Ray's Titillating Adventures in the East

Nha Trang and Final Days in Vietnam

2009-01-07T13:02:00.000+09:00

MONDAY

Our trip to Nha Trang nearly didn’t happen when we were told at the check in counter that our flight was cancelled due to bad weather. The enquiries counter didn’t help much; they just told us to ring the Vietnam Airlines hotline, which was of course engaged since everyone else was trying to ring the same number. We went to the bookings counter to see if we could get a later flight, the deadpan response? ‘Sorry, flights are booked out until the 2^nd, try the bus or train’.

Sleeper bus to Nha Trang, 9 hours!

I didn’t let it affect me too much, I was on holiday and there was no real rush to get to Nha Trang, they always say its the journey there that’s the most adventurous. Apart from the time wasted and taxi fares, we managed to get to Nha Trang smoothly via the Sinh Cafe night sleeper bus. We went to their booking office in the backpacking district and got bus fares for 160,000D. Billy and I met up with Rowena in the evening and the bus departed the backpacking district at 8.30pm. The nine hour journey wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated, sure, the road was rocky but at least you could fully recline and get some sleep on the way there. When we reached Nha Trang in the morning, there was heavy rain and as we swerved back and forth along the mountainous coast line, I was sure we were going way too fast for safety’s sake. Nonetheless, we made it in one piece and arrived in Nha Trang central at 6.00am.

TUESDAY

We checked into Nha Trang Beach Hotel at 6.00am with no problems and crashed into bed, travelling by bus is so tiring! It was good that we didn’t have an itinerary to follow; we could do whatever we pleased. When we finally got out of bed, it was midday and we went in search for some good pho. The weather was worse than I had anticipated, I didn’t realise it would be so cold and wet in December, but Hanoi has been experiencing unseasonably cold weather which must have affected the central region as well. With our rain ponchos on, it certainly didn’t seem like a beach resort town, sunbaking was the farthest thing from my mind.

me enjoying pho

lots of rain in Nha Trang

At Po Nagar

the road to Thap Ba was interesting 2.5km walk, the journey was riddled with pot holes and flood water

Billy and I took a taxi out of town to visit the Po Nagar Cham Towers, which were quite a sight. From there, we walked the 2.5km to the Thap Ba Mud Baths, which was a mini adventure in itself as the road was filled with pot holes and with the recent rainfall, the distance seemed longer than usual; my feet were covered in mud by the time we arrived! Definitely not a journey for a germaphobe! Thap Ba was certainly a highlight of the Nha Trang trip. The mud bath was certainly interesting; it certainly had good exfoliating properties! Sitting in the mineral bath for 40 minutes was so relaxing, every ache and pain seemed to disappear and it brought back memories of Hakkone in Japan. There was a cute Vietnamese guy named Toc (?) who had a hot body, I couldn’t resist chatting him up at the waterfalls!

At Thap Ba enjoying the mineral waterfalls...

Enjoying tex mex food...the nachos were delicious!

In the evening, we went to have Mexican food at El Coyote Tex Mex Restaurant. Considering the fact that there are no authentic Mexican restaurants in Melbourne, it was certainly a surprise to see what real nachos look and tasted like. My fajita was very filling and tasty, how funny that the best tasting Mexican food I’ve tasted is in Vietnam! I was feeling uber tired from all the walking, so after a round of 6000D (60c) beers, I headed back to the hotel for some shut eye.

WEDNESDAY

I’m glad I got a chance to explore the beach front and have a bit of reflection time during the morning because the weather was terrible all other mornings. Spent the afternoon firmly rooted at Louisiane Brew house, where Rowena, Billy and I played card games, who would have thought the card game ‘Shithead’ would so addictive? (I never grew up playing cards...) The place was packed with tourists, also stranded with nothing to do except read books, eat and drink and watch the ferocious waves crash onto the shoreline.

glad to be able to walk along the beach in decent weather

Billy and I took advantage of the 100,000D 60 minute massage opposite our hotel, but left sorely disappointed. It was a dodgy massage parlour in that the masseur wore a skimpy negligee and gave crap massages, in the hopes you’d be too dazzled by their female charms to care. The girl who massaged me kept sniffling and didn’t apply enough pressure, the worst kind of massage! She just kept focusing on my limbs; it sucks to not be able to speak Vietnamese at this point because I wanted her to concentrate on my back and neck. I didn’t know where to look...so I just closed my eyes and feigned being asleep! No surprise ending for me, thanks! I think she was a bit offended when I tipped her 40,000D, but she was just terrible!

really good food at Louisiane Brewhouse

major case of hat hair!

Playing cards at Louisiane Brewhouse

Good 200g tenderloin steak for only 80,000D ($8)

Drinking a bucket of alcohol for 35,000D ($3.50)

Pre drinks at Why Not Bar

After a quick nap, we headed to Buffalo Steak House to have dinner. I don’t think I’ve had a meal cheaper than this one, 80,000D ($8) for 200g tenderloin steak with authentic mushroom sauce and chips, very yummy! We headed to ‘Why Not Bar’ for their cheap 35,000D buckets, consisting of vodka, rum, pineapple, orange, lemon and red bull, the perfect precursor to a new years eve celebration by the beach.

NYE Beach Party at Sailing Club

The Sailing Club was jam packed with people, both local and tourist. We arrived just in time for the dance party to ignite, the atmosphere was great. I’ve never been to a beach dance party before so it was a lot of fun; I definitely want to check out the Thailand full moon parties now! I was really glad that the bad weather held off until 2.30am because at least we had a few hours to dance under the tent and do countdown together with a bunch of strangers. As the clock struck 12.00, Abba’s ‘Happy New Year’ song came on, an anthem that must be particular to Vietnam because I’ve never heard it in other countries.

THURSDAY

Today was a total write off, not only because most people were recovering from NYE celebrations, but because the weather was terrible; cold and wet. Billy and I headed to Sailing Club to chill out for the afternoon but with such gloomy weather, it didn’t feel relaxing. I was feeling over Nha Trang and wanted to head back to HCM, where at least there was warmer weather. Testament to how little there was to do in Nha Trang, I managed to finish from cover to cover ‘The Tipping Point’, which was an interesting read.

The morning after...Nha Trang Sailing Club

In the evening, Billy and I went to have dinner at Nha Trang Seafood and we ordered some garlic prawns, sautéed vegetables, clams with spring onion and oil and fried fish, but it wasn’t all that amazing, he said you could get better at Ben Thanh Market.

FRIDAY

Went shopping on the last day at Nha Trang, bought two silk scarves for 240,000D and a pair of board shorts for 70,000D, score! I was really ready to leave Nha Trang and return to the city, we had done all the sites weather permitting and sitting around Louisiane Brew House drinking coffee and playing cards was more a waste of time rather than relaxing. I got a call from Vietnam Airlines saying that my flight was now scheduled for an earlier departure time of 6.00pm, could this be an ominous sign of things to come?

Enjoying Japanese cuisine at Louisiane Brewhouse

I was so anxious during the taxi ride to the airport, the weather looked like was going to take a turn for the worst and I kept on thinking, they can’t cancel a flight because of rain! We arrived and checked in, receiving our boarding passes. We even got past security check and sat in the departure lounge waiting to be called. The place was jam packed, ready to go back to Saigon to start the weekend. Things seemed pear shaped when 5.30 passed and there was no announcement to board the plane. By 5.50pm, things really seemed strange when there was no plane to pick us up. Then the dreaded announcement came: our flight was cancelled and a replacement flight would be arranged for 8.45am.

Replacement accomodation when flight back to HCM was cancelled, at least it was 3 star and had a bath!

I was so tempted to say to Billy that ‘I’m so glad that things went well because I couldn’t stand another night in Nha Trang’...you don't know how many times I touched wood! But alas, we returned to Nha Trang city, where Vietnam Airlines set us up in a 3 star hotel, with dinner and breakfast provided. With the amenities provided, it wasn’t too bitter a pill to swallow, especially since I got to take a nice warm bath and fall asleep watching cable TV, but I wanted to at least have the option of going out in Saigon on Friday night. Oh well...

SATURDAY

A bus came to pick us all up at the hotel at 6.45 to take us to the airport. This time, there were no problems with our flight, everything went perfectly and we arrived in Saigon at 9.30am. It was good to get back to Auntie’s place, unload all the dirty clothes, upload the photos and throw away all the trash picked up along the way, it’s like a save point in an adventure game.

Windows Cafe, been there way too many times for a tourist

Gave Hai a ring to see if he was free for dinner, I was giddy like a school girl, not only fearful of rejection but the prospect of having nothing to say since we don’t have a common language. Somehow, using the few mutual words we knew, we managed to plan and meet at Diamond Plaza at 7.00.

