Ups and Downs

Today I came across this picture:

Its true. I forget that the downs are what make me appreciate the ups. We have been having a great time in Vietnam, but some days are good and some days are less than that. There is homesickness and culture shock and all of the other normal human emotions. Today I am feeling especially grateful for the downs of transitions, because the ups today felt WAYYYY UP!

Today we received our first care package/Christmas present. I emailed my mama a few weeks back and asked her to send me a couple ugly Christmas sweaters for a party next month. Knowing my mama, she always includes a little extra to make us smile....

American goods! WAHOO! 

I did not include pictures of the sweaters because I am going to wait until the party, but we DID get "Ugly sweater" branded coffee:)

It feels like Christmas today! 

I came home with a skip in my step and got inspired to cook. Our fridge has been packed since  Thanksgiving, so we have been on the leftover wagon. 

Therefore, I improvised with what we had in the fridge.

Chicken sausage in a bacon mushroom white wine sauce.....

with thyme, onions, garlic....

....and shredded gouda on top!

It was an afternoon of ups, which is what I need to remember the next time I am feeling down. 

Just like the shadow exists due to light, the downs and ups need one another as well. 

Let's just hope I remember that next time. 

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Hai dong toi (My two cents) <---posted by Hubs

It has been six weeks since we arrived in Hanoi and while one cannot truly know a place after such a short time, there have been a couple of things that I have noticed that I would like to share with everyone…that and my beautiful wife has done an amazing job of chronicling our journey so far.

Hanoi is in every sense of the word a combustion of the senses. On a daily basis, you have the traffic that seems-on the outside-to be a chaotic mix of people going in every direction they please without any regard for anyone else but themselves or any semblance of accordance with the law. However, if you look a little closer one could call it a beautiful dance. One that is the perfect representation of a high traffic current filled with thousands of beautiful colored fish in the Caribbean or you could call it a representation of a culture that refuses to move anywhere but forward. The constant honking of motor bikes, taxis, and buses that give a cacophonous roar might cause a migraine for some. However, after a couple of days in the mix you realize that the honking of horns here is nothing like that in U.S.  For the most part in the U.S. people only use their horns when they want to make sure that people in other cars can hear the intent of the four letter words they are screaming at each other. However, on the other hand here generally it can mean, “Excuse me” “Hey I’m here, don’t run me over please.” “I’m moving into the intersection now, please pardon my movement.” It is more of a Morse code of communication than a cursing out of road rage.

Now, as for the culture of food…the one thing that both Nicole and I absolutely love (other than each other of course) in Hanoi everything, every food, every relationship, every time hanging out with friends is all about balance and respect. The flavors, textures and smells are a respect for tradition with a blend of new world dishes of sophistication that comes with a rise in cosmopolitanism. For example, here in Hanoi there are countless numbers of food shops that can be nothing more than a woman with a wok, ingredients, and a bunch of stools and sign. Furthermore, there are restaurants that just make one dish all day and make it again and again…cha ca, bun cha, bun bo nam bo, cau lau, pho, spring rolls and many many more are all names for restaurants that make an absolute delicious dish of food for cheap (emphasis on a dish!). This is a tradition that goes back hundreds of years to when guilds divided up city blocks to their own restaurants. There was no competition within the blocks because those families that made bun cha would not attempt to make any other dish out of respect for the others in the area. While this noble idea doesn’t exactly transcend into modern day, there is a sense of modern day competition, but the restaurants that remain popular to those who have lived their lives here are those that do one thing really well, day in and day out.  According to a number of people that I have talked to, the concept of what we in the U.S. would classify as a “restaurant” is a fairly new concept here in Hanoi. However, with the increasing growth of the Vietnamese economy more and more western styled restaurants have arisen in Hanoi. You can find the white tablecloths, you can have Italian food, you can have tapas, and you can even find fast food places like Burger King and KFC if you want.  So, what does all this mean? It means that food brings people together here more so than any other place that I have been. So, not only do you have a balance of flavors both tradition and modern, you have an immense respect for where one comes from without blinding yourself in the light of the new and fancy. It’s a yin and yang, a dark and light, a history and a future, and it all blends into a culture that everyday shows you something new.

