Goooodmorning Vietnam! (November 22, 2025)
Shout out to the late comedian, Robin Williams. I will never not think of him when I’m here in Vietnam. So yes, I’m sad that I am no longer with Violet and Elena. Big strong hugs at the airport. Lots of “I’ll miss you” sentiments which were deeply heartfelt. And then, I was channelled into my pre-flight ordeal as I prepared to leave Thailand and enter Vietnam — one of the few countries where I need to show a PAPER visa.
Once on the flight, I had to take a double take as I thought the in flight magazine in my seat back was called “Satan.” What’s that now? It’s not, it’s called “Santan”, but the stylized “n” makes it easy to misread. Accident? Or is this the creative director getting back at their client? Hmm. I wonder. But I digress.
Creative Director getting back at their client? Subtle stylized “n.” Hmm.
When I landed, the first thing I did is confirm I had Vietnamese downloaded on Google translate and went to the ATM to grab the local currency. The conversion gave me my second double take. I’m not used to seeing an ATM ask me if I want to withdraw $2,000,000 VD which is about $75 USD. Each $100,000 VD note is worth about $4, but they go a lot farther here.
For example, a 30 minute ride from the airport to my hotel was $240,000 VD or $9 USD. There’s something psychological about handing someone what feels like a quarter of a million. I realize it’s just inflation and currency fluctuation, but when it’s that different, it’s like holding a bar of pure gold. It does something to you psychologically.
My room is awesome, albeit a bit hard to find. The driver dropped me off and he, my phone and everyone I talked to all agreed I was “really close” but the streets in Hanoi are small and can be confusing. Once I figured it out, I used the Circle K as my marker for where I’m staying.
This tribute is in the lobby. I’m curious if the monks pick up the goods?
After settling in, rather than reflecting on how lonely it feels to be without Violet and Elena, I decided to go for a walk. I was in no way hungry, so I didn’t set out for dinner, but rather a stroll to get to know the neighborhood in which I was staying. Turns out, I picked a really great spot and a major DJ was just getting started. For less than the cab fare (200k or about $8), I got VIP access and skipped a massive line with a few hundred people already queued up.
This is what I saw passing by and when I heard the music, I was IN!
I’m so glad that I trusted my gut on this one and went for it. First, you never know with the ticket sales outside a venue. Half the time they are fake and you only find out when you go to try and use the ticket. But the ticket itself looked really legitimate and the person selling seemed like this is all he does for a living, so I rolled the proverbial dice. After all, this wasn’t a Taylor Swift concert ticket for $1,000 to $5,000. The most I would be out was $8 and who knows, they might even feel bad for the dumb American who got duped. Instead:
And that was the warm up hype man. I loved the light show and warm up, but it only got better from there as the music improved, the main DJ got going and the dancing got intense with thousands upon thousands having the time of their lives. And the venue kept filling up. By the way, this is at 7PM. Seriously! People were having their dinner while they were listening to this music. I would expect a crowd like this at 10pm or 11pm, but so impressed at 7pm.
As I left the venue, I was impressed at how many scooters and motorcycles the venue could accommodate. Rows upon rows upon rows in every direction. Clearly, most people drove them to the venue and that’s the expected mode of transport.
So … many … scooters. As far as you can see in all directions.
Lastly, I’ve been seeing this symbol quite a lot since I first got here and wondering what it’s all about.
18th Congress of the Hanoi Party Committee: re: capital's development
It’s not just Google Translate that I have been enjoying, it’s Google Search + Google Translate that’s been a game changer. I can ask questions and find out meaning. I can understand what these symbols mean and why they are important. Yes, I can see why the government would want to promote their “capital's development goals for the 2025-2030 period” as Google highlights. And the meeting just took place a month ago (October 15-17, 2025).
I may not know everything that’s going on locally, but I can see what the government wants its people to be aware of and is heavily promoting throughout the city. And that’s a start.
