110711-02.39.07_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_3943.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">West Street wares.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVTTIQxDo969EdXevWu06iGAEPKAJ1ic8UpN8BhyNv5Bb48O-PHKxKvnmDkcicF6DsQxYTl2qrlxreBseG3LHWYRMb76ARF8FAcOhUixY6OTz_1dTGtMIJrlVF4P_kzAmB8rAKDCnAD9c/s1600/110711-06.01.11_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_3966.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVTTIQxDo969EdXevWu06iGAEPKAJ1ic8UpN8BhyNv5Bb48O-PHKxKvnmDkcicF6DsQxYTl2qrlxreBseG3LHWYRMb76ARF8FAcOhUixY6OTz_1dTGtMIJrlVF4P_kzAmB8rAKDCnAD9c/s640/110711-06.01.11_Yangshuo%257CChina-IMG_3966.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sugar cane on a bike.</td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After having yet another ‘local hotel lunch’ on our last day on the road for this incredible trip, during the trip back home it finally occurred to me why they have beautiful limestone streets and people digging holes in cobbly gravel to laboriously extract sand. Sand being in low supply and high demand for construction concrete, the large supply of workers dictates that it makes more sense to build streets and sidewalks out of cut stone than concrete, stone being plentiful. Cheap labor leaves the high-demand sand to be used for construction.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Such an interesting world we live in!</span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-64807463987216676572012-01-13T11:10:00.000-07:002012-01-13T11:10:09.929-07:00Quarterly Cleanup!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Four months, 500GB and 21,000 images later, I now find myself playing virtual 'Whack-a-Mole' with hard drive space, trying to re-allocate hard drives to (sanely?) accommodate the new library of SAS images. One thing I now know, a MacPro can concurrently mount 7 drives at once, totaling more than 7.5TB of data!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMhHjo7j2Zf-Tfy_Lj6CA-9pNMNx1a_8YA-WRcCfof5D2uVz3UQqCGvXS6LIdOnLPsgvR4uqTPmny-EpxShnGogWGwjP_WYNAmTnZ0tzewzIWJk14pzHvEj4g3KpaS6llCxFty9ZvpNYg/s1600/1D_69212-800xBlog__011212.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMhHjo7j2Zf-Tfy_Lj6CA-9pNMNx1a_8YA-WRcCfof5D2uVz3UQqCGvXS6LIdOnLPsgvR4uqTPmny-EpxShnGogWGwjP_WYNAmTnZ0tzewzIWJk14pzHvEj4g3KpaS6llCxFty9ZvpNYg/s400/1D_69212-800xBlog__011212.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-39871745834817227302011-12-26T21:18:00.000-07:002011-12-26T21:18:02.067-07:00Happy Holidays!<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">I just wanted to take a moment and wish all my family, friends, and clients a Happy Holiday Season! May 2012 bring health, happiness, and success to you and yours! </span></div>
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Sincerely, </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Jeff </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZyVeYHh3qm9uLgxokhTmAk0-vxEjVsG8bITzLB1-rqGPKsACe4uvTEQDpSPif1KahbJxTqTW4ykVD9MC-sZX9lrIwZtCgyQTdYIuBLH33H-qPU7ediowPeIU6eyaHD2OLk6fetsoNU9g/s1600/120811_19-08-10-IMG_4257-_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZyVeYHh3qm9uLgxokhTmAk0-vxEjVsG8bITzLB1-rqGPKsACe4uvTEQDpSPif1KahbJxTqTW4ykVD9MC-sZX9lrIwZtCgyQTdYIuBLH33H-qPU7ediowPeIU6eyaHD2OLk6fetsoNU9g/s400/120811_19-08-10-IMG_4257-_blog.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Roatan, Honduras</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-4898174285342767372011-12-12T12:31:00.001-07:002012-01-06T08:55:57.055-07:0012/12/11: SAS MV Explorer Helicopter Medical Evac<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;">As if there weren’t enough excitement around the
ship already with everyone preparing to disembark, unfortunately one passenger
got an early ride to Key West, Florida via a Coast Guard HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Airstation Clearwater, Florida. This is something that happens only on the rarest of occasions, as you might imagine; the
conditions were perfect, and the operation went smoothly. Crossing fingers for her…</span></div>
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<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-40163815677109399292011-12-07T19:18:00.000-07:002012-01-23T11:01:31.768-07:0012/7/11: Transit of Panama Canal<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Although I don't have a single picture from the MV Explorer's transit of the Panama Canal on Wednesday, I've got something even better: 2,315 images strung into a time-lapse of nearly five hours of the eight hour process. I used a tripod-mounted Canon 7D and EF-S 10-22 lens, and shot at 10-second intervals.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It's clear that the Panama Canal was an amazing achievement for 1912, but it's hard to grasp how truly astounding an effort it was without actually seeing it. As our circumnavigation of the earth comes to a close several days from now, I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to do experience it.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Enjoy the images!</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">-Jeff</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">PS: By the way, the linked source file at YouTube has a higher-resolution version if you'd prefer:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eE_Ie5S4TkM&feature=youtu.be">Jeff Warner PHOTOGRAPHIC Panama Canal Time Lapse</a></span></span><br />
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<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-13006978349357069822011-12-06T15:01:00.000-07:002012-01-23T11:07:04.418-07:0012/6/11: Panama Canal WebcamsHey everyone,<br />
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If any of you are sitting around the office bored out of your skull, we'll be transiting the Panama Canal tomorrow, and you can see the MV Explorer via webcam (see link below). Note that times are EASTERN.<br />
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Enjoy,<br />
<br />
Jeff et al<br />
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<td align="right" height="25" valign="middle"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><nobr> Sent: </nobr></span></td>
<td align="right" nowrap="nowrap" valign="middle" width="30%"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><nobr> Tue 12/6/2011 4:55 PM</nobr></span></td>
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<td align="left" valign="middle" width="100%"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> PANAMA CANAL TRANSIT - DECEMBER 7TH, 2011</span></td>
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<td align="right" colspan="3" valign="bottom"><a href="https://mail.semesteratsea.net/exchange/jrwarner/Inbox/PANAMA%20CANAL%20%20TRANSIT%20-%20DECEMBER%207TH,%202011.EML/#"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><nobr></nobr></span></a></td>
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Shipmates,</div>
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Following
please find the transit schedule for the Panama Canal tomorrow for your
reference. Also provided below is the Canal website on which you can
find information about the webcams located in some of locks.</div>
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Enjoy the day!</div>
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Best,</div>
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Laurie</div>
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<a href="https://mail.semesteratsea.net/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.pancanal.com/eng/photo/camera-java.html" target="_blank">www.pancanal.com/eng/photo/camera-java.html</a></div>
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We are scheduled to commence transit through the Panamá Canal <b><u>at 0515hrs tomorrow morning</u></b>. </div>
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The schedule is : -</div>
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MIRAFLORES LOCKS ( East Lane)</div>
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Arriving 0715hrs</div>
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Departing 0820hrs</div>
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PEDRO MIGUEL LOCKS ( East Lane) </div>
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Arriving 0840hrs</div>
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Departing 0915hrs</div>
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GAMBOA </div>
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Passing by 1030hrs</div>
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GATUN LOCKS ( East Lane)</div>
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Arriving 1250hrs</div>
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Departing 1445hrs</div>
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</div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-73363007857375108362011-12-01T18:12:00.000-07:002012-01-23T12:08:18.198-07:0012/1/11: Pacific Crossing Day #17<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Guess what?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As of yesterday we are in the
<b>Mountain Time Zone</b>, despite being in the Pacific Ocean! Midday yesterday the MV
Explorer passed due south of our home in Golden, but we forgot to wave. Today
was a pretty big day for the boys, and few have ever had the opportunity to do
what they did: pilot a craft carrying 783 people on board! </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Back on November 20, SAS had the Fall '11 Voyage
Auction, benefiting ISE in the interest of supplying grants to students for
future voyages. One of the ‘items’ auctioned was a chance to steer the boat,
and Reade and Tate were the lucky recipients of the wonderful generosity of
Dean and Shelley Galloway, who won that particular auction. What a thrill for
them!</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The 2</span><sup style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">nd</sup><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> Officer
started with a briefing on the basics of the ship’s rather small steering
wheel, and at 1307 MST, Tate took the helm. They allowed him to steer 13 degrees
off course, and practice returning the ship to it’s original heading, showing
him how you had to ‘oversteer’ the vessel in the opposite direction for a few
seconds in order to stop turning, then returning the wheel to midships. Reade
then hopped on the controls and practiced a turn or two, but as you might
imagine, his deviations from course were much more subtle. :) At 1334, Reade
returned the helm, after having piloted the ship 7.7 nautical miles (between
the two of them). </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To give you an idea of where we
are right now, if we were driving eastbound on I-70, longitude-wise, Tate took
the controls just east of Kansas City Missouri, near Blue Springs.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Such an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity
for Reade and Tate, and a heartfelt thank you to Dean and Shelley for making it
possible!</span></span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhayZFoLToEZiktXvulBwWiGvGFTZcjU44AKflzr0Aebp2XBOsGIt5zKhLilz1oqXEVMeEU_aJBAsU-JIIL-e3Wbpqxqzb-d9IuYeSdlvykRZSKDCId7xApKtCFXrav0U645FOkZh1xC0w/s1600/120111_20-06-44-IMG_0630-RTsteerMV_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhayZFoLToEZiktXvulBwWiGvGFTZcjU44AKflzr0Aebp2XBOsGIt5zKhLilz1oqXEVMeEU_aJBAsU-JIIL-e3Wbpqxqzb-d9IuYeSdlvykRZSKDCId7xApKtCFXrav0U645FOkZh1xC0w/s640/120111_20-06-44-IMG_0630-RTsteerMV_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Navigational instruments used both to monitor the MV Explorer's autopilot and drive the ship.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-62682333679946818972011-11-20T15:44:00.001-07:002011-11-20T15:53:31.638-07:0011/20/11: Groundhog Day!<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Less than an hour ago at 09:55 hours local (not a named time zone, there's nothing out here!), the MV Explorer crossed the Antimeridian, exactly 180 degrees longitude from the Prime Meridian Church, in Tema, Ghana. The Antimeridian is otherwise know as the International Date Line; please excuse my rather grotesque (pathetic?) drawing of the gopher. Or groundhog. Or whatever it looks like to you...</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">From the middle of the Pacific Ocean,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Jeff</span></span> <br />
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<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-14718924779074883572011-11-10T19:48:00.000-07:002011-11-16T19:50:23.091-07:00Reade and Tate's Fall 2011 School Portrait<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">One of my favorite pictures of them, ever!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-34947247241206938042011-11-06T14:23:00.000-07:002012-01-23T12:45:16.457-07:0011/6/11: Guilin Li River Cruise to Yangshuo<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After being out late again the
previous night, I decided to forego the morning ‘sunrise’ images in deference
for sleeping a bit and getting packed, as we were to leave Guilin via the Li
River Cruise, to spend the night in town of Yanghshuo. The 85 kilometer river
route to Yangshuo would take us past some of the most spectacular scenery of
any country in the world, and the Li River was touted as the primary attraction
of this four day trip.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The dock at Zhu Jiang bustled
with hundreds of people boarding large-ish ferries, shallow-bottomed,
multi-level boats holding something north of 100 passengers each. Our group was
called and we quickly boarded and shoved off. The 24 of us shared the boat with
a variety of other tourists (many of whom appeared Chinese), and space on the
top deck quickly became crowded with people wanting an unimpeded view of the
intriguing landscape along the Li River. Once again, the ‘weather’ (term used
quite loosely) consisted of poor visibility, with temps above 70.</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">[rant] OK, I’ll just come out and say it: as most
of the world was able to vicariously witness during the Beijing Olympics,
China’s air quality is quite simply horrendous, surely a result of the abundant
coal-fired power plants that have sprung up over the last several decades.
China’s 1.8+ billion people has a rapidly growing population of middle-income
wage-earners, and as development rapidly spreads, the government approaches
some of the energy requirements utilizing less-sustainable solutions than the
rest of the world might otherwise prefer. That being said, the U.S. pours more
carbon into the atmosphere, per capita, than any other nation on the planet.
China’s population, however, is poised to potentially dwarf the rest of the
world in both energy and resource consumption if the government doesn’t take
environmental issues into account, which it appears to be doing as of late. [/rant]</span></span>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Alan and I hung out up top with Michele
Boudrias, the Oceanography
professor from the University of San Diego, a
funny Canuck whose class I wish I’d been able to sit in on, my aspirations
having been thwarted by the 5-week crud I came down with in Montreal. As the
boat progressed downstream it occasionally scraped the shallow river bottom (apparently common due to winter’s lack of rainfall), though this year occurring
earlier in the season than normal. Visibility was a few miles, but variable. In
some places it seemed that one side of a peak was actually hazier than the
other, and visibility seemed to vacillate up and down throughout the day. Peaks
as high as 300 meters became more numerous as we continued, with very rocky
shorelines and graveldings :). We ran across some ladies digging 1-2 meter-deep
holes, shovel-fulls of rock cobbles being thrown out of the hole onto a
wooden-framed sieve. Puzzled, I asked our guide what they were looking for, and
he indicated they were actually digging for sand, which was not abundant in
this limestone environment. Wow, now that’s some labor!
</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglgeaeJjCccZiVHP_4f5vlkLuUg4krjMw7d3_IbKTU6MMVC-OiDn718jTZkXu1jMOqiuqcVnqMhxJvUVPjt8gwEOD84U9h4v4SmHt5EF_2TV31k3KhqsexRMWdJ5vVwkqmDWWd8bvL4kY/s1600/110611_02-50-00-IMG_7839-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglgeaeJjCccZiVHP_4f5vlkLuUg4krjMw7d3_IbKTU6MMVC-OiDn718jTZkXu1jMOqiuqcVnqMhxJvUVPjt8gwEOD84U9h4v4SmHt5EF_2TV31k3KhqsexRMWdJ5vVwkqmDWWd8bvL4kY/s400/110611_02-50-00-IMG_7839-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sieving sand from the shore of the Li River.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8NWaopGKNcru2wvlGWbk9h_9W6VM_xNR0IcnhML71QiBkww4dI5G_EsobpG5VhEUgkxocoMbAL2lG2vMUTlxSVEkTzkR1SBSzfP4ZxHD1lVLDFEYHZilsQmK8sCM1dd7J2oufV4GAV7M/s1600/110611_02-56-57-IMG_7844-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8NWaopGKNcru2wvlGWbk9h_9W6VM_xNR0IcnhML71QiBkww4dI5G_EsobpG5VhEUgkxocoMbAL2lG2vMUTlxSVEkTzkR1SBSzfP4ZxHD1lVLDFEYHZilsQmK8sCM1dd7J2oufV4GAV7M/s640/110611_02-56-57-IMG_7844-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As we passed the Xingping ferry port about
midway, the scenery started to get more dramatic with many ‘named’ formations
jutting hundreds of meters straight out of the water. We saw a couple of
Cormorant fishermen paddling boats with 3 or 4 cormorants attached to lines,
rings around their necks to prevent them from swallowing fish (and I thought Vietnamese
‘electric-shock’ fishing was ingenious; or is it merely lazy to make the birds
do all the work?). I’ll leave the rest of the scenery to the images despite the
harshness of the overhead sun, which imparted an irregularity to the light that
was hard to find compelling. </span></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2xsoEKIpIqHJ8li_VWeuqbdsGlX_qnDzJVe0dKG69aHOzTqolpiwGsS27tX0xJ6nVlDRlw_ogGehkY6YzA3_u-_2Kw3iCPjOP7cnZHuKxnNXQFUi9nkJ0zOscl4XZemgImCfZr6UcLk/s1600/110611_03-02-13-IMG_7863-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2xsoEKIpIqHJ8li_VWeuqbdsGlX_qnDzJVe0dKG69aHOzTqolpiwGsS27tX0xJ6nVlDRlw_ogGehkY6YzA3_u-_2Kw3iCPjOP7cnZHuKxnNXQFUi9nkJ0zOscl4XZemgImCfZr6UcLk/s640/110611_03-02-13-IMG_7863-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2gc9eB9HoEJcZ092G_dciCMI1oOK792be8PGG4tWkZMwkFL_EiUAZ3LOGgrSibwHg_blCHFqM6m4TD5JamLcpYLOV0tawDu1MsS7bA5SdjlCaa-IYJh6RN_PFXa3xdluco6yag4B-w9U/s1600/110611_03-04-14-IMG_7868-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2gc9eB9HoEJcZ092G_dciCMI1oOK792be8PGG4tWkZMwkFL_EiUAZ3LOGgrSibwHg_blCHFqM6m4TD5JamLcpYLOV0tawDu1MsS7bA5SdjlCaa-IYJh6RN_PFXa3xdluco6yag4B-w9U/s640/110611_03-04-14-IMG_7868-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYJZSIQ1hyphenhyphen7UBeKpqPOFVzqBW5TQpyksXti-t20hyphenhyphenbu-pPBjIkFmqdiU6TyJI4ucfZzlB_s1dQidzDacQyPwSJQUSi0X33H2nl9MWAQicqiRL3CI43aM4xLjycFH-sRfb9w7jt04curk/s1600/110611_04-25-05-IMG_7992-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYJZSIQ1hyphenhyphen7UBeKpqPOFVzqBW5TQpyksXti-t20hyphenhyphenbu-pPBjIkFmqdiU6TyJI4ucfZzlB_s1dQidzDacQyPwSJQUSi0X33H2nl9MWAQicqiRL3CI43aM4xLjycFH-sRfb9w7jt04curk/s400/110611_04-25-05-IMG_7992-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kevin, with a 20-yuan bill, featuring the scene in the background.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcx9BlsLrDhdz9UWQox4BNAjE7FN-ZDZlsaFHG7IrFhWJQw6P_opkBsO9azESdUao6IPalPEUAh3lhwhWST94iJ50NqJV5nhJein1Nbzd1tT5zaW1Piq5gRyp_FRVcSkPkbh_kr0FMw3U/s1600/110611_04-37-54-IMG_8022-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcx9BlsLrDhdz9UWQox4BNAjE7FN-ZDZlsaFHG7IrFhWJQw6P_opkBsO9azESdUao6IPalPEUAh3lhwhWST94iJ50NqJV5nhJein1Nbzd1tT5zaW1Piq5gRyp_FRVcSkPkbh_kr0FMw3U/s640/110611_04-37-54-IMG_8022-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A cormorant fisherman.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvjhyphenhyphene_P67rrFCqULs9-aUCCsY3UlwniHgemLgJZJqIHoQVMy2jp8k2t09Z4xPmUH4I0Zqx6zC9F9aqoO4kvn8f3zndQHBzfnhboqGN4ST4hIAF4J3bmoT5V6Trp8SOWqLplcRXks_0t4/s1600/110611_05-27-10-IMG_8094-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvjhyphenhyphene_P67rrFCqULs9-aUCCsY3UlwniHgemLgJZJqIHoQVMy2jp8k2t09Z4xPmUH4I0Zqx6zC9F9aqoO4kvn8f3zndQHBzfnhboqGN4ST4hIAF4J3bmoT5V6Trp8SOWqLplcRXks_0t4/s320/110611_05-27-10-IMG_8094-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peace out.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: small;">Upon arrival in Yangshuo, the normal ferry
port could not be used due to </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: small;">the low river level, ‘conveniently’ requiring a
walk of 500 meters down a pathway jammed on all sides by vendors selling the
same stuff we’d seen in both Guilin and Longsheng. The 23 of us--along with
what seemed like several thousand Chinese tourists--all meandered down the same
5-meter wide walkway, with some of our group being Lifelong Learners (the group
of older people on the ship), some of whom weren’t particularly fast nor agile
in the chaos. Once we got to the street, unfortunately one of the Lifelong
Learners got sideswiped by a motor scooter, though thankfully she didn’t appear
too terribly hurt. A shouting match ensued between our guide and the
scooter-driver, who appeared to be suggesting that it wasn’t his fault. Alan
and several others spent the next several hours taking her to two hospitals for
a shoulder x-ray to ensure she was OK (the scooter-driver had been detained and apparently is legally responsible for her medical bills, clearly the source of his rather vociferous objections). </span><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjFuWEoG_m64BFt8DUOMqWXQ1wRXKinXeeC4nOYn9sVAHouo4-6_r7LR8-LVBY-xHmCGehu9OzrrHJERA6gqHF4k9jwuaDxltS-o2EQDMD8jelCItstNvLUDAV3qorL80d5h1jMkB0BA8/s1600/110611_09-42-04-IMG_8217-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjFuWEoG_m64BFt8DUOMqWXQ1wRXKinXeeC4nOYn9sVAHouo4-6_r7LR8-LVBY-xHmCGehu9OzrrHJERA6gqHF4k9jwuaDxltS-o2EQDMD8jelCItstNvLUDAV3qorL80d5h1jMkB0BA8/s400/110611_09-42-04-IMG_8217-ChinaDay4_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nice welder's mask!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: small;">The rest of us walked through the quaint little town
to Ai Yuan Hotel on West Street, yet another self-professed ‘biggest market in
the world’. We found our luggage in the lobby, with a net tossed over it to prevent
any of it from walking off. I quickly dropped my bag in the room and then
walked West Street, a wonderful mix of restaurants, vendors and shops, all
dramatically set beneath steep-sided limestone peaks in all directions. As
beautiful as Guilin was, this mere ‘town’ of 60,000 was simply spectacular, in
all respects. As I came upon a McDonald’s with perhaps one of the most
incredible locations in the entire world, I snapped a picture of ten or so
people about 50 meters away on a footbridge, all pointing their cameras the
same direction. </span><br />
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<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">About the time the shutter clicked my
stupidity dawned on me, and, flip-flops a-flappin’, 20 seconds later found me
standing on the footbridge, pointing my camera westward into the warm sunset,
the orange disk of the sun having </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">just</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">
descended onto the horizon, perfectly situated between two spires above, a
reflecting pond below. What might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see
the sun set in such a wondrous place as this could have been thwarted by any
number of different turns along my path down West Street. Curiously, McDonald’s
proved the ‘visual catalyst’ to my getting to the one place in the vicinity
where it could be viewed. All of 90 seconds and 16 images later, the sun was
gone, the impromptu other-worldly show over, the monotone nature of the
atmosphere resuming. I realized only later while reviewing the pictures that
the building standing above the reflecting pond had a sign on it, which read:
‘Paradesa’.</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As much as I’d typically try to
seize such opportune pieces of text as closure of blog posts, I can’t due to
the positively spectacular show we witnessed later that night, set beneath a
landscape more remarkable even </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">than </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">the Colorado music venue, Red Rocks
Amphitheater. If you recall the Beijing Olympics’ incredible opening and
closing shows, the director of those spectacles has been running a show called
<a href="http://www.yxlsj.com/english/index.asp">‘Impression Sanjie Liu’</a> since 2004, with the backdrop the karst pinnacles along the Li
River. 600 people are involved in this earthscape/visual show presented once or
twice daily, and the limestone peaks 1+ km behind are completely devoid
of ambient light, then alternately lit up with lights, while six hundred people
perform in a huge reflecting pond of the Li River in the foreground. Canoes and
moving, floating walkways are used, with various visual effects like long
lengths of fabric, LED-lit costumes, music, singing, and stories told in
Chinese. All I can say is WOW, and I was kicking myself for not dragging a
tripod with me for this visual and aural feast. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">What a day.</span></div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-22597876858571222242011-11-05T14:03:00.000-06:002012-02-19T13:23:45.517-07:0011/5/11: Longji Mountain Village, Longsheng<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">As my hotel-mate Alan is a die-hard excercise fanatic (much
like Heidi), he awoke at 0530 to go hike some karst hills before our bus left
at 0900 for Longsheng. Hoping to get some sunrise pics of karst peaks around
Guilin, I also arose, asking the concierge where I should go to hike up, above
the town. He suggested XiShan Park, and gave me a little map that showed the
main features in the vicinity. As I stepped out onto the streets, I immediately
noted how hauntingly quiet it was, even though there were people here and
there, a few scooters and bicycles whizzing by, plus the rare car, which was an
obvious distraction compared to everything else. It only then occurred to me
that practically every scooter I’d encountered thus far was electric, and therefore
nearly silent. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Now, normally one would consider this electric
scooter-thing good, environmentally-friendly, and all that. However, I quickly
found the subtle hazard in such vehicles, as some of us Americans may have
noted due to the increasing popularity of the Prius, which is nearly silent at
low speeds. Crossing streets in this quiescent town bathed in morning mist
(though it didn’t <i>seem</i> humid?), I had
to be very careful not to get taken out by one of these soundless menaces, as
you don’t really hear them until it’s too late. So odd that the blaring
scooters of both Vietnam and India were now a comforting thought, as you could
hear them well before the smackdown became inevitable.
