Georgetown, Penang was a great place to begin our first visit to Malaysia. Full of charm, culture, and amazing food, Penang did not disappoint. We did not know a lot about Malaysia going in. We knew it comprised most of the Malay peninsula, on which Singapore also resides, located on the southern tip. We alsoContinue reading “Malaysia: George Town Food Tour”

To be perfectly honest, Phil and I were sad to leave Vietnam. After staying in a country for two and a half months, you get used to certain things about the place. You start to learn some norms and customs, as much as one can as a visitor to a foreign land where you don’tContinue reading “We’re Not All Anthony Bourdain (and that’s OK)”

I am a big fan of coffee. I love the stuff; hot and black in the morning and iced and creamy in the afternoon. Almost every country we have visited in SE Asia has had a decent coffee culture and many coffee shops, but Vietnam’s is the most robust, and the most Robusta! I mentionedContinue reading “Vietnam: The Coffee!”

After Saigon, we headed to the mountain city of Da Lat. Unfortunately, their airport was under construction (scheduled to reopen shortly after we left), so we had to hire a driver to take us from Saigon. The five-hour twisty and turny drive took us up, up into the mountains, at a very quick clip IContinue reading “Da Lat: City of Whimsy and Magic”

One of the things I have been most affected by during our time in Vietnam is the role of Vietnamese women, in war and the sacrifices they made for their country and their people, especially over their more than 40-year fight for independence. There is a well known Vietnamese traditional saying and cultural proveberb thatContinue reading “Vietnam: Women in Wartime”