On the way to Mordor ..... Sai Gon I

On my way to Canada (Horror) .... My first full day in Sai Gon:

 

6:00

I feel worn out....

coffee with warm shower water (no kettle in the room), wine on the balcony ....

..I get to watch Sai Gon wake up...

.. what a beautiful view....

More slight sadness when I take out the "water the plants" and "swim" items from my daily to-do list.... that life is over :-( ... hopefully not for TOO TOO long

8:15

I've done calisthenics (no weights though :-( ... and brushed my teeth.... the day is progressing well... even though I'm drunk.....

Given the absence of working computer speakers, I keep Bohemian Rhapsody playing on Netflix on the TV .....

9:00

bring the 2nd batch of laundry away...the woman is not there and yesterday's laundry is dry but is still in the dryer .....

10:15

back in the room...... still no luck with the laundry.....but I got some cheap computer speakers at The Gioi Di Dong..... of course they had all the fancy brands....but I just needed some cheap ones NOW....and of course they are crap....at 225k VND..

... but they work better than the fried speakers in my laptop ;-)

I call Chantal for 30 minutes..... I need a wall to bounce my thoughts against to see what comes back...

11:15

I finally meet the washer woman.... I tell her not to rush but I want to pick up both packs of dry laundry tonight....

bloody Xmas trees everywhere !

Sushi time

a

OMG, that is good ;-)

12:15

I have new tissue paper... instead of putting it in front of the door, they brought it into the room and installed it ... SIGH....

time for a nap soon ;-)

13:30

could nap more.... but no...drink more

14:45

The laundry STILL is not done yet... back to my usual store.... and YES, she actually has a case of Dalat in the back... and of course, I take it ;-)

15:15

A walk.... No, laundry is STILL not folded ....

I walk down Bui Vien..

I used to buy food for Huyen here...

.. OMG, this place has changed..

there are NO tourists.... the only white people you see live here permanently

.. it has become a desolate wasteland....

This is where I had the mackerels with Alan

where I had the HORRIBLE service with M&S & Kamran
Christmas decoration from last year?

NOT sad at all that most of these monster bars are CLOSED

I find the hardware store...and even recognize the old guy that I met in sandal distress one year ago.... but he's out of that fabulous superglue....

boarded up 

I hear him before I see him.... because he sings WELL...

I offer him 10k just to take a video of him but he INSISTS that for that price I get the candy he is selling......

.. there are still a lot of The Right People around here....

This is where the muscle-man was dancing last New Year's ;-)

CLOSED....sad savory-sweet memories :-(

17:00

I head up to the common room/kitchen..... oooh, they have wine glasses ;-)

17:15

time for a nap....

or maybe not.....

18:00

I knew that at this time my search for a Banh Mi would be fruitless..... I keep walking... one of the Monster bars has pizza ....but no Hawaiian.... I keep walking..... I end up eating Fish & Chips at Booklover's Cafe....maybe I'm the first guest in days?..... she mixes up the boxes of wine, realizes her mistake and then adds white to the red.....I get Rose......But the fish is good and the chips are edible... and the dog that at first barked at me, then slept next to me, is happy to eat my leftovers ;-)

18:45

back in the room.... I still have NO idea when Phap will show up..... tonight, tomorrow, never?  Frustrating is his unwillingness or more likely inability to communicate !  (But in retrospect:  Little did I know what extreme issues and pressures he was facing in his life at that time ;-)

19:00

maybe time for a nap....

22:00

yet ANOTHER meaningless Phap email...

Dec. 14 Sad Good-Byes......off to Saigon

 5:00

I might as well get up.....

Quy only slept two hours because he had nightmares (that boy has issues)

we drank 12 hours yesterday.....

The village knows that I'm starting my journey back to Canada today.....and they drop by to say Good Bye (and maybe profit from some leave-behinds ;-)

Choi is not wearing the Hopi Bear cuff yet  ;-)

Good Bye  HOME  <tears in the eyes>

12:15

That mask seems to be irritating my upper lip.... I BETTER NOT get a cold sore before meeting Phap !

We're bussed from the plane to the terminal.... social distancing inside the plane and crammed in the bus.... ah well.... I go for a pee, preparing myself for a LONG wait for my checked-in luggage.... I come out of the washroom, use the display board to locate my carrousel. and my bags are already circling... HOW in the world did they do that?

A smoke outside.... and then the taxi hounds are upon me..... ok.....I have three bags today...so I'm not taking the bus 

13:30 at the hotel. HOW did it possibly happen so quickly? problems checking in....... a beer on the balcony....

