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Monday, 17 December 2012

Vietnam Karaoke Review and Skating

Well, it took 3 months, but I have finally experienced karaoke in Vietnam! Let's start with the good- generous drinks buffet deal, CHEAP and very spacious rooms.
The bad- you had to look through a book to find a song you wanted to sing and write down the code on a piece of paper, which you then gave to the staff member outside the room. Now at this point in the drinking party this was very challenging!!!
The song selection was about as dated as the technology itself; I managed to recognise and sing 'Madonna- Just Like a Prayer' and 'The Bee Gees- Eternal Flame'.
ついにベトナムのカラオケの経験した!いい点は部屋が広いです。悪い点が曲セレクションだし、選び方が紙で!だけど、楽しかった。

The weather recently had been rather dreary and pollution-y until suddenly this weekend of blue skies and 27'C sunshine! Determined not to miss the chance for some Vitamin D, Toshi and I skated 9km around the large lake in the city. It was a bit scary at times when the road surface became wet and when taxis were squeezing past, but overall it was enjoyable (and exhausting!)
天気が急に暑くなってきたので、昨日トシくんと一緒に池の周りで9キロスケートしました。 トシくんがすごく疲れたみたい!


Finally, a look outside Toshi's new apartment window!
最後にはトシくんの新しいアパートからの景色!

Monday, 19 November 2012

Mt. Tam Dao Motorbike Trip

Toshi and I rented a motorbike (well, more of a scooter) for the not so hefty sum of $7 a day and made our way North-West to the Tam Dao National Park for a Music Festival.
ハノイでバイクを安く借りてタム・ダオ山まで乗りました。
The Tam Dao Mountain range is approximately 70-80km (~50 miles) North-East of Hanoi, but no thanks to Google Maps' strange route, it took us about 4 hours to get to there!!! We ended up going down some dodgy narrow farm paths and Toshi was attacked by several butterflies!
グーグルマップがあんまりよくなくてハノイから80キロぐらいが4時間かかってしまいました!
We stopped on the way for a spot of fishing. もちろんトシ君が釣り品持ってきました!
 New aviators for Toshi ̣(left) and definitely lost thanks to Google Maps (right)
 
 Toshi's first fish in Vietnam at Lake Dai Lai!
 The beautiful landscapes of Northern Vietnam!

The weather was SO hot, though once we reached the peak of Mt. Tam Dao ~1400m high the temperature dropped. We stayed in a pretty decent hotel (a VERY reasonable $20 for the room) overlooking the valley and enjoyed a crystal clear night sky.
天気はすごく暑かったけど山登ったら気温は急に落ちた!やすいホテルで泊まったことにしてはよかったです(2000円ぐらい)。
We enjoyed yummy grilled chicken, corncobs and sugar cane, as well as the crystal clear night sky, a bonfire and live music.
うまい焼き鳥を食べたり、きれいな星空を見たり、ライブな音楽も楽しみました。

The next day was also a beautiful day! Here are some pictures:
 Posing with our bike!
 

A video of us biking back down the mountain:
 Lake Lang Ha at the foot of Mt. Tam Dao
 
Misguided by Google Maps yet again!! This time an unfinished highway!!

*By the way, in case you're wondering, we're wearing masks as not to breathe pollution, dust, dry air and least of all bugs!

Friday, 9 November 2012

Walking around Hồ Tây Lake

On Sunday morning Toshi and I got our final shots of Rabies and Encephilitis!
日曜日の朝は最後の狂犬病注射でした!よかったです。
Unfortunately our vaccinations weren't
administered by this cutie pie!
このかわいいナースから注射をうけるといいですね!
After we got our vaccinations Toshi had prepared for a spot of fishing:
トシ君が釣りをやろうとしました。水が汚いしあんまりよくなかった。

 A lot of dead fish in the polluted water/死んだ魚いっぱい

Despite the grey photos, the weather was great and very hot- over 30 degrees!- So we went for a walk around the lake.
いい天気で湖の周りさんぽうしました。
 A man catches a carp (left) and crossing our own dodgy shortcut (right) 
釣られた鯉 (左)

3 hours of walking and a sunburn later, we realised we were only 1/4 around the lake!! Turns out it's 17km around the lake!
3時間過ぎても湖の周りが1/4しか通ってないかった!まさか17キロなんだ!


Finally we enjoyed yummy caramelized bbq bread and chicken!
その後おいしい甘いパンと鶏肉を食べました。

Thursday, 1 November 2012

October in Short

Sorry for the lack of updates! I've been so busy!
アップデートしなくてごめん!

Here's what I've been up to this past month:
10月の要約 :
 Rode a rather dodgy swan boat in Lenin Park, Hanoi
怪しいスワンボートを乗ったり
 

Excursion out the city to Hoa Lư- Ninh Bình, known as 'inland Ha Long'.
きれいな自然な所に行ったり
 
 Ate lots of deliciously more-ish Pho (probably all the MSG in it).
めちゃおいしいフォを食べたり
 Braved the typhoon to seek out a recently-opened Ramen shop near my workplace- yum!!
台風の中で最近できたラーメンショップに行ったり
 
 Hallowe'en!!! We took the kids out trick-or-treating to parents' houses in Vincom Tower, I carved a pumpkin and we held a costume contest.
ハロウィーンも祝いしました。





Friday, 5 October 2012

Moon Festival Weekend

The last two weeks have gone quite quickly! We were very busy preparing and celebrating the Moon Festival (known as Tsukimi in Japan) which was celebrated on Sept 30th. We made moon cakes (made from squished rice), prepared elaborate fruit plates and enjoyed a lion dance performance.
Here are some pictures!
 ムーンフェスティバル(月見&子供の日)が忙しくてこの2週間はすぐたちました!ムーンケーキ作ったり、フルーツアレンジもやったり、みんな楽しくお祝いができました!



On Sunday, Toshi and I had yummy sweets for lunch and impulse-bought some in-line skates to go skating in the park near my house..
日曜日おいしいランチ終わったらインラインスケートを衝動買いして近くの公園に行きました。
Toshi, as always, was the pro, and I was laughed at by some kids. Oh well. Didn't appreciate my picture being taken by people either, but I guess a white person skating terribly does stand out.
インラインスケートが初めてなので、あんまり上手にできなくて子供に笑われてしまいました (**;)

 My school participated in the worldwide 'Read for the Record' where millions of children read the same book on the same day to promote reading. The book was displayed on-screen in powerpoint form and I read to 20-or-so children.
学校で世界中の子供の読書イベントに参加しました。たくさんの子供たちの前で、本の朗読をしました。最近トシくんがトシのお母さんが同じように子供たちに朗読をしている写真をみせてくれたから、トシのお母さんと同じ気持ちがしました。