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">After walking for 15 minutes or so, I arrived
at the XiShan Park gate, which appeared to be ‘open’, though the gate appeared
to be set up for payment to enter. Steep-sided limestone hills rose in every
direction and I took the first pathway that led upwards, up past small pagodas
on lookout points, with each having one or two older Chinese people practicing
tai-chi. Some loosely slapped arms to and fro, one guy walked the stairs up and
down, and another repeatedly slammed his back into a treetrunk, over and over.
The path rose above a pond below, the other side of which was another steep
hillside, though it appeared only a dirt trail ascended it. Every several
minutes the silent, ethereal ambience would be broken by one of these
individuals, screaming at the top of their lungs for an entire breath,
sometimes being answered from somewhere in the mist across the pond. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">After reaching the amazing view at the top and capturing
some images despite the rather uninspiring atmospheric conditions, at the
bottom I found that there was a network of caves at the base of the hill (most
of which were covered over), presumably to house or preserve the mausoleum of I
can’t remember who. In several little alcoves were prayer shrines, some with a
Buddha, always with flags, incense, etc. The park down below was now quite
busy, some older people playing cards, some walking, and a large group of women
‘dancing’, as many now do for exercise in the morning. As I hurried back to the
hotel to have time to catch breakfast prior to the bus leaving, there were many more
people now in the streets, and the briefest little shard of sunlight pierced
what I am now certain was mostly pollution. Momentarily casting a deep orange
light upon the roadway beneath a row of Osmanthus trees that the city is
renowned for, the tortuous path the sunlight had found closed, quenching the beautiful
light back to grayness.
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjGG0ZiAZNcpJcblNN5Hy6gkmCwVtRuX0Lvm3DZJf_IRHso0CSSF9q9aNYeKHAQ1AP4B4AxacwPrzuaH7P0BWNytdDy5-b71_BRRsy-a2mEAcdTxSqUOrrhQS7aS_enKmer7LIbPrq2ao/s1600/110511_02-15-02-IMG_7176-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjGG0ZiAZNcpJcblNN5Hy6gkmCwVtRuX0Lvm3DZJf_IRHso0CSSF9q9aNYeKHAQ1AP4B4AxacwPrzuaH7P0BWNytdDy5-b71_BRRsy-a2mEAcdTxSqUOrrhQS7aS_enKmer7LIbPrq2ao/s400/110511_02-15-02-IMG_7176-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The wondrous pomelo!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">As we drove toward Longsheng, we passed through
an area where roadside stands had bushels and bushels of these big, round,
greenish-yellow fruits we’d noticed in Vietnam. Fortunately, our tour guide Sunny
bought two for the bus-full of us to try. They were a citrus fruit resembling a
very large grapefruit called honey pomelo. The rind was nearly an inch thick,
yet fairly easy to peel. It was nearly the size of a small
child’s soccer ball, and once you peeled the white covering from each section
the fruit inside was similar to both an orange and grapefruit, but separated quite
nicely out of the skin. It was very ‘meaty’ and not overly juicy (thus not a
mess to eat), but the flavor was absolutely delightful, sweet and slightly tart
(but not acidic), reminding me of the aroma of some kind of flower nectar. Remarkably,
the honey pomelo is indeed worthy of an entire paragraph of this blog, as it is
without question my favorite fruit, citrus or otherwise. [/tangent]</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">
</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">The bus climbed windy roads toward Longji
Mountain Village, a terraced-culture community in Longsheng County, two hours
from Guilin. The road ended in a parking lot where a pathway led upwards
toward the village amongst terraced rice and vegetable fields, most of which
had been recently harvested. Zhuang and Yao peoples inhabit this region, the
former of which is the largest ethnic minority in China, the latter of whose
women never cut their hair after age 18. The Yao women are fierce and
aggressive vendors unlike any in Asia we’d yet encountered, unwilling to take a
‘No’ answer for long minutes of following and repetition. </span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">Walking upwards along the pathway
lined with sidewalk vendors, it contoured along the hillside, in and out of
bamboo groves at the lower elevations, intermittent narrow stairs along the
way. For a mountain community in which walking was certainly the primary means
of transport, they had a remarkable array of products to sell, from the
locally-made water buffalo horn combs so common in Guilin, to fabrics, wall
hangings, rock art, and foods of all sorts and scents. Wooden structures were built
upon concrete pillars anchored into the hillsides, many of which were several stories high,
perched on the hillside with incredible panoramic vistas, unfortunately the
views of which were once again befouled by the ubiquitous air pollution of the
region. </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">We had lunch in one of the
multi-level buildings near the top, and after asking our Guide about the bamboo
sticks I’d seen in sidewalk firepits, he ran out and procured a few from a
vendor. It was BBQ’d sticky rice, lightly seasoned, stuffed into a 2” wide bamboo,
the topside of which is then plugged with a corncob. The bamboo is literally
broken open, and then the rice cut into sections and eaten. By the way, did I
mention the ‘free glass of </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">local </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">beer with meal’ that seems to be the norm
here? I’m a fan!</span></span>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif; font-size: small;">After lunch I took my typical
early leave of the table to wait for the group to conclude eating while
standing outside watching the world go by. Accustomed to watching the endless
drone of scooters rip past any street restaurant in places from Morocco to Vietnam,
this was an especially unique experience, watching how the world works in a
community connected by stairways rather than streets. Hannah and Kevin joined
me for the walk back down; we stopped where a toothless guy was mechanically
pressing fresh sugar cane into cups of juice, and we tried a cupful (all $0.25
worth). Big surprise, it was just like sugar water. Warm sugar water. We
somehow resisted the temptation to try the flattened roasted-whole birds or
dried lizards we subsequently came across. <br /><br />What people do with some of this
stuff I can’t imagine, but I wasn’t able to resist one of the quirks that Heidi
still refuses to understand about me: I bought some rocks. Yes, rocks. The
limestone which gives rise to the incredible karst topography of the region is
cut into slabs, portions selected to be cut and polished into small rock art.
Some of the iron staining can almost look like ancient Asian watercolors of
landscapes, and I was captivated by them, the larger of which were two feet
across and surely would be prohibitively expensive to ship. Unfortunately. </span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmKsHpvE5vIdE9lcD10h6iowUluB_EAT5anMck4RkTgc3QFegLC0acaPIPZpGe_ZdyH74dtBFvoEQdEbMWNKVjpau7nMsXJovoC0H-RgIK-l_DZxdzZVXTASYKJWDIkJ8PMn2fORcU19g/s1600/110511_04-50-45-IMG_7386-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmKsHpvE5vIdE9lcD10h6iowUluB_EAT5anMck4RkTgc3QFegLC0acaPIPZpGe_ZdyH74dtBFvoEQdEbMWNKVjpau7nMsXJovoC0H-RgIK-l_DZxdzZVXTASYKJWDIkJ8PMn2fORcU19g/s640/110511_04-50-45-IMG_7386-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw65RC45_i1Oa6loQFTFsn9Is37th-1Z3bn3OBrDONLkezIQoD2f__veLShBuX8cVcWTkLf1xRcY_rxZW9Y69IunSXnl6SwaxYJ8RawjIx_JDHvOrnvGXugo0nZpRm4p-6ct4EuCH0STQ/s1600/110511_04-53-39-IMG_7401-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw65RC45_i1Oa6loQFTFsn9Is37th-1Z3bn3OBrDONLkezIQoD2f__veLShBuX8cVcWTkLf1xRcY_rxZW9Y69IunSXnl6SwaxYJ8RawjIx_JDHvOrnvGXugo0nZpRm4p-6ct4EuCH0STQ/s400/110511_04-53-39-IMG_7401-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgagiuBvGxQ_hqf65AGtMHZ4AGfrb_bm_m7SaLVUJwebbz97En92oX1dN5kZnqYt9XE2ASsTEsCDGXJ1NsFgZjU5XSaCZGW1IDRXfLh-415ar2Qbh_EdMHlBxXGnfEyr-dVMtaH8jkXnGg/s1600/110511_04-59-43-IMG_7414-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgagiuBvGxQ_hqf65AGtMHZ4AGfrb_bm_m7SaLVUJwebbz97En92oX1dN5kZnqYt9XE2ASsTEsCDGXJ1NsFgZjU5XSaCZGW1IDRXfLh-415ar2Qbh_EdMHlBxXGnfEyr-dVMtaH8jkXnGg/s640/110511_04-59-43-IMG_7414-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg_sHOWpakaZAdeJGWLuwRnB3MS9PRPkfEMDMdb6svVnBd_TVWW869DZxpSDSCrjpH8SihAYlW78yun1akeBn41SPHQzfBxPagMWbF-2AL9gXvYHr_7onRCRNL4JqtLQuDb6GAlgMUYmE/s1600/110511_05-00-01-IMG_7417-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg_sHOWpakaZAdeJGWLuwRnB3MS9PRPkfEMDMdb6svVnBd_TVWW869DZxpSDSCrjpH8SihAYlW78yun1akeBn41SPHQzfBxPagMWbF-2AL9gXvYHr_7onRCRNL4JqtLQuDb6GAlgMUYmE/s640/110511_05-00-01-IMG_7417-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3XKK5-sl_eCQosTHMtPbVTscLVKtO_PmAEyiORXNGwfn32NVtL2dTfbjeb6Ea8Dn8kCeUNMoBkvbd1GTTtCS58ig3CDDklEl1CRvUL2eiLgZXFdZ1bts4-jug1_NM9ptFK0C7FHV2Ok/s1600/110511_05-34-54-IMG_3923-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV3XKK5-sl_eCQosTHMtPbVTscLVKtO_PmAEyiORXNGwfn32NVtL2dTfbjeb6Ea8Dn8kCeUNMoBkvbd1GTTtCS58ig3CDDklEl1CRvUL2eiLgZXFdZ1bts4-jug1_NM9ptFK0C7FHV2Ok/s400/110511_05-34-54-IMG_3923-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bamboo rice</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaEI_rZKQcWBv7M4usNvhAAfdD16b9fGrEnsgBdYuSq1RKZh8BnBmivXdFOjLSOFNvncNExrJIiEv-WjTxTATkMorAqCvNOE-zcVoiu85opuDu8OjK_d2ef8VHatIM7Ev89atKKSQTTaM/s1600/110511_06-13-07-IMG_7479-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaEI_rZKQcWBv7M4usNvhAAfdD16b9fGrEnsgBdYuSq1RKZh8BnBmivXdFOjLSOFNvncNExrJIiEv-WjTxTATkMorAqCvNOE-zcVoiu85opuDu8OjK_d2ef8VHatIM7Ev89atKKSQTTaM/s320/110511_06-13-07-IMG_7479-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bamboo rice on the grill</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEe2ef4HV2gMVr-aeNKeF-Wx8i54ophnczJU4fso7T-YmzwFVRAyxQtiZw8Tn2VZ0DK0RO-CLFzIIYuEQ6eCusyuJ-h7kbLv7PAId_0K8EOLCWpVAO-2xZcgTGX_w1tL6epFx53Gjgjqc/s1600/110511_13-26-10-IMG_7560-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEe2ef4HV2gMVr-aeNKeF-Wx8i54ophnczJU4fso7T-YmzwFVRAyxQtiZw8Tn2VZ0DK0RO-CLFzIIYuEQ6eCusyuJ-h7kbLv7PAId_0K8EOLCWpVAO-2xZcgTGX_w1tL6epFx53Gjgjqc/s640/110511_13-26-10-IMG_7560-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif; font-size: small;">After returning to the hotel and
having dinner, Alan and I once again checked out the Guilin Night Markets, and
then walked a lap of the larger, eastern side of Rong Hu Lake park. Now, as
much as I’d like to end this particular blog post in the interest of not
droning on in endless rambling prose describing something you may never be able
to experience, let me tell you that the community parks in China are quite
simply stunning. Not 100 meters from the hotel, we encountered a lakeside
pagoda where some people were playing mostly Chinese instruments, with one lady
singing occasionally. There were perhaps two dozen people seated within the
pagoda watching, with people stopping along the pathway to watch and listen.
