Piano Cafe

Happy Vietnam Day!

Tieday Holiday!

It is tie day today, folks!
And also a holiday.
Happy independence day, Vietnam! :)

Tuol Sleng

saving this so that next time I go to salon, i will just show this. 

shopping day!

Next

next

next

next... 

functional heavens

Saigon Rain

According to them, Saigon Rain is a when-it-rains-it-pours type of rain.

Truly it is! 

Took these shots while waiting for Henry.

-August17-

I traveled the world

Got a bit bored so I traveled the world.

Thanks to Google Maps! 

 First stop: Dubai! 

I swear, they have the most intricate and sophisticated landscape (urban planning) that i have ever seen in this trip!

Look at those big pools around Burj Khalifa (tallest building) or are those carved rivers? 

 

Burj Khalifa was fully booked that time so i went to nearby Burj Al Arab.

Good thing they have available rooms for me. 

I picked the cheapest - 4,491AED (1,200 USD). 

Very cheap! 

The next day, i got the earliest Air France flight to Paris.

Oh but of course, the Eiffel Tower, mademoisselle! 

I would like to stay for a night to see the lighted tower but I noticed that I'm running out of money and the last train trip to Wiltshire is at 5pm! So I hurried to the train station and grabbed a seat next to the window so i could see the nice green meadow in the countryside.

Arrived at Wiltshire 6am in the morning. And went straight to the Stonehenge. 

Very cosmic yet, stoney. (whut?)

And of course I would like to take my picture at the center of the circle. 

At the center, even before i took the shot, something was dropped from the sky on to my head. 

"What the h--"

And when i look inside the plastic...

OK so I now have money..move on with the trip. 

Egypt is my next stop.

So jabar hot! 

But i can't help myself staring at the great pyramids. 

They are so majestic...and gigantic! 

Fantastic! 

From Africa, to the US! 

Woohoo New York!! 

Who needs a visa? 

I visited my grandma in Mississippi...Ate Lola's original steak and squash soup and spent the night there...

Their house is located along the Mississippi River so I got a good view of one of the longest river in the world. 

 (I never expected Mississippi is a huge collage of art, very beautifool!)

Went also to see Liberty. 

It's been a long time since we saw each other. 

Hi Lib! (close?)

Before going back to Asia, I decided to passed by Sydney to watch a musical in the Sydney Opera house. 

Had my lunch by the bay while watching those yachts. 

After the meal, I feel that I wanted a bit of adventure so I also passed by North Korea. 

Hello there far relative of Sandara! 

 And for inner peace, I meditate for 5 minutes at the Shwedagon in Yangoon, Myanmar. 

 And then back home!

 oops...

I forgot...

Dito pala. 

My dear Saigon. 

And then my phone rang. 

uh-ow, my boss! 

I still need to finish a report. 

okbye! 

-August15-

Football

what we wore

CRAVE

What do you CRAVE for? 

Food? Bonchon Chicken!! Woohoo!

New gadgets?  iPhone 5! gonna save for it! 

Shopping? 50% off in Forever21?? Lezzgow! 

Healthy and fit body?  Sorry guys, it's full of carbs. 

Adventures? *log on to Cebu Pac site* OMG! SEAT SALE!

Parties? See you on Friday night at Bugsy's.

Books? Yehey! Book launch of Neil Gaiman! 

But have you ever CRAVEd for reading the Bible? 

Have you ever CRAVEd for attending Sunday Service? 

Have you ever CRAVEd for attending your small group sessions?

Have you ever CRAVEd for your nightly quiet time with God?

Have you ever CRAVEd for a conversation with Him?

-August14-

Yesterday, Today and Forever!

Two Sundays ago, we performed the song Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow by Vicky Beeching. 

Very amateur but I like it! 

There are some glitches but an ordinary person can barely noticed it.

My vocalist Hang and her back-up Thuan did a good job! 

Thuan never joined us in rehearsals but she surprised me with her second voice! 

 

I played the guitar. 

And it brought "kalyo" to my left finger tips.

But it's worth it! 

Next time again guys! :) 

Also, showed you shots of my guitar using my new camera.

Yes! I have a new camera! :) 

-August13-

Ba Ba Baaaa

closing time

closing time

Hence, 

-august10-

awesome, awesome, awesome!

-August5-

My dear Saigon

A light in the dark

Buhay Dagat

And for these images I found while stumbling upon, I wanna buy an slr.

Y, T and F by VB

It is just so comforting to know that we have a God who is Faithful, who remains the same Yesterday, Today and Forever!

We will be performing this song on Sunday. 

My fingers are already swollen. 

-July29-

random photos

Random Photos from my Facebook.

 

4 years in Vietnam

Nicci, Marien and I celebrated 4 years of our friendships here in Vietnam. 

