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We traveled by bus today to Can Tho, stopping at a rest stop for deep fried bananas, coconut pastries, sweetened dried sweet potatoes and peanut brittle. They were chilies drying in the parking lot. We passed rice paddies on the way down from Sai Gon, and restaurants every 40 meters with hammocks next to every table.
Our guest house for the next ten days is fantastic. We have five rooms on the second floor, and we all share a balcony overlooking the Can Tho River. Lunch was fried tofu, sauteed garlic morning-glory, fried squash blossoms filled with fish, and catfish hot pot.
We also bought bikes and cell phones today; Tien was indispensable in helping us negotiate prices. More about riding bikes in the city of Can Tho. In short: WOW. The only rule is don't stop looking forward.
Classes start tomorrow. On a similarly academic note, the situation looks promising for my ISP. The proto-question that I'd do my research under might read as, "Should Vietnam support the adoption of industrial agricultural techniques?" It leaves room for discussions on ethics, foreign meddling, science, and the value of making your own mistakes or learning from others. It needs refining - who or what do I mean by 'Vietnam', for example - but it would give me a chance to visit the US Consulate, utilize the ag school in Can Tho, work with USGS, and talk to the Vietnamese who work with food.
I'm writing a lot in this blog, and I think it is too much. I was anticipating only putting down a few lines with a daily photo, but I like keeping this journal. After this post, I think I'll switch to writing in Word and give you all a "best of" sampler. If you want more, ask. Critiques on the format are welcome.
Also, since fbook is banned and sometimes hard to get on, leave me comments on here or email me at gmacpher@skidmore.edu. If somebody could email this link to R. Greg Trimmer, that would be great, too.
Photos tomorrow; passing out now.
The detail has been great Gordon and better than watching the Food Channel,but I'm sure you could say a lot with a few photos too. Just do me a favor and not write any more about traffic, accidents, biking! Looking forward to the photo from the balcony
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you are eating so well! I'm jealous. Can't wait to see more pictures.
ReplyDeleteHey Gordon!
ReplyDeleteIt's great to be able to follow your travels on this blog! While I’ve stayed local, my friends have been all around the world. One buddy still travels—he does third world nutrition studies and teaches at Johns Hopkins—when he was your age, Rolf studied Buddhism in Sri Lanka and took the Orient Express with another friend through Europe. It would have been great if it were possible to follow their travels, via blog, back in the day!
At any rate, I think one of the potential treasures of your trip—besides the food, of course—is exposure to different “takes” on religion. As I understand it, modern Vietnam is a primarily secular society with roots in a synthesis of many religions, including Mahayana Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism. It might be enlightening to study those roots along your way, and come to an understanding of how they affected the modern society.
I would highly recommend a book, The Asian Journal of Thomas Merton, as you make your way along in your adventure. Thomas Merton was a Roman Catholic Trappist Monk who studied comparative religions/spiritualities at great length, and incorporated Eastern traditions and spirituality into his daily practice; he was very influential in his day, and is one of my favorite authors.
Have a great day today!