Amazing.</span> <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmI_hSF7VpJnF3AevwW_1e_1hkm2_skJdhypUvdhdUaOLUU2capNMGrTu8WL4l9fVdP4YL3PDTuDrtEBgyQcXtpuAXyzfIBp35Ua_jzZbBoFj-vGrZm_X-un8kBsSE4fAz00O5DhqYD_I/s1600/110511_13-51-40-IMG_7578-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmI_hSF7VpJnF3AevwW_1e_1hkm2_skJdhypUvdhdUaOLUU2capNMGrTu8WL4l9fVdP4YL3PDTuDrtEBgyQcXtpuAXyzfIBp35Ua_jzZbBoFj-vGrZm_X-un8kBsSE4fAz00O5DhqYD_I/s400/110511_13-51-40-IMG_7578-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpS72Vd-ZsotmyvOaTvetWiiMLsmv2dKPbPUSCyQ71CEuWclT30EFKG2Yl1d4lZzIrAy1uhSKBEEkxCHC5DAM32Eh_UFvrxf7VtHN1I9DWzDAfH1D-gZ5Uk2TGi8q-0DwT3L0Mo0goyD4/s1600/110511_14-14-42-IMG_7590-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpS72Vd-ZsotmyvOaTvetWiiMLsmv2dKPbPUSCyQ71CEuWclT30EFKG2Yl1d4lZzIrAy1uhSKBEEkxCHC5DAM32Eh_UFvrxf7VtHN1I9DWzDAfH1D-gZ5Uk2TGi8q-0DwT3L0Mo0goyD4/s400/110511_14-14-42-IMG_7590-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Gu Nan Men ancient South Wall, in the city of Guilin.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZ1ml1RaWpopWfVww_jxyCO0Aw6dYn4kIm9rUEx2BeK-CSnNgCm7EzjShTIDsjcgCJl89pFDPhJsX-IcoAqP0nR05CMMrkgzUf2iRpSQnVpYmHvi-pVY5n5rgmpL4gTYnTjaE9Ta-KXM/s1600/110511_14-24-19-IMG_7599-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZ1ml1RaWpopWfVww_jxyCO0Aw6dYn4kIm9rUEx2BeK-CSnNgCm7EzjShTIDsjcgCJl89pFDPhJsX-IcoAqP0nR05CMMrkgzUf2iRpSQnVpYmHvi-pVY5n5rgmpL4gTYnTjaE9Ta-KXM/s640/110511_14-24-19-IMG_7599-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The exterior of the 'building in the lake'</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif; font-size: small;">As we continued along the lake,
pathways occasionally split off in different directions, sometimes leading to
little sitting areas along the lake, other times to rock sculpture gardens,
bridges, or areas where the intermittent water fountain show (a la that Vegas
hotel I thankfully cannot come up with the name of) could be seen. There was an
ornate walkway meandering to and fro through the middle of the lake to a small
island with a beautiful open-air building at one end. Alan and I were walking
behind two fancily-dressed women who were walking the same direction toward the
building, me occasionally stopping to look at the incredible limestone rocks
that were carefully perched to look like natural stone monuments, surrounded by
impressive vegetation and lighting. Once we got to the building, there were a
few men present sitting on benches, but no women. The two ladies that had been
in front of us were gone. Strange, I thought, as I was certain our path was
heading to this pagoda-like building, beyond which was only water. All of a
sudden an inconspicuous door opened in the corner of the building at the far
end, and I realized that this building was simply a bathroom!</span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoteLevel2CxSpLast" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;"></span></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhttwv2V9m_UzMPmS6hnyO9pg2Wn_1fG7EjEPcTZvSwJecA_k9tfFPtfbn0iSbUyt7TffQ051SBhE_NYyCYyj2rmDCZ34FpZ1qC0jdHVePa7QjnNIDYhcFaVrVbVWkX3_4fUcjB8mARWfE/s1600/110511_14-25-41-IMG_7601-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhttwv2V9m_UzMPmS6hnyO9pg2Wn_1fG7EjEPcTZvSwJecA_k9tfFPtfbn0iSbUyt7TffQ051SBhE_NYyCYyj2rmDCZ34FpZ1qC0jdHVePa7QjnNIDYhcFaVrVbVWkX3_4fUcjB8mARWfE/s640/110511_14-25-41-IMG_7601-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The bathroom!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',sans-serif;">Astonished by both the peacefulness and exquisite
beauty of this one park in the city of Guilin (granted, now a major domestic
tourist destination since the 1980s), we continued around the lake where we
came upon the park’s namesake, the 800-year old Rong Hu Banyan Tree, the
elevated trunks of which had been preserved from destruction using concrete
pillars to prop them up. Not much further was Gu Nan Men, the remains of
Guilin’s ancient South Gate (possibly dating back to the Qin era, 6<sup>th</sup>
century AD). There were people of all sorts quietly enjoying the park
everywhere, and I went to sleep late that night contemplating the ethereal and
serene beauty of but a single park in the middle of a city of 620,00 people,
somewhere in this country of nearly 2 billion. </span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJZ7aAN8KT3eWn0r3SPNIHVwnMiIBpUop4nVZosYnkZtoGZxTEIfA-XcNSHC0t-RU9VPngLwQNO_e3zrM9fGq_y4x1QNTQWH19Ih-L9PFdwL841Njh5oaqMV08STWOevDp6hzS0_p42hM/s1600/110511_14-34-37-IMG_7612-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJZ7aAN8KT3eWn0r3SPNIHVwnMiIBpUop4nVZosYnkZtoGZxTEIfA-XcNSHC0t-RU9VPngLwQNO_e3zrM9fGq_y4x1QNTQWH19Ih-L9PFdwL841Njh5oaqMV08STWOevDp6hzS0_p42hM/s640/110511_14-34-37-IMG_7612-ChinaDay3_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 800-year old Rong Shu Banyan Tree.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-85735913981800772992011-11-04T19:23:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:55:32.397-07:0011/4/11: Firewalled in China!<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">Wow!<br />
<br />
Here I am in Guilin, China with a dedicated wireless connection in my
5-star hotel room, ready to post Malaysia and start getting Vietnam up,
and...<br />
<br />
Both blogger and Facebook are firewalled! Not even sure this email will
make it into the blog. But, this is one amazing place on earth, I must
admit.<br />
<br />
More tomorrow, hopefully!<br />
<br />
-Jeff</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4uTBqLcjZrdVX-7TrlgaDyvQfONYKBWmH9fJ-HfGq_GUYO5mZp-JZSk851nhsZtgas93Bij186n6rUmrAiBirbzZgVPqnPgj5uVJsWGbfhdu5K5DA5rphe8UZ67B3tc4NlXPF7Mmw1TiC/s1600/110511_06-01-31-IMG_7436-goofy_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4uTBqLcjZrdVX-7TrlgaDyvQfONYKBWmH9fJ-HfGq_GUYO5mZp-JZSk851nhsZtgas93Bij186n6rUmrAiBirbzZgVPqnPgj5uVJsWGbfhdu5K5DA5rphe8UZ67B3tc4NlXPF7Mmw1TiC/s400/110511_06-01-31-IMG_7436-goofy_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-25333838250460129372011-11-04T13:50:00.000-06:002012-01-23T12:05:28.045-07:0011/4/11: 4-day trip to Guangxi Province<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We awoke to a fabulous blue-sky morning, and
had breakfast out on the 6</span><sup style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> Deck Garden Lounge, our last chance to
say goodbye to the predominantly Filipino dining room crew who were going home
for four months after eight months at sea. Many of them have small children at
home, a testament to both how much they like working with the Semester at Sea
program, and how dedicated they are to their work. They are incredible, and I’d
guess that both Perry and Darwin probably knew the names of 75% of the 600 passengers
on board. ISE’s service provider, V-Ships, staffs the entire ship even though
the MV Explorer is actually owned by the program, purchased back in 2004. Most
crew work 8 months on, 4 months off, and work a rotating 4-hours on, 4-hours
off shift, though officers work every other 4 months. Dozens and dozens of crew
remain below the 2</span><sup style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">nd</sup><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> deck (the lowest publicly-accessible floor) for
the entire voyage, and we only rarely might catch a glimpse of them catching
some R&R while in port, or during muster (lifeboat) drills.</span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimPXzRvyT-qE9pI2-3VCFuWcAl89gqed339I5hs4_LCCZztdvCZTW8Q8n4frMo-A0g3iGpA2jogc0xRN6c75xBRzMCvqM36N3Imp4GyHvFfcmYL658KlJjHAQ21rX-EG4hBktPEkn_aCk/s1600/110411_00-22-01-IMG_6937-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimPXzRvyT-qE9pI2-3VCFuWcAl89gqed339I5hs4_LCCZztdvCZTW8Q8n4frMo-A0g3iGpA2jogc0xRN6c75xBRzMCvqM36N3Imp4GyHvFfcmYL658KlJjHAQ21rX-EG4hBktPEkn_aCk/s640/110411_00-22-01-IMG_6937-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Heidi and the boys went off for a tour of Hong
Kong by the parents of our neighbor, Rebecca Chau. When Rebecca heard we were
going to Hong Kong, she put them in touch so that we could see the city from
someone who lives there (since I couldn’t participate, you’ll have to check
Heidi’s blog for details). I packed for the 1300 departure, which wasn’t as
simple as it sounds due to the amount of camera gear I wanted to bring,
especially given the ‘one carry-on’ limitation for the flight to Guilin. The
Hong Kong airport was impressive, as were the airline services and rather new
planes, a refreshing change from the struggling US airline industry. My
row-mates were Hannah, a student from Montana whose goal it is to drive every
kind of motorized vehicle there is, and Kevin, a really nice kid from South
Carolina, and a schoolmate of Tate’s “dance instructor”, Chelsea. </span>
</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV0AJ_WGwQPMqhYMkyF2wJyedX4yDGQc9r5kpTFf3vNZ1Gb004Ov1CQY9BibYRtny1RojNzcBRy-CxOYDmvdLlynqzOmLUhrHEoAu826La8DFyLqJuXXxaJR5SWsKNjgrJyWUH_7cUi8s/s1600/110411_00-34-58-IMG_6952-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV0AJ_WGwQPMqhYMkyF2wJyedX4yDGQc9r5kpTFf3vNZ1Gb004Ov1CQY9BibYRtny1RojNzcBRy-CxOYDmvdLlynqzOmLUhrHEoAu826La8DFyLqJuXXxaJR5SWsKNjgrJyWUH_7cUi8s/s400/110411_00-34-58-IMG_6952-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0kHVpw2zwKXEdwap59ZCEfLBj-fNlRlEI9v5QmUYncDkj72kpk-U90I1t-c_Wj-qIlKTZPRdjRPKXWpVXfm4VGuXYCwLHebDAp58wzdk-oIQfBon9KLVuBTzsSC4OgpLD0EFYa-rW_GQ/s1600/110411_11-07-16-IMG_3917-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0kHVpw2zwKXEdwap59ZCEfLBj-fNlRlEI9v5QmUYncDkj72kpk-U90I1t-c_Wj-qIlKTZPRdjRPKXWpVXfm4VGuXYCwLHebDAp58wzdk-oIQfBon9KLVuBTzsSC4OgpLD0EFYa-rW_GQ/s320/110411_11-07-16-IMG_3917-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guilin Airport</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
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<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">After our flight to Guangxi Province in
southwestern China, we arrived to a drizzly Guilin and had a late dinner. My
roommate for the trip, geology professor Alan Goldin (an avid cyclist from
Missouri who rides 15k miles a year) and I ran out for a walk around the Guilin
Night Markets, after finding an ATM right around the corner. We rounded another
corner and came upon a closed street with tents lining both sides, people
everywhere. Although I hadn’t pegged Alan for a ‘shopper’, within the first 25
meters or so he had successfully bartered with 3 different vendors, and I got
my first direct experience with just how inexpensive locally-made items are
here in China. And I do mean inexpensive; Alan’s first purchase was a handmade
fabric shoulder-style bag for 10 yuan. That’s about $1.60.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not sure what some of that stuff is...</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We continued through the market, where people
were eating and shopping, with much of the foodstuffs laid out on counters
along the walkway. As in many of the countries we’d visited, every 5 meters or
so were items that I cannot even fathom the source of, including one of
apparent mammalian origin, a ‘terminal’ organ of which might have once been
featured as an appetizer on that awful show from years ago, ‘Fear Factor’. All
I can say is: Yuck, with a capital “Y”.</span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfDd1k-pqxQ8pAy9tqsuVePSMBbwwIA4kpEhCtgaVUMc6KYDTRgRrLIaR_2Q54TaBc5_krcxG2qnWHteMYL875OqdUYEJ99KOlaerUIEEOZsX4zX8A6ICYnjSubSd6Xjwu4HiHLT0slOk/s1600/110411_13-37-35-IMG_6984-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfDd1k-pqxQ8pAy9tqsuVePSMBbwwIA4kpEhCtgaVUMc6KYDTRgRrLIaR_2Q54TaBc5_krcxG2qnWHteMYL875OqdUYEJ99KOlaerUIEEOZsX4zX8A6ICYnjSubSd6Xjwu4HiHLT0slOk/s640/110411_13-37-35-IMG_6984-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNLXUG2scidAmEvapYL12TWOW33jU5_m0l2wbBk5Tl1E1MX8LP5FhbZf0KpTykBzsd_TrU7QJIBPT795lzxEl6CRTv1J0PC4PkOdQhE8xnH7-Q2em6iYKQ_jZ_dclca_4-Vx8eoZpPwk/s1600/110411_13-57-31-IMG_6995-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXNLXUG2scidAmEvapYL12TWOW33jU5_m0l2wbBk5Tl1E1MX8LP5FhbZf0KpTykBzsd_TrU7QJIBPT795lzxEl6CRTv1J0PC4PkOdQhE8xnH7-Q2em6iYKQ_jZ_dclca_4-Vx8eoZpPwk/s400/110411_13-57-31-IMG_6995-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pour hot water on this little guy, and he shot it out the front. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdPPtvfdCMbVHY1ahNxhCKS7vCOUv7LnwauQNEPfvCo7M8YSPQVHFb03rcksnr2IobuA3s9-DNEnVGEzWsTate7oYxepaiwJmDVhh-gW3EisVgyZ1ImjnoaGV9Bf_x1hqp3U3zi-4PKzo/s1600/110411_14-30-22-IMG_7001-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdPPtvfdCMbVHY1ahNxhCKS7vCOUv7LnwauQNEPfvCo7M8YSPQVHFb03rcksnr2IobuA3s9-DNEnVGEzWsTate7oYxepaiwJmDVhh-gW3EisVgyZ1ImjnoaGV9Bf_x1hqp3U3zi-4PKzo/s400/110411_14-30-22-IMG_7001-ChinaDay2_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beautiful limestone street, curb and sidewalk.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
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<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">After walking around for awhile it occurred to
me that the road surface, sidewalks, and even curbs were all made out of
limestone, polished in many places. As Alan continued back to the hotel, I
walked and wondered how this beautiful town in this once poverty-stricken
country could possibly have the resources to line every street and sidewalk
with cut stone. </span><style>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Our hotel was located adjacent to
Rong Hu, a park with a smallish lake, interconnected to the moats that meander
through the town. I walked to the west end, and was surprised to find a lock,
elevating small tourist boats approximately 5 meters to the level of the lake
and canal system. The trees were lit with colorful lights everywhere, though I
realized it might be time to turn in when the lights went out at about 11:30pm.
I walked back to the hotel, and I noticed an older man walking with a young
girl, perhaps 12 to 14 years old, and—assuming he was her father—wondered if it
was normal for kids in China to be out so late. Stopping to take another image
of a lakeside sitting area, I became aware that she had walked up behind me,
and was sitting, </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">alone</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">, on the
benches a few meters from me. As I turned to leave, I tried to peripherally
glance around to see where the older man had gone, but saw no sign of him.
Being acutely aware of the fact that I was a foreigner in a land where I didn’t
really know how things worked, I walked down the now-darkened lane along the
lake, puzzled by the 90-second experience. As I neared the end of the lane, an
electric scooter whizzed silently by, the man on the front, the girl riding on
the back; they turned a corner and disappeared.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Weird</i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">. But, I had to acknowledge the possibility that
I was indeed the weird one, the foreigner walking around a city alone at nearly
midnight, not really knowing what to expect, nor able to understand what I was
seeing.</span></span><br />
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<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-34161561854226579452011-11-03T13:18:00.000-06:002012-01-23T10:59:35.483-07:0011/3/11: Hong Kong: Dragon’s Back Hike<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As the MV Explorer approached
Hong Kong, a spire of light pierced the rather thick, marine cloud layer above.
It was hazy beneath the cloud layer, and row upon row of high-density
residential structures lined the shore, for miles. We berthed at Harbor City
Mall on the Kowloon Peninsula, the asiatic Cape Town equivalent SAS port
location, with a prime spot overlooking the Hong Kong skyline. Just inside the
door was a full-on American style mall, with 2x American prices. We had a few
hours before our hike up the Dragon’s Back, and ended up eating at a little
fast-food style burger-joint; $35 U.S. for the four of us (at $1 USD to 7.76
HKD). The burger and fries were good, a comforting respite. But, $eriously,
ouch!</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Although re-unification with
China occurred back in 1997, it’s hard to envision this city resembling the
China we westerners imagine from another hemisphere. We walked a bit, and saw
the MTR station (mass transit railway) from which buses went outward in all
directions. Seemingly all of a sudden there were newsstands with quite the
variety of male-oriented magazines, all displayed front and center. Weird. And,
weird to think how weird that seems, after 3 months in countries where such
literature practically doesn’t exist, at least in public. Despite the picture
that this paints, the city was very clean, modern, and bustling with activity,
as you’ve probably seen or heard.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Our hike up the Dragon’s Back
started with a drive on very narrow roads into the hills of Hong Kong Island,
and took us past a vast area of cemeteries. These cemeteries were cut directly
into very steep hillsides, and on either side of a cemetery was a stairwell
leading to each level of plots, perhaps 3 or 4 high, and at least a hundred
across, with dozens of levels. Picture the seating at Red Rocks and apply the
description above, and you have a picture of what it looked like, which
unfortunately I do not, as the narrowness of the roads prevented stopping.
There were 5 or 6 of these cemeteries, after which we saw no more, and arrived
at the trailhead on the other side of the ridgeline.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUxKayJ7FF90iJnUqMRBl3Dqz-GUkjXzd58MorNxKF9goDoTx_NOYJuFEkQAu9c8ifuD0FKxKCt_zajJUg-SjOf7WHSUL3QnquVmy-NU8TSx_YCZ-GOhrDZ7OUDNbdgL3c7mRkFEmEQ14/s1600/110311_07-08-03-IMG_6603-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUxKayJ7FF90iJnUqMRBl3Dqz-GUkjXzd58MorNxKF9goDoTx_NOYJuFEkQAu9c8ifuD0FKxKCt_zajJUg-SjOf7WHSUL3QnquVmy-NU8TSx_YCZ-GOhrDZ7OUDNbdgL3c7mRkFEmEQ14/s640/110311_07-08-03-IMG_6603-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Deemed the ‘Best Urban Hike in
Asia’, the Dragon’s Back trail is on Hong Kong island, and is called the Hong
Kong Trail. One might expect there to be views of the Hong Kong Skyline, but
it’s actually on the easternmost part of the island, overlooking the South
China Sea. Although the terrain resembled the Coast Ranges of California, the
rather hot and humid climate gives rise to a more tropical environment, with many
ferns, vines, and bamboo forest, interrupted by the occasional small, rocky
stream. As we climbed higher, we broke out above the forest to the ridgeline,
where several paragliders were doing their thing, above the town of Shek O, far
below. </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg722Mx4yds-rTKJGnifXuBmI9q1m1ZE1oTEM5HY_HwI6YMJVG5neMNMTvyKj7CISTz4uA-4LAcbADbTd_QDUQZlV-ZkGZnykVFDtOJTGrqy4vfE6nCVHvFco2aBHDV-pyA9VFPlh1qVWE/s1600/110311_07-37-18-IMG_6640-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg722Mx4yds-rTKJGnifXuBmI9q1m1ZE1oTEM5HY_HwI6YMJVG5neMNMTvyKj7CISTz4uA-4LAcbADbTd_QDUQZlV-ZkGZnykVFDtOJTGrqy4vfE6nCVHvFco2aBHDV-pyA9VFPlh1qVWE/s400/110311_07-37-18-IMG_6640-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As we stopped for a break, one of
the pilots landed just 10 meters in front of us, and immediately engaged me,
apparently due to the long lens on the 7D. His name was Alec, and he was
clearly from New Zealand, as was one of his flying partners, who dragged
himself through the bushes to a stop in front of us, more bark than bite, a big
smile on his face and no scrapes to show for it. The flying conditions were
clearly amazing for paragliding, and they were able to skim ridgelines with
ample lift, low speed, able to land in many spots along the trail, as Alec
demonstrated. He’d seen me taking pictures with ‘a good lens’, and stopped to
ask if I’d send him some images, as he has few pictures of his wing. Although
he hadn’t flown in the States, one of his buddies had, and it was on his radar
to come someday. Once I’d agreed to send him some images, we exchanged contact
info, and he then soared off the ridgeline nearly effortlessly, flying circles in
front of us while we continued our hike back down toward the roadway.</span></span> <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyraqKb4oL46jCTd7pzP-_9meX-iM-sdLAsp-s0RsCgxSeRzhc6LKAo8omtqhh7MDTY8cQGItPqaB7Cv2MRTyagAJjESjHOc67yiygvzTfDgVX_VhKrCkjSYvSu1JQ1NV_z7o1mfOnL4I/s1600/110311_08-03-59-IMG_6766-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyraqKb4oL46jCTd7pzP-_9meX-iM-sdLAsp-s0RsCgxSeRzhc6LKAo8omtqhh7MDTY8cQGItPqaB7Cv2MRTyagAJjESjHOc67yiygvzTfDgVX_VhKrCkjSYvSu1JQ1NV_z7o1mfOnL4I/s320/110311_08-03-59-IMG_6766-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" width="213" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHYILKuzD9KmIpBhwc3unK77rZi3YrAGvOy6w1vD0in9oq4ELH0gkbA_F8NxWNgiYE8L9dn2Yjucl56StWK587g0OAiDvFWHcoo7eLdtKhiut8kGI4W5EyzItsS16RhmY8XRUSlgr8h9Q/s1600/110311_08-02-53-IMG_6750-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHYILKuzD9KmIpBhwc3unK77rZi3YrAGvOy6w1vD0in9oq4ELH0gkbA_F8NxWNgiYE8L9dn2Yjucl56StWK587g0OAiDvFWHcoo7eLdtKhiut8kGI4W5EyzItsS16RhmY8XRUSlgr8h9Q/s320/110311_08-02-53-IMG_6750-ChinaDay1_blog.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Later in the evening we met up
with the Bakers, and proceeded to find a reasonably-priced restaurant that had
been suggested to us, the Jade Garden (or something like that). After a rather
expensive meal that was not so memorable, it left us wondering if we found the
right ‘Jade’ restaurant. Perhaps it was cheap for Hong Kong, and perhaps it was
good by someone else’s standards, but we weren’t left with that impression. </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We returned to the ship to watch
the nightly skyline laser show, after which I prepared to leave in the morning
on my four-day SAS trip without the family, my one true ‘photo trip’ of the
voyage. The MV Explorer would spend two days in Hong Kong, then two days at sea
during the transit to Shanghai. Heidi, Reade and Tate joined the ~150 people
out of the 600 passengers onboard making the transit, while my trip would later
meet them in Shanghai.</span></span> <br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">Vietnam is one of the countries
I’d looked forward to most, after hearing we’d be traveling on the Fall 2011
Voyage. I can’t say that I had any expectations (at least none very specific),
although hearing Joey and Jonas’ stories over the years made me very curious about
the country, its culture, its past as well as its present. I’m not sure what
year they were last here, but I wonder if they’d even recognize Saigon, while
Hanoi seems a more traditional culture, resistant to change. </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">The word ‘Vietnam’ has been in my
memory practically as long as I can remember; I can still see the ‘George
McGovern’ drawing I did as a kid, hung up in the Berkeley campaign headquarters
office by Lorien’s mother, Rita. Nixon was running against him, using the
platform ‘Stop the War’, though few Berkeleyites believed it. The time in U.S.
history was one of civil unrest, and Berkeley seemed right in the thick of it.
