Wow. And wow and wowowowowowow!!!!
First and foremost I want to congratulate our southern “blues broers” for keeping up the southern hemisphere’s name and coming in third in the Rugby World Cup by beating France. Again.
Congratulations Argentina!
Last night (Saturday, 20 October), or at least this morning, was the RWC final. I was not all convinced to go... I mean 2 am ain’t funny, but in the end the fact that it was the final and that South Africa is facing off England, made me get up and go. Man, am I glad I went.
First, I forgot my cell in the taxi. It’s the first time since I got my third phone that I did not wear it around my neck, and there we are. This time, I had the taxi number, I called for a taxi and therefore had a registered starting and end point. We immediately called my number, but it must have been in a funny spot, cos it did not go through. So, I though..... Damnit, I did it again (sorry Britney!)
I have to thank Jaspa’s staff for assisting me so much. After 30 minutes Hanoi taxi phoned to indicate that they have found the phone and will bring it to me at 01:00 am. Maaaan, was I ecstatic!
Then I could get ready for the rugby!!! Some South Africans that I met at the first SA game came in and I went to join them. Jaspa’s was packed by the time the rugby start, with a whole lot of English supporters and about 12 of us. YES, I’m counting the Italian guy. He was wearing the real RWC South African jersey, so I think he counts. :) The guys were pumped......they were singing waaay before the game started and getting the whole group excited and me just plain damn nervous.
Across from us was this group of young English supporters who I could see was not liking the fact that we are so “happy” and “excited” and sure we’re going to win.
Then the game started. As expected it was a bit of a tennis match. But, as one of the pommies later explained to me.....they did not really have the backline to beat us, so they had to kick. And every time they kicked, they kicked deep into our territory, so the best way to get out......is to kick again. Oh well, who cares?
I have this vivid memory of the kid across from us, shouting to us, “You are not invincible”. We all looked at him with a bit of surprise......who the hell said we were? There’s a reason we were all nervous!
There was the heart stopping moment when England scored a try, and we all agreed it was a try. But, then I noticed that the guy’s foot dragged the side line. My heart nearly stopped. The video ref ruled “disallowed”, and we were very much still in the game.
Did the English kid across from us loooost it. You see, even though we were boisterous before the game started, we were relatively quiet during the game as everybody was seriously watching the game. Of course, we were also outnumbered by much, so there’s no real use trying to scream over “swing low”! The kid was blaming the ref, and I could just see that in his book, they won. *roll eyes*
The last 5 minutes of the game, one of the guys initiated the standard Ole, ole, ole and everybody joined in with much enthusiasm. Man, was this a poetic justice win. England kicked their way into the final, and we kicked our way to the cup. Whoop!!!
It was a sweet victory for us at Jaspas (yes i’m sure in the rest of the world as well!). When we jumped up to celebrate, the little pommie with the loud mouth was trying to get us to acknowledge that the try was a try and that we aren’t the real winners. We just laughed. If the shoe was on the other foot..... and after all, the score (as they say) was on the board. No matter if it was just penalties.
I could not have asked for a better place to watch the final. The air in Jaspa’s was just plain electrifying and to me that was as close as could be to actually being there!
The only embarrassing thing for me was that I have never bothered to learn our new National Anthem. So, at the start of the game, I did not know the words. South Africa, I will learn. When I stand in front of foreigners again, I will be able to sing for my country. I promise.
It is now 09:24, and I’ve just had an English breakfast to celebrate. It’s been a long evening, and I’ve only had 2 hours sleep. Vietnam, I thank you for an unforgettable experience with the RWC.
My boytjies! To the boys in green and gold, THANK YOU for making us proud!
Monday 22 October 2007
Tuesday 16 October 2007
ONLINE!!! Let's rejoice....
After DAAAAAYYYYYSSSS of no internet, we seem to have a connection tonight. It is a difficult thing to keep running here. Sheesh.
Okay, so I went to bat trang again this weekend. I just didn't think I had enough bracelets, so i went and bought some more! The bus trip to Bat Trang is very interesting. I mean, getting off is tricky. The bus kiiiiiinda stops. But, not really.
So, you push the stop button, and then you must brace yourself. Then you must jump!
It's not like the bus actually gives you a chance to step away from the bus.........you must just make sure that you are not in the way. :)
I must still install 3gp player, so i'll add a movie later.... :) Don't want to push our internet connection toooo much.
what else is new? Oh yeah....read an interesting article the other day. Vietnam is busy with a big drive to promote the use of helmets whenever you drive. The problem is that apparently they are not really making a differential between bikes, motorbiks or cars.
