2013 some more some more

October continued

A fabulous holiday was had in Vietnam with the dear Mists. We started off with a market tour and cookery class. Nothing like the sight of pigs ears to wake you up on a Saturday morning.

… and the taste of fried silk worms. YUM. After preparing a Vietnamese feast we enjoyed eating it!

 

We caught the night train to Sapa. 1st class travel. White linen sheets and a frilly lamp.

A visit to amazing ethnic fabric markets where we bumped into CatLady from Yangon… and then onto the Vietnam-China boarder.

 

The main attraction in Sapa was a wet, muddy trek where we were followed closely at all times by a group of ethnic minority women desperate to sell us fabrics and tourist tat. It was quite entertaining and we ended up with various bits of interesting fabric… only after Ant had done a good bit of haggling!

  

That night we slept in a homestay in a small village. There was much drinking of Mandalay rum, local rice wine and taking of almost boiling hot herbal baths in barrels. We have not laughed so much and so long for a long time… the ginger twins managed to completely empty their hot baths in a lengthy water fight…

 

Back in Hanoi we went to visit Uncle Ho. Who, it turned out, was on his annual holiday to Russia for repair work. We had to make do with a statue instead.

  

Halong Bay was full of tourists, but beautiful all the same. Poor Ant was nearly savaged by a rare and lethal sand shark…

 

Cycling on grannie bikes through beautiful countryside…

 

Kayaking through the bay… all the better for loosing the hundreds of tour boats full of tourists…

 

Bit of banangrams of an evening… and sunrise from our cabin

 

 

November

Retro bowling in a surreal bowling venue and Thanksgiving at the American club

 

The lovely Ming Aye who gives me jasmine flowers every day when I cycle to work… and our neighbours art exhibition

 

The SEA Games comes to Myanmar.

 

December

Christmas in our apartment. John the cat got tuna and Father Christmas came to visit.

  

Ant with the bird of glory… stuffed with chestnut stuffing

Thanks to some very generous food related gifts from people in the UK we were able to have an amazing feast. The fact that CityMart decided to stock sprouts was an added bonus!

  

Happy New Year 2014… may it be as amazing as 2013!