Up until shortly after 9/11 I might have posited that the Vietnam War left
behind an era of offensive U.S. engagement in affairs that might not prove
beneficial to either ‘side’. Some argue that the Vietnam/American War may have
halted a spread of communism that might have overtaken the west. I personally
think that the more extreme forms of communism were already slowly dying on the
vine, but as we cannot change the past (despite how hard ‘the history books’
try), there is no way to know for sure. Was the Vietnam/American War a benefit
to the southeast Asian people? Based upon what happened in Cambodia shortly
thereafter, I’d have to doubt it. Was the war a benefit for the American
people? Based upon many things, including both how veterans fared and were
treated afterwards, I think not. </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">Communism still exists, and
although it is alive an well in Vietnam, many people consider it a sort of
‘Communism Lite’. The government of Vietnam has chosen to open the economy in
many ways, though not necessarily to outsiders. 75% of the population of
Vietnam is under 35 years old, and thus many do not even remember the Vietnam
War, much like the students on board the MV Explorer who only know it in a
historical context. They will in the future, however, have some personal
knowledge of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, though it remains to be seen
what is written in the history books. Just as we ‘took over’ for the French in
the Vietnam War, it may be argued that we ended up inheriting an unwinnable
situation in Afghanistan from Russia, although the web of circumstances that
got us there is certainly different. Based upon our experiences in Vietnam,
should we have known better, at least in regard to Iraq?</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">I choose to revisit these issues
in my mind because of how completely the Vietnamese people seem to have
forgiven us, both North and South, old and young, and regardless of the fact
that the country remains communist. Their country was ravaged by war for
hundreds of years before we came in support of France, but has been relatively
peaceful since. Coincidence? Only time will tell, though the Vietnamese people
can envision future disagreements with China to the north, mostly over water
issues. China’s thirst for electricity has driven the country to build dozens
of hydroelectric dams, both choking and starving rivers that have for hundreds
of years run their courses as they might, often into other countries. As in so
many other parts of the world, the availability of clean water sources could
prove to be a formidable challenge to sustainable future growth.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">The World Bank deems Vietnam on
of the best performing economies in the world in the last 10 years, largely a
result of the U.S. bilateral trade agreement signed in 2004, seven years after
the embargo was lifted in 1994, which had been in place 30 years. Many large
high-tech companies have chosen to locate large factories in Vietnam, partly as
a diversification strategy to get away from China’s popularity. </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">Vietnam does have some
challenges, despite how rosy things are economically. Inflation is currently
15-20%, coincident with 6% GDP growth over the last 5 years. There is
protectionism in some business sectors, it has corruption issues ranging from
local police to customs officials, an aging education system, and an
infrastructure that is improving but still strained by rapid growth. Intellectual
property rights barely even exist here, pollution is on the increase while
social inequalities have improved. Vietnam is changing very fast, but can it
continue? </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">PS: It’s Halloween, and the kids
engaged in Trick-or-Treating on the MV Explorer, prior to tomorrow’s 6 AM
departure from our berth on the Saigon River, timed with the tides. Fun times,
Tate got another opportunity to dance with Chelsea in the Union, and I
unfortunately tried the wrong piece of ‘local’ candy from the kids’ bag, the
foul odor of which emanated from my mouth after a few chews of durian candy.
KACK!</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-XCodPYfpxGF7onWIinGi8HUtJORnmmzYZDoxlPsPWxM065WY0vFvoHNwDmR3MQBwWYLMoR69IzyOWxscywr3kn0zZiPceIMpgLy7mNyruLZKYy944xvF4neT6JyMMcANRgSvrqRZOKs/s1600/103111_13-42-45-IMG_6141-Vietnam7_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-XCodPYfpxGF7onWIinGi8HUtJORnmmzYZDoxlPsPWxM065WY0vFvoHNwDmR3MQBwWYLMoR69IzyOWxscywr3kn0zZiPceIMpgLy7mNyruLZKYy944xvF4neT6JyMMcANRgSvrqRZOKs/s640/103111_13-42-45-IMG_6141-Vietnam7_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tate dancing with Chelsea, who is from South Carolina.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-62973389769143763352011-10-30T04:19:00.000-06:002011-11-22T12:24:29.964-07:0010/30/11: Saigon’s Ben Thanh Market<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Our last day in Vietnam, last chance to take
advantage of the dirt-cheap (‘cheap-cheap’?) prices before heading to China.
The four of us hopped the shuttle downtown to the indoor Ben Thanh market, a
huge indoor, open market with myriad vendors selling more knockoffs and fish
products than you can possibly imagine. Our first stop was probably the most
comical one, a stop for Heidi to buy some ‘designer’ jeans, </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">not</i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> a quick process. The girls at the
vendor of choice immediately engaged Reade and Tate, asking them how old they are,
if they had girlfriends, giggling when they said ‘no’. They were a sort of
‘friendly aggressive’ that we hadn’t yet encountered in our travels, with some
comical twists thrown in here and there. We had arrived early in the morning,
and this wasn’t the first time we heard “You are my first customer of the day,
please buy from me!” After leaving with a pair of hot jeans and a t-shirt for
Reade, I wished them well on their next ‘first customer’ as they tried to sell
us an additional t-shirt. </span></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEun6uB4p99yloMEIRhXMf8zm7LZbAZfU9nY05aDepMDeJEsuKrkjp6ZhcgBNagqhHMV08vUDhXbm6E_EnFRZe1-tnIuThJA0AG5V2vqjeadAKooS78stJHGdQ9gfymq1WlX42Vm_XXyE/s1600/103011_03-21-06-IMG_5749-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEun6uB4p99yloMEIRhXMf8zm7LZbAZfU9nY05aDepMDeJEsuKrkjp6ZhcgBNagqhHMV08vUDhXbm6E_EnFRZe1-tnIuThJA0AG5V2vqjeadAKooS78stJHGdQ9gfymq1WlX42Vm_XXyE/s400/103011_03-21-06-IMG_5749-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snake wine; yes, that's a cobra and a scorpion in a bottle of wine, and yes, they do drink it!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgAfzd1iNyG4h9bHficEa1d6o5pO0bF_bg-jUgRMDXvndncSrcdlrpqXKDBkGpH56shsqqG8i9HGJWKzfglempT60K2dCbpers3Sci3LDY8s0W-heS9Z3Q6Zq04uG6KY7KYLLS3IjjbqQ/s1600/103011_03-26-55-IMG_5752-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgAfzd1iNyG4h9bHficEa1d6o5pO0bF_bg-jUgRMDXvndncSrcdlrpqXKDBkGpH56shsqqG8i9HGJWKzfglempT60K2dCbpers3Sci3LDY8s0W-heS9Z3Q6Zq04uG6KY7KYLLS3IjjbqQ/s640/103011_03-26-55-IMG_5752-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reade and Tate both bought a flute from this guy.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Very narrow passageways everywhere, miscellaneous
smelly things around each corner. Weird kinds of both wet and dry fish and shellfish,
durian fruit (Kack! We just can’t escape that smell!), backpacks, purses,
belts, ‘Rolex’ watches, luggage, clothing of all sorts; it was a veritable
cheapo’s shopping paradise! I scored myself a fine timepiece for $20 (that’s
like, 950% off, what a deal!), and ended up getting the stinkeye from the first
watch-guy I’d talked to, him eyeballing the new ‘Rolex’ on my wrist as I
accidentally re-walked past his counter (Heidi will be the first to admit I
have no ‘mall sense’). I just had to keep checking out the backpacks around
every corner, being the ‘gear dude’ that I am. The funniest thing I encountered
was a backpack labeled as a Deuter, sporting a North Face model name, with an
ancient Dana Designs logo on a lower strap. Dana Designs hasn’t even existed
for quite a few years; after being bought by K2 10+ years ago (who continued to
sell the line for a year or two), Marmot then bought the brand, after which the
great pack company from Bozeman, Montana effectively ceased to exist, some of
its innovations being integrated into the Marmot line. I regret not buying one
of those mongrel packs; I hate “lack of buyer’s remorse” more than anything,
especially when the source is 8000 miles from home, and cheap, to boot.</span></span> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJldo-bDKiCpZ6XZVCeFrSjEwdOTomaAqVsxoLg4zesrwQEHlsX-L06UWBsz5Adzwjp7JpLaIbW-nEK0BRjpsboIIkEovwZFtrg4sKM8euBhbbJQXEcL1wNvYaGy5hPZBq2Am0tuqVfGA/s1600/103011_07-25-16-IMG_3898-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJldo-bDKiCpZ6XZVCeFrSjEwdOTomaAqVsxoLg4zesrwQEHlsX-L06UWBsz5Adzwjp7JpLaIbW-nEK0BRjpsboIIkEovwZFtrg4sKM8euBhbbJQXEcL1wNvYaGy5hPZBq2Am0tuqVfGA/s640/103011_07-25-16-IMG_3898-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The North Deuter Designs 'mongrel' pack that I wish I would have bought for merely 137,000 dong. The exchange rate is $1 to 21,000 dong, so get $50 out of an ATM, and you're an instant millionaire. The kids <i>loved</i> this.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRWz_uXH9dV5u4kGq15WS0-ECxnErb9aUvSr0ybSJDf0ODbBHH5Q-ZPpNk2pm0ifNolxptxAZEkUrGceSUwyIWo_ccwprU7Otov8bYATyJypZcgfcjrRIBFwX_WEzrrhbRMMDVL-P8YiM/s1600/103011_07-55-26-IMG_5761-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRWz_uXH9dV5u4kGq15WS0-ECxnErb9aUvSr0ybSJDf0ODbBHH5Q-ZPpNk2pm0ifNolxptxAZEkUrGceSUwyIWo_ccwprU7Otov8bYATyJypZcgfcjrRIBFwX_WEzrrhbRMMDVL-P8YiM/s400/103011_07-55-26-IMG_5761-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taterbug, doin' his thing.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPujNHQWn-wAVIIZk7qFlBXeVwUMmspLTaR4h3AzjkxzVeBN0uy-goqn2QuknCpwDEb-Llb9jgwGDZKvPhd6ho2vqY2yFPwBfqA3G2L4lssm-2YWQvYzEQ1GG4eEau7xiwjJ6gJDtdR2Q/s1600/103011_07-56-10-IMG_5762-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPujNHQWn-wAVIIZk7qFlBXeVwUMmspLTaR4h3AzjkxzVeBN0uy-goqn2QuknCpwDEb-Llb9jgwGDZKvPhd6ho2vqY2yFPwBfqA3G2L4lssm-2YWQvYzEQ1GG4eEau7xiwjJ6gJDtdR2Q/s320/103011_07-56-10-IMG_5762-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The tallest building in Vietnam; that's a helipad to the rear right.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ9mQ6c5AYTzXB46zYu1HDuI0xwd1RgqSeu2VGnrSEK6uQpRbQjFiYifYxoliS-XUWO_Bmmtkxe3NZfDkyHcyYC1Z-4NV4K4m1xeSWhlBY4n6Z3pYLYlOp2bPWELvJu-kY1d3gZ4VOX0Y/s1600/103011_08-24-27-IMG_5776-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ9mQ6c5AYTzXB46zYu1HDuI0xwd1RgqSeu2VGnrSEK6uQpRbQjFiYifYxoliS-XUWO_Bmmtkxe3NZfDkyHcyYC1Z-4NV4K4m1xeSWhlBY4n6Z3pYLYlOp2bPWELvJu-kY1d3gZ4VOX0Y/s320/103011_08-24-27-IMG_5776-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We caught a great lunch at a little
Vietnamese restaurant near the market; upon sitting down at the table, we were
served little appetizers that were packaged in leaves, folded up into little
boxes. Food was wonderful, and the kids got a Sprite, which is becoming quite
the treat as we make our way around the globe. We walked back toward the ship,
the last street before which was more of a freeway, albeit with few guardrails
to keep stray tourists from wandering into its path. Scooters, cars, buses,
motorcycles, more scooters, bicycles, along with a few trucks thrown into the
mix; we saw no reasonable way across this morass of humanity, and we thus had
to suck it up and utilize to their fullest extent the street-skills we’d gained
to navigate this final barrier between us and the MV Explorer. We lined up,
side-by-side, and stepped off the curb into the 50 kph melee before us. </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Just keep walking, don’t deviate, best not
to look upstream at the advancing waves of traffic swerving around us,</i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> I
told myself. I was so engrossed in not dying as a family that I forgot to set
the P&S camera to ‘movie’, and thusly only got some crappy stills, which
cannot possibly do this experience justice (though you can barely see Tate’s
huge smile in one of them). We all survived, adrenaline absolutely peaking,
Tate screaming “Let’s do it AGAIN!!!” Not. </span></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GBs52FK5bEmIC1auvMuSl-dtduCc18TXX-DRufQfjkf-6XOqvFDZVwPgtM3DhYddMdTP4eB7oBss0_laSte1uqrxDKscVnSDBVb5lAbJKZ7tUixyuEBba3JQTwI-i9oaKO4mJYAnysI/s1600/103011_08-54-13-IMG_5779-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GBs52FK5bEmIC1auvMuSl-dtduCc18TXX-DRufQfjkf-6XOqvFDZVwPgtM3DhYddMdTP4eB7oBss0_laSte1uqrxDKscVnSDBVb5lAbJKZ7tUixyuEBba3JQTwI-i9oaKO4mJYAnysI/s320/103011_08-54-13-IMG_5779-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUJzxerqBpz-_hVwQ4PvNKLX2zjQ1z_zLct-b8jv-uN70zuepjEkQg92zViOuNFPovEZo3E9VH0leXtSoTZcdGAMNmuB1Dw0ppraahUNjOsZ6JMu4T-DWz6UJgoVdR4yyBCgCTJE1tQEI/s1600/103011_08-59-33-IMG_5790-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUJzxerqBpz-_hVwQ4PvNKLX2zjQ1z_zLct-b8jv-uN70zuepjEkQg92zViOuNFPovEZo3E9VH0leXtSoTZcdGAMNmuB1Dw0ppraahUNjOsZ6JMu4T-DWz6UJgoVdR4yyBCgCTJE1tQEI/s640/103011_08-59-33-IMG_5790-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is it! Note Tate's big grin...</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">As we continued toward the ship, as usual I
found myself off the back about 100m due to stopping to take pics, and a car
pulled out in front of me, and stopped. An arab-looking dude in a suit rolled
down the darkened window, and started asking me about dong-dollar exchange
rates, and ended up flashing me his wallet-full of new U.S. $100 bills (and I
do mean wallet FULL, at least 3/8” thick). He asked me if I had enough dong to
exchange one $100 bill, just to ‘get him through’. I politely declined, and
suggested that there were many places to exchange cash, adding that the
Vietnamese readily accept American currency. Apparently, it ain’t just jeans
and backpacks that they produce here in Vietnam.</span></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho8BvFMcvxxDDg2_R75YZAzQ20kysKyKDVfnO678uo9WOSAwnSKMHYLiSQQ6gPmP3nR3R67DKewPljyCSwHi7kPApZgsTrrzxju9KFEhxt2079L6C8JTO1jdhnVfCQrBWmLu4QHKeYF5s/s1600/103011_09-05-08-IMG_5800-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho8BvFMcvxxDDg2_R75YZAzQ20kysKyKDVfnO678uo9WOSAwnSKMHYLiSQQ6gPmP3nR3R67DKewPljyCSwHi7kPApZgsTrrzxju9KFEhxt2079L6C8JTO1jdhnVfCQrBWmLu4QHKeYF5s/s640/103011_09-05-08-IMG_5800-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And this is the boulevard that we just crossed, about a half a block up, where there was a guard rail. The traffic was nonstop, the whole way across!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRP5cMhS4jIXqMaTeg1Ybq4DOdIUd7H_G8s4PeXontQXxd2sbuOEyrvIl5NJdpOEMRBx0u1yxsGD1Qkj4-5-2D5OFeF8QVvn9G9Qh8qtMKQqZag_ebed3X8OxmKLTIAxKL9QKZzkMLj7g/s1600/103011_10-15-28-IMG_5832-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRP5cMhS4jIXqMaTeg1Ybq4DOdIUd7H_G8s4PeXontQXxd2sbuOEyrvIl5NJdpOEMRBx0u1yxsGD1Qkj4-5-2D5OFeF8QVvn9G9Qh8qtMKQqZag_ebed3X8OxmKLTIAxKL9QKZzkMLj7g/s320/103011_10-15-28-IMG_5832-Vietnam6_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We managed to spend most of what
we had in our travel wallets, and early the next morning the MV Explorer left
the dock, the morning departure a result of timing the tides in the Saigon
River. Watching the pressure wave of the ship’s wake hit the shore was
fascinating, especially when making a turn; along the river’s edge, the water
level would often drop a foot or two before the visible wake arrived, followed
shortly thereafter by a tsunami-like wave that smashed into the shore,
generally several feet above the normal river level. Not at all unlike the
interaction between shoreline and sea during a tsunami.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The weird things you see out
here…</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">PS: I can’t upload videos due to our poor
internet access, and on top of it, I forgot to take a video when we crossed the
street. But, it was EXACTLY like this, except our traffic was moving at about double the speed shown in the video:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="http://youtu.be/x6v9g4rakOY">Man crosses busiest street (NOT!) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam</a> </span></span>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-23391105115095902952011-10-29T03:55:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:59:08.885-07:0010/29/11: Vietnam Day 5: Mekong Delta<style>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;">Heading for a day trip on the Mekong Delta
with Reade, Tate and their buddy Scott Baker (Heidi was on call), I couldn’t
help but think about the terrible flooding we’ve been hearing about in
Thailand. The forecast for the day didn’t preclude a brief “happyhour-o’clock” downpour,
but no extended rain was in the forecast. Again driving through areas with widespread
rice cultivation, the nature of the fields looked different than up north.