We missed the rest of the group but I am still happy they visited me here even just for a weekend. 

AT first I planned to bring them to Mui Ne.

I have not been there also so I really really want to go there.

But the koya travel agency did not recommend to be there just for a day.

It will be a waste of time daw.

Usually, to maximize the experience, we have to allot 2 days minimum.

So I gave up Mui Ne. 

Next time nalang. 

Plan B is to go to Vung Tau for beach. 

But the girls didn't feel like going to the beach. 

And I too, so Bye Vung Tau.

We end up city tour on Saturday and a spontaneous decision to go to Cu chi Tunnel on Sunday.

This post is our Saturday HCMC escapade.

[More pictures to be uploaded by my photographer visitors. :)]

After eating Banh Mi Thap Cam for breakfast in Bready, we do a walking tour at District 1.

Banh Mi Thap Cam in Bready is the best!
Nicci loves the salt and lime concoction.

 First Stop: HCMC Notre Dame Cathedral.

Even though I always see this almost everyday, I still adore the contrast of the blue sky and the red brick of the cathedral.

  What is unique this time is that I got to go inside :)

I missed Baclaran church. hahaha! 

A bit of trivia:

Vietnam population are majority Confucianism and Buddhism. 

But a big fraction of their population is Catholic. 

Catholicism is brought to Vietnam by Alexander de Rhodes, a french missionary. 

He also devised the system of writing that the Vietnamese are still using today. 

This is the reason that in the Indochina region, Vietnam is the only nation that uses Roman characters in their writing.

Interesting, isn't it? 

Next stop is the Reunification Palace.

It was the White House of then South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, when the South and the North is still divided. 

The South Vietnam then was anti-communist, backed up mainly by the US. On the other hand, North Vietnam was an ally of communism and was supported by other communist nations.

Vietnam War is the war between these two opposing regions and it was ended on the Fall of Saigon, when a tank of the North Vietnam Army bulldozed through the main gate of this palace.

This moment signifies the REUNIFICATION of Vietnam under the communist rule.

To be fair, Vietnam history is very interesting.

Today, this palace is very popular tourist spot in Ho Chi Minh City. Everyday, buses of tourist arrive here.

And to be fair, the palace is well maintained :)

We love the greenness of the grass.

I love the blueness of the sky.

Unlike the heavy, ghostly feeling I expected from an old antique building, this place exudes a light and historical feel, that made the visit more interesting. 

 

 

It is very noticeable the American influence in the architecture and the interiors of the palace, especially this leisure room which is so american 70-ish.

View from the veranda on the 3rd floor.

The rooftop is a helipad.

 I think this is where the Americans escaped through a helicopter when the North Vietnam Army is taking over the palace.

 

And to complete our history lesson, we then went (again, for me) to the War Remnants Museum. 

 The museum focuses on Vietnam War. 

It showcases the brutality of the [pakialamerong] America. 

I swear, whenever I see my pictures of this place, I feel anger and sadness. 

What is socially involved?hahaha!

 Lunch is at a rice chicken house near the war remnants :) very gwud!

The best is the thap cam rice chicken and roasted duck and fried pork.

And of course the dessert which I don't know the name.

 What i like in Vietnamese food is their wide array of condiments to make their food even more tastier!

Very busog after so we walked towards Ben Tanh to do shopping! 

Of course, when you say Vietnam, it means cheap bags and clothes to tourists. 

But I told them that bags here are thap cam originals and imitations. 

If you're the type who buys the brand, I really don't recommend you to buy bags here unless from the authentic outlet stores which sell the surplus stuffs directly from the factory.

Just go to Cambodia We Export Shop. 

But to be fair, their imitated bags last 3 years! So if you just don't care, it is super worthy!

 

SO, they end up spending 45minutes in this store selling brass accessories.

what is namakyaw? 

TIPS: Very useful vietnamese phase when shopping: 

Mak wah! - so expensive!

bak di - give me discount!

I am not sure though of the spelling. hahaha! 

Usually, people in Ben Tanh (and the rest of the tourist district) knows how to speak in English and amazingly, Tagalog! hahaha! 

I can randomly here tinderas saying, "maganda and mura!"

Kewlness!

They also bought candies for pasalubong.

 They love these peanut candies. 

I don't. haha!

Dinner was at my favorite in Pham Ngu Lao area,  Cafe333.

Break from our heavy Vietnamese lunch, we ordered pizza and pasta. 

I convinced them to try the Schweppes plus lime for drinks but it failed! 

di pala sya masarap.

And we were very exhausted for a very long day of walk.  

We have to prepare for the next day's whole day tour to Cu Chi. 

We slept early - 12mn :)

 too sleepy to proofread....zzzZZZZZZZ

-July25-


P.S.
Thanks Marien for some of the pics :)