The saga continues. Sweet Thing is as excited about this trip as I am. There is so much to see in Vietnam, most of which I could not even think of when last there ... mid-June until mid-July 2010. When I was last there the mercury crept well up into the 40's and it was very humid. Now it runs in the late teens to early twenties ... perfect ST weather. She is pleased about only having to pack summer clothes. She found the carrying of multi-season clothing to Europe for 4 weeks was a nuisance.

Monday, November 22, 2010

The mother of invention

Just like it did in Ethiopia, the ingenuity of these people impresses me. They park cars at a 90 degree angle to the sidewalk, with the rear end on the curb. That way they can twice as many cars parked in the same sized spot. It's the little stuff.

A city crew pulled up by the hotel a few nights ago. They erected a very rudimentary contraption on which they suspended an amber blinking light. Guess how they powered said light ... you guessed it; they clamped its two wires to a small motorcycle battery they always cart around.

They park their motorcycles sometimes 3 or 4 deep on the sidewalk. Then when the poor soul completely boxed in needs to get out, they drag obstructing motorcycles out of they way. No dragging ... two cycles deep; with dragging ... as many as you want.

The lights in out offices go off at 5PM automatically. They cannot be turned on again until 5:05. Remember Esplanade Laurier where most lights are on 24 by 7.

I was given a charge card for getting to and from work via taxi. The charge registers on the meter and debited from the driver's waybill with no paper involved.

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