Believe it or not, I've been here for nearly a month now.
I was going to do a write-up on my various misadventures with the English Club this week, but recently I had a very strange experience there that changed my opinion of some of the people involved. It's not something I want to discuss in the public sphere and frankly I'm still trying to sort it all out, so instead I think I'll do one of these things:
Most unexpected sight: Two kids watching Barbie: Princess and the Pauper. Yes, I know exactly which Barbie movie it was.
Most saddening: Twilight lining bookstore shelves. Yes, all the girls here are obsessed with it too.
Actually most saddening: a lot of older people are disabled, presumably from the war. Lots of people with no legs getting around in makeshift wheelchairs.
Scariest thing I've seen: Two young children driving a motorbike . . . while carrying a baby.
Question I've been asked most frequently: Do you have a girlfriend? (When I say "no" the response is often giggling)
Most common reaction to "Minnesota": Where?
Most fun I've had: Clubbing with people from English club (clubbing . . . get it?)
Most people I've seen on a motorbikeat once: 5
Interesting foods I've eaten: whole shrimp, duck head (well, I was served this, did not actually eat it), squid tentacles, authentic Indian food
Things I never want to taste again: Coriander. They use it in everything here. It's almost impossible to eat without tasting it.
Things I never want to drink again: Vietnamese rice wine. Unlike wine in the US, it is 50% alcohol. I was told this after taking my first sip.
Saddest story I've heard: There is a boy who works for the restaurant I frequent. The restaurant is owned by a family, so I assumed he was part of the family. I was told later that he is not; he is an orphan. I'm not sure how his mother died, but his father died of appendicitis because they couldn't afford the surgery to have his appendix removed.
Most promising news: I'm pretty sure I have a job. It's at a new school that doesn't open for a couple weeks, but I was told they needed people to work in the afternoons, which I can do, and they're fine with my lack of a degree.
Things I am planning to do this weekend: travel, go to church
Things I will hopefully have in my next entry: Pictures! It's been a very long time since I've posted any pictures. I'll try to take some more.
CORRECTION: I seem to have confused my spices. The spice they put in everything over here is not coriander, but rather, cilantro. Cilantro has a very distinct flavor. If you want, try putting a little cilantro into every meal you eat for a day. Then imagine a week. Then imagine four weeks. This will give you a good idea of exactly how sick of it I am growing. Luckily I did find a restaurant today that serves sandwiches without cilantro. I am more grateful for this discovery than you can possibly imagine.
CORRECTION TO MY CORRECTION: I've just discovered that coriander and cilantro are, in fact, the same thing. So . . . nevermind.
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Wow. That's some list. Can't wait to talk to you to get more details. Do you keep a list at all of just sights and sounds and smells, etc. that strike you to use in future writing? I bet you are wishing you had some way to record every moment! Love you, Mom
ReplyDeleteThis was actually a pretty halfhearted post on my part; I was just skimming my brain for any little details I might have left out of previous posts. I wrote it in a rush too. Hopefully I'll have something a bit more substantial for you after the weekend.
ReplyDeleteI have been keeping an actual physical list, believe it or not, so some of your listmania must have finally rubbed off on me. It's a good thing, too, because I've seen too many things to keep track of in my head.
Lots of good tibits there but also some sad ones. Just thought I'd point out that Twilight is awesome, not saddening. And by that I mean the books not the movie/s. I'm not really surpised that people don't know where MN is. It's kind of fun to try different foods in different countries but yeah I know it would get annoying to taste the same spice on everything. I'm glad you have some promising news on your job hunt.
ReplyDeleteI know this is totally irrelevant but The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus finally has an offical release date in the US!!! So exciting!!! It comes out Christmas Day!!! Now all we have to do is cross our fingers and hope it will make it into some theater in our vicinity.
You learn something new every day!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you're having an interesting time over there.
Hopefully the time won't pass too fast!
You really do learn something new every day. For example, yesterday I learned never to keep two philosopher professors in the same room, especially if the room contains whiskey. What a nightmare.
ReplyDeleteHey, Dr. Parnassus, that's great! It's about time, too. I should be back in the States in time to see it in theaters.
I just have to ask, who in the world could ever get tired of cilantro? =P
ReplyDeleteMan, I wish I could be over there right now. =( There must be SO MUCH to absorb, to learn, to see, and experience.. and all and what not....
I hope you're having a really good time over there, though. I can't believe that you've been over there for about a month! Anyway, I can't wait to see you when you come back, and then you can tell me all about my native land. =P
There is a gene that makes Cilantro taste like soap to those who have it. I'd hazard to guess that you do, its fairly common. But look luck not eating it in that area of the world.
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