Finally, the one other thing that I wanted to talk about was about the work. It’s amazing that we have both been able to do thus far is fantastic. It’s taking both of us some time to get used to being an office from 8am to 6pm (one of us coming from the yoga world and the other from the fine dining industry), but all in all, each day we get a chance to not only represent the greatest country in the world, but we get to make a difference in people’s lives every day. I can say with all confidence that people (both young and old) will remember Nicole’s Halloween Party for a long time to come. I get to see the look on some student’s faces when after all of the long hard work that they have done over the past couple of years that they finally get a chance to go to the U.S. to complete their dreams. The songs and laughter that we had at Thanksgiving that Nicole and her staff organized. It’s the look on a families face when they get the chance to see their eldest daughter graduate from an MBA program.  In other words, this means that despite being thousands of miles away from our loving friends and family, we get the chance to bring joy and change into the world. It’s a life and job that I could not imagine doing without the best partner in the world.

Hope to write more again soon.     

-Hubs

So, what do you DO?--or--how I became NiCLO

I have received several emails and messages from friends and family asking me;

"So, what do you DO exactly?"

This was a big question before I moved overseas. Many people would ask me "What are you going to DO?" Usually my answer was <with a very straight face> "I am going to look REALLY pretty, all the time." <pause for effect> Now most people know me and would laugh, but this was most entertaining when people didn't know how to respond.

This is one of the misconceptions of a diplomat's wife. People think that we buy a lot of dresses and go to a lot of parties and hobknob with fancy people all day. However, it's different. Being a diplomat is a tough job. In light of the recent attacks in Libya, there are a slew of amazing articles on the incredible men and women in the Foreign Service. If you have time, I suggest you do some googling.

--ANYWAY--

Back to me. What do I DO?

Recently a colleague called me out on something that diplomat spouses do frequently; I was asked what I did before "we" joined the Foreign Service and I responded by naming everything that my husband did beforehand. Not me. Whoops. Luckily, my friend J was there to call me out on it in a polite way, but I don't know why I did that. Perhaps it's because us dip-spouses are also known as "trailing spouses"-we follow our spouses around the world and make jokes and call ourselves "LOLs"(Ladies/Lords of Leisure) and make up other silly acronyms. We also "give up" our careers or take them with us. We speak of when "we" joined the Foreign Service, because it's a Lifestyle change for the entire family. I know that we, myself and Hubs, would not have it any other way, it's a great life(6 weeks into our first post overseas), but I must say it's also very challenging.

Despite the challenges, the Embassy does it's best to make everyone as happy as they can be. They reserve jobs within the Mission just for AEFMs(Appointment Eligible Family Members=the REAL acronym of what American spouses/partners/young adult children are called), then if no one applies, then it opens to Americans, then local staff. Thanks to one of these extra special jobs; I am gainfully employed!

The job I currently have is one of the BEST jobs at the Embassy. Ever since I heard about it at my Spouse Orientation three days into DC, I started manifesting that I would be a CLO someday.

My position is Community Liaison Office Coordinator aka "the CLO" aka "NiCLO" as a dear friend named me after I applied. 

I have Eight Areas of Responsibility, here's the cliff notes version of what I do:

• Community Liaison: Develop and Maintain relationships within all agencies in the Mission
• Crisis Management and Support Services: Share relevant security information with Mission members and be the POC for the Family Liaison Office during an Evacuation/Crisis
• Education Liaison: Develop and Maintain relationships with local schools available to Mission families and educate them on all of their Education options
• Employment Liaison: Support family member's employment by advocating for them within the Mission and educating them on their options at post outside the Mission
• Events Planning: Plan & execute events for the Mission community(Halloween party, Holiday party, Wine & Cheese, Thanksgiving pot luck, etc) 
• Guidance and Referral: Direct members of the community to support that they need in areas beyond my expertise, be a confidential ear for them to vent/discuss their challenges
• Information and Resource Management: Keep track of important information regarding post and relay it to the community, while maintaining a variety of information regarding post within the Mission via the Mission newsletter and other channels
• Welcoming and Orientation: Welcome new arrivals, assign sponsors, hold newcomer orientation, and assist people in their departures

For the extended version of my job description read here.

