A haphazard chronicle of my inevitable misadventures during a year in Vietnam and points east.

p.s. I'll be pitifully grateful if you send me email during my exile: TravelerKaty@hotmail.com

October 2002 November 2002 December 2002 January 2003 February 2003 March 2003 April 2003 May 2003 June 2003 July 2003 August 2003 September 2003 October 2003 November 2003 February 2006 March 2006 May 2006

 
I was a bit of an idiot yesterday (no commentary from the peanut gallery, please.) After pissing away an hour at an expensive internet cafe (2 1/2 cents a minute -- information highway robbery), I decided I didn't have it in me to see the War Crimes Museum on the same day as I had been steeped in American War (their name for it) info and photos at the Reunification Palace. Lunch, I thought, then a return to the air conditioned spendor of my hotel room to shower and write before the school event with Mr. Lanh.

I got it in my head that I would walk to the central market for lunch, a healthy and interesting walk which would make it less lame that I was planning to spend 2 1/2 hours in my hotel room in the middle of the day.

First, I went the wrong way. I hadn't checked a map, really believing that I had a good sense of where I was. I didn't.

Then it started raining. At first, I smugly congratulated myself on remembering to bring my umbrella (which I had forgotten the day before, naturally), and marvelling that I was the only person around who had one. But after a few minutes, it really started to pour.

At that point, most sane people had pulled back under awnings or had found a handy restaurant or cafe in which to spend a rainy half hour. Not me, though -- somehow that market plan was tattooed on my cerebral cortex, and there was no deterring me from my half-assed objective. Soon the situation deteriorated from Pouring Rain to Biblical Deluge, and I was forced to make concessions, purchasing a plastic poncho from a sidewalk vendor. Understandably, I was pretty much the only pedestrian out there, and the letup in the river of motorbikes made crossing the street substantially easier than usual. The downside was that I was walking through ankle-deep puddles and my shorts were soaked along with much of my shirt.

Upon arrival at the market, I went inside and ripped off the poncho and started stuffing it into its plastic bag (harder than it sounds). It wasn't until a couple minutes passed that I realized I was attempting this task while standing under a leak in the ceiling, which was dripping on my already wet back. The girls at the nearby purse and textile stand had been trying to tell me about it, but I didn't spot the problem until a little late in the game.

Thing is, the noodle soup I got there was good, but really no better than every other restaurant I rejected on the way. What the hell was I thinking?

© 2002 Katy Warren

posted by Katy at 7:33 PM