These fields of rice were much flatter, and looked less like ‘working available
land’ than like proper crops. We stopped at a market area prior to getting to
the dock, and got to see what they were selling.</span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_33Wq7TyTkif0VAFfT5pNxkTJ9hNz2ug1d_8Oud3svUREpdeIFDjHmJQ4ILCwSMnpdCYMOfZT6Mop1lKCkFWGnXNWmFe3MvFiSEWitGjPn57X8-9uKUM0GZcOnhpA8nzaoVh9NXxD1lM/s1600/102911_02-53-00-IMG_5414-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_33Wq7TyTkif0VAFfT5pNxkTJ9hNz2ug1d_8Oud3svUREpdeIFDjHmJQ4ILCwSMnpdCYMOfZT6Mop1lKCkFWGnXNWmFe3MvFiSEWitGjPn57X8-9uKUM0GZcOnhpA8nzaoVh9NXxD1lM/s400/102911_02-53-00-IMG_5414-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Three different brand names could be seen on these identical bicycles.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCiG-k-unfvwfL2ggp_9O2-3joQm1mrCk8oBupRYC5ydzgDTjBAtT4nRtTC33GP3Wn5-i5EMpUJG4ypmSCVaXQRjn5TODDjFLK0JYR-vIIcE3GzmfYGWdRAx1BJOafkIHqDWuo4PJX4Go/s1600/102911_02-54-04-IMG_5418-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCiG-k-unfvwfL2ggp_9O2-3joQm1mrCk8oBupRYC5ydzgDTjBAtT4nRtTC33GP3Wn5-i5EMpUJG4ypmSCVaXQRjn5TODDjFLK0JYR-vIIcE3GzmfYGWdRAx1BJOafkIHqDWuo4PJX4Go/s640/102911_02-54-04-IMG_5418-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYojiK28K7B7GrrFSyhmhnkgO6Jy79VwtvIJWcgDmE2HvKG30lc_fCd7ii4ghdJlhfoQAsenYwgMIwuCUOZboluhoOFp-YDuMaD54TbVA2dGbJAkZqiZJCL9Bn9Ugx2ypS4FNxEh36Vdw/s1600/102911_02-58-36-IMG_5423-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYojiK28K7B7GrrFSyhmhnkgO6Jy79VwtvIJWcgDmE2HvKG30lc_fCd7ii4ghdJlhfoQAsenYwgMIwuCUOZboluhoOFp-YDuMaD54TbVA2dGbJAkZqiZJCL9Bn9Ugx2ypS4FNxEh36Vdw/s640/102911_02-58-36-IMG_5423-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This wood-coal, as a local fuel, couldn't possibly help the air quality.</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRgte7mfU45DGcJitwnFSUkD_HuXRbvjzc7KAS20IJXRb9tJ7CZkS9CNLi6ytDT4HJCz02QUDNRAs-PISEduk5V2qYuZKLGhn5C7JxzfuJIwTUostx5zV7XoouoT4vh2PNTYvz7c-rtVg/s1600/102911_03-04-44-IMG_5434-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRgte7mfU45DGcJitwnFSUkD_HuXRbvjzc7KAS20IJXRb9tJ7CZkS9CNLi6ytDT4HJCz02QUDNRAs-PISEduk5V2qYuZKLGhn5C7JxzfuJIwTUostx5zV7XoouoT4vh2PNTYvz7c-rtVg/s640/102911_03-04-44-IMG_5434-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNOZza18eJoO5KulL9RAAu_V5UhtwhYcbKwFTy-h5ZHX7DCTN4i2qUhaPZmubHMoeq__7OxE2mGhg9vVsY8NZSpHEDraty8X2QWmTtT_GolD2Lw005IBk6Ejn8z0vSgUCxbW4u_aw6880/s1600/102911_03-06-02-IMG_5436-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNOZza18eJoO5KulL9RAAu_V5UhtwhYcbKwFTy-h5ZHX7DCTN4i2qUhaPZmubHMoeq__7OxE2mGhg9vVsY8NZSpHEDraty8X2QWmTtT_GolD2Lw005IBk6Ejn8z0vSgUCxbW4u_aw6880/s640/102911_03-06-02-IMG_5436-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="425" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Incense.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We boarded our rather larger-than-I-expected
river boat, accommodating about 30 people in plasti-wicker chairs. This thing
was going into the Mekong Delta? I’d imagined being in a canoe with some old
Vietnamese lady paddling us around; I’m not sure where I got this idea, but it
was quickly quashed with a stinky engine rumbling right below our seats near
the back of the boat. Kids always seem to choose the back, and Reade, Tate and
Scott didn’t disappoint. There were a few other children from the ship on this
trip, which gave them some card-game buddies for the bus ride up and back.</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">In any event, despite this boat’s size, they
can get it into some mighty small canals, and if you don’t watch yourself you
can end up with a branch-thrashing souvenir to help you remember your trip to
Vietnam. As we entered the first canal, there were two people fishing with some
sort of net from a boat; our guide told us they were ‘electric shock’ fishing,
and they’d get into trouble if they were caught with a battery on a boat. Some
ingenious ways of fishing ‘round here!</span></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQnt3biwaSNa1pLRiU2MyRxKJySaD5pq36E4sGsXes5v5YYCMVv0EXbSW3nobMaAitTaiDxFXPdPOoUegnMbMM8r-GF7iHKeA6Jz9_xtHJA-JKRTnnwx5gwVluB3nzfUr41KGmS6Fvnhs/s1600/102911_04-00-19-IMG_5516-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQnt3biwaSNa1pLRiU2MyRxKJySaD5pq36E4sGsXes5v5YYCMVv0EXbSW3nobMaAitTaiDxFXPdPOoUegnMbMM8r-GF7iHKeA6Jz9_xtHJA-JKRTnnwx5gwVluB3nzfUr41KGmS6Fvnhs/s640/102911_04-00-19-IMG_5516-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsKKyhTy3MkTyreUiSeCc2PmwfvKeObs46vsFiCh8px7y9yBWPcD5Atyohpr8Wcjo56OWf8JXu7gsjZD8rCF344nDzGCeDk91IbEcDlu9uAPHQay2O_rZax3ks4tqw0kmar1JWNX30LNU/s1600/102911_04-10-33-IMG_5535-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsKKyhTy3MkTyreUiSeCc2PmwfvKeObs46vsFiCh8px7y9yBWPcD5Atyohpr8Wcjo56OWf8JXu7gsjZD8rCF344nDzGCeDk91IbEcDlu9uAPHQay2O_rZax3ks4tqw0kmar1JWNX30LNU/s640/102911_04-10-33-IMG_5535-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">After meandering around for an hour or so, they
let us off and served some local fruits, including mango, papaya, and a blood-red
variety of dragon fruit that we hadn’t yet seen nor tried. We then walked past
some bee boxes, the obvious source of the local honey that the tea had been
prepared with, and then boarded some horse carts to return to a different style
of boat, carrying only 4 to 6 passengers. As I got into one of these very old
wooden boats, I noted the little squirt of water coming into it from below
waterline, and the several inches of water sloshing about beneath the plank
wood ‘floor’. I wonder if they make passengers bail? Hopefully the water-borne
parasites aren’t plentiful around here, but it’s hard to imagine they aren’t; I
have little interest in going swimming on this day. Loud little weed-whacker
engines pushed these things through the canals and successfully delivered us all
to lunch, where we learned to make lettuce rolls using rice-noodle wrap. To go
along with the fried whole fish (which was perched vertically in a wooden rack
for scraping the meat off the sides), they included pineapple and abundant
fresh mint leaves, which was absolutely wonderful. </span></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu2y6olXqEvT5345mzJr6QOKj7-HmkGipruCZJhIVr-Gvla7Vm2HTTFh58JzVn_TMNuCGMJ9Q2-Fj0lde1LCifLuHVFELqBs0nYwRn8PqWPtJIDyKeTxK1YEtGtIoT6HbUbUB2yOtKIOw/s1600/102911_04-42-26-IMG_5554-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu2y6olXqEvT5345mzJr6QOKj7-HmkGipruCZJhIVr-Gvla7Vm2HTTFh58JzVn_TMNuCGMJ9Q2-Fj0lde1LCifLuHVFELqBs0nYwRn8PqWPtJIDyKeTxK1YEtGtIoT6HbUbUB2yOtKIOw/s640/102911_04-42-26-IMG_5554-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Remind you of anything?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEXui4tX2cDIPYcgOHtoU6CyiERKxmMkjN8EZ2v-g1njWd7OLBV6QN5psucx0axDRdIBVHiRKvZsvKFXeKYiq-SBKHzkI-xJq8ltJ6IKhsLE3fyWWM_MbmC5T1exuPmVGj2XqNGC-ZE_Y/s1600/102911_05-08-18-IMG_5576-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEXui4tX2cDIPYcgOHtoU6CyiERKxmMkjN8EZ2v-g1njWd7OLBV6QN5psucx0axDRdIBVHiRKvZsvKFXeKYiq-SBKHzkI-xJq8ltJ6IKhsLE3fyWWM_MbmC5T1exuPmVGj2XqNGC-ZE_Y/s640/102911_05-08-18-IMG_5576-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-GLVvXB1mJNJ14_2T1eX3kpVwegDxGVSIC1UilrKsU9X1qqX__cUD7JGFB7nJttoxtSyssaQ5gzftDP8h_4J1OiVJx4mPBHC5CbYyvBXdy8vd5JeyMn7MzBPMxHt0PLl29Pir-59NV0/s1600/102911_05-10-52-IMG_5581-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS-GLVvXB1mJNJ14_2T1eX3kpVwegDxGVSIC1UilrKsU9X1qqX__cUD7JGFB7nJttoxtSyssaQ5gzftDP8h_4J1OiVJx4mPBHC5CbYyvBXdy8vd5JeyMn7MzBPMxHt0PLl29Pir-59NV0/s640/102911_05-10-52-IMG_5581-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Hvpo8FEjfcNn2BvRcOAbxFPjGmxsFBlMEM7k00y9yNSTaqQQa62QveLL6wNfoadxjBL-CxJghHHArkfrKLd9sCsOOmGKTPsjjGNFKjBt17EpM61Ufah2I56iklSrZVnbcfrHq83BEnw/s1600/102911_05-27-57-IMG_5626-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Hvpo8FEjfcNn2BvRcOAbxFPjGmxsFBlMEM7k00y9yNSTaqQQa62QveLL6wNfoadxjBL-CxJghHHArkfrKLd9sCsOOmGKTPsjjGNFKjBt17EpM61Ufah2I56iklSrZVnbcfrHq83BEnw/s400/102911_05-27-57-IMG_5626-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reade staring down the fish that he would later eat the eyeball of.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHCDX2n0ozcYrmmbD__w-ycUSx2Z6Av0hMu_YSRBZafSeGlrMOMMlrW7oCx-BO6RaHHnlBo6ITtPiHy-aJEaW3dL7aM7K3TDFmpJYsioZJd3uPtUKsrS3m49-F8WooIq720BYyoilVD3E/s1600/102911_06-31-31-IMG_5638-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHCDX2n0ozcYrmmbD__w-ycUSx2Z6Av0hMu_YSRBZafSeGlrMOMMlrW7oCx-BO6RaHHnlBo6ITtPiHy-aJEaW3dL7aM7K3TDFmpJYsioZJd3uPtUKsrS3m49-F8WooIq720BYyoilVD3E/s640/102911_06-31-31-IMG_5638-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Gax5txsHah69xPgB7al80sZoBoEOyVRggnEQR3SkziWC26Zuz3SEQX0YXOSJ43snESsIzhxaWp_cphHdRazmiOBLoifP1gZJ428n0-kJdO7MPuQFeuBGHG_wR264yNnHKAPbK2jIbo4/s1600/102911_06-43-42-IMG_5673-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Gax5txsHah69xPgB7al80sZoBoEOyVRggnEQR3SkziWC26Zuz3SEQX0YXOSJ43snESsIzhxaWp_cphHdRazmiOBLoifP1gZJ428n0-kJdO7MPuQFeuBGHG_wR264yNnHKAPbK2jIbo4/s400/102911_06-43-42-IMG_5673-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boats are colorful here!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">After lunch we toured a small operation where
they made coconut candy, using only coconut, no sugar added. They also had
cocao and, as luck wouldn’t have it, a durian fruit version, the smell of which
gave Tate an instantaneous stomachache that didn’t abate until we got away from
the smell and again boarded the rather rickety canal boat, to return us to our
waiting ‘pleasurecraft’ (as I’ll now call it, in accordance with my recent
change in boat appreciation). </span></span>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUCJLqKLFoInszTj9MQZ22ywR6p239yaUptwU-vSfwldWgH6mGA5zLXBt54ajkRbqlBsyk8yo3LmvOBctH3U0UR3k5qIfYflBiDpRAAPg4GwsWDngI1Md4OFf1wceOQT2EVmSBlM5d28/s1600/102911_06-59-24-IMG_5698-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUCJLqKLFoInszTj9MQZ22ywR6p239yaUptwU-vSfwldWgH6mGA5zLXBt54ajkRbqlBsyk8yo3LmvOBctH3U0UR3k5qIfYflBiDpRAAPg4GwsWDngI1Md4OFf1wceOQT2EVmSBlM5d28/s640/102911_06-59-24-IMG_5698-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coconut candy in the making.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWl8CwOFSi2haGaTju3DTyvldFX3t_Wvp5lgrjrmkWOCFZZLLQjuUKF9APUNVYoeUhyphenhyphenKqqkKdzqb_cODQ4qeg5K3vbRbw83TjtpSbtcugrD1KH-L3pin76Djc3977XYBnXLFOWKUNGNU/s1600/102911_07-01-19-IMG_5703-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHWl8CwOFSi2haGaTju3DTyvldFX3t_Wvp5lgrjrmkWOCFZZLLQjuUKF9APUNVYoeUhyphenhyphenKqqkKdzqb_cODQ4qeg5K3vbRbw83TjtpSbtcugrD1KH-L3pin76Djc3977XYBnXLFOWKUNGNU/s400/102911_07-01-19-IMG_5703-Vietnam5_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I don't think this cat was supposed to be drinking from this shrine's offerings.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">On the return to the wharf, the weather
started looking a bit ominous, some thick clouds building in I have no idea
what direction. It’s so weird being in a foreign land without map nor innate
reference. Navigating now is via newly-acquired landmarks with only the
infrequent map to potentially guide you, though I’ve found more often than not
that the basic skills of mapmaking for real-world use is often lost on those
preparing the information sources we rely on as travelers. It was disconcerting
at first, not knowing ‘where’ I am on a map. But I’ve learned to adapt to
knowing where I am in relation to different things, often bird-seeding landmarks
together to get somewhere, most often in an inefficient, circuitous sort of way.
But, we usually make it where we’re going, and the few times I’ve thought to
bring the GPS later provided me some entertainment, seeing our path navigating
these foreign lands.</span></span>
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<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Arriving back at the MV Explorer,
we decided to spend a few minutes checking out the tent vendors who set up shop
outside the ship. We lingered a bit too long and an SAS trip returned with a
bus-full of sweaty, smelly people wanting a shower, and the three of us thus
continued to shop while the mostly-college kids got through security and onto
the gangway. About that time we heard a crack of thunder about a mile away, and
all of a sudden the skies let loose with a torrential downpour of catastrophic
proportion, again leaving us to browse the knockoff backpacks even further (I
think the lady thought we were crazy). Two minutes after it started dumping, a
huge wave of hot, sauna like air came out of nowhere, like nothing I’ve ever
experienced; I could swear the temperature within that downward-moving column of
air from the thunderstorm had to be 10 degrees hotter than the previous
85-degree air. Even though it was only 100 yards to the gangway, there was no
way we’d make it without having to dump a gallon of water from our shoes, so we
hung tight. About that time, Tate’s dance partner Chelsea showed up, so Tate
took our stranding as an opportunity to interact with her, which he has seemed
to look forward to ever since she dragged him out onto the dance floor after
the Sea Olympics party. Humorously, Tate got his first date invitation, as
Chelsea offered to take him to a ‘wedding’ that several of the college students
were having. I asked her what time she’d have him home, but it occurred to me
that a chaperone might be in order, compelling me to not bring up the subject
later. ;) Later that night, one of our favorite guys from the dining room crew,
Vic, asked the boys out for a beer. </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Wow, they’re growing up right
before my eyes! </span></span>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-24275389157771551642011-10-28T03:32:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:58:42.915-07:0010/28/11: Hanoi, again<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Our wonderful guide ‘Hung’ got us up and out
early to get moving to the Halong Bay boat cruise. The immediate area around
downtown Halong Bay where our hotel was located is not notable; there is a hill
out the back, and there is one hill off in the distance, but it’s otherwise a
sort of typical coastal town. At least considering what little I can see given
the several-mile visibility, almost surely a result of pollution of one sort or
another (local burning of rice slash clearly not the least of them).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The boat accommodated our group of 33 perfectly;
it had a dining area downstairs, with an upstairs deck for watching the world
go by. Ours was one of many, many boats departing this wharf area en route to
the rocks, and boats zigged and zagged, occasionally passing one another as we
got closer to the closely-spaced karst peaks jutting up out of the bay. The
atmospheric conditions left much to be desired; I’d guess the visibility was 4+
miles, but the scenery was still amazing. Such an ethereal place, you could
totally imagine Pirates of the Caribbean being filmed here. Once we got toward
the rocks, boats just weaved in and out, wherever they wanted to go. Most of
the peaks appeared to be about 800 to 1000’ high, but some were higher. </span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCA-EvbF6kbpaLF0V41iy9oQAPgAIdpcFrhaMxK5sYD0a-REIvRb8UiZE2yN6hznxJ9hbnmBejedfZY5Mk4Ew9tZUQvgfLDqhu3eNiAVHvay4rn3vY14JZ1J-N19j-nl0EGnU7BObDgmw/s1600/102711_01-33-22-IMG_4618-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCA-EvbF6kbpaLF0V41iy9oQAPgAIdpcFrhaMxK5sYD0a-REIvRb8UiZE2yN6hznxJ9hbnmBejedfZY5Mk4Ew9tZUQvgfLDqhu3eNiAVHvay4rn3vY14JZ1J-N19j-nl0EGnU7BObDgmw/s400/102711_01-33-22-IMG_4618-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heidi bought these bananas from this little guy.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA1ybBzj4o6r9ocWesdFtw-_fqZQJXRgBK3fBUQeIy1pHqYJWZlie8KbAMU5JEENSrLSR8lSvo-f52np4M-CBbJ3P0vbfFnFu30XaSh2hLo0K-nPD_4dvMRsxRyJU2vFnaioQ7H27Nrt8/s1600/102711_01-34-59-IMG_4624-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA1ybBzj4o6r9ocWesdFtw-_fqZQJXRgBK3fBUQeIy1pHqYJWZlie8KbAMU5JEENSrLSR8lSvo-f52np4M-CBbJ3P0vbfFnFu30XaSh2hLo0K-nPD_4dvMRsxRyJU2vFnaioQ7H27Nrt8/s400/102711_01-34-59-IMG_4624-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This fishermen family literally live on the water, and rarely go on land.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9bWP6HqilONQ_u5COaDa3Vp13yyuvGDCqoiCiE0LsPaK5L16bxxebiTGDN8wISR2r__hjZWVrLKyoEULVUiqdQAx5A6yGqV-FfQzgV8p-v_muNUaAYZd4x_hm2WqEOOsAezwH6gk7nY4/s1600/102711_02-36-37-IMG_4768-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9bWP6HqilONQ_u5COaDa3Vp13yyuvGDCqoiCiE0LsPaK5L16bxxebiTGDN8wISR2r__hjZWVrLKyoEULVUiqdQAx5A6yGqV-FfQzgV8p-v_muNUaAYZd4x_hm2WqEOOsAezwH6gk7nY4/s640/102711_02-36-37-IMG_4768-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuMjbLq79FcE6zc2pBoOJ1L0_uAUUXY9lIqoF8FIYbHjScEDRcGJSN8_w246ILiqoD-FTJ-lya-skjLBbYMKgTcfjYRGvkktOX24e6C-IiZKQiSYA9gqGSP4j38uC7HqkEs9XCLt1keFc/s1600/102711_03-03-29-IMG_4812-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuMjbLq79FcE6zc2pBoOJ1L0_uAUUXY9lIqoF8FIYbHjScEDRcGJSN8_w246ILiqoD-FTJ-lya-skjLBbYMKgTcfjYRGvkktOX24e6C-IiZKQiSYA9gqGSP4j38uC7HqkEs9XCLt1keFc/s640/102711_03-03-29-IMG_4812-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The visibility parted for about an hour, revealing some blue sky.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYktxWCP4q8kjgIpUZzfccs8Cf2_nTYSbhpwmwn1ug7BTWxNer4HMf5qlLw78ryikD6E4EAnbZ5jj82BER1C5wlsofkP-mu2NzGBPrWSqIipy_5LoUK2VTWfdQbYp_S8ULa9jNFWHzd7k/s1600/102711_03-10-39-IMG_4823-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYktxWCP4q8kjgIpUZzfccs8Cf2_nTYSbhpwmwn1ug7BTWxNer4HMf5qlLw78ryikD6E4EAnbZ5jj82BER1C5wlsofkP-mu2NzGBPrWSqIipy_5LoUK2VTWfdQbYp_S8ULa9jNFWHzd7k/s400/102711_03-10-39-IMG_4823-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pXdaWo3jbn9oQlmOjLQvA-2MWWJvGAqy4w1pwyM9fictYXyb4XLPaWjT_s12FVFRoeohyiCFOS-4TdeeBlVHlSLBGonpl5dqDwTQfaMnwIaazyC5jWseaUJ3Mjm_kTCrNFI4NmxbS3g/s1600/102711_03-12-29-IMG_4826-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pXdaWo3jbn9oQlmOjLQvA-2MWWJvGAqy4w1pwyM9fictYXyb4XLPaWjT_s12FVFRoeohyiCFOS-4TdeeBlVHlSLBGonpl5dqDwTQfaMnwIaazyC5jWseaUJ3Mjm_kTCrNFI4NmxbS3g/s640/102711_03-12-29-IMG_4826-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A little SAS pride!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We briefly ‘docked’ to disembark for our cave
hike, although I’ll use that term rather loosely. It was more of a controlled
collision into a rock/concrete platform, upon which we had to quickly jump out while
the boat rocked wildly. About 100 stairs led us up underneath the forest canopy
to reveal the opening to the cave. Lighted with very nice stone steps and paths
throughout, the stalactites and stalagmites were beautiful, the ceiling
typically being about 100 or so feet high. We came out on the other side of a
hill, in an adjacent cove where our boat was waiting. After eating lunch en
route back to the shoreline, we got back on the bus for the 2 hour drive back
to Hanoi. Our time in Halong Bay was relatively short, the visibility was
rather poor much of the time, but our time in this wondrous place was well
worth the journey.</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Along the way we made two stops to see people
working both rice fields and vegetable crops, and Hung made sure to stop in
places where there were people working right near the roadway. After seeing the
cultivation of rice in person, I have a hard time imagining how plentiful and
cheap rice is around the world, considering how incredibly laborious the
process is. I had never seen rice grains on the plant before, and as the drive
continued, we passed scores of driveways where it had been laid out to dry.</span></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZLBciVUPL3TJZc3p5UgHO0kTUHyro6bq_ApbjtKGylKqIHwKpAGrIEBy2xp956DpW-ja9tLcRfcb-h5RKcwBB74ClPi0hyphenhyphen8hoDKUG0lOb7WOTyxKIrl5gL8TkwS284uYMabAtkHrdfwg/s1600/102711_06-57-29-IMG_4940-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZLBciVUPL3TJZc3p5UgHO0kTUHyro6bq_ApbjtKGylKqIHwKpAGrIEBy2xp956DpW-ja9tLcRfcb-h5RKcwBB74ClPi0hyphenhyphen8hoDKUG0lOb7WOTyxKIrl5gL8TkwS284uYMabAtkHrdfwg/s640/102711_06-57-29-IMG_4940-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A gravesite of a field worker; they were commonly buried in the fields they worked, though the government is now trying to discourage the practice in the future.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQEjadphN3ovVdKiNCqACmI-i_oosqNm2dl83V5r2EGzKMwXaxdl6X5Js0uvB6EUrnxSDYnZuTl027csZkhqZya7nMq7Mxx7JF_CNkcPiEAXU-leubKaOe0skkPwVkJkS0jxw0oKZGMU8/s1600/102711_07-02-25-IMG_4968-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQEjadphN3ovVdKiNCqACmI-i_oosqNm2dl83V5r2EGzKMwXaxdl6X5Js0uvB6EUrnxSDYnZuTl027csZkhqZya7nMq7Mxx7JF_CNkcPiEAXU-leubKaOe0skkPwVkJkS0jxw0oKZGMU8/s640/102711_07-02-25-IMG_4968-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOE0Oi78FdeVtx8LpoXgcpP5y4QFhbD3FLOusAC7ZlMLQ52aACzr-DoMkbVF4dgU5Lgt3p45BH5PCkIdZTSLN26wKqqGSHRAQ70yagAIwcO5FNPYiCKx92C72sAxbPvlT4sX9IbU0kkSg/s1600/102711_07-06-32-IMG_4991-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOE0Oi78FdeVtx8LpoXgcpP5y4QFhbD3FLOusAC7ZlMLQ52aACzr-DoMkbVF4dgU5Lgt3p45BH5PCkIdZTSLN26wKqqGSHRAQ70yagAIwcO5FNPYiCKx92C72sAxbPvlT4sX9IbU0kkSg/s400/102711_07-06-32-IMG_4991-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is how they had to water the fields, by hand!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4wu_s793zyZfAMDDvC67jFGd5i5zNZqFqPuNmweuWifb3wKmmilh2E3sXusNhUPl99yZ5KuH1FhWS9c1w_UhQ4IEGbraHjK5ulZ87tFJKBF8ERsY9PuBytfTVIvhzFNcXe8St2i8FDA/s1600/102711_07-11-59-IMG_4995-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4wu_s793zyZfAMDDvC67jFGd5i5zNZqFqPuNmweuWifb3wKmmilh2E3sXusNhUPl99yZ5KuH1FhWS9c1w_UhQ4IEGbraHjK5ulZ87tFJKBF8ERsY9PuBytfTVIvhzFNcXe8St2i8FDA/s640/102711_07-11-59-IMG_4995-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq2H45p-ImjHWjjpauq335cxxCHFBFJxZd38KS9AAZnHP3uAbVCShsZdBEszsPYLzAvC6n2kuZ_bfJ2C1C5yml0EqU7VXXcmowCTw6wfnzm64wDj4AXrqMRhQl0W-xZNndvdyFma5hVSc/s1600/102711_08-40-04-IMG_5022-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq2H45p-ImjHWjjpauq335cxxCHFBFJxZd38KS9AAZnHP3uAbVCShsZdBEszsPYLzAvC6n2kuZ_bfJ2C1C5yml0EqU7VXXcmowCTw6wfnzm64wDj4AXrqMRhQl0W-xZNndvdyFma5hVSc/s640/102711_08-40-04-IMG_5022-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Although our guide wouldn't come right out and say it, burning rice slash certainly didn't help the air quality in this area near the coal-fired power plant.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNXVR_Yx5nSJu7MquUAKdD3mgkdNL_J7ZJEoVn8avk1WoNXcSfN_bauWch0maWdqUcZgqayzl1TkIKGMa5ZfiwoUUpXc6Tn6MjbgyMYOaG7AF9nwXX47qjJNgWAQAnkbBH8ZntwQFqME/s1600/102711_08-41-00-IMG_5027-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNXVR_Yx5nSJu7MquUAKdD3mgkdNL_J7ZJEoVn8avk1WoNXcSfN_bauWch0maWdqUcZgqayzl1TkIKGMa5ZfiwoUUpXc6Tn6MjbgyMYOaG7AF9nwXX47qjJNgWAQAnkbBH8ZntwQFqME/s400/102711_08-41-00-IMG_5027-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rice.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">One of the towns along the road from Hanoi to
Halong Bay is a coal mining town, with a power plant on the outskirts. The
streets were horridly covered in black dust everywhere, and coal trucks were
being washed in driveways all over, black sludge slopping off them in piles of
disgusting muck, destined for some water source that could not possibly be used
for drinking. This grey tour reminded me how bleak the pollution controls are
in developing countries, and yet it’s not so unlike conditions in the U.S.