I am VERY fortunate to also have a full time Administrative Assistant and a part time CLO Assistant to help me. Many posts only have a CLO, while some have 4+ people in their office.

So, that's what I DO all day. It's a lot. It's a lot of fun. 

In the meantime, I also work on being REALLY pretty all the time....hehehe

Me on our rooftop before the Marine Corps Ball

Who knew a smoggy sunset could be so pretty?

HIWC Bazaar

Today was the Annual Hanoi International Women's Club Bazaar. Each year HIWC puts on this bazaar and raises tens of thousands of dollars for local charities. The charities are selected by Community Aid Commitee, last year the Bazaar raised over $100,000USD. The Bazaar is one of the most exciting events in Ha Noi. This year there were 35 "Country Tables" and several more vendor tables. The Hubs and I volunteered to donate brownies and our time to the US Country table. It was a really fun day.

The line to get in, we showed up right at 10am when it started. Luckily we only had to wait ten minutes, which was much shorter than waiting for a taxi to get home.

USA Country table! God Bless America!

Hubs and I in our aprons, we look like we are ready to run for office.

The cutest sisters in Ha Noi:)

We had the best view of the stage. Several different groups performed, including a group of Koreans in traditional Korean dress to Gagnam Style, it was amazing....until we heard the song overplayed all day

Our American food for sale: BBQ pork with cole slaw and veggies

At the Canada table you could take your picture

Germany was selling good beer and of course, lots of sausages

We opted out of the Vietnam table, we think we will have enough food from them

Belgium!

Ireland: Their sign read "Molly O'Nguyen's"--they were selling Guinness, we were excited

Saint Patrick was there!

Singapore!

Palestine!

The UK: Keep Calm and Eat Bacon Sandwiches

Sri Lanka!

Sri Lankan Kottu; traditional street food from Sri Lanka: "Kottu": chicken, veggies and pieces of bread stir fried together: YUMMMMMM

Sri Lankan Kottu; they are opening a restaurant next month! Wahoo!

from the UK booth

Australia! I tried a Shiraz Viognier for the first time; not bad!

Indonesia!

Russia!

Hubs had to get some beer from here as well:)

Thailand! We volunteered the first two hours of the Bazaar so that we could go and eat afterwards, however, most of the places had run out of food by noon:(

Brazil!

Brunei! 

We had a curry puff from here, not too shabby..

China was making their own dumplings, but the line was too long for us

Ukraine!

"Live beer" at the Ukraine tent, made in Ha Noi, it was delish!

Taiwan!

Ukranian beer and Taiwan food: squid on a stick, sausage sandwich and onion pancake

Denmark!

Croatia! Nigeria! Egypt!

These guys made the most amazing balloon animals that I have ever seen

There were Christmas decorations for sale everywhere!

**note the conical hat on the angel:) It made me very happy.

A Vietnamese parking lot. 

We were there for five hours and it flew by! We saw some friends and made some new ones. I think it was a very successful event, Kudos to HIWC and all the volunteers!

A week of gobbling & gratitude...

It's been awhile....brace yourself brave readers...

Sunday morning after the Marine Ball, we did a lot of nothing. We spent the morning watching Mad Men(which is not conducive to blog writing, I learned that this week, but we finished Season 5 so here I am) SO we decided to get out of the house for lunch at Bobby Chinn's. 

We both had the three course lunch menu--It was an ornate experience....

Little men marching into the entrance

Ten stages of drunkenness by Bobby Chinn

The entire menu is full of puns

$2400 USD pieces of art

(no, we didn't purchase any)

Amuse bouche

Lotus and prawn salad

Pumpkin soup

Teriyaki burger and fries

Filet Bun Bo Nam Bo

Coconut rice pudding

Itty-bitty Lemon creme brulee

The exterior of Bobby Chinn's

Everything was good, but a bit pricey. We decided to walk up and down Xuan Dieu afterwards. This is the street that Bobby Chinn's restaurant as well as a lot of other ex-pat good are on. 

