Thaler Travels

Finally Sapa!      When my students at Mickelson Middle School and I first spent a day looking at images from Vietnam, I KNEW I had to visit Sapa in the northeast of the country, fairly close to the Chinese border.  The town of Sapa is best known for its beautiful, terraced rice paddies.  Although our tour guide was apologetic that this was not the best time of year to visit because most of the fields are still not planted, we found the entire area to be strikingly beautiful!  (According to our guide the most beautiful time is at harvest in October when the fields are golden.)  We've seen Ha Long Bay and Ninh Binh, but Sapa and the walk (hike) through the neighboring villages was by far the best!      So, we took the night train from Hanoi to the town of Lao Cai, which is two kilometers from the Chinese border.  We booked a berth which included two sets of bunk beds and found ourselves traveling with two English teachers, o...

Speaking Vietnamese- or Not   Almost every day someone says to me, "I'm sorry, my English is very bad."  As if they should apologize to me that we are having trouble communicating in Vietnam.  For  Christmas I received a book and tape to learn Vietnamese.  I had great intentions and managed pho (noodle soup), xin chao (hello), and cam on (thank you) before I left the States.  And that's where it stopped, unfortunately.  I found myself thinking Vietnamese was too hard to master- or even attempt.  After all, it was a tonal language, which means that the tone for a sound can mean a different word with a different meaning.  Also, I fell into the American thought that I could get by because everyone speaks English.  In fact, not everyone in the world speaks English! (What a concept, right? It's not all about us!)  So, I had the book, I had the tape, and I had some motivation, but what I didn't have was tenacity or discipline....

Van Phuc silk village            Silk was definitely on my "must buy" list when I came to Vietnam.  The history of silk dates back to the fourth century in China.  According to legend/history, the title of Goddess of Silk was given to Lady Hsi-Ling-Shih, wife of the Yellow Emperor.  She introduced the art of silkworm rearing and the invention of the loom. China protected the secret of this very valuable product for 30 centuries by searching those travelling along the Silk Road for hidden silk worms, eggs, or cocoons on penalty of death! However, now the secret is out and many countries have thriving silk worm farms with Vietnam in the top 10 countries of production and export of silk.     So, let's start at the beginning.  It all starts with the silkworm. Here- watch the process  from silkworm cocoon to fine silk.    This process is called sericulture- which starts with feeding silkworms lots of mulb...

Mural Projects in Vietnam Mirror House exterior      As with many pieces of art, the ceramic wall in Hanoi, Vietnam, clearly reflects the history and culture of the country.  This incredible piece of art, created for the 1000 year anniversary of Hanoi, has been joined in prestige by another mosaic project in Hanoi- the renovation of the Mirror House in Reunion Park.       The idea of the mosaic wall to celebrate Hanoi's 1000 year anniversary was the brain child of artist Nguyen Thu Thuy who won a Hanoi architecture contest to transform the dyke which prevents flooding from the Red River.  Bringing the idea to life involved 20 Vietnamese painters, 100 craftsmen, 15 international artists, 50 art students and 500 children.  The pottery for the project came from the famous pottery village Bat Trang- just across the Red River from Hanoi and across the road from Bob and Karen.         This beautiful wall ...

Reunification Day      In Vietnam we are celebrating Reunification Day, a national holiday, today. While I was researching the history of this day, which obviously takes place on the day after the fall of Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City, I found an article that explains it very well without bias.  Rather than trying to explain it myself, today I will just share that article with you.  So, here it is from the Public Holidays Global site at  Reunification Day .      Don't want to look for it?  Here it is: Aside from the political and military victory of Vietnam’s reunification, the Vietnamese people celebrate Reunification Day because of the development that occurred as a result of the South’s and North’s cooperation with each other. Also known as Liberation day, Reunification Day is officially recognized on 30 April each year. To understand Reunification Day, you must first go back to the years of the war in Vietnam. History ...

54 Ethnic Groups Call Vietnam Home       Ever since I arrived in Vietnam I have heard about the ethnic minorities and one would be blind not to notice the textiles and handicrafts made from these groups in the Old Quarter.  The very best place to get an insight into these groups would be a guided tour of each of the small towns and villages scattered about the country, of course.  However, a good substitute would start at the visit to the Ethnology Museum and the store 54 Traditions in Hanoi.  of course, my little bit of reading and visiting these places only makes me more interested- and far, far from an expert!  But let me tell you the little I have learned.      The largest ethnic group, between 84-86% are the Kinh, who are sometimes referred to as the Viet, although there is some discussion that the word Viet applies to all ethnic groups in Vietnam (?)  The remaining 53 ethnic groups are classified in eight groups based...

In Praise of Bamboo- Who Knew?      Now this is one of those posts you might just shake your heads and say, "Duh, Karen, we all knew that!" I had never really given bamboo much thought until about a year ago.  Yes, I knew in China pandas loved to eat bamboo. (99% of their diet!)  I knew that I could buy bamboo shoots for stir fry in the store- it comes in a little can.  But a year ago, while shopping for clothes for baby Charleigh, I came across the softest outfit made from bamboo- from bamboo!! I felt as if I had made some incredible discovery.Unfortunately, I have had trouble finding blankets and sleepers made from bamboo since then.       Then the other day, browsing through a local store, I happened upon baby sleepers made of 95% bamboo!  Yes, I had to buy a sleeper for each grand baby.  More importantly, it got me thinking about the uses of bamboo, so I did what I always tell my students to do, I looked it up....