Xin Chao!

Ok, so after a couple of packed days of meetings with building authorities and secretaries of important people, I've decided to post some of the wonderful cultural things I've discovered! 

As expected, Vietnamese cuisine is superb... albeit a little strange at times. I'm not sure if I can get used to eating some of the fish dishes here... but overall it's pretty delicious!

I've also discovered the secret to 100% success in regards to crossing the street; inch across, no matter what car or motorbike you step in front of... ;)

Ok, so aside from arranging meetings and establishing contacts, I've been doing some exploring as well! I was lucky enough to find the water puppet theater by Hoan Kiem Lake (it's actually not that hard to find). I'm not sure that I understand the advantage of having the puppets splash around in the water, but I was still "wowed" by the beautiful craftsmanship of the puppets themselves! And the traditional music was quite enchanting. I highly recommend.

I also had the opportunity to go to church on Sunday. After a 20 minute taxi ride that cost just over 100,000 dong (about $6), I arrived at the meetinghouse to find myself in the midst of about 15 college students from Utah, and 15 college students from Vietnam. The Utah students were on a study-abroad tour of asian businesses, and the Vietnamese students made up most of the ward. The branch was so friendly, though, that I just couldn't pass up the invitation to speak next Sunday... hehe... I also discovered that Vietnam is now allowing Vietnamese missionaries to openly proselyte! There are many stipulations, including a 6-month limit per area (they can serve 6 months every 6 months), and the fact that the missionaries must be native to Vietnam... but what a surprise! 

Lastly, before I go to bed: if you're planning on coming at all to Hanoi in your life, I would suggest you go next year. 2010 is the 1,000th anniversary of Hanoi's "birth." In preparation for the festivities, the city is conducting all sorts of wonderful restoration projects. I'm pretty sure that most of the projects will not get done in time for the celebrations, but I'm happy they're at least getting done! Much of the restoration focus is on the Old City, but some of the basic city services are getting an upgrade as well (this includes the possibility of a high-speed train!). Now, if only they would institute a garbage-collection system that didn't involve scraping it off the street...