easter?

well you would not exactly know that it is easter here. and we are certainly not enjoying the super long weekend that everyone in aus is lucky enough to have... but today has not been too bad - pastry treats and even some hot cross bun loving. paired with a massage this afternoon and a scrumptious feast cooked by a. hope that you are all enjoying some r+r this weekend.

the perks... and some not so perky

Over the past week we have been embracing some of the greater perks that living in Hanoi has to offer. On Saturday it seemed as if spring had finally sprung here, there were people out and about, flower vendors at every corner, the sun made an appearance and so we decided to embrace it! Of course we soon realised it was more likely due to the public holiday this tuesday, but that was a minor details (even less when it turned out we all worked straight through it...)
First, we decided to invest in some of the beautiful blooms, of course our inferior communication skills let us down as it all got too hard and out bunch of flowers turned into three bunches of white roses. This turned out to be less of an issue when it costs around $2 in total! Needless to say our living room is looking rather lovely now.
We also had friends over for drinks Saturday, with a quick stroll down the street all of the finest goods bought from the french patisserie, a cheese platter, many bottles of red wine and by nine o'clock everyone realised that planning some dinner would have been a swell idea. Not a problem, when in Hanoi, everything delivers! Once the virtues of every cuisine were debated, a quick phone call and 30 minutes later, dropped at your door. 
The not so perky, being Sunday morning (yes the dog is still here) and no, a hang over cure had not been identified, needless to say a slow morning! ALTHOUGH when one is feeling a little under, a little tired or perhaps achey... hidden behind the office down a little lane lays the greatest perk of all. HOLISTIC MASSAGE! One hour of heaven for under $10 can you say hello to my new weekly treat! Oh yes, Friday afternoons are going to be my favourite from now on...What better way to start the weekend I ask you.
The non-perky, just to make you all feel better. As I sit here, completing this little post at 9 pm the neighbours have decided it is a good time to pull out the hammer drill. Also spending two hours this morning prisoner in our own apartment, the lock on the gate ceasing to function and whilst we had previously considered the apartment incredibly secure for its enclosed bars, we suddenly realised there was no escape. The lack of language probably let us down there a touch as well... good thing there was no fire, phew! 
Good thing it is Friday tomorrow...


*delicious cheese pictured actually taken pre-hanoi but strikingly similar to saturday.

highway 4

we have been laying very low since arriving back in Hanoi, it seems that the plane trip got the best of us as we got taken down by the flu. thankfully we are fighting fit once more and back out on the town. it has been a week of networking, lunches, after work drinks, networking and schmoozing all round. 


conveniently, a new highway 4 has opened, but 40 metres from our abode. a delicious experience in modern vietnamese, offering much for the more adventurous (not in the - try your luck on the streets of Hanoi - but more - how do you feel about crickets kind of way). also home to a's favourite dish, catfish spring rolls, famous around Hanoi and pictured at top. 


the past week or so we have also been trying to take care of some of the practical things that we had been putting off since we arrived. such as bank accounts and new passports (we have both filled ours up...) so off we went to get our photos at the embassy condoned photography store. we were put on the proverbial conveyer belt, traipsing up four flights of stairs to perch on a small plastic stool a man pops into the room leans over with his digital camera and snaps. a brief moment of dread as i look at the back drop and think, this is not white, this is just a little bit dodgy. 


down one flight of stairs to a small room with a dozen computers lining the walls, each with a young vietnamese frantically working away in photoshop. ushered to a seat to await our docket. at each station photos were flashing by, children superimposed on giant flowers, couples in front of vietnamese icons, and sets of official photos. backgrounds were changing and cheeks being whitened. before long we were up on the screen, my hair was promptly lopped off, face whitened, background removed, image resized, the docket was handed over and i was sent downstairs. 


now for printing, we waited while enlarged photos were laminated and trimmed by two teenage girls, our photos eventually arrived and as we walked out the door i opened the envelope i saw myself as a twelve year old boy. no problems i am only stuck with it for the next ten years...