An Incomplete Gastronomical Memoir

I'm definitely in Saigon.

"Welcome back", Saigon almost seemed to mentally tell me, through memories of last year's brief encounter rushing back into my consciousness even as new ones were being forged as we walked to the Ben Thanh Market. Pau's childhood friend Philip, who was now based in Vietnam, had ever so graciously volunteered to take us around the city.

After the hotel's free breakfast in which I discovered that the ketchup here is labelled simply as tomato sauce and tastes accordingly, we waltzed our way down to Pasteur Street (yes, that Pasteur) to eat at, of all places, Pho Hoa. For those still clueless, the idea of eating at Pho Hoa in Vietnam is sort of like going to Italy then ordering from Pizza Hut. The local version however was completely unrelated to its more commercialized namesake as we soon found out after tasting the difference in a huge steaming bowl of Pho with everything on it and 3 glasses of what I think is spelled Cha Da. It's basically tea with ice.

The feast continued shortly after in Ben Thanh Market itself. Finding ourselves surrounded by food stalls, we couldn't help but help ourselves. Philip had what looked like fish-based rice cakes brought to us, which we greedily gobbled up. A local store owner was overjoyed when Paulo and I tried his spring rolls (a healthy, tasty, AND cheap snack at VND 5,000* each) and upon discovering how good they were, got everyone else to buy from him.

Dinner later was even wilder......

......but that's another post for another day. I shall return to this when it's not 3am.


*As of August 29, 2010 USD1 = VND 19,500; VND5,000 = approx. PHP11.25

I Dream of Manila

I have had a vision. In that vision, I saw a city just like Manila, with streets much like the very streets I roam as I dance through life. The lifestyle afforded in this city was somewhat similar - a smattering of high-class denizens cruising in their Benzes and Audis, with the rest of the populace content to get by with more affordable means of commute. It was in a nutshell Manila in another land, another time but with one difference - one small missing piece that made everything so much better.

NO JEEPNEYS.

Yes, the hell-spawned ubiquitous vehicle that has for me in my lifetime grown to be an eyesore was noticeably absent from the streets of Saigon as I made my way through the heart of the city, returning here after a year-long absence. The end result? Peace. A sense of cleanliness, order. Gone was the chaotic scene of 2 crazed drivers clogging the public pathways as they competed for the attention of indifferent would-be passengers. I was seeing the potential that Manila had, that it still has, if we get our public transportation system in order.

Fresh hope springs anew in my soul as our young President takes his place. May he prove me horribly horribly wrong about him.




On a sidenote: Saigon actually has its own form of hell-vehicle - the motorcycle. Literally hundreds of these will cross your path in a matter of minutes, but that's for another day and another post.

Earth Sandwich

One-half of the world's most kick-ass sandwich.

An Earth Sandwich I want. According to the (almost) all-knowing Wikipedia, the antipode (aka where you will end up if you dig a hole straight through the earth from where you are) of Manila is Cuiaba, Brazil. Or pretty much any area along the Brazil-Bolivia border. Given that, are there any Brazilians out there that want to make a sandwich with me? Sliced whole wheat bread, please.

And I quote from the link above:

To make an Earth sandwich you must:

1. Put a piece of bread on the ground.

2. Have someone else put a piece of bread on the ground directly on the other side of the Earth from you.

3. Do this at the same exact time, so the Earth at that moment is "sandwiched" between two pieces of bread.


Amazing stuff, this is. Is your mind blown? I expected that.