Vietnam for Christmas! Day 3 - Ho Chi Minh City

Our third day in Vietnam was spent on a bus. About three hours each way to visit the Cao Đài Holy See and Củ Chi Tunnels. These are two fascinating pieces of Vietnamese history and culture.

Worshippers in the Temple.

Vietnam for Christmas! Day 2 - Ho Chi Minh City

Our second day in Saigon started off early with an amazing breakfast. 

Mini pho for breakfast!

Vietnam for Christmas! Day 1 - Ho Chi Minh City

For Christmas 2013 my husband Evan and I, along with our friend Alyssa, did a quick trip to Vietnam. Ten days in this complex country isn't really enough but it's what we had. Our destinations were all "H" cities: Ho Chi Minh, Hoi An, Ha Long and Ha Noi.

People like to ask, "What was your favourite part?" or "What surprised you the most?" Vietnamese food has been some of my absolute favourite for years (shout out to Viva on Sargent!) and the country did not disappoint! The second 'favourite' thing and most surprising was the beautiful architecture. It was like a modern take on French Colonial with Asian flare. Stunning! I wish I had thought to take more pictures early on. Both of these themes will come up throughout this trip blog. Consider them the main motifs.

I should also note that this trip was inspired, in part, by Top Gear and Anthony Bourdain.

We flew in to Ho Chi Minh City (AKA Saigon) on a Sunday afternoon. Our day started super early so we were tired but excited to jump in!

Our first glimpse of Vietnam from the taxi.

13 in 2013

I'm a bad blogger. I've done the A to Z challenge twice where you have to blog every day for the month of April but then I go months in a row without posting anything. It's the beginning of a new year so it's time for a quick review. I'm still planning to write some blogs on travel we did this past autumn once I find the time...

Coincidentally, I read 13 books and visited 13 countries in this past year of 2013. So that's how my review is going to go this year. In chronological order (note that the Philippines has been our temporary residence and all trips came and went from here this year):


1. The Philippines (The Street Lawyer by John Grisham) - I live in the Philippines right now so it seems an injustice to try to summarize it but here goes: It's really hot and the people are really nice. Done. Grisham is classic and my husband said this book changed the course of his life when he was in school so there.

Running to Apo: The Soundtrack

One can have grand dreams to motivate one to run, but when it comes to putting one foot in front of the other, I NEED music to push me. I suspect a lot of other runners feel the same. 

If I could only suggest you add one new song to your running playlist, it would be this one, after you see this video for it:

So here is my current Running Playlist in alphabetical order (Beats Per Minute*):

Running to Apo: Climate Challenge

As previously mentioned, my goal is to climb Mt Apo in spring. My current training ground is the nearby cemetery. It makes for an interesting run.

 

I think that pig is tied to a rejected cement coffin or something. There are a few of these leading up to the cemetery. Today was the first time I saw a pig here.

Announcement: I've Started Running

For some of you out there in Internet land, running is no big deal. Lots of bloggers write about fitness and the amazing things they do. I tend to write about travel and cookies and movies. I've never been known for my athletic abilities. To this day, my greatest physical feat was that time I served the winning point at the finals in junior high volleyball.

Here is why I've started running:

You see those mountains in the distance? I'm going to climb one. Mt. Apo. The highest peak in the Philippines. This is the view of my goal from my running path. It is a pretty sweet motivator.