Xin Chào from Quê Bắc in Kim Liên Commune, I’m here at the birthplace of Hồ Chí Minh, one of the great leaders of the 20th century. I’ll admit it’s a kind of pilgrimage, to see if there are any obvious clues from those formative years. The house in which Hồ Chí Minh (known at …Read More
Xin chào from Phong Nha, We’re in Phong Nha, in the province of Quảng Binh in the north of the country. We’re here to see the fabled Phong Nha caves; roughly 400, mostly limestone caves, and still discovering more every dry season. It’s a very picturesque valley but there are plenty of reminders …Read More
Kumusta from Puerto Princesa, Long-term epistle readers will know that I’ve railed against the worst of American travellers before. Yes, English oafs and soccer hooligans can be noisome. Yes, Australian yobbos can be very embarrassing in some situations. But, Americans are the most obnoxious. It’s not a three-horse race, of course, but the …Read More
Kumusta from El Nido, Three or four world travellers exchanging pleasantries in El Nido, The Philippines : “The beaches are so clean.” This is an unarguable contention; a reflection of the fact that there’s no garbage apparently washing up here. The inference – a perfectly justifiable one – is that there is a lot …Read More
Kumusta from Nacpan, Palawan, Gustave Flaubert was an easily bored, utterly unpatriotic Frenchman who once penned these words about travel. “How many imbeciles one comes across in the most beautiful places and in front of the finest views. When travelling, one meets many . . . but as they go by quickly, …Read More
Kumusta from The Philippines, When Daryl Braithwaite was once co-opted to endorse a singing programme – encouraging more Australians to take up the art, I seem to remember – he opined, “Everybody can sing.” Yes, everyone can sing if they can talk – literally. Even stutterers can sing fluently. King George VI famously had his …Read More
Xin Chào from Điên Biên Phủ, When Lyndon Johnson was discussing war strategy with Robert McNamara and others during the Việt Nam War, he blurted out – in his inimitable style – “I don’t want no more Deen Been Foos.” He was saying that the big powers didn’t want any tinpot, upstart Third World country …Read More
Ni hao from Taiwan, Planet Earth is doomed; unmistakably, undeniably, inexorably doomed. Maybe it’s not completely stuffed just yet but we are heading over the cliff and there’s no sign of turning. One doesn’t need to visit Taiwan to know this, but a week here has confirmed the dread. consumerism When Europeans and …Read More
Ni hao from Taiwan, I don’t suppose it should be a great surprise to find a smaller, Asian version of America when I visit Taiwan. After all, that was pretty well Chiang Kai-Shek’s mission. Here in what is officially known as The Republic of China, there’s baseball, more fat people and more beggars, …Read More
Salem from Almaty, Kazakhstan, We Australians know how ill-informed stereotypes fall short of the reality. “You Australians have kangaroos hopping down the main street.” “In Australia, there are spiders and snakes everywhere.” And so on. Here in Kazakhstan, they suffered from a cruel representation by Sacha Baron Cohen in “Borat”, in which Kazakhs were portrayed …Read More