Vietnam
Tuesday, January 2nd, 2007 
Looking back at our trip to Vietnam in December 2005, browsing through the photos, I realise that our journey through this diverse, history-packed and sturdy country encapsulated some exceptionally beautiful moments. For me, Sylvia managed to capture in her photos the very essence of this country, and I have added her best shots here . Especially, the motives from Ha Long bay are striking, almost bizarre, like paintings. 
On the whole, the colours are thick and rich with an earthy quality as much as are the people – deeply rooted and connected to their land. If we call Vietnam a basic country, we do so only with regards to our western standards of technology. On closer observation, Vietnam turns out to be a complex and complicated land and society, enmeshed in situations of conflict and struggling to compromise their culture with religious demands and economic growth. Still they manage to retain an attitude of humanity, which our western societies are more and more alienated from. This attitude, for me, is oddly reflected in the Vietnamese traffic. Throngs of vehicles, from rickshaw to truck, way to many for the narrow and badly maintained Vietnamese streets, go hither and thither like busy ants. 
On our first attempt to cross a street in the old town of Hanoi, Sylvia and I were almost dumbstruck: in no possible way could we see any chance to cross the street, even at a crosswalk. (more…)