decades ago. Coal is plentiful in many of these countries, and it’s hard to
fault them for doing things us western countries did, before we learned both
the short- and long-term ramifications of ignoring effluent streams of all
kinds.</span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRsTHce1-k2mMfrAcgSHDc9pCpFgtICc40zCfK89O2OKRJYmcyKH8G90zXUnTkrz0CU9HAbyla3Lnk-zNMUDazH0Q0eNKaV3pGup4pJTkTV68HiSQKZNX5d_hPovxdiPzYUD6mRuwkbw/s1600/102711_08-41-51-IMG_5034-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRsTHce1-k2mMfrAcgSHDc9pCpFgtICc40zCfK89O2OKRJYmcyKH8G90zXUnTkrz0CU9HAbyla3Lnk-zNMUDazH0Q0eNKaV3pGup4pJTkTV68HiSQKZNX5d_hPovxdiPzYUD6mRuwkbw/s640/102711_08-41-51-IMG_5034-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can carry a LOT on a scooter!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Which reminds me what a novelty it is <i>not</i> to see trash everywhere! In India,
you’d see people sweeping the trash from their 10x10 foot storefront ‘sidewalk’
into a pile, only to walk 2 additional feet and deposit it in the street, or to
the far side of some demarcation line unseen by me, a line across which it was
apparently deemed to be acceptable to pile garbage, despite the fact that it
was only feet from it’s original place of rest on said vendor’s ‘property’.
Weird. In Ghana, South Africa, Morocco, there was just trash everywhere, and it
behooved you to watch your step. I can assure you that digging some unknown
substance from the myriad cracks of your shoe sole is unpleasant, at best; given
the rather ‘local’ nature of the sources of said gunk, it becomes even more
unpleasant. But alas, once again, I digress.</span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We arrived back in Hanoi, and I
found myself absolutely astounded by the traffic. At least as wild as India in
some ways, though less chaotic in others. In Vietnam they at least obey traffic
lanes and signals most of the time, but otherwise, all bets are off. Crossing
the street was discussed in detail during our pre-port lectures, and I can now see
why. In many places there are no signals, but a constant stream of traffic;
they do NOT stop for pedestrians, you are merely a traffic cone to them,
something to avoid hitting; it’s best you don’t do anything sudden, whether
it’s stop, speed up, or change direction, otherwise you will SURELY be hit by a
scooter, or worse. Traffic lights, if present, are generally adhered to… well,
mostly. So, it goes like this: if you cannot find an elderly person to follow
across the street, take your life into your hands, take a deep breath, look
both ways, and just start walking. Slowly. Methodically. Making no furtive
movements whatsoever in any direction. Do this, and you will live. Deviate from
this, and you may die, and making right turns around the block repeatedly
doesn’t necessarily get you where you want to go.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Luckily our room had a small balcony and the sliding glass door was
unlocked, enabling me to get out with the tripod for some traffic shots from
above. Take a good look at one of the images of the headlights going around the
French water tower (c.1894) below. That’s what a motor scooter looks like,
slowly crossing against a red light through rush hour traffic. Hilarious to
watch, as you can only imagine from seeing his less-than-walking-pace,
circuitous path through dozens of cars. I spent about 20 minutes photographing
the traffic, trying to time the traffic signals with the 13- to 30-second exposures
to capture different facets of the motorized chaos playing out before my eyes.</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">After a great dinner, the group
went to a traditional Water Puppet Show, complete with live music and
fire-breathing dragons. Virtually unknown outside Vietnam until the 1970s, the
art form called ‘roi nuoc’ is played out in a pool of waist deep water. Using
handmade articulated wooden puppets weighing up to 15kg, they’re attached to
50cm poles and manipulated by as many as 11 puppeteers from behind a curtain.
The play consisted of various vignettes of Vietnamese life and culture, and
included a live band using traditional Vietnamese instruments. </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scooter crossing against a red light.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">After the show both the kids and
Heidi were tired<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> and</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> retired in a comfortable (I’d deem it <3 star) hotel for the
night</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">, and I took the opportunity to wander the streets of Hanoi
until about 11:30pm. Leaving the hotel, the first 30 seconds of my walk was
interrupted by a dude on a motor scooter, who pulled up and asked me if I
needed a massage (I don’t think from him). I politely declined, and then
considered how laborious my stroll might prove to be, if on every corner
someone was asking this lone American if he needed such services. Luckily, it
only happened one other time, and I got a chance to experience how life is
lived in the streets of Hanoi after dark. Vendors here in the Old Quarter line
most streets, food available everywhere, people selling things of all sorts,
similar items tending to be clumped together, kind of like aisles in a store. Toys
on one block, weird fish products on another, belts, purses hats, luggage, name
it. There were also people out on sidewalks burning little piles of what I initially
thought was trash, possibly explaining why I saw so little trash. But, it turns
out this is some sort of religious offering, and it is often fake money that
they burn, made of very thin paper. </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Note
to self:</i></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> look this one up when I have better access to the internet.</span>
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08_DLIhuM07ap6pAAN2KofriYdNBGaK7wEQ1mSLwSORG9ZyR9fx5Qwcg6G6KS0DQ50WN2CcoJkkNpnFuh00PubjoFpAmuSR0_B_t64ng6rJgWeKaZJ-uR0slFDWVLdIbs293Binre0oM/s1600/102711_13-21-04-IMG_3817-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08_DLIhuM07ap6pAAN2KofriYdNBGaK7wEQ1mSLwSORG9ZyR9fx5Qwcg6G6KS0DQ50WN2CcoJkkNpnFuh00PubjoFpAmuSR0_B_t64ng6rJgWeKaZJ-uR0slFDWVLdIbs293Binre0oM/s640/102711_13-21-04-IMG_3817-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Water Puppet show.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-49134363944863208002011-10-27T03:04:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:58:14.874-07:0010/27/11: Halong Bay<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Our wonderful guide ‘Hung’ got us up and out
early to get moving to the Halong Bay boat cruise. The immediate area around
downtown Halong Bay where our hotel was located is not notable; there is a hill
out the back, and there is one hill off in the distance, but it’s otherwise a
sort of typical coastal town. At least considering what little I can see given
the several-mile visibility, almost surely a result of pollution of one sort or
another (local burning of rice slash clearly not the least of them).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The boat accommodated our group of 33 perfectly;
it had a dining area downstairs, with an upstairs deck for watching the world
go by. Ours was one of many, many boats departing this wharf area en route to
the rocks, and boats zigged and zagged, occasionally passing one another as we
got closer to the closely-spaced karst peaks jutting up out of the bay. The
atmospheric conditions left much to be desired; I’d guess the visibility was 4+
miles, but the scenery was still amazing. Such an ethereal place, you could
totally imagine Pirates of the Caribbean being filmed here. Once we got toward
the rocks, boats just weaved in and out, wherever they wanted to go. Most of
the peaks appeared to be about 800 to 1000’ high, but some were higher. </span></span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCA-EvbF6kbpaLF0V41iy9oQAPgAIdpcFrhaMxK5sYD0a-REIvRb8UiZE2yN6hznxJ9hbnmBejedfZY5Mk4Ew9tZUQvgfLDqhu3eNiAVHvay4rn3vY14JZ1J-N19j-nl0EGnU7BObDgmw/s1600/102711_01-33-22-IMG_4618-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCA-EvbF6kbpaLF0V41iy9oQAPgAIdpcFrhaMxK5sYD0a-REIvRb8UiZE2yN6hznxJ9hbnmBejedfZY5Mk4Ew9tZUQvgfLDqhu3eNiAVHvay4rn3vY14JZ1J-N19j-nl0EGnU7BObDgmw/s400/102711_01-33-22-IMG_4618-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heidi bought these bananas from this little guy.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA1ybBzj4o6r9ocWesdFtw-_fqZQJXRgBK3fBUQeIy1pHqYJWZlie8KbAMU5JEENSrLSR8lSvo-f52np4M-CBbJ3P0vbfFnFu30XaSh2hLo0K-nPD_4dvMRsxRyJU2vFnaioQ7H27Nrt8/s1600/102711_01-34-59-IMG_4624-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA1ybBzj4o6r9ocWesdFtw-_fqZQJXRgBK3fBUQeIy1pHqYJWZlie8KbAMU5JEENSrLSR8lSvo-f52np4M-CBbJ3P0vbfFnFu30XaSh2hLo0K-nPD_4dvMRsxRyJU2vFnaioQ7H27Nrt8/s400/102711_01-34-59-IMG_4624-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This fishermen family literally live on the water, and rarely go on land.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYLgyKDoq2ghSR5T0vNhvTK8sxzYIcdaXCL24FqYoaduDLmXY6T9W_TPQxICBBbiTEMlKIZCxsFaeExW1TFhKJYbkjd3RNpNcuiIGaS9VnZ0nsLNMdzZFCF8H5eHGdl0GxgPsDWSuQ6Mo/s1600/102711_02-29-36-IMG_4745-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYLgyKDoq2ghSR5T0vNhvTK8sxzYIcdaXCL24FqYoaduDLmXY6T9W_TPQxICBBbiTEMlKIZCxsFaeExW1TFhKJYbkjd3RNpNcuiIGaS9VnZ0nsLNMdzZFCF8H5eHGdl0GxgPsDWSuQ6Mo/s640/102711_02-29-36-IMG_4745-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6lgQaSZaSaXMcfTaTbVNMXR3iX5GXvLtmgrfUk7Zn4TW-CS4899H5cglaiofsLfuPqbm4rdoLgdY9uv1XXwB4pzAVQbfJl_MF8JshkxfqTJg-MmxpYG1y62eoSqaeoG-vH5VgHItEaQ/s1600/102711_02-32-43-IMG_4757-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF6lgQaSZaSaXMcfTaTbVNMXR3iX5GXvLtmgrfUk7Zn4TW-CS4899H5cglaiofsLfuPqbm4rdoLgdY9uv1XXwB4pzAVQbfJl_MF8JshkxfqTJg-MmxpYG1y62eoSqaeoG-vH5VgHItEaQ/s400/102711_02-32-43-IMG_4757-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9bWP6HqilONQ_u5COaDa3Vp13yyuvGDCqoiCiE0LsPaK5L16bxxebiTGDN8wISR2r__hjZWVrLKyoEULVUiqdQAx5A6yGqV-FfQzgV8p-v_muNUaAYZd4x_hm2WqEOOsAezwH6gk7nY4/s1600/102711_02-36-37-IMG_4768-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9bWP6HqilONQ_u5COaDa3Vp13yyuvGDCqoiCiE0LsPaK5L16bxxebiTGDN8wISR2r__hjZWVrLKyoEULVUiqdQAx5A6yGqV-FfQzgV8p-v_muNUaAYZd4x_hm2WqEOOsAezwH6gk7nY4/s640/102711_02-36-37-IMG_4768-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuMjbLq79FcE6zc2pBoOJ1L0_uAUUXY9lIqoF8FIYbHjScEDRcGJSN8_w246ILiqoD-FTJ-lya-skjLBbYMKgTcfjYRGvkktOX24e6C-IiZKQiSYA9gqGSP4j38uC7HqkEs9XCLt1keFc/s1600/102711_03-03-29-IMG_4812-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuMjbLq79FcE6zc2pBoOJ1L0_uAUUXY9lIqoF8FIYbHjScEDRcGJSN8_w246ILiqoD-FTJ-lya-skjLBbYMKgTcfjYRGvkktOX24e6C-IiZKQiSYA9gqGSP4j38uC7HqkEs9XCLt1keFc/s640/102711_03-03-29-IMG_4812-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The visibility parted for about an hour, revealing some blue sky.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYktxWCP4q8kjgIpUZzfccs8Cf2_nTYSbhpwmwn1ug7BTWxNer4HMf5qlLw78ryikD6E4EAnbZ5jj82BER1C5wlsofkP-mu2NzGBPrWSqIipy_5LoUK2VTWfdQbYp_S8ULa9jNFWHzd7k/s1600/102711_03-10-39-IMG_4823-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYktxWCP4q8kjgIpUZzfccs8Cf2_nTYSbhpwmwn1ug7BTWxNer4HMf5qlLw78ryikD6E4EAnbZ5jj82BER1C5wlsofkP-mu2NzGBPrWSqIipy_5LoUK2VTWfdQbYp_S8ULa9jNFWHzd7k/s400/102711_03-10-39-IMG_4823-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pXdaWo3jbn9oQlmOjLQvA-2MWWJvGAqy4w1pwyM9fictYXyb4XLPaWjT_s12FVFRoeohyiCFOS-4TdeeBlVHlSLBGonpl5dqDwTQfaMnwIaazyC5jWseaUJ3Mjm_kTCrNFI4NmxbS3g/s1600/102711_03-12-29-IMG_4826-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3pXdaWo3jbn9oQlmOjLQvA-2MWWJvGAqy4w1pwyM9fictYXyb4XLPaWjT_s12FVFRoeohyiCFOS-4TdeeBlVHlSLBGonpl5dqDwTQfaMnwIaazyC5jWseaUJ3Mjm_kTCrNFI4NmxbS3g/s640/102711_03-12-29-IMG_4826-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A little SAS pride!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We briefly ‘docked’ to disembark for our cave
hike, although I’ll use that term rather loosely. It was more of a controlled
collision into a rock/concrete platform, upon which we had to quickly jump out while
the boat rocked wildly. About 100 stairs led us up underneath the forest canopy
to reveal the opening to the cave. Lighted with very nice stone steps and paths
throughout, the stalactites and stalagmites were beautiful, the ceiling
typically being about 100 or so feet high. We came out on the other side of a
hill, in an adjacent cove where our boat was waiting. After eating lunch en
route back to the shoreline, we got back on the bus for the 2 hour drive back
to Hanoi. Our time in Halong Bay was relatively short, the visibility was
rather poor much of the time, but our time in this wondrous place was well
worth the journey.</span></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZP4K9oOuQCN5EAoq6yuZWsdDEi68t44l39uQNcqtncyP6Y4nidSZIFi-e7_m4cjMlz_HlzWdwSmrmfJ2mWwJlm9po9bdVWgTQ9UZ_xW6eq0d-cX_GMuWzkcnEYDYUPXJ_wj5DFk1F0k/s1600/102711_03-45-40-IMG_4889-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBZP4K9oOuQCN5EAoq6yuZWsdDEi68t44l39uQNcqtncyP6Y4nidSZIFi-e7_m4cjMlz_HlzWdwSmrmfJ2mWwJlm9po9bdVWgTQ9UZ_xW6eq0d-cX_GMuWzkcnEYDYUPXJ_wj5DFk1F0k/s400/102711_03-45-40-IMG_4889-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Along the way we made two stops to see people
working both rice fields and vegetable crops, and Hung made sure to stop in
places where there were people working right near the roadway. After seeing the
cultivation of rice in person, I have a hard time imagining how plentiful and
cheap rice is around the world, considering how incredibly laborious the
process is. I had never seen rice grains on the plant before, and as the drive
continued, we passed scores of driveways where it had been laid out to dry.</span></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZLBciVUPL3TJZc3p5UgHO0kTUHyro6bq_ApbjtKGylKqIHwKpAGrIEBy2xp956DpW-ja9tLcRfcb-h5RKcwBB74ClPi0hyphenhyphen8hoDKUG0lOb7WOTyxKIrl5gL8TkwS284uYMabAtkHrdfwg/s1600/102711_06-57-29-IMG_4940-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZLBciVUPL3TJZc3p5UgHO0kTUHyro6bq_ApbjtKGylKqIHwKpAGrIEBy2xp956DpW-ja9tLcRfcb-h5RKcwBB74ClPi0hyphenhyphen8hoDKUG0lOb7WOTyxKIrl5gL8TkwS284uYMabAtkHrdfwg/s640/102711_06-57-29-IMG_4940-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A gravesite of a field worker; they were commonly buried in the fields they worked, though the government is now trying to discourage the practice in the future.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQEjadphN3ovVdKiNCqACmI-i_oosqNm2dl83V5r2EGzKMwXaxdl6X5Js0uvB6EUrnxSDYnZuTl027csZkhqZya7nMq7Mxx7JF_CNkcPiEAXU-leubKaOe0skkPwVkJkS0jxw0oKZGMU8/s1600/102711_07-02-25-IMG_4968-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="341" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQEjadphN3ovVdKiNCqACmI-i_oosqNm2dl83V5r2EGzKMwXaxdl6X5Js0uvB6EUrnxSDYnZuTl027csZkhqZya7nMq7Mxx7JF_CNkcPiEAXU-leubKaOe0skkPwVkJkS0jxw0oKZGMU8/s640/102711_07-02-25-IMG_4968-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOE0Oi78FdeVtx8LpoXgcpP5y4QFhbD3FLOusAC7ZlMLQ52aACzr-DoMkbVF4dgU5Lgt3p45BH5PCkIdZTSLN26wKqqGSHRAQ70yagAIwcO5FNPYiCKx92C72sAxbPvlT4sX9IbU0kkSg/s1600/102711_07-06-32-IMG_4991-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOE0Oi78FdeVtx8LpoXgcpP5y4QFhbD3FLOusAC7ZlMLQ52aACzr-DoMkbVF4dgU5Lgt3p45BH5PCkIdZTSLN26wKqqGSHRAQ70yagAIwcO5FNPYiCKx92C72sAxbPvlT4sX9IbU0kkSg/s400/102711_07-06-32-IMG_4991-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is how they had to water the fields, by hand!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4wu_s793zyZfAMDDvC67jFGd5i5zNZqFqPuNmweuWifb3wKmmilh2E3sXusNhUPl99yZ5KuH1FhWS9c1w_UhQ4IEGbraHjK5ulZ87tFJKBF8ERsY9PuBytfTVIvhzFNcXe8St2i8FDA/s1600/102711_07-11-59-IMG_4995-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia4wu_s793zyZfAMDDvC67jFGd5i5zNZqFqPuNmweuWifb3wKmmilh2E3sXusNhUPl99yZ5KuH1FhWS9c1w_UhQ4IEGbraHjK5ulZ87tFJKBF8ERsY9PuBytfTVIvhzFNcXe8St2i8FDA/s640/102711_07-11-59-IMG_4995-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq2H45p-ImjHWjjpauq335cxxCHFBFJxZd38KS9AAZnHP3uAbVCShsZdBEszsPYLzAvC6n2kuZ_bfJ2C1C5yml0EqU7VXXcmowCTw6wfnzm64wDj4AXrqMRhQl0W-xZNndvdyFma5hVSc/s1600/102711_08-40-04-IMG_5022-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq2H45p-ImjHWjjpauq335cxxCHFBFJxZd38KS9AAZnHP3uAbVCShsZdBEszsPYLzAvC6n2kuZ_bfJ2C1C5yml0EqU7VXXcmowCTw6wfnzm64wDj4AXrqMRhQl0W-xZNndvdyFma5hVSc/s640/102711_08-40-04-IMG_5022-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Although our guide wouldn't come right out and say it, burning rice slash certainly didn't help the air quality in this area near the coal-fired power plant.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNXVR_Yx5nSJu7MquUAKdD3mgkdNL_J7ZJEoVn8avk1WoNXcSfN_bauWch0maWdqUcZgqayzl1TkIKGMa5ZfiwoUUpXc6Tn6MjbgyMYOaG7AF9nwXX47qjJNgWAQAnkbBH8ZntwQFqME/s1600/102711_08-41-00-IMG_5027-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNXVR_Yx5nSJu7MquUAKdD3mgkdNL_J7ZJEoVn8avk1WoNXcSfN_bauWch0maWdqUcZgqayzl1TkIKGMa5ZfiwoUUpXc6Tn6MjbgyMYOaG7AF9nwXX47qjJNgWAQAnkbBH8ZntwQFqME/s400/102711_08-41-00-IMG_5027-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rice.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">One of the towns along the road from Hanoi to
Halong Bay is a coal mining town, with a power plant on the outskirts. The
streets were horridly covered in black dust everywhere, and coal trucks were
being washed in driveways all over, black sludge slopping off them in piles of
disgusting muck, destined for some water source that could not possibly be used
for drinking. This grey tour reminded me how bleak the pollution controls are
in developing countries, and yet it’s not so unlike conditions in the U.S.