Hai and I

He looked as cute I remembered, he was wearing a white tee and jeans. He brought some of his friends, one of which could speak Mandarin so she acted as a translator for us throughout the evening. We walked around Diamond, then headed to Dong Khoi Street to explore Parkson before going to Windows Café 3 to have dinner and drinks. I love this city, you can spend a few hours at a café and not be pressured into drinking alcohol as you would in a bar, we were sipping ice coffees and fruit smoothies and perving at all the gay clientele, what a great way to pass time before going clubbing!

Hai and I outside Apocalypse

Went to Apocalypse with Hai and Chanh, Chanh and I were stopped at the door and told to pay an entrance fee whilst anyone Caucasian looking was explicitly let in for free; it was so infuriating to be singled out for your race, especially in an Asian country. Eventually, I convinced them that I was an Australian here on holiday and they let me and Chanh in for free…so that was lucky. My last weekend at Apocalypse was really fun, great songs and nice people; we went upstairs to dance because it was too hot downstairs.

SUNDAY

Hai drove me to Phuong Cac café to have breakfast, apparently the place for cute gays to hang out on a Sunday morning. His friends from last night were there and we spent the morning chatting and admiring the crowd, I enjoyed my com tam and ice coffee.

Hai taking me to have Sunday morning coffee at Phuong Cac Cafe

wedding photos are often done at Binh Quoi

Hai and me and his friends mucking around at Binh Quoi

Spent the afternoon at Binh Quoi, 30 minutes from Saigon, the equivalent of the Botanical Gardens in Melbourne and where all wedding couples go to get photos done. We had a fun time walking around the place; it was a refreshing change from the hustle and bustle of District 1. It was so hot so we stopped to have lunch at the park, enjoying a plate of fried fish with rice paper and prawn salad.

In the evening, I went to a football stadium in district 10 with Duc to have a massage with a blind masseuse. I was looking for a proper massage and Duc recommended this place because it was cheap and the masseuse did a really good job, no dirty business either! Massage costs only 40,000D ($4) but 70,000 ($7) gives you access to the steam room and sauna. The steam rooms in Vietnam all have herbal elements to them, so you stink of Chinese medicine afterwards but it does wonders for exfoliating your skin and making you breathe better. My masseuse was a man of about 40 and he did an excellent job in relieving stress. I was naked with my towel hanging on the nearby hook, but I didn’t feel self conscious with the knowledge that he couldn’t see me. He was definitely the best masseuse I had this time in Vietnam and was happy to give him a 60,000D tip.

MONDAY

My final proper day in Saigon, was quite sad in the morning at the prospect of going home and returning to normality but at the same time, wanting to see my family and sleep in my own bed. After having lunch with Auntie, I got a call from Hai asking if I was free to meet him and his friends at Windows Café. It must be the 6^th time I’ve been to that café, a sign that it’s probably time to go home!

Hai's a good singer!

With Chi Linh and Hai singing karaoke

Chanh preparing chicken for dinner

It was a fun and totally unplanned afternoon. After drinks, we went to Mai’s in Continental Hotel on Dong Khoi Street to visit Khoi, but unfortunately, he was out for lunch. Hai had a gift voucher to use at Citimart so we drove to Nguyen Trai Street to shop in the supermarket; he was such a sweetie and bought me a few gifts for me. We then spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing and singing karaoke at his friend’s place in Tan Binh. Her house was amazing; very big and luxurious for Vietnam standards. Karaoke is serious business in Vietnam, you take turns in singing and clap when they finish, I just hugged Hai as he sang romantic old school Vietnamese songs, his chest vibrations as he sang felt ticklish!

With my family at Parkson Department Store

Alas, it was goodbye and Hai drove me to the main road to catch a taxi, a quick goodbye and hug and that was it, short and sweet like my time with him in the past few days. Went to Saigon to do some last minute shopping, a 2GB memory card for Dad and an iPod armband for my sister. Went home to have dinner with my Auntie, Duc and Minh at the braised chicken restaurant behind our house, the meal was so delicious and even though they ran out of crispy pork skin, the chicken alone was enough of a winner. We walked down the street to explore Parkson department store, Auntie hadn’t been before and was so shocked that something so high end would be built in District 11. Perhaps it’s a marketing strategy, because it certainly wasn’t a sound business decision since most of the people who live here can’t afford the wares within the department store, that’s why it was so dead.

TUESDAY

I’m glad I packed the night before because the power went out at 7.00am and wouldn’t be back on till late in the afternoon, similar to the circumstances on my first full day in Vietnam. Duc bought me some chicken and cha sieu rice for lunch, which was a tasty last meal. Sieu was kind enough to offer me a lift to the airport in his car and since I was down to my last 50,000D, I graciously accepted. It was sad to bid farewell to the family, I noticed Auntie was holding back tears and clenching her fists, I gave her a big hug and told her I’d be back soon…

The gay couple across the street that I kept making eye contact at...finally snapped them together!

I was so worried about the fake DVDs and getting past Vietnam customs but there were no problems. My combined luggage was around 26kgs but they didn’t even look before tagging them and sending them on their merry way. Flight to Singapore was 1.5 hours, transit was for 4 hours so I did some duty free shopping, ate some dim sum and checked my mail. Having had an emergency exit aisle seat throughout this trip, I was dismayed to have to sit in a normal seat for the 9 hour flight; it was so cramped and getting to the bathroom proved a difficult feat. To make matters worse, I made a lady behind me who kept on kicking my laptop located beneath my seat, when I confronted her and asked her if there was a problem, she just said ‘laptop’, I didn’t know how to react, luckily, there was only 30 minutes left.

Getting through Australian customs normally is a nightmare, but I didn’t have anything to declare this time and was out the door by 7.45am, a speedy 30 minute process. Problem was, my sister didn’t come and pick me up until 8.15am because I told her to anticipate lengthy lines. I didn’t think that Melbourne would be so cold on a summer morning, but it was actually drizzling!

It was nice to see my family again after a month away from home. Coming home was like a breath of fresh air and seeing my room brought a tear to my eye; my books, my computer and my comfortable bed, oh how I’ve missed you! I took a nice hot shower, unpacked my suitcase, threw all my dirty clothes in the laundry and was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief….I’m finally home!

Week Ending December 28th

2008-12-24T16:28:00.011+09:00

MONDAY

It’s amazing the novel ways you come up with to flirt with someone across the street when you a) can’t speak the language and b) are not out with the family. There is a cute guy working across the road and everyday, our eyes meet for a second or two, but it is intense, yet unsuspecting to the naked eye. If there was ever a Tyra-nism to classify this situation, it’s knowing how to smile with your eyes. There is no wave, no smile, no nodding of the head to acknowledge each other, just a lingering stare; a fleeting moment, like a puff of smoke. Today, a Caucasian tourist walked past and looked so out of place amongst locals, cute guy and I laughed and looked at each other, its probably the most ‘communication’ we’ve had thus far...

Dad's, Uncle's, Tuan and my hands are very similar...this is uncle and my hand side by side

ATMs in Saigon are housed in glass cabinets for fear of robbery

my favourite dish, fried noodles

At Panorama 33 with Minh

Went out with Minh in the evening, we went to have some fried noodles and diced beef on rice, I’ve been waiting for this moment for 2 years, its one of my favourite dishes in Vietnam. The restaurant is relatively expensive in Vietnam but damn, their dishes sure have wok power! We went to Panorama 33, the tallest building in Saigon, to take in the evening sights and indulge a bit. Probably one of the most expensive places in Vietnam that I’ve been to thus far, the menu is quoted in USD and 2 scoops of ice cream costs $4.80 USD. Still, if it wasn’t for the expensive food prices, it would have been a steep entrance fee. Very funny incident when I walked to the bathroom, the couple sitting at the end were full on making out, which kind of seemed out of place to me in a posh environment.

TUESDAY

Spent the day with Sieu, he’s always so generous to find the time to take me around. We headed to Saigon for drinks at Windows Cafe opposite the Independence Palace, the place really attracts the gays since the majority of waiters are cute guys and the clientele are all men! I don’t know how Sieu doesn’t pick up on this fact, especially when he said this place is popular because there’s lots of hot girls.

With Vivian and Sieu in Window's Cafe (clientele: gay gay gay!)