Can you picture people sitting with helmets in cars????
My biggest worry is......are they expecting passengers to wear those too??? Oh man....i'm gonna look reaaaly stoopid.
anyhoo.....That's it for tonight. Like I said....don't want to overdo the internet!
Till I blog again!
Okay, so I went to bat trang again this weekend. I just didn't think I had enough bracelets, so i went and bought some more! The bus trip to Bat Trang is very interesting. I mean, getting off is tricky. The bus kiiiiiinda stops. But, not really.
So, you push the stop button, and then you must brace yourself. Then you must jump!
It's not like the bus actually gives you a chance to step away from the bus.........you must just make sure that you are not in the way. :)
I must still install 3gp player, so i'll add a movie later.... :) Don't want to push our internet connection toooo much.
what else is new? Oh yeah....read an interesting article the other day. Vietnam is busy with a big drive to promote the use of helmets whenever you drive. The problem is that apparently they are not really making a differential between bikes, motorbiks or cars.
Can you picture people sitting with helmets in cars????
My biggest worry is......are they expecting passengers to wear those too??? Oh man....i'm gonna look reaaaly stoopid.
anyhoo.....That's it for tonight. Like I said....don't want to overdo the internet!
Till I blog again!
Sunday 7 October 2007
Bat Trang experience
I went to Bat Trang today. To quote my National Geographic Traveller book.
"On the Red River 14 km southeast of town, Bat Trang ("bowl workshop") is a 500 year old village of thatched huts whose pieces are among the collections at the Louvre".
It is the best known pottery centre in Vietnam.
Huong (one of my colleagues) and myself went by bus to Bat Trang. It was an interesting trip in the sense that the road is a bit wonky. Very bumpy and when the busdriver stops, you kinda slide forward in your seat. Very serious about stopping dead, now. :)
We spent the whole morning walking through the flea market style with me acting tourist. I bought all sorts of trinkets as well as some bowls and spoons to take home. Oh, almost forgot, also some work to hang on my wall. :)
I saw so many things that I would've loved to buy. But, for once I thought my way through things. I saw theeee most beautiful coffee set ( probably considered a tea set, but in the eye of the beholder.....), but then I thought of the coffee set I already owned which is rarely used. Really no need to buy another one.
It was a most enjoyable day. I did not spend as much money as I thought I would, but I did get all my presents bought. :)
So, the week awaits me now......and I'm a bad South African. I'm not in the mood for company tonight, so therefore, I shall not see the game between SA and Fiji.
I will attempt to keep track of the game online.
Till I blog again!
"On the Red River 14 km southeast of town, Bat Trang ("bowl workshop") is a 500 year old village of thatched huts whose pieces are among the collections at the Louvre".
It is the best known pottery centre in Vietnam.
Huong (one of my colleagues) and myself went by bus to Bat Trang. It was an interesting trip in the sense that the road is a bit wonky. Very bumpy and when the busdriver stops, you kinda slide forward in your seat. Very serious about stopping dead, now. :)
We spent the whole morning walking through the flea market style with me acting tourist. I bought all sorts of trinkets as well as some bowls and spoons to take home. Oh, almost forgot, also some work to hang on my wall. :)
I saw so many things that I would've loved to buy. But, for once I thought my way through things. I saw theeee most beautiful coffee set ( probably considered a tea set, but in the eye of the beholder.....), but then I thought of the coffee set I already owned which is rarely used. Really no need to buy another one.
It was a most enjoyable day. I did not spend as much money as I thought I would, but I did get all my presents bought. :)
So, the week awaits me now......and I'm a bad South African. I'm not in the mood for company tonight, so therefore, I shall not see the game between SA and Fiji.
I will attempt to keep track of the game online.
Till I blog again!
Torture that I paid for.....
How can one be so stupid.
I was feeling disconsolate this afternoon. I just couldn’t settle down into the day for some reason. After irritating myself for most of the afternoon, I decided to go down to Hoan Kiem Lake to do some constructive tourist shopping. I saw my favourite spa whilst walking around, and thought ..... why, not???
I went in and booked myself for a back massage. Aaaaaaaand....... a body slimming wrap. Hell, why not? Always wanted to try it, see if it’s worth the money you pay. I then went around and did my tourist shopping.
