(no subject)
One of my favorite things to do anywhere in the world is just walk around and try to get lost. The incredible incomprehensible maze of back alleys here is among the top places to do this in the world. First of all, they all exude life from everywhere. All the front doors are open, everyone's out in the street drinking beer, or cutting intestines, repairing shoes or selling gum. You're definitely in a community with the people in your alley. Second, they are absolutely otherworldly in that there is absolutely no telling where you'll end up if you go down one. Last night Ross and I went to wander around the alleys for a while, and in the span of a half hour we came across three incredible temples, crazy awesome buildings almost certainly unique in this world, and thrice wound up so far from where we expected to it was dizzying. When this city gets its shit together, says Ross, eventually these will all be bulldozed for high rise apartment complexes, like the putongs in Beijing. Of course, when the city gets its shit together they're also going to have to dredge the horrifying coffee black, decayed and fermenting canals, and lord knows they'll probably put that off as long as possible.
Linguistically, this has been really fun. I came here without knowing a word of vietnamese, outside of assorted food words I remembered from last time. I've certainly been the fifth wheel thus far, what with Andrew and Ross having been here for several months, and Kim and Vivi who are overseas Vietnamese, and while not fluent, are certainly proficient. But after you're exposed for a certain length of time, you subconsciously start to get the feel for a language. I still can't pronounce anything intelligibly, but I've wrapped my head around it enough to pick out some basic words and remember them without ever really thinking about it. Within a couple weeks i should be able to conduct all my basic transactions in Vietnamese. It's really cool to just day to day realize you know things, and you aren't even necessarily sure how you know them. I do miss being good enough in the language to talk to people like in China, though. SOON ENOUGH, BRAIN. SOON ENOUGH.
So, I've gotta stress again what a great time I'm having. Between Andrew, Ross, Kim and Vivi, there's always something to do. Taking shots of the world's most god awful liquor (outside of Chinese baijiu), chili vodka, driving in the insane but somehow completely functional Vietnamese traffic system, kicking back and reading, it's all been fun. Even the occasional bi-polar spasms have been protracted and limited to a few hours or so. Having music (in excessive amounts) has helped as well, because I'm suceptible to music's emotional manipulation, and a well-targeted song can bring me out of these shallow fits of despair.
Long story short, i"m loving this and I'm going to ride it out for a while.
I miss you all. LOVE, FRED.
Linguistically, this has been really fun. I came here without knowing a word of vietnamese, outside of assorted food words I remembered from last time. I've certainly been the fifth wheel thus far, what with Andrew and Ross having been here for several months, and Kim and Vivi who are overseas Vietnamese, and while not fluent, are certainly proficient. But after you're exposed for a certain length of time, you subconsciously start to get the feel for a language. I still can't pronounce anything intelligibly, but I've wrapped my head around it enough to pick out some basic words and remember them without ever really thinking about it. Within a couple weeks i should be able to conduct all my basic transactions in Vietnamese. It's really cool to just day to day realize you know things, and you aren't even necessarily sure how you know them. I do miss being good enough in the language to talk to people like in China, though. SOON ENOUGH, BRAIN. SOON ENOUGH.
So, I've gotta stress again what a great time I'm having. Between Andrew, Ross, Kim and Vivi, there's always something to do. Taking shots of the world's most god awful liquor (outside of Chinese baijiu), chili vodka, driving in the insane but somehow completely functional Vietnamese traffic system, kicking back and reading, it's all been fun. Even the occasional bi-polar spasms have been protracted and limited to a few hours or so. Having music (in excessive amounts) has helped as well, because I'm suceptible to music's emotional manipulation, and a well-targeted song can bring me out of these shallow fits of despair.
Long story short, i"m loving this and I'm going to ride it out for a while.
I miss you all. LOVE, FRED.