Talk about coincidence, I saw Vivian at Window’s Cafe! Vivian works in Clarins in Myer, Bourke Street and two months ago, we talked about end of year plans and we both discovered that we were going to Saigon. The matter was swept under the rug because I ended up working in Chadstone and David Jones, so imagine my surprise when she comes into the cafe and sits down in the table behind me. At first, I had my doubts, I mean, what are the chances of meeting someone you hardly know, on another continent. I approached her and asked her if she was from Melbourne, she turned around and recognised who I was and we both had this flabbergasted look on our faces. She told me she had just arrived that morning and was staying for a month; I gave her my number and told her to contact me when in the new years to catch up. How random!

having a feast for lunch at Quan An Ngon

Sieu took me to this restaurant called Quan An Ngon, which is apparently very popular with tourists. It’s like a buffet style restaurant, with the perimeter of the square shaped restaurant adorned with food sellers making things ranging from banh xeo to desserts. We ordered a few dishes to share, the cha gio was freshly prepared and tasted so good!

peasant begging for mercy

American GI holding a blown up corpse

Effects of Agent Orange

Victim of phosphorous bomb attack

Boy who stepped on a undetonated landmine...in 2003

We went to the War Remnants Museum, I stupidly bought tickets but Sieu told me that people just walk right in...It was true; they didn’t even check my tickets. It wasn’t the killing machines or aeroplanes which lured me to this place; it was a curiosity of how Vietnam portrayed the war. True to my suspicions, it was very biased and the language that they used conveyed America as the disturbance and North Vietnam army came to the aid of its country and created freedom and peace from all. It wasn’t just piercing words, but images of agent orange sufferers, scarred victims of phosphorous bombs and helpless Vietnamese villages, all caused by American war tactics. They also described in detail torture tactics in tiger jails, where 8 women were cramped into a small, stuffy cell and had to take turns to breath through a small hole in the jail door. Another tactic was dripping water onto a tied up victim’s head for prolonged period of time, the continuous dripping apparently felt like a sledge hammer hitting your head. It was a very disturbing museum and I just felt numb.

Date with Mario

Mario came and picked me up at 6.30, he must have driven over an hour from Go Vap to get here. We headed to Galaxy Cinema in District 1 to watch Transporter 3, a James Bond knock off. We tried to sneak up the back to get better seats but got caught at the last minute, when some latecomers came into the cinema 10 minutes in. Unlike Australia where you can negotiate with patrons, it was staff who showed people to their seats and the guy forced us back into our original seats! It was a pretty packed cinema so we couldn’t even kiss without feeling the burning glare from curious eyes behind us. And here I was, thinking that the movies could give us some alone time!

When he drove me home after dinner and coffee, I was frustrated at the lack of dark streets to stop and make out, definitely something I take for granted in Australia. We drove around my area in circles, looking for an alleyway or empty street but there was either a street sweeper or a lit window, too awkward to do anything intimate. Just as we were about to give up, we found this small dead end street that was deserted, expect for a house cat sleeping peacefully at the doorway. The engine switched off, the cumbersome helmets came off and we shared a few intense kisses, all the more exciting with the knowledge that we might get caught! He drove me up the street where my house was and gave me a small Christmas present before speeding off when my cousin opened the door...I guess he had a long way to drive back home!

WEDNESDAY

Wasn’t really planning to do anything on Christmas Eve, I heard it was the busiest night of the year but that also meant major traffic jams and exhaust fumes, I couldn’t think of anything more tiring. I was planning to have lazy one in; maybe read a book or watch a movie, but I had a sudden change of heart after taking a shower and rejuvenating nap and decided to brave the traffic and head out to Saigon for a night of clubbing with Khoi.

Look at the loads one vehicle can carry!

As anticipated, the traffic was pretty bad but we didn’t factor in the fact that Vietnam would win the football, which meant Christmas traffic alongside hoons! We took a taxi down Nguyen Cu Trinh but we were stuck in gridlock for 20 minutes. Since the hoons had taken over the roundabout, there was no way we could get through so we decided to get out of the taxi and walk to Apocalypse instead! Making our way through a sea of motorbikes was an interesting experience, the crowds were peaking with frenzy, waiting for the Christmas countdown, the biggest crowds were seen around Ben Thanh Market.

The crowds on Christmas Eve at Ben Thanh Market

I’m so glad I decided to venture out tonight because the crowd at Apocalypse was absolutely crazy; granted, more girls than usual, but the music was great and we really danced up a sweat. Saw a few familiar faces, including the cute guy who I thought wasn’t interested in me. I was introduced to him last time and he didn’t say more than two words, Khoi even said to me ‘you can’t win them all’. I was about to admit defeat when from across the room, I saw him on the dance floor, poking his tongue out at me. I thought he was teasing Khoi at first so I didn’t think much of it, but when I saw him do it again and smile directly at me, I was so happy!

Having fun at Apo on Christmas Eve

H was quite a good looking guy, not to mention great dancer. He spoke to me in Vietnamese and I said I couldn’t understand, he said he didn’t speak English either, so we just smiled at each other and started dancing. He was such a cheeky dancer, grabbing my arse and pulling me close to him. We didn’t say much but our body language did the talking.

THURSDAY

I went back to Auntie’s place at midday, I was feeling pretty exhausted from doing an all nighter. Auntie and Mui Yi were impressed, they thought I was sleeping upstairs and didn’t realise I had gone out until I had messaged Mui Em earlier this morning. I spent the rest of the day recuperating in my room, sleep deprivation certainly takes its toll, I was feeling hot, my hands were peeling, my lips were as red as roses and I swear I could see the seed of a pimple forming!

yum cha at Thuan Kieu

Duc took me to Golden Smile in the evening for a massage and steam. The place caters exclusively for gays and for 10,000D ($10), you get access to the steam room, sauna and Jacuzzi and a 50 minute massage, tips extra; you even get to choose your massage therapist! It was probably late so there wasn’t any decent catches there except for a few ogling old men. My massage therapist was very cheeky looking but he did a good job of relieving the stress from my shoulders and back. He was pretty heavy handed as well, it was times like this I wish I knew the word for ‘too much pressure’ in Vietnamese!

FRIDAY

Met up with M in the evening, our third date together. We went to have Japanese cuisine in District 1. It was the most expensive meal I’ve had here in Saigon, the prices were quoted in US dollars and similar prices to Australia. I was so afraid that I didn’t have enough to pay for the meal because I only had cash on me. We ordered some sushi rolls, agetashi tofu, gyoza and yakiudon and the bill came to 435,000D, definitely wasn’t worth the price since the food wasn’t exactly good either.

He was very quiet tonight, over drinks at Papa cafe, he told me that he had an argument with his parents over his sexuality. Whilst nothing was overtly said, his parents questioned why he didn’t have a girlfriend and gave him a one week deadline to prove them wrong. He didn’t know what to do and since he wasn’t out to any of his girlfriends, he couldn’t get a friend to pretend to be his girlfriend either. I tried to be supportive, but with our language difficulties made it very frustrating to have a heart to heart.

SATURDAY

M and I went to Ngoc Tuyet Market to find some brunch to eat and settled on com tam (broken rice), the stall was dingy and less than sanitary, but the food tasted so good. I ordered com tam bi suong cha trung with an extra siu mai, very satisfying. As we were about to pay the bill, a lady came by and started to take my plate, I thought nothing of it as I thought she was an employee clearing the table, but she was actually a beggar and ended up wolfing the remnants of the food on the plate. It was a humbling sight, to see a beggar so hungry that they would eat your leftovers, but it goes to show how many people are living below the poverty line.

Yummy com tam at Ngoc Tuyet Market

Went to Ben Thanh Markets for dinner with Billy and his work mates from the Australian Young Ambassadors program. The market restaurants are bustling and fast paced, we were looking for a table of 8 and they managed to hastily shoo away customers were about to finish and put two tables together, takes skills! Billy ordered a selection of South Vietnamese cuisine so that his friends from Hanoi could taste the local cuisine; my favourite was the stir fried morning glory dish and guoi cuon (rice paper rolls), a very satisfying meal!

Eating dinner at Ben Thanh Markets

Karaoke!

We headed to karaoke afterwards which was a fun and interesting experience. As with other Asian countries, karaoke is a cultural past time and taken very seriously, none of this drunken screaming into the microphone stuff, we saw people young and old coming and entering the popular joint. Although there were heaps of Vietnamese songs to choose from, the English list stopped getting updated after 1995, so there were no songs newer than Los Del Rio’s Macarena. No worries, 80s songs are the best karaoke songs to sing!

Week Ending December 21st

2008-12-18T12:49:00.015+09:00

MONDAY

Went on my first date in Vietnam! It was so exciting; I actually had butterflies in my stomach as I waited for him to come pick me up. Of course, it was under the pretence that he was a friend showing me around town, but nonetheless, he was doing the romantic gesture of picking me up even though he lived about 30 minutes away.

T arrived at 10.30 and we went to Highlands Coffee in District 1 to have brunch. It wasn’t as if this was my first date, but I was intrigued by the customs over here, it’s like those Spanish men that you hear about that sweep women off their feet. T was an absolute gentlemen, buying a helmet especially for me and pretty much paying for everything. Coffee was interesting, there were a lot of gay boys having coffee, I know because I got lots of stares as I walked to the bathroom.

Afterwards, we drove around Saigon, passing the reunification palace and some gardens; I cheekily hugged him around the waist as he drove me around, getting stares from pedestrians. It was fun making him slightly embarrassed and he rested his hand on my knee, a slight but innocent gesture. Another first, we headed to Parkson in District 5 to watch a movie! I had always imagined going to the cinemas as a dirty experience, with the floor littered with rubbish and people talking throughout the movie, but the cinema complex was like Village Cinemas, very clean and spacious.