14:00

Huyen is no longer there..... and the whole neighbourhood seems deserted....

buy wine & yogurt at the Circle-K.... at least that store is still open.....

15:00

the speakers on my laptop are definitely busted..... and the keyboard is bent....WTF?

I need music for napping..... oh.... they have Netflix on the TV here..... let's play Bohemian Rhapsody !

16:00

but I can't sleep.....

18:00

Oh, screw this, I'm HUNGRY...

.. I walk to Sushi Sun...

... the Unagi Don is FABULOUS....

...even though not cheap....but 180ml hot Sake and the Don come to 420k.... and I am SO HAPPY to eat real food again....

18:45

back in the room......

a lovey email to Phap.... 

19:00

I NEED to lie down.... 

20:30

no reply from Phap?!

time to sleep ..... but I can't ....

there is a reply....

"good night, meet again"....Echt jetzt?

I maybe pass out at 23:00

wake up a few times because I am sweating (the pillow is WET) and then because of a loud verbal fight outside....

Nov 27-28 Omicron days.... divesting The Dog & LeHonda......

 5:00

time to face the day ...and the coming year...but the decision has been made...

sitting outside, with my morning coffee and morning wine and morning cigarette, looking at the ocean....there is the dog sitting right next to my leg and looking at the ocean too, sometimes nuzzling or licking my calf....... OH WHY do I have to leave....!?

emails:   

a smiley face from Denise to my apologetic email yesterday

a heartbreaking email from Hiep/Jenny about the malice of her family

7:15

it is RAINING.... not hard....but continuously from a DARK sky......

8:00

I'm just about to fall asleep when there is a knock on the door.....it's Choi.....over for coffee & tea and a GOOD chat.... and then he calls Vong to bring over Spring rolls Cha Ca.... I eat two....

9:00

Choi leaves ....

.... the dog really likes the spring rolls ;-)

collect garbage on the beach.... start a fire.... modestly successful with the drizzle....reply to Hiep and give her-some old-man advice....... don't feel guilty for hating the family that mistreats you !

10:30

It was bright outside for a while but now it is raining again.....

time for that nap.

 

 

11:00

it's POURING

time to give the puppy another spring roll...

.. it loves them...

nap

13:15

still raining....

reheat com dau hu chua ngot....give some more disgusting sausage to the doggie...

I finish watching The Kid Detective

It's a fabulous movie !

15:30

still dark and drizzling.... nap time ...again

16:00

A knock on the door wakes me.....

Chau with my Lazada Salty Pretzels

some wine.... and limited chatting

17:30

Chau leaves

18:15

I've finished one of the four boxes of salty pretzels (!!!)....and I'm ready for a nap ..again !

sleep

midnight

awake....send an email to Phap...is there any point in it?....it's been so long it doesn't feel real anymore... the dog gets its mouth stuck on those metal loops of the bed that held the mosquito net rods... and she gets some sausage....

5:00

Pháp đã làm bạn đêm nên không biết gmail.. yêu Han. Một ngày tốt lành.. pháp vui khi nghĩ được gặp Han.

Phap made a friend at night so don't know email. Love Han. Have a good day. Phap is happy when he thinks about meeting Han..... 

WTF...????

7:00

H&H with YUMMY market food.....now they want to take the dog and give it to a relative.....I call The Monkey.... no answer for half an hour.....then he calls back..... do you REALLY want it or NOT?, I ask.... he hangs up (actually his phone runs out of money again)

an email...."phone ran out of money"

he says his father will pick up the dog..... holy shit... 5 minutes later, and the cleaning lady would have taken it....

8:00

I check my account balances.   Yup...they took 28k out of the joint account for the last month of full-time care.....I made the right decision to call Jenny and get an early visa renewal.... this has to STOP.

9:00

I write an email to Tin..... if you could return the money as soon as possible......

10:30

A case of wine and a six-pack of coke.....and I'm starting to clear out the house..... get rid of stuff....

nap

12:00

it's Dark, Windy and Pouring....

13:00

SHIT.... someone even translated it into Vietnamese !

I send the email to Karl & Erna ..... optimism abounds despite the dire circumstances.....

13:00

nap

13:30

FINALLY send that email to Loosley .....

15:00

almost ready for another nap 

not yet....Loosley replied....maybe he was being sarcastic .....

16:00

Tin is taking a TAXI to here to repay me.....OMFG.... that is insane.....

