theboonedoggle

A number of people we have met in our travels warned us against Vietnam. In fact, I don't think we heard a single word of praise from any of them. We came expecting bad attitudes, high prices, and downright thievery... and we leave now having experienced warm hospitality, cheap prices, and an abundance of generosity. While Vietnam is not nearly at the top of the list of places we have visited, we have really enjoyed our short time here, made even better by the presence of David and Jason, who joined us for the last ten days. After another multi-day transit we arrived in Vietnam early enough in the day to catch a six-hour combo of buses into the Mekong delta, where we spent a few days exploring the numerous waterways and floating markets around the town of Can Tho. *** This was our first taste of Vietnamese food, and our first night in the country we enjoyed crusty french-bread sandwiches, heavily-herbed noodles, and strawberry and avocado shakes, all delicious. The avocado shak...

Meat. I think vegetarians are in denial. Those who have been vegetarians for years are simply very good at lying to themselves about just how good a bloody-rare Fillet Mignon tastes going down. Either that, or they're self-loathing masochists... because meat is good. Meat, is right. And in no other place is a people more in touch with their true feelings about carcass than the good citizens of the Philippine islands. There may very well be a connection here to the fact that Filipinos are also very happy . By the time we left Indonesia, we both were a walking bag of bones, and sorely in need of some nutrients. So we have spent the last two weeks stuffing our faces with some of the best food of our trip. Filipinos love pork, and they eat it all, from ribs to skin to entrails -they even make some interesting dishes from chopped-up pig's head. This is a land of plenty, and the first place we have visited where they serve up meals in American-sized portions. And it's w...