Having Vietnamese food at Parkson food court

We took a side aisle and settled in to watch ‘Twightlight’, the teen romance about a vampire and a human. Terrible acting, but it was fun doing things you do on a date, like holding hands and kissing in the darkness, I felt like a school girl! It was a lot of fun knowing there were no strings attached; it was just a romantic and sweet date. I’m afraid I’ll get used to how easy it is to date in Asia when I return to Australia...

Yu, me, Quan and Choon

pho!

In the evening, I met up with my Dad’s best friend’s children, who study in Australia and were home for Chinese New Year, and headed out to District 5 to have pho. The soup was really tasty but I wasn’t really used to the taste of the noodles. The servings were huge and I had trouble finishing it, a first in Vietnam! It started to rain so we called it a night and I went home to rest after a tiring day...

TUESDAY

What a relaxing day, I spent the morning surfing the net and checking my mail. It was great having nothing on my plate, it’s just what a rejuvenating holiday needs, a day of doing nothing. I watched some concert DVDs in the afternoon, followed by a lazy siesta, before I knew it, it was 6.00pm.

Went to the wedding of my Dad’s best friend’s cousin’s son in Thuan Kieu. I just wore a simple polo and jeans because Mum told me there would be no chance a wedding would occur during my holiday, how wrong she was. Lucky in Vietnam, as long as you rock up in shoes rather than thongs, its acceptable attire! So there were people in all types of garments, fake Lacoste polos, oversized suits and garish coloured shirts. The wedding was a lavish affair, with red adorning the restaurant walls and tacky Chinese wedding singers singing 80s cantopop music.

There is a real cultural pastime of drinking excessively at weddings (maybe that’s universal), our table played games like spin the lazy susan and depending on where the chicken head on the plate of chicken pointed, the person would have to down a bottle of beer. The funniest thing is when the last meal, usually dessert, comes out; there is a tidal wave of people making their way to the front door. Even the groom was literally pulling his friends back into the reception area to take photos, because everyone was already heading to the parking lot for their vespa.

WEDNESDAY

I knew I was going to pay for it when I tasted something funny drinking the remnants of a battered water bottle. It had tasted okay the night before freshly cool from the fridge, but tasted like soil as I gulped it down whole. I was feeling pretty icky for the rest of the day, downing electrolytes and water to replenish the dehydration, thank god for siestas!

A feast of Vietnamese food for dinner

Second date in Vietnam, this time with N. Took a taxi to Saigon, I think I proved to myself that I can do it the hard way on a bus and the comfort of air conditioning was worth the 70,000 ($7) fare. We met outside HCM City Hall; he was waiting on his vespa with a spare helmet in his lap. I was feeling like rice so we went to his favourite lunch spot called Rice for King, which does mean authentic Vietnamese cuisine. We had broiled pork, salted egg and tofu with tomato base, fried fish and sweet and spicy fish soup, very tasty.

salted eggs with tofu with tomato base

broiled fatty pork

A major case of déjà vu when we headed to Parkson to watch a movie, I guess there’s no other place besides a gay bar that a gay couple can really hang out. We saw Madagascar 2, which was really cute and funny, probably not on par with Kung Fu Panda or Finding Nemo though. We bought popcorn which was coated with sugar, it tasted great but there’s no way you can finish a box without feeling ill because of all the sugar.

hot and spicy fish soup

fried fish with ginger

In the cinema, we held hands and flirted with each other, he was quite embarrassed when we kissed because he was afraid that other people were watching, but that didn’t stop him sneaking a few more before the credits rolled. After the movie, we drove around aimlessly around the neighbourhood to pass time, taking in the cool breeze which was sorely missed after a row of hot, sweaty nights.

What I realise in Vietnam is that a favourite pastime is to drive around in the evening taking in the sights and sounds of Saigon, really gives meaning to the phrase: slowing down and smelling the roses. I like that; life here in Vietnam is so much slower paced, where the simple things in life are still cherished. When I got home, Mui Em and her boyfriend were sitting in the main hallway in complete darkness, listening to songs on his mobile phone and just hanging out and being with each other...I can’t remember the last time I did that without getting distracted by Facebook or some other vice.

THURSDAY

Took the bus out to Saigon in the afternoon, the weather was cool enough to explore Ben Thanh market without breaking into a sweat rash! Bought some cute designer man bag knock offs and haggled my way to a decent price. The guy was asking 500,000 ($50) for the Gucci man purse and 400,000 ($40) for the Prada, but said if I bought them both, he’d reduce it to 800,000 ($80). I started low at 400,000 ($40) and increased my bid slowly to agree on a final price of 490,000 ($49), haggling is so much fun! At least I have a bag to put a water bottle and map in when I do more trekking around Saigon.

breakfast of wok fried pasta and beef, suprisingly tasty!

taking the bus to Saigon, only 3000D

Saigon Post Office

Relaxing with T at Windows Cafe

I called T to see if he was free in the afternoon, he came and picked me up at City Hall and we headed to the post office so I could run some errands, the place is really beautiful and restored to its French glory days. T drove me to Windows Cafe to unwind over some iced Lipton tea and to take in the scenery, it was all very relaxing.

Mucking around at Saigon Zoo and Botanic Gardens

Around dusk, we went to the Saigon Zoo and Botanic Gardens for a little exploring, quite a good dating spot if you ask me! The poor animals were all caged up so it was quite a depressing and small zoo. We wandered around the perimeter of the zoo, taking random photos before the place was about to close. Twas really sweet and didn’t want me catching the bus home, so he drove me home in peak hour traffic. When he arrived, I introduced him as a friend to my auntie, who spoke to him in Vietnamese and said if he was free, he should come by and take me out! If only she knew...LOL

Eating Singapore cuisine with the family

Eating ice cream and crepes at Fanny cafe

Finally had a chance to shout my auntie and cousins to a meal of Hainanese chicken rice. It was a fun night out in town, where we drove around Saigon looking at the newly hung Christmas lights at all the department stores. We stopped by at Fanny cafe to have ice cream and crepes; the place was very upmarket with a lot of expats and rich Vietnamese clients, probably one of the reasons why Duc and Auntie chose the place. Auntie was so mesmerised when I spoke English to the waitress, she said I sounded like a gwai lo, that’s because I AM a westerner!

FRIDAY

The date I was looking forward to, an evening with M! We met up at Diamond Plaza at 7.00 where it was a game of cat and mouse trying to find each other on the cosmetics floor, when he appeared from around the corner, he was so handsome. The first thing he did was take me by the hand to the Christmas decorations outside and get someone to take a photo, he beat me to my own photo whoring!

lunch is served...

Outside Diamond Plaza

He got his motorbike and told me to hop on, passing me his spare helmet. We drove to Phu Nhuan district which was about 15 minutes away; I love the fact that in Vietnam, the opportunity practically falls into your lap to get some physical contact. I wrapped my hands around his waist loosely, hugging him tightly as we drove around a tight corner or faced a swarm of oncoming traffic. We had banh xeo and deep fried squid for dinner, very tasty.

What was tastier, banh xeo or M? LOL

M kept my heart fluttering throughout the evening. He said he learnt English from watching satellite TV like HBO and MTV. There were language difficulties between us at times, but who needs language when you have a smile in your eyes and body language?

I said I wanted to go somewhere nice and romantic, so he took me to a public park to have a nice evening stroll. Not like the dodgy parks in Melbourne, every corner was lit, with kids playing hacky sack, middle aged men doing their evening job and couples littered around the park seats, whispering sweet nothings into each others ears and passing time together. We did a round of the track before finding a nice little secluded area where there were hardly any people and sat down. After checking there was no one around, I kissed him on the cheek and he returned the favour soon after. I realise that in Saigon, there is no place to hide without prying eyes looking your way! I thought the park would be the perfect make out spot but people kept coming and going and it was hard to do anything beyond holding hands.

hanging out at the public park

After the park, we headed back to Saigon to go to Papa Cafe, a hang out for gay boys. It was a nice, discreet area, I like the fact that it was a gay cafe, not a bar or seedy make out spot, the air of innocence was still there and people got dressed up to come and catch up over fruit smoothies or iced coffees. On one hand, it’s frustrating to not be able to kiss in a gay cafe, but a part of me likes the innocent chase of gay dating in Vietnam, the anticipation of that very first kiss is so much more rewarding.

relaxing at Papa cafe

he drove me home even though he lived in the opposite direction

He offered to drive me home, even though he lived in the opposite direction, and miraculously, I was able to give directions from Saigon to my auntie’s place. Ironically, the place where it was most deserted yet most dangerous to be seen was my Auntie’s place, as I took off my helmet to give back to him from behind; our faces met and we kissed ever so discreetly, no longer than a few seconds, but the idea of getting caught was so thrilling as well. As my cousin opened the door, M was already on his way and I was already planning our next date together...

