Last week, I returned from Asia to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where I began an self imposed Corona-tine. I binged watched Tiger King and episodes of Narcos with my nephew, a Fulbright scholar who was studying in Brazil when all hell broke loose. His govt funded program got hit with the virus, too. Since I was doing that, I didn’t […]
Things I didn’t Post Because I was Binge-watching Netflix during a Pandemic
Foodie Refugee
Foreign supermarkets will always be strange. You can buy everything but not the thing you really crave–a taste of home.
The Rice Pilaf is always Fluffier
Asia life
ho-ho-ho chi minh city
There’s a lot to smile about in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) Vietnam. The endless allies to explore… And the food Zigzagging through traffic on a Grab-it scooter Taxi… And the food. The fish lady… And the coffee you enjoy after you food. And the nipple guards. (I bet you thought I’d say food again). Saigon has so much good […]
HANOI: WHAT TRAVEL GUIDES DON’T TELL YOU
In any Ma and Pa shop in Hanoi, you’ll find a shrine with tangles of incense and offerings of cigarettes, beer and moon pies. It’s the Vietnamese way of taking care of their loved ones in the after life. I hope Anthony Bordain is one of those spirits as he loved this town. I say a prayer hoping he’ll […]
WAITING FOR PAPERWORK
Living overseas means there’s always new laws that cause for a new stamp in your passport. This week, I had to go to Bangkok to jump through a few hoops, only to have those hoops change. After a week of sitting around and waiting for needed documents, my employer sent me home before I ran out of clean underwear. […]
Too Much Change is Still Good
I tried my best not to stare at the doll-like holes on her forehead. “I’m trans gender.” “Oh really?” My acting was bad as her hair transplant but her voice was water to my parched ears. We were in an English language desert, the Thai Immigration Bureau in Bangkok, located a three hour bus ride from anywhere familiar, as was […]