At the appointed time, I went back and had my back massage which was most enjoyable. Then came the body slimming wrap.
What I envisioned was me lying there with seawood-goo smeared all over me with cling-wrap to finish the job. What really happened was first a full body scrub. That was not bad, albeit very sandy. :) I had a shower, with the girl leaving me one of the throw-away undies. Now, as I have explained in previous blogs on 24.com, I’m a wee bit big for the teeny thingies. But she carried on so much that I squeezed in. I will not expand on that.
Okay, I then returned for the treatment to continue. The girl then put a gel on me. Gel??? Oh well. She asked me to turn around and after about 5 mins, there was heat building up on my back and the back of my legs. But.....this is normal, right???
They then plonked me in the sauna for a bit. By that time I was reaaaaaally hot. My skin was burning. And suddenly I had this random thought ..... seeing that I have this sensitive skin......maybe my skin don’t like the gel??? Oops. NOT the way to find out.
But, I stuck out for a few more minutes, and then almost ran out. She asked me to shower, but it felt like I had been tanning without any suntan lotion on for 4 hours. I was SORE. Very. Even the cold water was hurting me. I was really panicking. I could just picture blisters forming on my body and not being able to move for a few days.
I was shivering and hot at the same time. I went back, and told her that I think I might have made a mistake in not trying out the gel first. She fetched her supervisor, and they explained to me to just be patient. I was very much burning - really felt sore.
They put more cream on me, but that just seemed to heat me up even more. I was reallllly not happy.
I got dressed again, and went to pay. By the time I was going downstairs, I could feel a slight difference in the quality of the heat. It no longer burned my skin, but seemed to be under the skin. This burning continued all the way home. It is now an hour later, and I just have a slight tingling feeling.
I think this tought me one thing – losing weight fast is not really fun. Either you starve, or you burn / are in serious pain. Tomorrow, I’ll go back to taking long walks. That does not hurt so much. What scares me is that I’m actually contemplating if I could deal with another session. Am I really such a baby? Well, we’ll see. If I think of how much I burnt, I doubt it. But, if I think of how energised I feel.......maybe I will.
Till I blog again!
I was feeling disconsolate this afternoon. I just couldn’t settle down into the day for some reason. After irritating myself for most of the afternoon, I decided to go down to Hoan Kiem Lake to do some constructive tourist shopping. I saw my favourite spa whilst walking around, and thought ..... why, not???
I went in and booked myself for a back massage. Aaaaaaaand....... a body slimming wrap. Hell, why not? Always wanted to try it, see if it’s worth the money you pay. I then went around and did my tourist shopping.
At the appointed time, I went back and had my back massage which was most enjoyable. Then came the body slimming wrap.
What I envisioned was me lying there with seawood-goo smeared all over me with cling-wrap to finish the job. What really happened was first a full body scrub. That was not bad, albeit very sandy. :) I had a shower, with the girl leaving me one of the throw-away undies. Now, as I have explained in previous blogs on 24.com, I’m a wee bit big for the teeny thingies. But she carried on so much that I squeezed in. I will not expand on that.
Okay, I then returned for the treatment to continue. The girl then put a gel on me. Gel??? Oh well. She asked me to turn around and after about 5 mins, there was heat building up on my back and the back of my legs. But.....this is normal, right???
They then plonked me in the sauna for a bit. By that time I was reaaaaaally hot. My skin was burning. And suddenly I had this random thought ..... seeing that I have this sensitive skin......maybe my skin don’t like the gel??? Oops. NOT the way to find out.
But, I stuck out for a few more minutes, and then almost ran out. She asked me to shower, but it felt like I had been tanning without any suntan lotion on for 4 hours. I was SORE. Very. Even the cold water was hurting me. I was really panicking. I could just picture blisters forming on my body and not being able to move for a few days.
I was shivering and hot at the same time. I went back, and told her that I think I might have made a mistake in not trying out the gel first. She fetched her supervisor, and they explained to me to just be patient. I was very much burning - really felt sore.
They put more cream on me, but that just seemed to heat me up even more. I was reallllly not happy.
I got dressed again, and went to pay. By the time I was going downstairs, I could feel a slight difference in the quality of the heat. It no longer burned my skin, but seemed to be under the skin. This burning continued all the way home. It is now an hour later, and I just have a slight tingling feeling.