SATURDAY

Sieu came back from Shanghai so we went to get some lunch to eat. We had this delicious fish baked on hot coals and chilli tofu with minced pork, along with tasty chicken rice. It was just a brief catch up because he had to chase up customers to pay their bills. To think, it everyone used the internet to transfer funds to their suppliers, that would be one day’s labour saved.

having lunch with Sieu

Met up with Khoi and his friends Phu, Uyen and Tuyet for a great evening in Saigon. The night kicked off at a local gay pageant, complete with trannies and all you can eat buffet! The crowd was predominantly gay, it would have been a paedophile’s wet dream since there were boys there that looked 15, even I felt old compared to some of these guys! There were about 10 contestants, most of them had caked on make up and stubby little legs, but there was one contestant that really stood out (he eventually won the pageant).

Phu, Uyen, Tuyet, Khoi and me at local gay pageant!

look at them hording over the buffet!

hot contestant, he eventually won the competition

I didn’t realise there were so many transsexuals in Saigon, some of them were really pretty and there was no way I would have been able to tell whether they were real girls if I saw them on the street. The funniest part of the evening was when the hot contestant tore off his trousers and threw them up behind his head, it landed square on top of the next contestant’s head, Khoi and I couldn’t stop laughing!

tranny fierce!

We headed to our next destination, the Heineken inaugural ‘Green Planet’ Christmas Party, held in a large convention centre. This would be the closest thing in Vietnam to a rave; there were pyrotechnics, laser lights, dancers in skimpy clothing, international DJ and random trance female vocalist who looked like a cross between Alanis Morrisette and Sarah Jessica Parker.

Heineken Green Planet Christmas Party

We ordered some Heineken beer and jumped for joy for the pleasure of listening to real trance, rather than remixed 90s pop or euro-trance. The crowd was rather tame, we seemed to be the only crazy ex-pats around, making the best of the night by taking photos with beer mascots and hot Christmas clad Heineken girls.

Gay street pub:cheap drinks and good grub!

To fill in the gap between 11.00 and Apocalypse, we went to a local gay street pub along Pasteur Road, it was so surreal to see many straight looking guys downing beer, but you know it was a gay crowd since the only girls there were practically Uyen and Tuyet. We ordered a round of Tiger beer, dried mango with chilli powder, deep fried squid and barbequed tender squid, I know I vowed not to have seafood in Vietnam for fear of food poisoning but this stuff tasted too good to refuse! A fight broke out and someone got glassed in the face, the poor guy was bleeding so badly and his shirt was soaked with blood, must have been a feisty gay argument! I love the fact that there are gangster gays, complete with tattoos, wife beaters and bad boy smirks, such a novel concept!

Huy, me, Linh, Khoi and Thang

Crowd at Apocalypse

Headed to Apocalypse to party for the next few hours, it was so full and sweaty but the fact that there were lots of gorgeous Asian boys made up for the tiring circumstances. I saw Murad from AIESEC, who was in Vietnam as a CEED, how random! Was about to go home at 3.00 but Khoi insisted we head to the backpacker’s district to check out a bar called ‘Go Go Go’. It was a smoke filled room that made my eyes water, its times like these I think a smoke ban in clubs is a good thing! Boogied down for a few songs before grabbing a taxi back home.

Partying at Go Go Go, I was so buggered by the end of the night

Taking a cab at 4.00am is an eerie sight, Saigon is completely dead like a ghost town!

SUNDAY

It must have been 15^th of the lunar month because the incense smog was thick in the lounge room when I woke up. There was chicken, fresh fruit and flowers on offer to the gods, placed neatly before the family alter, which meant that we had a feast of chicken, cha sieu, sweet and sour pork and leafy vegetables for lunch!

I went swimming with Sieu, perfect day for it because it was hot and humid. The place was full of hot boys; I think I was so distracted that I didn’t notice any girls there! It was a lot of fun, we got an all access pass so we went on the various water slides at the park, I forgot how much fun torpedoing down a slippery slide could be, I screamed all the way down! I swear that there is so much cruising occurring in Vietnamese public pools. I went into the steam room and caught some guy’s attention sitting opposite me. The place is so full of steam that you can’t really see anything except an outline of someone’s body. I put my hand down on the bench and the next thing I know; the guy’s foot was slightly nudging my fingertips! I went outside to the spa area and he followed soon after, asking my name and where I came from. His name was Cuong, 25 and he was spending a lazy afternoon with his friends (who all happened to be gay and lounging around on the other side of the pool). Cuong was bad boy cute, with a tattoo on his chiselled pec and on his thigh. I went over with him to his friends and shared a cigarette with the boys, they spoke limited English but some of them were so cute, great bodies as well!

The worst was in the public showers, where although there were individual cubicles, there were older gays wandering up and down in the aisle like sharks! It’s so dodgy, I saw a guy peer through the shower curtain and give me a sly look, lucky I had my trunks on! Otherwise, people look on the wet floor and look at your reflection! I wonder if the locals are either turning a blind eye or just completely oblivious that this is a gay haunt! I get dressed in the change area and some guy conveniently stands next to me to dry his hair. He asks me for my number but I politely say no thanks and walk off. This place is gayer than Steamworks in what more; it was totally unanticipated; all I was planning for was some slippery fun (no pun intended)!

Very anticlimactic end to the week, Duc and I went to Volcano nightclub, the place where there were many celebrities and cute boys 2 years ago, and it was a complete fizzer. Granted, we arrived at 10pm and were probably one of the first tables to arrive, but even when it was ¾ full, it was more straight than gay. On the times I did venture out to the dance floor, there was hardly anyone dancing. I was perplexed, wasn’t Sunday night supposed to be one of the busiest nights of the week? My question was answered when we left the club and a swarm of hoons drove past, waving Vietnam flags and holding pots and pans. Apparently, Vietnam won their match in soccer, which is why everyone stayed at home to watch the game. No wonder it was so dead at the club.

Week Ending December 14th

2008-12-14T23:12:00.001+09:00

TUESDAY

First day in Vietnam, woke up at 7.00am because my body clock was still set to Singapore time. Had a nice chat with Auntie, she had just been through an exhausting 26 hour flight from Missouri to HCM, with flight delays and cancellations along the way. My Auntie has a broken wrist and doesn’t speak English, so I commend her for being able to navigate 3 international airports by herself.

steak for breakfast!

view from outside Auntie's house in District 11

Had a steak, pate and egg set with bread roll for breakfast, along with Vietnamese ice coffee, tres delicious. In a way, I felt as if I had returned home, nothing about Vietnam really phases me anymore, that includes squatting in a hole in the ground for number twos. At the same time, a lot has changed in the past two years, it seems a lot more urbanised, with cleaner streets, more shopping centres and supermarkets, and a requirement for all motorcyclists and their passengers to wear helmets. Crossing the road is still a nightmare, but as long as you walk across slowly and maintain eye contact, you should be fine. Having said that, the power went off in our street till the late afternoon as an energy saving exercise by the government!

Sang and Mui Em and me having ice cream at Ace Cafe in District 1

It was a day of getting my essential items, toiletries and food stuff from the newly opened supermarket down the road. I changed some dollars into Vietnamese dong, got a prepaid mobile phone SIM card, a pack of Marlboro lights cigarettes ($1.50) and went in search for a prepaid internet card. I went with Mui Em’s boyfriend, also an employee, around town in search for the item but after an exhausting hour on the roads wandering around district 3, we were out of luck. I can’t believe it’s so hard to find such a simple amenity! No, I don’t want to join a year contract for wifi, no, I don’t want an internet telephone card, all I want is 56k speed dial up internet!

won ton noodle soup, been craving this local interpretation for 2 years

In the evening, Duc, Mui Em and her boyfriend Sang, took me to Saigon for some sightseeing and drinks. I was so hungry I stopped by Lotteria to get a bulgoggi burger, who would have thought they’d be so tasty? Having done it all before, I felt reluctant to bring out the camera, only taking some snaps when we sat down at Ace cafe for some ice cream. The ice cream was only $2.00 per scoop, but as my relatives were complaining about the western style prices, it only served as a reminder to how much of a wealth gap there is between foreigners and locals. Tuan told me that a local may earn around 5-10 US dollars a day, and a bowl of noodles in a stall now costs around 1 US dollar. Still, that’s only ½ hours wage in Australia! As Finished the night with a nice serving of won ton noodle soup, so tasty!

WEDNESDAY

Even using copious amounts of Aeroguard didn’t stop the mozzies from coming and biting! I’ve got a huge one on my thigh and foot that’s itching like a bitch!

com tam and cafe sua da for breakfast

After breakfast, Sang informed me that there was an internet cafe just around the block, so I went there in the morning to get things sorted out. Who would have thought my mobile phone was restricted to the three network, I had to ring them via Skype and ask for an unlock code, so now I can use a local prepaid sim. The international roaming charges here are exorbitant, around $1.70 per minute and 70c per message! My local SIM card only costs me 40,000D ($4) which will last me for the month.

