Small stories from a big world

Today I am leaving Vietnam. What I will not miss. The humid heat slapping you in the face as wet and hot cloth The mold The rising waterlevels when the rain is pouring down The rats The endless sweating The gaudy signs everywhere in the street causing complete visual cacophony The aftertaste of MSGs That all seems always impossible, even though it always gets sorted out The traffic, where no one bothers about the effect of their moves on others. The beach full of waste The stench of sewerage, drains and decay The noise of tool oud and bad quality amplifiers The off-tune karaoke singing in the neighbourhood The stale smell of a room damaged by mold The movement of windows under the pressure of a Category 1 typhoon The sensation of plastic bags touching you while swimming in the sea. My communication barrier because I never managed to get a grip on the 6 tones of this language And yet, the absence of all of this, will still make me miss Vietnam.

Today I am leaving Vietnam. What I will miss The sound of the waves which I can sometimes hear in my house, late at night when silence reclaims the city The security which allows me to walk and cycle late at night The proximity of the sea The cosiness of coffeeshops The impressive flavours of streetfood The smell of the blossoms in the greem valleys of the central highlands The colours of tet The sizzling sound of the banh xeo batter in a hot frying pan The wind playing through the wooden pagoda shutters on a hot day The taste of the abundance of tropical fruit The access and easiness of travelling in this beautiful country The temperature that allows me to swim almost the whole year The breeze making music in my wind chime The fluorescent green of the rice paddies The cheap and fast internet The finding-nemo-fish playing hide and seek in the waving soft corals The pristine beauty of the north The subtle flavours in a bowl of pho The fresh coconut on a thirsty day The texture of mi qua...

I already wrote about our office move. The old space was too small and got too expensive as well. So we moved to another office. It was all arranged very well. We received a detailed planning. On Friday we would pack our boxes. On Monday the removal firm would pick up the furniture and boxes and bring it to our new place. We could immediately go to the new office. Th planning mentioned a short “spiritual rite” to bless the new office. When I arrived, the colleagues were already setting up a small table in front of the office. They arranged fruit, tea, flowers and incense on it. Our managers had the honour of having to do the rites. Our local colleagues gave hm instructions what to say. He didn’t have to say it in Vietnamese, but Dutch was not allowed. Apparently the gods do speak English here in Vietnam, as that was allowed. He had to mention the date and the place and request blessings, good luck and health for the office, the staff and the projects. It is difficult to get a cl...

A few weeks ago we moved offices. The house we were renting as office was too small for our growing team. But there was another reason. The owner informed us that the monthly rent would increase at the renewal of the contract. Real estate prices in Da Nang are rising exponentially. Houses and land are on the rise, to almost being unaffordable. Our old office was located in a prime area, close to the sea and in the middle of the tourist hub, so there was no escape. We had to look for something else. We found it across the river, further away from the sea. In a new development. I cannot walk to the office anymore as I used to do before. Now I go on my scooter or bicycle. It is quite an enjoyable little trip, despite having to go via a busy road full of heavy transport to the harbour of Da Nang. I first cycle through the narrow alleys and streets of my neighbourhood. The sidewalks are vibrant with small food stalls in the morning. People eating breakfast (pho, my quang, and the ...