Bai Bien Cua Toi (V):.... Latter Days .... Hung-over and limping and Le VELO

6:00
The hang-over is not as bad as I expected, LOL..... my back is still giving me issues, I am limping around my room..... getting old SUCKS !

8:00
2 beers work wonder against the hang-over.....and stretching helps with the back issues..... and despite tomorrow's dreaded departure there is an immense enthusiasm growing.... Nha Toi will be completed when I come back...  something that still has not settled in my subconscious brain....


8:30
a walk ....

..... and a swim...

10:30

OK, don't want to ride to Song Cau but I need wine.....

It's WINDY as HELL..... my arms and face get sand-blasted by dirt that rises in small vortexes from the road..... and WHY are there SOOOOO MANY cars on the road today..... Gone is that easy flow feeling of the last two years....

LOL.  The James-Franco-lookalike hairdresser has torn down his little shed and has built an impressive BARBERSHOP right behind it !   Things are changing SOOOO FAST here....

12:00

15:00
The nguoi My didn't next door didn't leave after all .... TOO MUCH BOOZE yesterday...... and KARMA does it AGAIN...Shawn has to fly to Ha Noi from Nha Trang vao ngay mot.... and he wants to sell his bicycle there.....that u? .... I've been desperately looking for a bike.... Thank you Karma! ... I'm buying Shawn's bicycle....

Thank You Karma, Thank You Shawn !

16:30
Time to take the scooter back to Chau & Muoi..... Chau serves muoc with dipping sauce and I bring half a bottle of wine...... We do the accounting..... a bit more than 5 Million VND left on the loan/scooter rental... and I broach the subject.... toi da mua mot cai xe dap.... Can I leave it in your living room for 6 weeks?.....  Of course  he says YES, but I hope I didn't push too hard... but I'm VERY relieved to know that I have a place where I can leave the bike ;-)  
I'll have to be back here with the bike at 20:00....somehow I'm sure there will be more drinking involved ....  Anh Trai is also there... grinning from ear to ear as usual... Chau serves Passionfruit Juice....Freshly Squeezed.... LMAO.........THIS is what it is SUPPOSED to taste like?..... SCREW living in the WEST and it's pale imitation of juices & life , LOL.

18:00
Back to Bobby's on foot......
I'm starving so eat their REALLY GOOD chicken wings..... and have more drinks to drown the sorrow of tomorrow's departure.....
20:00
This time I'm CYCLING back to Nha Chau .... Muoi & Chau stare at the bike in wonder.... the bike is a bit small for me but they have never seen a bike THIS TALL, LOL....

And back to Bobby's on foot for the second time today..... to say Good Bye to the Crazy Americans ....

21:00

Bai Bien Cua Toi (IV).... sleeping the day away and dreading the coming days

5:30
God, I'm slow today.... I think it's about time that I leave the beach in 2 days..... too much beach is not good for the brain ....

...but at least I finish some e-mails to friends and family that REALLY should be sent and some bicycle trip planning for July....  Gotta LIVE before I die !

In the news:
SHAME on the Italian Government!   Captain Carole Rackete saves refugees/migrants from drowning in the Mediterranean ....

.....and is ARRESTED by Italian Police.... What has the world come to when we don't even help a follow human being anymore just because they are a different colour or because they are not as rich as ourselves..... we call ourselves Christians but no-one seems to understand THAT BOOK anymore....
... that's OK, things will be taken care of..... NO, it won't be a FLOOD this time (unless you live in a low-lying coastal region)...

.... it's going to be something more complex.... June 2019 was globally THE HOTTEST June EVER recorded..... EVERYONE knows its coming, but not many people seem to give a shit.... even Dylan wrote a song about it.... A hard rain's a'gonna fall.....  Charles Darwin had a term for that:  Natural Selection ;-)


8:30

A clandestine look towards the future Chez Chris ....

10:30
A REALLY slow day..... I call Hans.... and he even answers, LOL... too bad he won't be there when I might drop by during my bike trip.....



a nap?

3:30
OMG, a FOUR HOUR nap......I slept the day away!

A quick walk along the beach...... and this is what you get when you try to build a resort and you remove the trees from what is essentially a giant sand dune:  You get sand storms ...

16:45
That Vietnamese Pizza was good.  I want another one

A brief visit to Nha Quang with a half empty wine bottle..... No translator present.... and I notice how the conversation is stumbling.... (NOT falling, just more difficult than the times when Lisa is around).

20:00
In "Sweden"..... there are THREE obnoxiously loud and DRUNK Americans there.... I do NOT want to talk to Americans..... but then I notice that they SPEAK VIETNAMESE (!!!!).... so I approach to inquire into this VERY STRANGE thing......... 

..... but they are actually VERY NICE Americans (There is HOPE!) and they are cycling from Ha Noi to Sai Gon....
GREAT FUN.... and  at 22:00 I am STRUGGLING to stumble back to my room......NEED SLEEP, LOL.

Bai Bien Cua Toi (III).... Vegging out.... a money run, buying a sink, and a night beach walk

4:30
Still issues with my back.... sitting in a chair and computer work definitely are NOT good for it.....