Auntie having lunch

Uncle outside having a smoke

Minh

Tuan coming home from work for lunch

I definitely feel mollycoddled living at my Auntie’s place; my clothes are washed for me daily, I get my breakfast delivered and lunch cooked by the house maid and considering how cheap everything is, I’m living like a king. It’s weird, but coming back to Vietnam, I always feel reliant on my cousins to show me around but no more, I decided to venture out to Saigon District 1 to explore in the cheapest way possible, I mean, how hard could it be to use the public transport system? I’m still getting used to the traffic flow as it is opposite to Australia, so I’m always looking the wrong way when crossing the road! Catching a bus was interesting, the bus doesn’t totally stop to let you on, so you kind of have to time it correctly and jump on! It only cost me 3000D (30c) for a bus fare to Ben Thanh Market.

Ben Thanh Market

In a major case of mean world syndrome, its been drummed into me about how cunning thieves and pickpockets are in Vietnam, so every two seconds, I kept on feeling my pockets to see if my valuables were still there. I doubt they could have taken anything anyway; I was sweating like a bitch so everything was stuck to my body! It was a lot of fun navigating my way through the market place; it was stifling hot with wares stacked up high and being sold next to smelly bung rieu vendors. Was looking at fake wallets and the guy quotes me 350,000D ($35) for a fake LV wallet, which doesn’t sound bad considering it looked pretty good. I stick by a Vietnamese mom and her Eurasian daughter haggling for knock off designer bags and ask her what I should be paying, which was great so I knew the price I should be expecting. I tried my hand at bargaining and ended up getting three wallets for 250,000D ($25), a far cry from the original price they quoted me! Similarly, bought some music DVDs and Korean dramas for dirt cheap prices. Was so tired after walking around for the afternoon, thankfully, the bus home was air-conditioned because there was major traffic jam all the way back to my Auntie’s place.

Ben Thanh Market where I got my designer goods!

walking around Saigon District 1

traffic jam getting back to Auntie's place

Tonight, went out with Tuan and his wife Kieu and two children, along with Mui Em to have banh xeo. Tuan is doing good these days, working hard to provide for his family and getting a promotion recently so he doesn’t have to work such long hours. Dinner was really nice, I’m not a fan of banh xeo usually but they were very crispy and tasty at this famous restaurant. We also ordered cha gio and nem nung, great finger food! The meal only came to 170,000D ($17), which was a bargain! You can really afford to be generous in Vietnam and shout everyone dinner, if only it was like that in Australia!

cha gio and banh xeo

nem nung

Afterwards, we went to the supermarket and bought some biscuits, food products and toiletries for Kieu and her children, it felt good to be able to help out wherever possible and provide them with the things we normally take for granted. Take for example the fake LV wallet, a steal at 80,000D ($8) and good just to buy for novelty value, even that may be too expensive for locals, so they use wallets that cost 10,000 ($1). It really puts into perspective how lucky we have it in Australia...

THURSDAY

Went to Ngoc Tuyet Market with the maid this morning to buy two pairs of shorts to sleep in for 50,000D ($5), I’m running out of clothes! Took some great photos of the marketplace, was able to capture a day in the life of our maid buying raw produce for lunch and dinner. Did you know that meat produce is sold in the open with no refrigeration? Sometimes, there’s a butcher selling meet on the street, in the face of congested traffic and bustling pedestrians, it’s a real eye opener! It must really be a hard life being a grocer in Vietnam, the floor is so muddy and the fruit is so cheap.

at Ngoc Tuyet market

I met up with Billy at Saigon in the evening and we went to have okonomiyaki with his colleagues and friends who are in the same Australian Ambassador program. Given how much of a hypochondriac I am, he really scared me to bits with talk about dengue fever and how there currently is an epidemic in Vietnam, with rates up by 25% in certain districts. It didn’t help that I’ve been bitten recently and was informed that there was an incubation period of up to 5 days! I had been feeling parched all day. It was probably from the dehydration and heat, but there I was, sitting at the restaurant thinking I was going to be struck down by Dengue fever!

Meeting up with Billy and his friends for okonomiyaki

After I calmed down and realised that there was nothing I could do to prevent it, it ended up being an enjoyable dinner with lots of Japanese foods that I love like gyoza, yaki soba and tofu. It was nice to hear how other people were suffering from the same culture shock that I was feeling; constantly feeling dirty, feeling like a mute amongst locals and how hectic and draining the city can be. I took a taxi home by myself and felt very smart when the driver went to the wrong address. I was able to direct him using my limited Vietnamese and hand signals to guide him to the correct address a few blocks away, it only cost me 44,000 ($4) for the ride home, taxis are so cheap and convenient in Vietnam!

FRIDAY

I was apprehensive about checking my university results at an internet cafe. What if I had failed, who would I have to console me? The slow connection only heightened the suspense, when I looked at the final results, I was so relieved! 85 for Retail Management, 84 for Media and Communications Internship and 65 for Derivatives Securities. That means I have a straight H3 average for 3^rd year finance subjects, which goes to show that I should never choose a career in straight finance!

Tuan's 2nd child, he has rabbit teeth! so cute!

Auntie and I having cambodian noodles

In the evening, I took a taxi out to meet Khoi at his home in District 1. His place is so close to the nightlife and it made me realise that living in District 11 was like living in Carnegie or Oakleigh, a place which no one offers to pick you up or drop you home at! We went to have pizza and pasta at Pepperoni’s Pizza Cafe with his friend Linh, who works at HSBC in HR, and Lim. Having pizza for the first time in Vietnam was interesting, it tasted a bit like frozen pizza from the supermarket!

Linh and Khoi at Pepperoni's Pizza

Linh, Bam, Uyen, Khoi, Trang and me (Linh below) at Squared

Drinking shots at Lush

It was such a fun night tonight, we started the night off at a local karaoke joint full of gay boys, but left before the drag show started because the manager fell through on his promise to get us a table for 4. No worries, Khoi knew a lot of people, so we headed to a new bar which just opened in District 1 called Squared, where we met his friends and had some white wine to start the night. Then we walked across the road to Lush, a mixed bar with foreigners and locals. We headed upstairs to the VIP area where we boogied down and had iced raspberry vodka shots, very refreshing.

Linh, Tang, me and Khoi at Apocalypse gay club

All the gays left and headed to Apocalypse, an infamous gay club for foreigners. It was free entry but if you’re a local, you’re charged 150,000D ($15). Not that many locals can afford the entrance fee, but Khoi said that they can earn it all back with a few blowjobs, I don’t know if he was kidding or not! The thing is, it was quite a fun but seedy bar, no where near as seedy as Opium Den, at least there were lots of cute guys, both expat and local! Got so many stares, probably because of my height, but everyone was really friendly and smile back, not like Melbourne, where most queens have a stick up their arse.

SATURDAY

In the evening, met up with Khoi in Phu Nhuan district, where his friend was having a Christmas dinner party. Her mansion was so grand that it would be considered large even by Western standards; there was a pool, barbecue area and as I stepped into the house, I seriously thought I was back in the Western world. There was turkey, chicken, sea snails cooked with nuoc mam and butter, roast lamb and microwave marshmallows with chocolate ice cream!

Eating mi for an afternoon snack

I got mah nails did before a big night out!

Cha gio bung (Spring rolls with vermicelli), my favourite

It was so much fun at Apocalypse tonight, the place was completely packed. Khoi and I were the tallest guys in the club and we got so many stares. I met and danced with a few cuties tonight and left the club with numbers! I had my eye on a cheeky guy called Mario, who was really shy but kept on looking over at me. I smiled back and motioned for him to come over, sharing a dance with him over ‘Last Christmas’. He seemed a bit hesitant so I got his number and gave him a quick peck on the lips, so very high school!

Christmas dinner at Bam's place

Is it only the gay scene that draws me here? No, I realised why I liked Asia so much, because being a foreigner instantly boosts your reputation. You’re seen as different to the locals, and it’s that difference which really strokes the ego and makes you feel special.

Sea snails with nuoc mum and butter

Riding with Khoi to Apocalypse, we discussed how poisonous it was to be an Asian in the gay scene, you’re invisible or at best, fetishised and treated like a piece of meat. It’s so different in Vietnam, you’re admired for your ‘Asianness’ and it’s your looks that distinguish you, not your nationality. The Vietnamese guys here are so cute, a bit shy and frigid, but really cute! You even get your gangster (not druggie) types that you never see in Australia!

SUNDAY

Went with Mui Em to have beef steak for breakfast, it was her day off. The place was so foggy with smoke from the stove but the beef steak and egg on a hot plate tasted damn good! Note to self: never drink two fruit drinks in short succession, it led to the worse stomach ache and I was lucky I made it back to Auntie’s place quickly.

beef steak!

Lunch with Tuan and Uncle's family on the roof top

Uncle has an uncanny resemblance to Dad when he interacts with kids

Tuan’s wife, Kieu, invited me upstairs for lunch, she had cooked a feast of noodle soup and it would have been impolite of me to refuse, even though the maid had already cooked lunch for me downstairs. Besides, it gave me a chance to make small talk with my Uncle, it’s only now that I see the resemblance between him and my dad. When he interacts with kids, he has the same look on his face as my father. Other times, I think they couldn’t be more different. Two brothers with very different life paths, my father who can never see the faults of his family and strives for opportunities, my uncle, who thinks that everyone is out to take his money and asks for handouts.