decades ago. Coal is plentiful in many of these countries, and it’s hard to
fault them for doing things us western countries did, before we learned both
the short- and long-term ramifications of ignoring effluent streams of all
kinds.</span></span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRsTHce1-k2mMfrAcgSHDc9pCpFgtICc40zCfK89O2OKRJYmcyKH8G90zXUnTkrz0CU9HAbyla3Lnk-zNMUDazH0Q0eNKaV3pGup4pJTkTV68HiSQKZNX5d_hPovxdiPzYUD6mRuwkbw/s1600/102711_08-41-51-IMG_5034-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivRsTHce1-k2mMfrAcgSHDc9pCpFgtICc40zCfK89O2OKRJYmcyKH8G90zXUnTkrz0CU9HAbyla3Lnk-zNMUDazH0Q0eNKaV3pGup4pJTkTV68HiSQKZNX5d_hPovxdiPzYUD6mRuwkbw/s640/102711_08-41-51-IMG_5034-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can carry a LOT on a scooter!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUWv7n7C2zlDVcKxlV5THk4mag9KJMMT4fKW_WKoP9eE_4XhYeYNLErdd-ZlmScBT7Bfmo32kGpSWqmdbd-wIhN2EDxx-1Iv-p0wrvydgqYy2KYZAcfNqJlO_9WKOEY4KEvB1ae9aUD0E/s1600/102711_08-42-37-IMG_5042-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUWv7n7C2zlDVcKxlV5THk4mag9KJMMT4fKW_WKoP9eE_4XhYeYNLErdd-ZlmScBT7Bfmo32kGpSWqmdbd-wIhN2EDxx-1Iv-p0wrvydgqYy2KYZAcfNqJlO_9WKOEY4KEvB1ae9aUD0E/s320/102711_08-42-37-IMG_5042-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhROivEEpTrfePzQfI5TzjCQUkIuhyPFhrDJNooMSNIjm-NjrcGGRDBAKqMPnIxWSw9H6LQ-n5qOomU19V4M6AUQSuSZwfjcJpm_VTRUcKbxU4lbPCnfQpympLkTFs1pjLOh5UQ0E_-wbY/s1600/102711_08-42-54-IMG_5047-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhROivEEpTrfePzQfI5TzjCQUkIuhyPFhrDJNooMSNIjm-NjrcGGRDBAKqMPnIxWSw9H6LQ-n5qOomU19V4M6AUQSuSZwfjcJpm_VTRUcKbxU4lbPCnfQpympLkTFs1pjLOh5UQ0E_-wbY/s400/102711_08-42-54-IMG_5047-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Which reminds me what a novelty it is <i>not</i> to see trash everywhere! In India,
you’d see people sweeping the trash from their 10x10 foot storefront ‘sidewalk’
into a pile, only to walk 2 additional feet and deposit it in the street, or to
the far side of some demarcation line unseen by me, a line across which it was
apparently deemed to be acceptable to pile garbage, despite the fact that it
was only feet from it’s original place of rest on said vendor’s ‘property’.
Weird. In Ghana, South Africa, Morocco, there was just trash everywhere, and it
behooved you to watch your step. I can assure you that digging some unknown
substance from the myriad cracks of your shoe sole is unpleasant, at best; given
the rather ‘local’ nature of the sources of said gunk, it becomes even more
unpleasant. But alas, once again, I digress.</span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8csfT-2McjN_VMBHU9Jr-lqaYQi-SZBd9R8F_ZhNKbYJ98Xiukl1u2lpb4fRg6usGFvIAMGrZQQ4gUc1jdANSKCEgyL0dllnc2GLv4MUjFIzGY7NmMu-kk10EXEjMoOnr1ifoQHN-MEU/s1600/102711_08-49-00-IMG_5077-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8csfT-2McjN_VMBHU9Jr-lqaYQi-SZBd9R8F_ZhNKbYJ98Xiukl1u2lpb4fRg6usGFvIAMGrZQQ4gUc1jdANSKCEgyL0dllnc2GLv4MUjFIzGY7NmMu-kk10EXEjMoOnr1ifoQHN-MEU/s640/102711_08-49-00-IMG_5077-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We arrived back in Hanoi, and I
found myself absolutely astounded by the traffic. At least as wild as India in
some ways, though less chaotic in others. In Vietnam they at least obey traffic
lanes and signals most of the time, but otherwise, all bets are off. Crossing
the street was discussed in detail during our pre-port lectures, and I can now see
why. In many places there are no signals, but a constant stream of traffic;
they do NOT stop for pedestrians, you are merely a traffic cone to them,
something to avoid hitting; it’s best you don’t do anything sudden, whether
it’s stop, speed up, or change direction, otherwise you will SURELY be hit by a
scooter, or worse. Traffic lights, if present, are generally adhered to… well,
mostly. So, it goes like this: if you cannot find an elderly person to follow
across the street, take your life into your hands, take a deep breath, look
both ways, and just start walking. Slowly. Methodically. Making no furtive
movements whatsoever in any direction. Do this, and you will live. Deviate from
this, and you may die, and making right turns around the block repeatedly
doesn’t necessarily get you where you want to go.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Luckily our room had a small balcony and the sliding glass door was
unlocked, enabling me to get out with the tripod for some traffic shots from
above. Take a good look at one of the images of the headlights going around the
French water tower (c.1894) below. That’s what a motor scooter looks like,
slowly crossing against a red light through rush hour traffic. Hilarious to
watch, as you can only imagine from seeing his less-than-walking-pace,
circuitous path through dozens of cars. I spent about 20 minutes photographing
the traffic, trying to time the traffic signals with the 13- to 30-second exposures
to capture different facets of the motorized chaos playing out before my eyes.</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">After a great dinner, the group
went to a traditional Water Puppet Show, complete with live music and
fire-breathing dragons. Virtually unknown outside Vietnam until the 1970s, the
art form called ‘roi nuoc’ is played out in a pool of waist deep water. Using
handmade articulated wooden puppets weighing up to 15kg, they’re attached to
50cm poles and manipulated by as many as 11 puppeteers from behind a curtain.
The play consisted of various vignettes of Vietnamese life and culture, and
included a live band using traditional Vietnamese instruments. </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCiRWnO3I1vd_vN3I6MncHGyHuETxQ6FUloiw79bJKEKT9i2xvFKYewWuacIiQW674V8JwNLu09ct8lpWm1sN9jlNnfGwUV1HnfV0ewFHfDys87diSpZar6376DVeeItMZ2bGQ6Hm8LRQ/s1600/102711_10-38-14-IMG_5118-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCiRWnO3I1vd_vN3I6MncHGyHuETxQ6FUloiw79bJKEKT9i2xvFKYewWuacIiQW674V8JwNLu09ct8lpWm1sN9jlNnfGwUV1HnfV0ewFHfDys87diSpZar6376DVeeItMZ2bGQ6Hm8LRQ/s640/102711_10-38-14-IMG_5118-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="512" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scooter crossing against a red light.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">After the show both the kids and
Heidi were tired<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> and</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> retired in a comfortable (I’d deem it <3 star) hotel for the
night</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">, and I took the opportunity to wander the streets of Hanoi
until about 11:30pm. Leaving the hotel, the first 30 seconds of my walk was
interrupted by a dude on a motor scooter, who pulled up and asked me if I
needed a massage (I don’t think from him). I politely declined, and then
considered how laborious my stroll might prove to be, if on every corner
someone was asking this lone American if he needed such services. Luckily, it
only happened one other time, and I got a chance to experience how life is
lived in the streets of Hanoi after dark. Vendors here in the Old Quarter line
most streets, food available everywhere, people selling things of all sorts,
similar items tending to be clumped together, kind of like aisles in a store. Toys
on one block, weird fish products on another, belts, purses hats, luggage, name
it. There were also people out on sidewalks burning little piles of what I initially
thought was trash, possibly explaining why I saw so little trash. But, it turns
out this is some sort of religious offering, and it is often fake money that
they burn, made of very thin paper. </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Note
to self:</i></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> look this one up when I have better access to the internet.</span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08_DLIhuM07ap6pAAN2KofriYdNBGaK7wEQ1mSLwSORG9ZyR9fx5Qwcg6G6KS0DQ50WN2CcoJkkNpnFuh00PubjoFpAmuSR0_B_t64ng6rJgWeKaZJ-uR0slFDWVLdIbs293Binre0oM/s1600/102711_13-21-04-IMG_3817-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08_DLIhuM07ap6pAAN2KofriYdNBGaK7wEQ1mSLwSORG9ZyR9fx5Qwcg6G6KS0DQ50WN2CcoJkkNpnFuh00PubjoFpAmuSR0_B_t64ng6rJgWeKaZJ-uR0slFDWVLdIbs293Binre0oM/s640/102711_13-21-04-IMG_3817-Vietnam3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Water Puppet show.</td></tr>
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<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-18264154913477017362011-10-26T02:45:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:57:48.345-07:0010/26/11: Hanoi, Vietnam<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: small;">The four of us left the ship at 0415 to catch a
flight to Hanoi, about 1:40 flight time north of Saigon. The destination of our
3-day trip would be Halong Bay, one of the most beautiful places on earth, a
place where karst topography (limestone formations) has left thousands of pillars
of limestone jutting out of Halong Bay in spectacular fashion.</span>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><br />
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">After arriving in Hanoi we toured Ho Chi Minh’s mausoleum
and the Vietnam Army Museum, a place containing various artifacts from Vietnam’s
many wars over the years. Scraps of shot down American warplanes, tanks,
planes, an intact Huey, and various weapons and adornments were scattered
throughout, but we only had time to view the ‘American War’ section.</span>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhrHt0fJEeW3KLN7PHd03DHnmrFL4o5AD-eVbS-TOOZkAtseCG55vCWkVeIT9L2nnEajLz-rRsgd8iCkc7FvM-Ae9rYa3vL1TWfWQ-JauJi_prF9UHdIUsEISSL0lZTjuGRTDnT1qi98c/s1600/102611_03-47-49-IMG_4464-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhrHt0fJEeW3KLN7PHd03DHnmrFL4o5AD-eVbS-TOOZkAtseCG55vCWkVeIT9L2nnEajLz-rRsgd8iCkc7FvM-Ae9rYa3vL1TWfWQ-JauJi_prF9UHdIUsEISSL0lZTjuGRTDnT1qi98c/s640/102611_03-47-49-IMG_4464-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Vietnam Army Museum in Hanoi.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiVv96uTeTXHPvfqg8yu22IKPgLz-3xr1YtHoWlyrMoOmnbsOI1a6dxgTkcMTxnK6avr51ddowWI-TcBhZkJWPrWxxa_w2yj0lCfg4BbVlJ5X5NBDTyhZlHra2i-gBeRn_Jc_W1pMfOHE/s1600/102611_03-53-48-IMG_4486-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiVv96uTeTXHPvfqg8yu22IKPgLz-3xr1YtHoWlyrMoOmnbsOI1a6dxgTkcMTxnK6avr51ddowWI-TcBhZkJWPrWxxa_w2yj0lCfg4BbVlJ5X5NBDTyhZlHra2i-gBeRn_Jc_W1pMfOHE/s400/102611_03-53-48-IMG_4486-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjktjvlhMji88rqHKRUH9fj7fxJ5YQgqIQXehqa74e6M8ICCs5yjo1mYhZVJcWelF2UNWy9g2hkqeOigJFF_dXZVy5DU1ZhfC56BaPzSWzqnHfy7J5nQyWa-nGRj8ZIZK9IQTWYK_vyhlI/s1600/102611_03-58-37-IMG_4510-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjktjvlhMji88rqHKRUH9fj7fxJ5YQgqIQXehqa74e6M8ICCs5yjo1mYhZVJcWelF2UNWy9g2hkqeOigJFF_dXZVy5DU1ZhfC56BaPzSWzqnHfy7J5nQyWa-nGRj8ZIZK9IQTWYK_vyhlI/s640/102611_03-58-37-IMG_4510-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" width="427" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stairwell inside the Flag Tower.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0LwoP3hplPxYK_wKlPzhF15LRAZ2Zr0wjift6EuXfppH2VU0XCzEgPCrUrrl5YMhkhFUjT3sOG-u12TEMFHvbxIepLgEAP-AeG4ZF5QNpSBAGIrqrROvvIs89HnEMndjsFHFIvmK2HL8/s1600/102611_04-01-08-IMG_4516-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0LwoP3hplPxYK_wKlPzhF15LRAZ2Zr0wjift6EuXfppH2VU0XCzEgPCrUrrl5YMhkhFUjT3sOG-u12TEMFHvbxIepLgEAP-AeG4ZF5QNpSBAGIrqrROvvIs89HnEMndjsFHFIvmK2HL8/s400/102611_04-01-08-IMG_4516-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Flag Tower.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The ‘coach’ (fancy word for bus)
trip to Halong bay was more than 2.5 hours, but the scenery was beautiful,
though the visibility was poor, maybe due to humidity, perhaps moreso to
pollution (in my opinion). We passed rice paddy upon rice paddy, scores of
people harvesting the rice, often bringing it to roadside for mechanical
threshing, and in some places the rice was even laid upon the shoulder of the
highway to dry. Mid-way we made a bathroom stop at a place that makes large
marble sculpture, in addition to crafting clothes, and the lacquer stuff that
is so common here. Reade found a pair of ‘wild pants’ to replace his ‘wild
pants from India’ that he somehow lost, but the prices weren’t too great. Having
come to appreciate sculpture since childhood, I was fascinated by the artistry
at this place. There were many buddhas and more ‘traditional’ types of
sculpture, but also some rather abstract stuff, really quite artistic in many
ways. Due to the widely varying styles, it led me to wonder if the art is
actually ‘copied’ from other artists’ work; the classic Vietnamese ‘knockoff’.
