Visitors!

Yay! Our first visitors have arrived!  Mum and dad hit the ground running on Tuesday night and have had a fantastic 24hrs so far in Saigon.  The poor things had been up for 22 hrs by the time they got to bed here so were pretty tired (understatement). The flights went fine, particularly as they were a bit nervous about the transit in Singapore.  Despite having to change terminals via train they did not get lost and arrived in HCMC at 6.40pm.  The kids went NUTS when they saw them.  Big kisses and cuddles then the hunt through their bags for presents.  Both Nick and I were working yesterday morning so they had a qiet morning at home.  They were brave enough to venture out for a Gloria Jeans coffee on their own.  It is about a block away. They then had a little wander and headed back to their little piece of Aus in Saigon.  I think the heat and humidity is knocking them around a bit and the traffic is a constant source of amusement.  They are no where near as shocked as I thought they would be though.  In the afternoon we picked the kids up from school and the kids showed them around.  There was a visiting Poet/Magician from England who put on a performance (will blog about that another time) and it was great.  I then took them to the Majestic Hotel rooftop for some sunset cocktails overlooking the river followed by a beautiful turkish feast at a restaurant called Warda.  It is down a dodgy looking alleyway so they were probably wondering where the hell I was taking them!  Mum can't go a day without a purchase so we swung through a small market on the way home.  She has a really narrow foot and has trouble getting some shoes to fit at home.  Well, not the case here with those skinny little asian feet.  She bought some lovely little high heeled sandals and nearly fell over when I told her she had paid $7 for them.  She thought I was being mean to the poor lady by bartering and nearly foiled my plans of the fake walk way by saying "no, don't leave, I really want them"  Perhaps todays first lesson should be in the fine art of haggling?  So all in all, a great day.  They were pretty tired last night but hopefully slept well. I am really pleased that they seem so relaxed and have come here with an open mind.  They appear to love the place!  Nick is off today so will be taking them around until I can meet them for lunch.  Stay tuned!!!

Their little sanctuary amongst the chaos.

A great moment!!!

......and another one.

Waiting for the loot.

Mum buying her first street food.  This lady carries her little shop around with her including her hot coals and waffle irons.  A little bag of doughnuts for 10,000VND (60 cents)

Mum and dad go back to school.

Sundowners at the Majestic Hotel.

Happy Saigon for me and mum and dads had lemon sorbet in it....YUM!

Damn it, the gig is up.  They now know that we are far from doing it tough.

Nicks new baby

Nick is a pleased to announce that he is a proud father once again.  His new baby is this Honda '67.  It's not quite the Triumph Bonnieville but he is in love none the less. Personally, I think he is insane and he is well aware that I will not be getting on the back. Mind you, I don't think it would carry both of us anyway!!  I have no problem getting motorbike taxi's here because the drivers know these roads, and the mad mad traffic, like the backs of their hands.  That being said, Nick has been riding for many years and is a safe rider.  Having lived here for six months I'm confident that he has his head around the crazy traffic and am very happy that he has a new toy.  He was beside himself the other day when he bought a whole new exhaust system for $9 and spent the afternoon tinkering away in the underground car park. At $400AUS it will be worth it for him to regain that sense of freedom that only a bike can bring.  Oh, and the horn works....he'll need it!

I didn't know he sang that one.

An Elvis classic!

My Star of the Week!

You may recall that Scarlett had a bit of a regression upon our move here in the toilet training department.  Well my little trooper set out on a mission this week to become "Star of the Week" at school.  She was determined to stay dry all day at school for the whole week.  Well, those of you who know Scarlett know how determined she can be so I am pleased to announce....drum roll please....this weeks star is "Scarlett Rose!!!"  Well done my little sweet heart.  We could not be prouder.  She is soooo pleased with herself, as she should be.  As for the goggles....well.....what can I say, she is just weird.

Well done Scarlett!

If she doesn't say so herself.

A wold of hurt...

I have a new Personal Trainer Torturer.  His name is Ken and I think he is in cahoots with Jenny as he has the same basic agenda....they both want me in a world of pain.  Well, after my first session back yesterday, Ken should be very pleased with himself.  I am gingerly moving around like a arthritic pensioner with osteoporosis.  Now, how can I get out of it tomorrow?

Apple Guavas

Muối ớt is a popular seasoning in Vietnam. 

Just swung by the market on the way home and was seduced by a new fruit that I have never seen before.  Actually, it was a little old lady on the outside of the market who was selling them.  She was sitting on a stool with a big basket full, a set a scales and a big toothless grin.  I could not resist.  She obviously spoke no English but we managed to communicate that they were 30,000VND per kilo.  2 set me back 15,000VND or 80 cents Australian. When I got home I asked Quyen what they were.  She tells me they are called "Oi" and was not sure what the English translation was.  After a bit of a surf on the World Wide Web I have discovered they are called "apple guavas".  Apparently they are very good for you with 4 times as much vitamin C as oranges.  The taste is, as you can imagine, a cross between an apple and a guava.  It was the scent that got me though.  They are are so fragrant.  It's almost like a perfume.  I have gotten into the bad habit here of adding chilli salt to a lot of my fruit (see picture above).  It really brings out the flavour and sweetness.  So Scarlett and I dug into them this afternoon (her minus the salt) and think we are on a winner.  As Scarlett says "Whats not to love about pink fruit?"

Quyen cut then into quarters and then cut the seeds out.

I'm not sure if someone is taking the p*** or not?

2010 AFL Grand Final...Take One

Well that was freaky wasn't it?  We had a great morning AND afternoon celebrating the 2010 Grand Final.  Little did we know it was going to be take 1!!  It was a function put on by the Saigon Saints (a football club that does not play football but that could be a whole other blog).  They seem to have many members and put this function on every year.  The best part is that all proceeds go to Loreto.  

"The Loreto Vietnam-Australia Program (LVAP) is a non-profit organization headed in Vietnam by Trish Franklin. The Loreto Program supports and assists children who are disadvantaged, poor and disabled, through education training programs. There are many facets to this program: provision of education to the unprivileged, teaching of vocational skills to enable employment and shelters for orphaned children."

Not only is it a great cause but Trish is by far one of the coolest nuns you could ever meet.  She would even give my sweet Sister Marguerite a run for her money.  Loads of fun with raffles auction and some guest speaking football players.  Sorry, can't remember their names but they were premiership playing Lions.  A huge turn out and I even managed to meet the fabulous Bill Hunter, (click his name for his bio), Australian actor and all round legend.  So...next week?  Who knows.  If anyone can pull a function together in a week, this is the country to do it in.  Watch this space.

Not too shabby

Me and Me Mate, Bill.

Even over here Collingwood fans are nuts!

The 2 most passionate men in the room.  Everyone's a winner (or loser depending on your take on things)

Fellow blogger and Saigon mum, Natasha.  Check out her blog: Team Somerville in Saigon, There is also a link to the right of the page.

The School Bus

They seem happy enough!