A night in town with Auntie, Duc, Mui Em and Ka Ho (Tuan's first child)

Had a lazy siesta in the afternoon, I managed to finish ‘The Kite Runner’ by Khaled Hosseini within 3 days, it was such a page turner and I found that I couldn’t put the book down. It was the first book I read that dealt with Middle Eastern culture, but I found the themes universally applicable: friendship, trust, betrayal and redemption. There were many times that I was reading that I felt tears welling up in my eyes, Hosseini is that good! It was such a good tale, haven’t read a good book like that in ages...

Mui Em amongst the midst of crazy traffic jam in Saigon District 1

In the evening, Mui Em, Duc, Auntie and Tuan’s child Ka Ho took me on a joy ride around Saigon. We went to the new district in Saigon South where all the expensive apartments and mansions were, it felt as though we were in Los Angeles; the roads were wide and clean and the apartments reminded me of Southbank, Melbourne, it would be a great place to live, even though it’s slightly far away from the city centre. We even passed RMIT Vietnam along the way, I wonder what it would be like to be an exchange student here. We drove into District 1 but lost Duc and Auntie amongst the traffic, its times like these I wish he’d stop being so old fashioned and get a damn mobile phone! Mui Em and I drove around trying to find them but just ended up with really sore arses from riding around for more than 2 hours. We went to have bun bo hue for dinner before heading back and retiring for the night.

Bun Bo Hue for dinner

Who would have thought that dating would be so hard, Vietnamese boys are so romantic! Got a few sweet messages throughout the day, asking me for coffee or to show me around town. Even Mario kept his promise to contact me and sent a quick message ‘hey handsome boy, remember me? Today I’m busy so I can’t call you, now I’m working, I’ll call you later I promise’. Now that’s how dating amongst gay boys SHOULD be!

Day 6: Goodbye Singapore, Hello Vietnam

2008-12-08T12:46:00.000+09:00

The rain was pouring and it wasn’t going to stop anytime soon. Checked out of the hotel at 12.00 and headed to Vivo City to whittle away the hours. I’m so glad I went because I found a pair of Adidas Black Samba JPs for $115! I’ve been going from Adidas store to Adidas store in search for them but they’ve been impossible to find, so imagine my surprised after being told in the Vivo City store that they didn’t have that model to find it on the back wall!

Had a quick lunch at the hawker’s food court in Vivo City, ate some fried dumplings on egg noodles, was very tasty! Headed back to the hotel and called a taxi to take me to Changi Airport, those taxi vouchers that Jason gave me really came in handy since it was so wet. Speaking to the taxi driver, he told me that from one end of Singapore to the other end is only 40km, I suppose it’s true when people say that you can complete Singapore within a day. I’m so glad that I was able to meet up with friends to really enhance my stay, it’s been so much fun and I’m looking forward to doing it again in the near future!

First time that I’ve arrived at the airport and had the luck of timing on my side. Paul Lim was also at Changi catching a flight back to Malaysia, so we headed to the smoking room to catch up. We were discussing our weekend and how much fun it was, I noticed that he was a bit quiet at St James Power Station because he had drunk too much and was feeling dizzy, he and Jung left at 1.30am. It was also a contrast to see the difference in budget between a working professional and a student. My 5 day accommodation amounted to $150, where as his weekend bender at Scarlet Hotel set him back $800! But of course, I had to share a room with 6 strangers, locking my luggage every time I went to the bathroom and having to put up with people entering the bedroom at odd hours from a long night out, but it was definitely an experience I wanted to have before I taste the finer luxuries in life!

The flight to Vietnam was great, the customer consultant I talked to before I left Melbourne must fulfilled my request to sit in the emergency exit row because there I was, sitting at the front of the economy class section! It was a two hour flight to Ho Chi Minh City but it was relaxing enough, I dozed off with my iPod and woke up when we landed at Than Son Nhat Airport. The airport had been upgraded since 2006, there was air conditioning and everything was processed in a speedy manner, it doesn’t resemble a bus shelter anymore! I saw my cousins waiving out front and we took a taxi back to my auntie’s house. The night went by like a blur, I was pretty exhausted from the flight so after a quick dinner having won ton noodle soup at a nearby night stall, I called it a night and retired early.

I don’t have internet access at my Auntie’s place, which is a blessing in disguise. I can finally start reading the books I brought along without having the urge to check Facebook every few minutes! Sporadic updates from now on, Adios! Raymond xx

Day 5: Mustafa Centre, Dempsey Hill and St James

2008-12-07T23:13:00.002+09:00

Went to explore Mustafa Centre in Farrer Park, was intrigued about the 24 hour shopping mall. Was really surprised to see the amount of quality wares that they were selling, I had expected cheap trinkets but saw lots of designer goods like watches and perfumes. It was surprising because the goods were being sold in a Dimmey’s store environment and it really removed the glamour of what you were buying, even though you were getting the best price for it. I guess that marketing and visual merchandising really makes a world of difference! Apparently, Mustafa Centre is where you go for shopping bargains, both luxury and value priced goods, if you can ignore how dingy the place is. The place is almost claustrophobic, having to manoeuvre between tightly packed aisles and impatient shoppers.

Mustafa Centre

Sat down to have a quick snack at an Indian restaurant and had the cheese roti, was very delicious. The accompanying gravy was a vegetarian based curry so I thought I was biting into a snow pea, when it was actually an uber hot green chilli, major onset of indigestion! Tabby and her boyfriend Danny came to pick me up from Mustafa Centre and we drove to Dempsey Hill to have lunch with Lynn and Gail, school mates from Melbourne University. The place reminded me of a country club in the Botanical Gardens, with lots of western style restaurants and lush greens. We had a western style lunch in a cafe, where we made up for lost time. Gail is currently doing consumer market research and her job allows her to fly all around Asia. Tabitha has just finished her stint at Elle magazine as a stylist and Lynn is working as a research assistant at NUS. I think the late nights of the past few days caught up with me because by late afternoon, my eyelids were as heavy as concrete! I decided to call it a day and headed back to the hostel for a quick nap.

Dempsey Hill with Danny, Gail, Tabitha and Lynn

It was all in preparation for a big gay boy’s night out at St James Power Station; it was a long weekend due to a Muslim holiday so the place was supposed to be packed. I met up with Jason in Wisma Atria, where I had yong tau fu for dinner. We met up with his friend Isaac, who lives right behind Orchard in a house, didn’t know such prime real estate existed in the city centre. Isaac is currently in NS, so he’s back for the weekend for a night of clubbing, along with his friend, Alvin, marketing person for optometry equipment. We started off the night with pre-drinks, a round of gin and tonics, followed by baileys with whipped cream, and then some mint syrup with vodka shots, how indulgent!

Predrinks at Isaac's place (Jason, me and Isaac)

Mark and Randy

Alvin and me

Me with Jung and Paul

Me and Hoy

We arrived at St James Power Station in Harbour Front opposite Vivo City. The line was building up but Isaac was VIP so we got in for free and via the VIP line. The club was definitely the best I’ve seen in Singapore; spacious and classy, with a large multi-tiered dance floor for us gay boys to dance upon. Isaac had two tables booked so we were able to sit down and start the night with $25 mixed drink jugs, I wish we had these in Australia! The night started at 12.00 with the onset of gay pop beats, everyone flocked to the dance floor and it was completely packed until 3.00. The music was a perfect mix of Mariah, Madonna, Kylie, Beyonce and Britney, you know you’ll have a good night when you can sing along to the music!

Jason, me and Don with lots of $25 drinks!

Jason, Jane and Gurbir outside St James having a fag

The crowd was really good, not intimidating or sleazy, but cute boys there for a good time with friends. I bumped into so many I met during this trip: Randy and his boyfriend Mark, Paul Lim, Jung and Hoi. Met a few other people through people like Isaac, Jason and Sean, it was so much fun. As we stood in the smoking area, people were really friendly and came up to say hello, no pretentiousness at all. I even met some people from Melbourne, like Eugene’s friend, and a person I knew back in first year called Stephen. It was definitely the best night in Singapore and I had so much fun dancing on the podium and perving on cute boys. We left around 4.00 when the crowd was trickling away and just our luck, a downpour of rain started. Poor Jason was drenched as he stood in the rain, hailing a taxi! Got home, took a warm shower and settled into bed, what an experience!

Day 4: Little India, Foot Massage and Taboo

2008-12-06T23:29:00.000+09:00

Managed to escape a hangover by downing heaps of water the night before, the grogginess went away after freshening up and having a piece of toast for breakfast. Jason was nice enough to offer to show me around Singapore. We met up with Sean in Tekka Mall in Little India and went in search for some good Indian grub!

Little India...like India!

