My First Ever Straight Blade Shave

Yesterday I had some time to kill in Nha Trang before my night bus left for Saigon. Steve had wanted to stay at the beach while I decided to go relax at the hostel. After spending some time there I decided to go for a walk along some streets I had yet to explore.

One thing I've wanted since I got to Vietnam is a proper straight shave from a barber. It costs at least $20 at home and I could never justify the expense. The only encounter I've had with a straight blade razor until yesterday was having my sideburns and the back of my hair trimmed by my old barber in Kingston (Generations, for those Queen's students in the audience - Kristos is the best there is in Kingston!).

I saw a barber in Sapa but he wanted $40,000 dong and I was pressed for time. Well yesterday I stumbled upon a barbershop and immediately went inside and motioned that I wanted a shave. One of the staff showed me a $20,000 dong note to let me know how much it would cost. I decided the price was so low it wasn't even worth bargaining. A proper shave at a barber for one dollar!

I was so happy with the shave and the fact that they were honest, I gave the barber a $10,000 dong tip. Normally you don't tip in Vietnam, but given how him and his colleagues didn't try to go through my bag while I was in such a vulnerable position (i.e. with a sharp blade just above my throat), I decided a tip was in good order.

Here is a picture of my barber and I!

Cooking Class at Lanterns Restaurant in Nha Trang, Vietnam

This morning Steve and I took a cooking class with the chef of Lanterns Restaurant. Her parents were also restaurateurs, so she pretty much grew up with a paring knife in her hand. After graduating high school she went to a culinary school in Saigon. We had lunch at Lanterns the day we got here, and although lunch was more "okay" than great (at least in comparison to the food in Hoi An), we thought the cooking class sounded good.

We were both thrilled with it. Our main course of Mackerel was the best fish I have ever had in my life. More generally it was one of the best meals I've ever had. We also made fresh spring rolls as a starter, and made flambe for dessert (Steve did Banana flambe and I did Mango flambe).

First we went to the market in bicycle taxi's, where we bought all the ingredients we needed for lunch. We also got to have some fresh sugar cane juice, which was both refreshing and delicious. We went to the largest local market in Nha Trang, and did not come across another Westerner amongst the hundreds (if not thousands) of people packed into the aisles and stalls of the marketplace. It doesn't get much more authentic than where we were. It was a good thing we were both took it easy the night before, because the fish section of the market had a bit of a stench to it that would not go well with a hangover.

Since Steve and I were the only ones that signed up for the class today, we basically had a private lesson. Oh, and did I mention it was $18 per person, all in? Here are some pictures of the food we prepared/ate.

Canada Day in Nha Trang, Vietnam

While we were in Hoi An, Steve and I decided to get custom made silk shirts so that we could celebrate Canada Day in style. We also figured it was a good way of meeting other Canadians. Fortunately, the shirts were a resounding success. Two different people saw us wearing our shirts and told us about a Canada Day party being hosted by Guava Bar, which is owned by two guys from Vancouver.

We got there nice and early, around 6pm so we could take advantage of 2-for-1 beers during happy hour. The place was kind of empty, but we met some great guys from Calgary. One of them just graduated from the same program my brother is in (Queen's Engineering). All of sudden once the live band started playing the bar was packed. However, it was mainly packed with Brits and Aussies (go figure). We did manage to meet a few other Canadians though.

Generally I'm doing my best to stick to local fare, but last night I couldn't resist ordering a poutine for dinner. It was no Edelweiss Valley poutine, but it wasn't bad either.

Last night was probably the most fun we've had yet - we befriended the dozen or so other Canadians in the bar, and then also ran into two groups of girls that were on our sleeper bus from Hoi An to Nha Trang. There is this one group of English girls we've run into in Hanoi, Hoi An, and now Nha Trang. Steve also ran into them in Hue! It's as if we have the exact same trip planned. They're fun to hang out with, so we're happy to keep bumping into them.

There was a live band that came on once the bar started filling up, and they were letting people come up to the mic and sing. We decided some Our Lady Peace and Tragically Hip would be in order, and the band leader actually let Steve borrow his guitar. So, with Steve doing guitar and vocals, and myself doing the tamborine and vocals, we belted out the songs Fireworks and Clumsy, followed by Steve doing a rendition of the Guess Who's American Woman. As many of you know I am one of the Levitan's who was not born with the singing gene (that would be my sister and father who were). Steve can sing though. We powered through our short set to rave reviews. I guess people just respect you for getting up in front of a crowd.

The $17 USD we each spent on our silk Canadian flag shirts might be the best $17 either of us has ever spent. Even if we never wear the shirts again (which we will), the fun we had last night was more than worth it.

Hoi An - Our Own Private Beach!

Yesterday Steve and I decided to rent a motorbike and go to the beach, which is a few kilometres from the city centre. Unbenknowest to us, most people apparently go left when they get to the fork in the road where the beach begins, but we decided to go right. After going past some resorts and a "dodgy" stretch of land (as the Brits would say), we found an empty mile of beach before the resorts started up again.

No doubt in five or ten years the entire strip will be taken up by resorts, but for now it is a beautiful, untrafficked beach. We were literally the only people on the beach for a kilometre either way until a few travelers we had met just before parked themselves a couple hundred metres down from us. There were mountainous islands on the horizon that made for an absolutely beautiful view. Unfortunately it was so nice we stayed there too long and got sun burnt, so yesterday aftenroon and today we're staying out of the sun. I'll post pictures later when I get the chance.