I think this tought me one thing – losing weight fast is not really fun. Either you starve, or you burn / are in serious pain. Tomorrow, I’ll go back to taking long walks. That does not hurt so much. What scares me is that I’m actually contemplating if I could deal with another session. Am I really such a baby? Well, we’ll see. If I think of how much I burnt, I doubt it. But, if I think of how energised I feel.......maybe I will.
Till I blog again!
Thursday 4 October 2007
a New home!
Yes, my blog has a new home.
24.com just proved tooooo slow from here in Vietnam. Most days I cannot even get into 24.com - nevermind the blog!
So, here we are.
I have had a lot of things happen to me since my last blog at . First and foremost, I tried sushi.
Me. With my anti-squiggley and ugly food thing.
I could not really eat the raw salmon roll thingy, but some of the other things I had was not bad at all. Of course, like my co-sushi-eaters said......I only had the beginner's sushi. That is good enough for me!!!
Then to everybody who's having fits because of the typhoon in Vietnam. I'm not there. I'm not that lucky. :) If the storm hit a two weeks back, i would've been there.....on an island!!!!!
Always remember that I'm in hanoi which is quite a ways north. Go check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam Note that Vietnam is a looooooong country :)
I have bought my second cell here. As just about everybody knows, I lost my phone I brought from home. I then bought a phone from a friend / colleague / person i know(!), which I then went and lost 7 days later. I vowed not to buy another phone until I go home.
Yet.
To sit without a phone turned out to be extremely inconvenient. I have clearly become a victim of the cellphone world! I need a phone!!!!! Anyways, i bought a nice little-ish phone. Not the real clever ones - as we all know i'm quite the techno peasant, so it would be a waste on me. But, i can now phone for a taxi when I'm lost. Yes, i know. If I bought the Nokia I would've had GPS and would've not gotten lost.
But, where's your sense of adventure????? Hmmm???
Yet again, I proved how utterly useless it is for me to research things. I researched this Sony Ericsson that looked reaaaaally sexy and all that. When I got to the shop? I bought something else. Previous phone was the same. I was going to take the Nokia N95 - landed up taking the Sony Ericsson W880i. Oh well.
Just a note on the name of the blog:
MiA is for Missing in Action. Everybody moans about how I don't blog regularly enough. Well? There you are then. :)
Okay, i don't really have anything of value to say.....but that is normal, as any of my friends would say! I really miss you guys! To be honest - it's getting late for me, and I'm forgetting a bit what else I wanted to say!
Till I blog again!
24.com just proved tooooo slow from here in Vietnam. Most days I cannot even get into 24.com - nevermind the blog!
So, here we are.
I have had a lot of things happen to me since my last blog at . First and foremost, I tried sushi.
Me. With my anti-squiggley and ugly food thing.
I could not really eat the raw salmon roll thingy, but some of the other things I had was not bad at all. Of course, like my co-sushi-eaters said......I only had the beginner's sushi. That is good enough for me!!!
Then to everybody who's having fits because of the typhoon in Vietnam. I'm not there. I'm not that lucky. :) If the storm hit a two weeks back, i would've been there.....on an island!!!!!
Always remember that I'm in hanoi which is quite a ways north. Go check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam Note that Vietnam is a looooooong country :)
I have bought my second cell here. As just about everybody knows, I lost my phone I brought from home. I then bought a phone from a friend / colleague / person i know(!), which I then went and lost 7 days later. I vowed not to buy another phone until I go home.
Yet.
To sit without a phone turned out to be extremely inconvenient. I have clearly become a victim of the cellphone world! I need a phone!!!!! Anyways, i bought a nice little-ish phone. Not the real clever ones - as we all know i'm quite the techno peasant, so it would be a waste on me. But, i can now phone for a taxi when I'm lost. Yes, i know. If I bought the Nokia I would've had GPS and would've not gotten lost.
But, where's your sense of adventure????? Hmmm???
Yet again, I proved how utterly useless it is for me to research things. I researched this Sony Ericsson that looked reaaaaally sexy and all that. When I got to the shop? I bought something else. Previous phone was the same. I was going to take the Nokia N95 - landed up taking the Sony Ericsson W880i. Oh well.
Just a note on the name of the blog:
MiA is for Missing in Action. Everybody moans about how I don't blog regularly enough. Well? There you are then. :)
Okay, i don't really have anything of value to say.....but that is normal, as any of my friends would say! I really miss you guys! To be honest - it's getting late for me, and I'm forgetting a bit what else I wanted to say!
Till I blog again!
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