Vietnamese power lines; when I first saw them in Ha Noi I thought "wow, look at those VINES!" Then I soon realized they were power lines, and they are EVERYWHERE. One must be very careful when walking down the street.

Later that evening, we joined a friend at a nearby Vietnamese restaurant Seasons of Ha Noi. It was really good, however we felt underdressed with the white tablecloths until a bus full of Japanese tourists joined us.

Fried spring rolls

Amazing fish soup--I forgot the name:(

Chili lemongrass shrimp with white rice in a coconut shell

Another picture of the fish soup. SO GOOD.

After dinner we went to a nearby Bia Hoi on the lake. 

 Many times we go to these little places and we are the only westerners there....I wonder if I will ever get used to people staring at us.

50 cent beers, they taste like 3.2 beer :)

This week was pretty mellow. A lot of people were traveling or had holiday-itis, which is a lot like senioritis. Nevertheless, both of us had a productive week at work as well as a lot of delicious food.

Our housekeeper's best meal: tofu & pork, beef and vegetables and spiced rice. YUMMM.

Mysterious Vietnamese fruit! I had to google the one on top; it's called Star Apple or Vu Sua, which translates to "Milk from the Breast", rightfully so it's a milky sweet fruit with the consistency of a melon.  The fruit on the bottom is Mangosteen.

In the midst of our productive week I had breakfast at our Annex Cafe; yogurt, honey and the BEST granola EVER. Thank you Commune for your brilliant culinary creations!

We are really blessed to live in a city where dining out is very affordable. This week we tried Ola de Tapas, by the recommendation of our friends. Their specialty is Spanish tapas.

The Sangria was amazing!

White bean and chorizo soup, I could have just eaten this. YUM.

Fried calamari, pancetta bread, potatoes bravas and baked chorizo. Mm-mm!

The following day I had lunch in our other Mission cafe Papa joe's. The special was Bun Bo Nam Bo:

YUM. Bun Bo Nam Bo: beef, peanuts, grilled scallions, rice noodles, herbs, lettuce and a little fish sauce concoction on the bottom. 

THIS dish is SO much better than Pho: to all our friends in the US: go get this the next time you order Vietnamese food! Now, I'm not knocking Pho. I had some the following evening before a few of us girls went to see Breaking Dawn II:

Pho ga: chicken noodle soup

I am going to predict that I get sick of spring rolls by the Spring...

On Thanksgiving morning, we slept in and decided to go run errands. It was pretty surreal. The rest of the world was out and about, there was nothing different than any other day. Hubs got a haircut and we passed some time at a local coffeeshop.

My new favorite thing from Joma: London Fog; Earl Grey Tea with steamed milk and vanilla syrup

We opted for a light lunch; our housekeeper prepped DIY spring rolls the night before:

Me making spring rolls. This week my Language teacher told me that the peace sign means victory but it also means "HI" because the #2 in Vietnamese is "Hai" So; HAI EVERYONE!

My spring roll, not so pretty, but so tasty

My office; the Community Liaison Office, planned to host a Thanksgiving potluck at the American Club, but the RSVP list was low so I decided to host it at our house:

Happy Thanksgiving!

We realized that we only have eight of everything, so we improvised a few things--I think it turned out pretty well.

The Hubs carving the bird. We ordered it from Donkey Bakery; a socially responsible company that employs people with disabilities. The bird was PERFECT: so moist, so perfect.

I made mushroom and leek stuffing from scratch--YUM. I have fought the stove again and this time: I WON. I was cooking it at the wrong setting. Now all is well in the world again.

Success #2: Pumpkin bars!

I had to find a substitute for evaporated milk, but thanks to the internet--they were great

Pumpkin bars with whipped cream topping

I am very thankful for leftovers:)

After dinner our Chief Health Affairs Attache serenaded us

It was a great Thanksgiving week. We had a traditional meal that was better than I could have imagined. We are surrounded by amazing people in our community. While we miss our friends and families in the States, we are very grateful to be where we are. 

I hope you had a great Thanksgiving week with your loved ones!

There is so much to be thankful for.