16:30

Vong and friends are over.... to take pictures 

teenage years !

and change outfits in my bathroom <WTF?>.....

17:00

I'm pissed drunk..... need to take a nap....let's see who shows up first......

17:45

there is a knock on the door.... I ask what time it is ....5:45...I actually think it's 5:45 in the morning....nope

Tam & his father..... the dog likes them both....that makes it so much easier....

I need to divest my problems.... so I give The Monkey the motorbike registration card and the keys.... LeHonda is history as well.....

19:00

I kiss the dog a last time and they leave....

My internal computer speakers are seriously fucked.....   Tin said he was taking a taxi here....today??

19:45 

might as well sleep more.....

can't sleep... neck pain... I send an email to Phap...."Did you really say 'you made a friend for a night?'"? maybe some things should be left unsaid?   I don't care anymore..... the Gordian Knot has to be cut and I'm swinging the knife at the individual mini-knots.....

nap

21:30

there is another Phap email.....short as usual...."Oi.... Google Translate... sleep well...Miss Han"

disappointing but better than nothing......

it's going to be a year of LOSS anyway.... today I lost my dog and LeHonda and it will just get worse.... but who cares.... I'm still alive ;-)

22:30

pass out again....

Chez Kraut (VII) ..... FIRING UP the house electricity grid ..... and Phap issues again ....

Where am I?.....Vinh Hoa, I think.... in March of 2021 ....Still Covid times !

 

5:00

overcast and drizzling ....

I'm tipsy by 6:15..... I should lay off the sauce since I have some phone calls to make ....

6:20

I've managed to talk to the doctor's receptionist.....the doctor needs to talk to me in person !?!..... so I give them my Viet phone number and I will anticipate the call..... Life in Canada involves SO MANY HOOPS to jump through.   When the office assistant wants my Canadian Care Card, I have to find my Canadian wallet...

...and OOOPS.... it's not only falling apart but now also is moldy ....  SAD, I bought that wallet in Bellagio on Lake Como together with Regine in 2010 and it always served as a reminder of that day..... but the wallet led a good life and I don't need the wallet to remember Gine ;-)

6:30

A quick call to Grandma.... she's getting her hair done.  And she sounds good !

7:00

H&H are here with food.... the usual fare.... thank god; I wasn't looking forward to fried fish again. VERY yummy but it brings out fears of a belly ache !

7:45

H&H are off..... they want 2 trieu tomorrow....fine, but then they have to work and bring breakfast ;-)

Beach bitch must be really hungry... she eats the rice as well and digs through the sand afterwards to find leftovers ....

8:30

I wire Jessica $280.... I simply can't allow myself to rely on her help without repaying it with a case of wine !

10:00

Overcast and drizzling and DEAD QUIET ....

... the beach seems deserted .....

10:30

Bored.... in need of some adventure .... so I build myself a WIDOW-MAKER....

and what am I going to do with it?

The Inverter takes solar 12V DC (lower power socket), produces 220V AC, which is plugged into the house 220 grid  (upper power socket)

Let there be light 

Et Voila.....  

I am feeding solar-made 220V into the house grid !

Does it work?

That light bulb hasn't been lit for FOUR MONTHS !

And even the fan runs !

However, by far not enough juice for the A/C units ;-(

12:00

Another Phap email asking for money.... 2 trieu this time..... that's 8.5 trieu within 9 days ....WTF?

I postpone replying to him.....

12:30

Time for a cold shower....it's been 3 days !  Not that cold after all....

13:30

Jenny shows up....

16:30

Jenny leaves....

I should buy some wine & cigs and TP ....

17:00

Muoi calls ..... Nha Hang cua Anh Chin .... I walk over ...

Muoi wants to cook me French Fries, but I decline. 

OMG, seen from 2026, Tay was SO LITTLE then ;-)

I remember what happened the last time...

.... 2 beers later it starts to rain... I head home ...

18:30

Take those wet clothes off....

18:45

Nhat shows up.... he saw a woman on my terrace and thought Jenny was Iwona !

19:15

I finally time to get stuff done ..... (LOL, I'd be yearning for so much friendly social activity in Vancouver ;-)

20:15

I have to write a reply to Phap.... this is difficult.... I want to write a pissed-off email.... but being with him makes me so bloody happy (hypocrite here) .... maybe my long radio silence will make him understand ? .... probably not though.... so I write a matter-of-fact reply..... let him be in limbo for a change....

20:30

doc sach va ngu?