Was it merely cheap (good value for your money), or just ‘cheap cheap’
(basically, junk)? Tough to tell.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBGMx8ExThfYaP45xekJIavau2-Sm8PV_US6U3X2QIwsCLIv9-h4k_ZXIROOTdwkT_EqUhy1IzHhI2AoB2ivxo5s0c4LFvBVeQ4HAXozlUDRAY4FxQ7skGCWTVlkWSGjVHjw9zIn6VEIo/s1600/102611_04-39-45-IMG_3683-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBGMx8ExThfYaP45xekJIavau2-Sm8PV_US6U3X2QIwsCLIv9-h4k_ZXIROOTdwkT_EqUhy1IzHhI2AoB2ivxo5s0c4LFvBVeQ4HAXozlUDRAY4FxQ7skGCWTVlkWSGjVHjw9zIn6VEIo/s640/102611_04-39-45-IMG_3683-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A typical power pole in Vietnam.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHB1jFdJRbCk7yRo-a7jQBjEvaQRPC2251NjJyHAyc6MzyJ8rb3TpGmb19LUwI1FK30ivMypb80j1RunqW4Wcw1B3r6MSZIhlKnilj3z4RWBpVQqVq8GZiY5hFI_07t6myx8rTPuJqEuw/s1600/102611_06-12-05-IMG_3698-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHB1jFdJRbCk7yRo-a7jQBjEvaQRPC2251NjJyHAyc6MzyJ8rb3TpGmb19LUwI1FK30ivMypb80j1RunqW4Wcw1B3r6MSZIhlKnilj3z4RWBpVQqVq8GZiY5hFI_07t6myx8rTPuJqEuw/s1600/102611_06-12-05-IMG_3698-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ah, the palmello fruit on the back of a scooter.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5PHMhwdX8swIrW2bPKT9JXy8TYdtIMgZ48U-DB9xLvYa3_EmLbDrbtJ0kNXvhp9CC98WyANVDFoABG7DOB7NG0h_Lm0eE3fcWEuAp0xzVNcRjmJGmCfq47uT0C3awwhf2xHwJyVP_osA/s1600/102611_06-22-52-IMG_3717-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5PHMhwdX8swIrW2bPKT9JXy8TYdtIMgZ48U-DB9xLvYa3_EmLbDrbtJ0kNXvhp9CC98WyANVDFoABG7DOB7NG0h_Lm0eE3fcWEuAp0xzVNcRjmJGmCfq47uT0C3awwhf2xHwJyVP_osA/s1600/102611_06-22-52-IMG_3717-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chicken foot, anyone?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">We arrived at Halong Bay after
dark, unfortunately, but had a great dinner prior to arriving at the hotel. As we
finished eating, there started to be some ruckus upstairs, and a few of us went
up to see what all the fuss was about. Well, the Vietnamese can party, let me
tell you. The ‘ruckus’ was karaoke emanating from a positively wild party;
dozens and dozens of middle-aged men in suits (and a few women) were having a
good old time, bottles of Chivas and some sort of whiskey being passed around
at will. A couple of the college students spied the wood parguet floor and
danced to the karaoke song of the moment, some Vietnamese gentleman positively
bellowing out the tune, a tune completely unfamiliar to me, as you might
imagine. The men loved it, and gave the students shots and took pictures;
apparently I stood around smiling long enough that one of them decided I needed
a shot, so I sent my regards to whatever the happy occasion was by drinking to
it.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3-Wp1njifwL2YiEdGkNy-8QPWmhBvsLma6B30TEvUR93bF3l_jThY6YZ3bvtutkQTGDBrdWJ3scasdYFZk5UgpJprxytYoALC_bpkoqkju7Z_KJPDVlyQYm7RmJ4PdT2pyThGIlgfYGo/s1600/102611_09-36-28-IMG_3739-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3-Wp1njifwL2YiEdGkNy-8QPWmhBvsLma6B30TEvUR93bF3l_jThY6YZ3bvtutkQTGDBrdWJ3scasdYFZk5UgpJprxytYoALC_bpkoqkju7Z_KJPDVlyQYm7RmJ4PdT2pyThGIlgfYGo/s1600/102611_09-36-28-IMG_3739-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coal dust town; if I had adequate access to Google Earth, I'd tell you the town name.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwqoj81bKF54o2wX9t_CmAdXOFWJiIn4hnvv0RdMvJxKTWxzVO-u6-motVzgRArO6ncmu1dEYHm-gq8Jm95_IF73rA2gs3yu2Mo_7sLPDLmsd6E_JW7GqvbQvlcbMCe0db4f1rpzwTZU/s1600/102611_10-22-12-IMG_3749-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwqoj81bKF54o2wX9t_CmAdXOFWJiIn4hnvv0RdMvJxKTWxzVO-u6-motVzgRArO6ncmu1dEYHm-gq8Jm95_IF73rA2gs3yu2Mo_7sLPDLmsd6E_JW7GqvbQvlcbMCe0db4f1rpzwTZU/s1600/102611_10-22-12-IMG_3749-Vietnam2_blog.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I found out the hard way that these pigs are indeed alive, on the way to slaughter; how they strap them on there like that, I have no clue.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Can’t wait to wake up in the morning and see
what this wondrous place has in store for us! </span></span>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-53271491981572459712011-10-25T02:30:00.000-06:002012-01-10T14:18:30.494-07:0010/25/11: Vietnam Day 1: Cu Chi Tunnels<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After the previous night’s
combined cultural/logistical pre-port, I found myself wondering what it would
be like to visit the Cu Chi Tunnels, a network of tunnels the Viet Cong used in
‘The American War’ (as they aptly call it here) to infiltrate an air base that
the U.S. built right on top of them. Our arrival in the Port of Ho Chi Minh
City (formerly known as Saigon) was preceded by a beautiful steam up the Saigon
River, sometimes requiring the MV Explorer to turn rather rapidly--at least
compared to what we’re accustomed to--crossing entire oceans.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUag353spmmx4Dx0VVM0SSAeU_rj6LwPstC_nCWW1CHVL3RCb9DDutNjLzXt8cuYgaKq8Sh2x8OX5q5PEM-TizSgKvNQlTMwza2freGiFHv7s6kiErjuXwkVdnJgjB4yP4LlfkHZj6BK8/s1600/102511_02-01-45-IMG_4143-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUag353spmmx4Dx0VVM0SSAeU_rj6LwPstC_nCWW1CHVL3RCb9DDutNjLzXt8cuYgaKq8Sh2x8OX5q5PEM-TizSgKvNQlTMwza2freGiFHv7s6kiErjuXwkVdnJgjB4yP4LlfkHZj6BK8/s640/102511_02-01-45-IMG_4143-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Our trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels
didn’t start for a few hours after arriving, so we did our typical ‘walk around
200 meters outside the port gate’ for 45 minutes, immediately coming across
copious ‘North Face’ backpacks, hats, bags, suitcases, t-shirts, you name it.
Did you know that virtually all the major backpack brands are manufactured here
in Vietnam, by only a handful of companies? Prices for these ‘North Face’
knockoffs were perhaps 20% on the dollar, and it appeared to my well-calibrated
‘gear eye’ to provide maybe 30% the value of the real thing. So, all in all,
that’s about a 33% savings over buying in the U.S.! </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After departing in yet another
bus, we spent about 45 minutes winding through lush rice paddy and jungle-like
terrain, and arrived at our destination. The entrance to the Cu Chi Tunnels is
oddly a huge, lighted walkway that descends underground (perhaps 10m) to the
cashier, then once paid in full, quickly regains the elevation back to ground
level. Strange.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVxFd9Za5BiGFIJ-IRz4CpbgwqmPpYBP4Kq1vJAQc_zZmEClVbn7zVz0oSH8mG3cNhyphenhyphenD0Y_fSenPpULCv97eKaMz9utgh4vQ4b0szoWGPNCBHCEFUWl7GHuW8kgmgHBVyEZxbNYMm_t4c/s1600/102511_07-12-09-IMG_4209-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVxFd9Za5BiGFIJ-IRz4CpbgwqmPpYBP4Kq1vJAQc_zZmEClVbn7zVz0oSH8mG3cNhyphenhyphenD0Y_fSenPpULCv97eKaMz9utgh4vQ4b0szoWGPNCBHCEFUWl7GHuW8kgmgHBVyEZxbNYMm_t4c/s400/102511_07-12-09-IMG_4209-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">One of the professors on board
was a doorgunner in the war, and he gave a rather sobering account of his
experiences at last night’s pre-port meeting. One statistic in particular that
stuck out was that approximately 58,000 Americans died in the Vietnam war. More
than 60,000 veterans committed suicide in the 10+ years after returning to the
U.S. I’d guess that many people reading this blog are of an age that they at
least remember the Vietnam War (I was Reade and Tate’s age), so I won’t belabor
any points further. It was dark cloud in US political history, and I can only
hope that the last 10 years won’t end up a repeat of the lessons learned (?)
back in the late 60s and early 70s.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ozCGBZcmkrq4MFr6jk5VzE3qESqsSkOr6hiVqbplr9JYPc9pRsx0n20A_erfptxf__qMOMIBCGxW7J1AUX4uqGCtTRK592UEnLTAmsSVurel59tkxkP2ByOa3KnpmKi5fvuiW9tEBkw/s1600/102511_07-14-54-IMG_4212-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ozCGBZcmkrq4MFr6jk5VzE3qESqsSkOr6hiVqbplr9JYPc9pRsx0n20A_erfptxf__qMOMIBCGxW7J1AUX4uqGCtTRK592UEnLTAmsSVurel59tkxkP2ByOa3KnpmKi5fvuiW9tEBkw/s640/102511_07-14-54-IMG_4212-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBncDVg-iW1w1529sWHg33MeDsYro1OkHFas5n0hUwaCb2l9adYT-sygJk_fWsx7Lp2DGZVkDpzNWFgR5rs_cIO6gY453Z7tXVcheKA-YTZHLmFPkUsIs9EKd7DSlANJaoc5fs1mkp-C8/s1600/102511_07-27-56-IMG_4228-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBncDVg-iW1w1529sWHg33MeDsYro1OkHFas5n0hUwaCb2l9adYT-sygJk_fWsx7Lp2DGZVkDpzNWFgR5rs_cIO6gY453Z7tXVcheKA-YTZHLmFPkUsIs9EKd7DSlANJaoc5fs1mkp-C8/s400/102511_07-27-56-IMG_4228-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An airhole, formerly lined with bamboo.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As for the tunnels, the North
Vietnamese used them to hide by day, as the U.S. was in control when there was
light. As soon as it got dark, however, the situation was reversed. Typically
2,000 people lived in the tunnels at any one time, with as many as 10,000 at the
most. As you’ve probably heard, the tunnels are small; the one we traversed for
perhaps 250 feet required crouching, but it had been hollowed out to allow
‘most’ visitors adequate room to squirm through, with several bail-out
stairways to the surface along the way, other completely dark tunnels heading
some unknown direction. </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio4RVn34WWSEdkJHz_aptM_UksSOLUTVJOMcFtA5d1MEjW7n6OePXgfQ-SF-EdET7Du2a-PBiBvkIiIhtZtOIUi-Pry6c5GQvg66Y6RgtFwoeWGTzzBOmE4xY3w-TezrjMUbLkZRe_xiA/s1600/102511_07-34-25-IMG_4247-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio4RVn34WWSEdkJHz_aptM_UksSOLUTVJOMcFtA5d1MEjW7n6OePXgfQ-SF-EdET7Du2a-PBiBvkIiIhtZtOIUi-Pry6c5GQvg66Y6RgtFwoeWGTzzBOmE4xY3w-TezrjMUbLkZRe_xiA/s640/102511_07-34-25-IMG_4247-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="425" /></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi47_ScgrWgUwEkfhZK1fcusXRTA7MhmTMSOykU4neQzkiIidpUzWPxTXh521ToGD9hsqLuEf8azaBOTe2Ratq_hei8MT6FpOCMwbLNqY5lRIKSPBlEfUVXqm2IxhDqlWe6UmdJUPjHheg/s1600/102511_07-57-57-IMG_4276-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi47_ScgrWgUwEkfhZK1fcusXRTA7MhmTMSOykU4neQzkiIidpUzWPxTXh521ToGD9hsqLuEf8azaBOTe2Ratq_hei8MT6FpOCMwbLNqY5lRIKSPBlEfUVXqm2IxhDqlWe6UmdJUPjHheg/s640/102511_07-57-57-IMG_4276-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh69_5bdqLWkoxHEzkeuprzhkKvcxldU9bzhzVOa9KVtgv4abgVx2ytzzBUX1nw31U7qA5Nd3UJPsjl84dMxhjTJeF2oChN6JJE4LGfFnLqd_BohcOY1IBZmvcHawmfSuRDLvX7yXTAttQ/s1600/102511_08-03-43-IMG_4282-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh69_5bdqLWkoxHEzkeuprzhkKvcxldU9bzhzVOa9KVtgv4abgVx2ytzzBUX1nw31U7qA5Nd3UJPsjl84dMxhjTJeF2oChN6JJE4LGfFnLqd_BohcOY1IBZmvcHawmfSuRDLvX7yXTAttQ/s400/102511_08-03-43-IMG_4282-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Making sandals out of tires.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The people living in the tunnels
had elaborate ventilation systems using bamboo to direct cooking heat/smoke in
many different directions, so it wasn’t obvious that there was smoke emanating
from the ground. Each person would hollow out a little nook for himself to
sleep, and they would have to go to the bathroom down there, eat down there, and
die down there. When someone died in the tunnels, they would burrow into the
wall, put the body in, then cover it up. The tunnels at Cu Chi were the base of operations for the Vietcong during the Tet Offensive of 1968.</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVyPs-ZdpXbugsQigMiCRhLf35lBR7dk2GpUKB0dNbAIjnNcu1bfCzddw6WuqpE-ZV_k09CwZyBz0HL2_lfQM-R8FqDDsQ0fC3yqvnnrooOIke1-fEzQXMyNQR0qbqS6nN6qWfsrqDaFs/s1600/102511_08-06-54-IMG_4286-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVyPs-ZdpXbugsQigMiCRhLf35lBR7dk2GpUKB0dNbAIjnNcu1bfCzddw6WuqpE-ZV_k09CwZyBz0HL2_lfQM-R8FqDDsQ0fC3yqvnnrooOIke1-fEzQXMyNQR0qbqS6nN6qWfsrqDaFs/s640/102511_08-06-54-IMG_4286-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The entrance to the 'westerner-sized' tunnel, still quite small.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It’s hard to imagine what could
compel people to such extreme living conditions, but then it’s hard for us
Americans to imagine a foreign invader attempting to take over our country. I’m
certain that would drive any of us to do things we cannot even fathom.</span></span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3r0SwpXFfH6JXdI7zN3TX12e1BHwSF4NYgX4Lw7aCD9mSMabDJUMCWkqPV268a0ioL6nRzYyH7Ngz_03CSw6ggt-fYwHiuLB0GB5-zPXa41WCCHgGkLvNBNf-uUzCSl79C_8P5o-z5Y/s1600/102511_08-51-17-IMG_4292-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3r0SwpXFfH6JXdI7zN3TX12e1BHwSF4NYgX4Lw7aCD9mSMabDJUMCWkqPV268a0ioL6nRzYyH7Ngz_03CSw6ggt-fYwHiuLB0GB5-zPXa41WCCHgGkLvNBNf-uUzCSl79C_8P5o-z5Y/s640/102511_08-51-17-IMG_4292-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rubber trees</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXIp3asqfGESF2jVjLjGON4Y4_w3zVIIuJla796cjz2Pb1lrSXLRlyK-l7ayQ4DGBzX2LHIKdWi3l-qA8vr56ICyGG4bqpab1w0s1sgb_6qufqcXsOTWRe6XeWmuOTfQGZeQlOJ38xiQ/s1600/102511_09-38-52-IMG_4301-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXIp3asqfGESF2jVjLjGON4Y4_w3zVIIuJla796cjz2Pb1lrSXLRlyK-l7ayQ4DGBzX2LHIKdWi3l-qA8vr56ICyGG4bqpab1w0s1sgb_6qufqcXsOTWRe6XeWmuOTfQGZeQlOJ38xiQ/s400/102511_09-38-52-IMG_4301-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scooter traffic</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQG5qgKqOTiqWzYdhHFMKqk2sB760RDn2TRW4fJB_M2oEHrWlrlqRcvE7pbf9nd2jU45fPCCh-S1IhH3vM53fpLuiUXjtNWfppqkJNzMgVkAhryQXpuYA720FBPzVGXdvsFUtp9QBP98w/s1600/102511_09-39-35-IMG_4304-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQG5qgKqOTiqWzYdhHFMKqk2sB760RDn2TRW4fJB_M2oEHrWlrlqRcvE7pbf9nd2jU45fPCCh-S1IhH3vM53fpLuiUXjtNWfppqkJNzMgVkAhryQXpuYA720FBPzVGXdvsFUtp9QBP98w/s640/102511_09-39-35-IMG_4304-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More scooter traffic</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGY6hEM9ulUSI2ezaAIdgJOovy9ZadioABM_AOt5XflERa1hE0ytSnc8t4zPWAM5pb_kP9m11KUOZI2YVaKS11MmSrCIUrQh4ydJfPvUmoBs_ER3Es4kU72g1tNK3ijvTI_K3OYAAXkos/s1600/102511_10-03-24-IMG_4320-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGY6hEM9ulUSI2ezaAIdgJOovy9ZadioABM_AOt5XflERa1hE0ytSnc8t4zPWAM5pb_kP9m11KUOZI2YVaKS11MmSrCIUrQh4ydJfPvUmoBs_ER3Es4kU72g1tNK3ijvTI_K3OYAAXkos/s400/102511_10-03-24-IMG_4320-Vietnam1_blog.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And even more scooter traffic!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5764208458523332374.post-60643295105293499782011-10-21T04:13:00.000-06:002011-11-20T15:57:03.117-07:0010/21/11: Last day in Panang, Malaysia<style>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Today Heidi took the boys downtown while I
walked to an old cemetery that we’d previously driven by, and having become
immediately transfixed by its ethereal allure, I knew I had to go. The graves
were mostly from the mid- to late-1800s, and many gravestones said either what
the person did for work, or how they died. The cemetery was damp, lush, green,
but unfortunately the harsh sunlight through the trees did nothing for my
images. Not the kind of light I want for a cemetery. I’ve always been
fascinated by cemeteries, perhaps since my college days at Day Hall, perched
atop Mount Olympus, overlooking Syracuse University on one side, Morningside
Cemetery on the other. Such a beautiful place in the fall, when the leaves are
changing.</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I met up with Heidi and the boys for lunch,
then we headed back to the ship so that the boys and I could meet up for the
FDP to St. Joseph’s Home, right downtown, maybe 1.5 km from the ship. Heidi
always needs to be at the ship prior to ‘on-ship’ time, as the medical team has
open clinic for students and staff returning from these faraway places we’ve
been visiting. In addition to things like malaria, yellow and dengue fevers
that we never see in the states, there are other assorted things to be fully
aware of. Along these lines, Dr. Phil got to free one kid’s pet from his arm,
presumably picked up in Ghana. At first looking like an infected mosquito bite
or something, after awhile—get ready—it started moving underneath the skin. Dr.
Phil made an incision, and out crawled a 1.4cm maggot. Not a worm, a maggot.
Apparently it’s a Buntu Fly larva, and it is somehow able to burrow into your
skin within about 25 seconds, a few weeks after which you hatch a new pet for
your collection. For the record, the ship’s medical crew (on board every voyage
for the last umpteen years) had </span><i style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">never</i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
seen this. Turns out all my trying to scare Tate into some semblance of decent
personal hygiene wasn’t so ridiculous after all!</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Anyway, there were several other
families along for this orphanage trip (usually the boys are the only ones on
these things, at least the ones we’ve been on thus far), and when we got there
we learned that 1) they didn’t appear to be expecting us, and 2) no pictures of
the children could be taken within the premises. I haven’t run into this
before, and instead of letting us roam around the facility, they sat us in an
open-air room, where 20+ kids joined us to play. Kind of strange, but I suppose
my frame of reference is rather skewed.</span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Some of the college students had
brought some stickers and bubbles, and they all played games and sang songs.
Tate, Reade, and some of the boys headed around a corner where they were
kicking a soccer ball around in a breezeway, and I realized that on the other
side of the wall was the cemetery I’d photographed that morning. Fortunately
for me, the boys kicked the ball over the wall, so I found someone to unlock
the gate to retrieve it, and I got a second opportunity to photograph the
cemetery with an overcast sky and an f/2.8 lens, which I hadn’t had with me
earlier. </span></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPOJnzEewvsmy2Ri67DSIXDNX-QDyOgTUYsw_da-le2Re_DlLWDG4dBrBGcpIwKWDSn2TCDaduFTJMXrwYae50DHhJ7UOrQ-IpNk9R6RvrEX-tar0knPbqQIs7duNE8piI4WTlCl2TnOmP/s1600/102111_07-50-08-1D_67917-Malaysia3_blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPOJnzEewvsmy2Ri67DSIXDNX-QDyOgTUYsw_da-le2Re_DlLWDG4dBrBGcpIwKWDSn2TCDaduFTJMXrwYae50DHhJ7UOrQ-IpNk9R6RvrEX-tar0knPbqQIs7duNE8piI4WTlCl2TnOmP/s640/102111_07-50-08-1D_67917-Malaysia3_blog.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Jeff Warnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00146077118027778337noreply@blogger.com1