I didn’t realise that there were so many types of Indian cuisine (blame the Western naivety!), but we settled on vegetarian style, where we ordered dum bryani, rice infused with chicken and spices, potato dosai and egg roti, with a round of teh tariks, the malty tea drink that tastes like Hong Kong milk tea. I committed a faux pas by using my left hand to pick at my dosai, forgetting that it was the hand to wipe your bottom with! Was too unco to use my right hand so gave up and used cutlery instead. It was a very heavy meal which kept me full for hours, so lucky didn’t lao sai.

Indian lunch, lucky didn't lao sai from the overload of spices!

The streets of Little India remind me of...well, India! We went inside a Hindu temple, which is very a little more frantic than Buddhist temples; all the monks were half naked! The Hindu gods on the roof were very beautiful and colourful and we saw this magnificent statue of Kali, the Goddess of Dissolution and Destruction, very scary face!

Hindu temple in Little India

Also saw lots of flower necklace stalls selling intricate chains of rose and limes, which Jason said some jewellery stores religiously change on a daily basis, which is extremely expensive, to bring good fortune and prosperity.

Flower stall and flowers hung in extremely blingy jewellery store

The original plans were to go to Jurong Park to look at the native birds but it was raining intermittently, so we decided to check out Chinatown instead. Jason had tourist passes to the Chinese Cultural Heritage Centre, where we could read about the settlement of Chinese people in Singapore. Like Bendigo, a lot of Chinese people were very poor when they arrived in the city and settled for manual labour jobs, living in cramped shackles which were recreated within the museum. They were great authentic sets, Sean and I had a ball taking photos in there! Also went to the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, where there were 100s of miniature gods made from gold!

Chinese Heritage Centre and Buddha Tooth Relic Temple

From there, we took a short taxi ride to Marina Bay, where we had coffee inside the huge mall before enjoying an hour long foot reflexology massage. I thought I was going to be wincing in pain but I felt myself in heaven, reclining on the comfortable couch and clearing my thoughts as my feet was being thoroughly prodded, massaged and squeezed, definitely recommend it for anyone wanting stress relief!

Look at the little fishies eating all the dead skin off your feet!

Lovely reflexology foot massage, I'm in heaven, can you tell?!

Yoshinoya meal set with crumbed salmon and teriyaki chicken on rice

Had a quick dinner set at Yoshinoya in Plaza Singapura, consisting of crumbed salmon and teriyaki chicken on rice, before going back to the hostel to relax and unwind. I met up with Paul Lim from Malaysia, who was one of the first gay people I met back in 2001. He was staying in Scarlet Hotel in Chinatown and we went up to the rooftop bar, Breeze, to have drinks. I also met his friend Jung and Hoi, both of whom were studying in Perth and are mutual friends of Simon and Freddy.

Paul, Jung, Hoi and me at Tantric

Joyce, me and Paul at Taboo

Cedric, Jason and me having a quick fag outside Taboo

It was such a fun night, we quickly popped into Tantric, a gay bar with lots of expats, before crossing the road into Taboo, the muscle Mary club! The atmosphere was great and I actually knew all the music being played, which was remixes of pop songs like Britney, Christina and Madonna, I was in gay heaven! I noticed that it was a very clicky scene but people were nice though, I never felt intimidated or like a piece of meat. I love being overseas, it’s the only time when your accent is foreign enough for people to be interested in talking to you! Jason came by later and we chilled at Taboo until 2.30, around the time when people started to trickle out.

Day 3: Suntec City, Chinatown and night out with Zac

2008-12-05T12:21:00.011+09:00

Slept 40 winks in my new room. Sure, there was traffic noise outside my window but at least there wasn’t James Bond movies blaring out the speakers on the opposite wall, you know how loud those action scenes are like.

Met some lovely Irish tourists over breakfast in the Hostel courtyard, she told me that she has just arrived from Tanzania, Africa after a month of teaching underprivileged kids. She had a goal of going to Africa for a long time to make a difference but when she was there, she said she felt exploited and used. She said that all the villagers wanted was money, even the principle was asking for money. It made me think that we Westerners are so naive that we can just enter a developing community and make a difference. She said there were so many volunteers who hated the experience and wanted to go home, but their pride prevented them from doing so. It makes me wonder whether the accomplishment of going to Africa is better than the actual experience received.

Sim Lim Square

Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple

I cleared my schedule and did some solo travelling around Singapore, didn’t want to be constrained by lunch or social appointments. I started off in Little India, walked to Sim Lim Square to see the electronics market, then headed to Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple to burn some incense and pray on behalf of my family, very peaceful. After watching Bugis Street, I was kind of expecting a seedy street of sex workers and transsexuals but I was confronted with a Beverly Hills-esque mall. Sat down for a brunch snack of yong tau fu noodle soup for $4.70, with mushrooms, tofu and leafy vegetables in a clear, chicken broth, very tasty and satisfying!

Eating Yong Tau Fu and Suntec City

Continued walking down Bridge Road, where I escaped into the air conditioned Raffles City Department Store the impending heat. It reminds me of the 60 Minutes story covering Dubai and how you don’t ever need to be affected by Mother Nature since there’s air conditioning indoors everywhere! Walked through the War Memorial Park to get to Suntec City, where I splurged on two Lacoste classic polo tees. From there, I went to Chinatown in search for my next meal. A work colleague recommended Maxwell Food Centre, a traditional hawker’s food centre in the sense that it was dingy, hot and cheap, I loved it! I ordered a small serving of the hainanese chicken rice with soup for only $2.80, what a bargain!

Hainanese Chicken Rice Maxwell Food Centre and Chinatown

I expected more from Chinatown. From what I saw, it consisted of a night market selling cheap trinkets which was way too hot to explore in the day, and a mall made up of travel agencies and more Asian shops selling cheap trinkets, pirated DVDs and massage parlour. My feet were so tired and my back was quite tense from a build up of stress left over from exams and a long flight, so when I saw people getting a foot and shoulder massage, I thought ‘what the heck, I’m on holiday!’ With no point of comparison, I’m not sure if I got ripped off, but a middle aged male massage therapist offered 60 minutes full body massage for $40, $5 off the RRP. Before you start thinking dirty thoughts, no, the massage was purely therapeutic! He started kneeling on my back and kneading out the knots in my back, it was so relaxing (gosh, I’m so going to stop before it starts sounding too erotic)!

Drinks at Gabriel's wine bar. Wine Affaire (Zac, Chicam, Sean and me)

Feeling particularly relaxed after my massage and heat affected, I bought a Portuguese egg tart and made my merry way back to the hostel for a quick shut eye, very rejuvenating! I met up with Zac at Tanjong Pagar MRT and we made our way to Gabriel’s wine bar, where I met his friends Sean , who does VM for Ralph Lauren Singapore and Chee Kam, a communications consultant in Singapore government division promoting well being amongst seniors.

Our Peranakan meal at Blue Ginger

Dinner was amazing, we went to Blue Ginger, a restaurant specialising in Peranakan (straits-Chinese) cuisine, which is a fusion of Malay and Cantonese cooking. Here are some of my favourites: Duck salad was delicious, I though Vietnamese food was refreshing but this takes the cake for refreshing greens salad. The Ngo Heung were home made rolls of minced pork and prawns in five spice powder wrapped in crispy beancurd. Bakwan Kepeting was a soup consisting of minced pork and crabmeat meatballs in a chicken broth with bamboo shoots. The most exotic was Ayam Buah Keluak: braised chicken flavoured with turmeric, galangal and lemongrass cooked with Indonesian black nuts, Chee Kam said that if its prepared properly, the paste within the black nuts are supposed to taste like dark chocolate, it definitely had that consistency. We also had fried fish, eggplant, prawn cupcakes and a delicious dessert called Gula Melaka, which had brown cane sugar mixed with sago pearls in honey sea coconut.

Drunk drunk drunk! Jason, me, Sean at DYMK

I don’t think I’ve ever been so drunk in my life. We started off at Gabriel’s bar with a chocolate frothy cocktail, a glass of house wine and to start the night off, a shot containing absinthe, I was feeling hot already. We walked to DYMK (Does Your Mother Know), which was a cute little bar with comfy couches, where I met some of Zac, Chee Kam and Sean’s friends. I met Jason, who does marketing for the Singapore tourism board and was in charge of the Christmas lights in Orchard. We ordered champagne, a pint of beer with vodka shot infused, appletini...but the thing that really threw me over the edge was a shot of tequila. Walking to the bathroom was quite hard, I felt like my legs weren’t part of my body. We headed back to Gabriel’s wine bar to freshen up, all I needed was a glass of ice water to keep me from dehydrating.

Playing (watching) drinking games before heading out to Play

I held up pretty well, even dancing for a bit at Play, a club full of young Asian twinks, but the taxi ride through the city really made me feel nauseous! I sat on the staircase of the hostel sipping my bottle of cold water to ward off the impending hangover; it was such a sorry sight! Now I know why I don’t like to get drunk!