german daze

It has been a strange couple of days. We have had guests in town - well - people who know people who know one of us kind of guests - in short - strangers. However and whatever, we met and had dinner at Highway 4 on Hang Tre which is a fine eating establishment and the first stop to take out-of-town folk who you want to introduce to Vietnamese cuisine. Or at least, Vietnamese rice wine. Our guests were two Germans, one American, all architects. Lovely people on a one week whirl-wind tour of Vietnam. Afterwards we popped into tadioto - a place I have been able to wipe away inconvenient memories by the application of patent designed alcohol swabs. The next night, only one German, and we ate Japanese at Ky Y, and another stop at tadioto. The next night it was the full quotient of 3 again and fine French dining at La Badiane, then tadioto.

And today I spent a brief time at Cafe Cong helping a fine young sexually charged man with his WordPress site. As we sat there with our laptops, the owner of tadioto passes by making various rude gestures at us. Mistaking these as an invitation to pass by my-living-room-away-from-home, I come and sit at the black bar of contemplation to read, drink a beer and enjoy the afternoon in subdued shadows. And who should walk in but Gerhart Schröder and his entourage. Well - it is Hanoi and anything can happen on a school day afternoon when you are having a quite beer. Minding your own business.

On Friday late evening I fly to Tokyo to prepare for the celebration of the fait accompli - my marriage. Let us leave these German things behind us for the moment and think Japanese.