8:00
I try to fly the kite, but the wind is not sufficient.....more wine & naps?  NO! I gotta STOP vegging out..... NEED to go out there....

I mean:  WHAT am I doing IN my room when THIS is just outside ????

9:00
I'm watching THIS VIDEO again...... and I am reminded that I MUST KEEP reminding myself.... This place where I am.... THIS is PARADISE!
To paraphrase Steve Jobs.... Never Settle!   

(But also NEVER forget to appreciate what you have achieved!)

10:00
toi say roi ;-)

10:30 a mini snooze....

..... and another one

An e-mail from Dung (Mr Quy Nhon Hotel)!    What a darling and definitely one of the small but ever increasing number of people around the world I would visit anytime to have a glass of booze and a chat with!


11:30
.... another attempt at flying a kite....

.... but this time the wind varies between insane gusts and NOTHING.....

 so I get to fish the kite out of the ocean..... maybe tomorrow

12:30

toi van say roi ;-)
maybe another swim will shake/wake me up ?

13:15
It's a bit LATE for this realization: It's FRIDAY today....SHIT !!! ....that means that I have to go to the bank TODAY if I want to leave Q enough money to finish the house construction before I leave..... ah well, no reason to panic...... it should be a beautiful ride ;-)

Another mot tram trieu Dong from the bank...
.... and another 30 minute nap

I simply don't have enough time to nap more.....because..

16:00
Nha Quang

We're scooting to a store on the highway.....

I think we're just picking out from the display models and that we will get the things delivered later........

NO, the woman unscrews the faucet I pointed at and Quang places the sink in front of him on the scooter...... Welcome to Vietnam, LOL.

17:00
Quang is a creature of habit... he points with a questioning look when we drive by the grilled-chicken restaurant....   OH, why not?

OK, so maybe this is NOT the most flattering picture of Q eating..
but some people would kill for his metabolism... he eats huge amounts and couldn't be slimmer!

At least I manage to get to pay this time..... "Lam On, cho phep toi tra tien!"

19:00 Still no rest for the wicked......

toi di bo den Nha Kraut

I LOVE the DARK !

progress!

19:30
In "Sweden" for 2 G&Ts (I get them for the non-imported-booze price ;-)

J actually seems happy to be able to to talk to an English speaker...... with all his prettiness, I feel sorry for him.... he's stuck in those not-old-and-wise-enough-yet troubled years..... 

21:30

Bai Bien Cua Toi (II).... a haircut, a wine run, Vietnamese Pizza, and not much else ....

2:30
This is getting worse..... the Japan trip really messed up my inner clock !

3:00
There is an e-mail from Chyong...it's about the shirt & the shoes .....  what a brainy & nice guy ...  

6:00
a smoke on the terrace.... and the air is FILLED with my favourite beasts.... hundreds of Dragonflies patrol the airspace.... a big grin spreads across my face..... I haven't seen a single one in the month that I've been here.... where did they come from today ?

7:00
left-overs breakfast with an antibiotic pill ;-)

 GOOD MORNING, Viet Nam !

8:00
Happy 50th, Stonewall !   A heartfelt Thank You to that generation that did so much!

And a BIG middle finger to all those bigots with their miserable lives who still manage to HATE today !

8:30
Time for a visit to Q to prepare for the bank run... Alas, he is not home.... but his adorable puppies are ....

 .... and I postpone the Song Cau trip .....


9:30
NO, I might as well go NOW....


9:45
Oh. The hairdresser is OPEN... and already has another customer.... let's get this over with.... I NEED to get a haircut anyway before returning to Canada.... I might just make 6 weeks without paying Canadian prices ;-)

The other customer is getting the full treatment.... haircut, shave, and ear cleaning... I step out onto the porch for a smoke ... making sure to keep my bare feet in the shade.... the concrete in the sun is HOT!..... when I come back in, the owner just grins at me and indicates that I should smoke on my chair inside...... I just mumble "O Ca Na Da, luon luon hut thuoc o ngoai ..|

Next stop: booze store.... it takes them five minutes, but they finally find a box of White Dalat... and it's even "Export" this time..... which for some reason they charge me only the "Classic" price...

15:00
no energy again..... maybe a swim will do the trick ....

LOL.... I am going to LIVE HERE .....

17:30
Time for a dinner adventure at the stands at the beach (there was ZERO of them 4 weeks ago and their number is increasing ;-) .....today the woman is NOT making grilled fish (I liked that)...but something I'll simply call Vietnamese Pizza...

Rice paper... throw on a raw egg, green onions, tiny dried shrimp babies, and a bit of packaged cha lua, put it on the charcoal grill, and serve it with sweet chili sauce ....

....all for less than 50 US cents.....  the good life ;-)

17:00
The Vietnamese are discovering their beach...... this is a new afternoon phenomenon and I'm loving it ;-)

 I've rarely seen the fishing boats out this early !

18:30 
Time to visit Q......

For 10 minutes, the conversation flows entirely in Vietnamese.... except when he tells me to meet him tomorrow at 16:00 to DO WHAT?   Good thing there is Google Translate..... to choose my toilet and sink, LOL.

20:00