MM Tales: Some Cultural Nuances

No travel blog of mine would ever be complete without a little overview of some tidbits of notable behaviours. These are just random observations of things that I find different, annoying, funny and so on. So here's a few notables so far:

Toilets - Thankfully North American style (so far). In China, not so much, but here it has been pleasantly clean and squat free. For those of you who followed along the last time, you may remember some stories I had about the toilets.
Food has been fantastic and for the most part, recognizable. I have yet to find something that I truly can't identify so ordering food has been relatively challenge free. And delicious. Honestly I've had some of the best soup (Pho) and noodles (Bun) ever.
Speaking of food - group dining. It takes a special bit of patience for me to eat in a group here. It drives me CRAZY when people chew with their mouth open. Can't help it, it is just my thing. Years of being told to chew with my mouth closed must be well ingrained. Anyway, there's lots of that going on here.
Walking, and better yet, crossing the street, is a constant adventure. The basic protocol is to wait for a decrease (because there are very few lights and even fewer breaks in traffic) and then slowly launch yourself into the street regardless of the moving traffic. Steady pace, no running (as I learned in Da Nang). I have added staring down the drivers with a very evil eye to my crossing procedure just for good measure. You rarely see many locals walking around. Everyone has a motorbike. Which is why crossing the street takes on an arcade-like experience.
The language so far has been unbelievably difficult to learn or remember. I spent an entire week with the group and came out if it remembering only a few names (I generally have a slightly better record than that). I can't seem to manage saying or remembering "thank-you" although I keep asking. But as good fortune would have it, beer is a very easy and memorable word - Bia. Baby steps. :-)

The people have been fantastic (other than the taxi drivers). Lots of smiles, very helpful. I haven't felt unsafe (other than the traffic) and it is pretty cheap to get around. Today we hit the Cholon Pagoda walking tour - not a walking city so it was a tough slog through parked bikes and onto busy streets. Walked through a couple markets and got accosted immediately. Bailed as soon as we could. And onto a traditional Vietnamese restaurant tonight recommended by one of the students. Tomorrow we booked a trip to the Cu Chi tunnels and Cao Dai Great Temple - about 100 km out of Saigon. It will be nice too escape the traffic.

And here are a few highlights from the day and last night.