Vietnam Autumn

This past weekend was the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival for China and Vietnam.  Some regions practice different cultural traditions but there are a few constants that you can always count on: Mooncakes, lanterns, and lion dances. 

I am disappointed in my lack of Mooncake tasting variety.  There are many different flavors from sweet to salty to savory but there was really only one mooncake for me: Sua Dua (pronounced soo-ah yeu-ah).  It’s a heavy round cake about four inches in diameter packed with coconut, magic, and in the middle?   Surprise!  A salted egg yolk.  Oooh man, I’m sad those are gone.

When I first heard about lion dances, it made sense to ask where I could see it.  What street?  What park?  Every answer was different but “they’ll be all over the place” was the most common response.  In more populated cities like Hanoi, there are large public demonstrations of these dances but not in Da Nang.  Here, you have to be in the right place at the right time to catch a very illusive performance – especially the good ones.  Once word catches that a performance is going down in a restaurant or a school yard, motorbikes and crowds quickly blockade the already limited visibility and you’re too late.  So Sunday after classes, Andy and I decided on a mission to catch a Lion Dance. 

On the way to drop my bike off at the house, we noticed a couple of bikes pulling into a school yard and a small group of people standing around with no other trucks or cars present.  At the next intersection we exchanged matching “could it be…?s” and pulled a quick U back into the school yard.  For about ten minutes, we stood around with these people wondering what we were waiting for.  As quick as the thought entered, so did two trucks loaded with boys in bright yellow sequin pants and masks.  WIN!!  Before the school yard could overfill, the gates slammed shut and we were front row for a two-man lion struttin' his stuff on a series of thin pillars.  It was pretty cool to see the back end picking up the front end so that they formed a two-man-tall lion hopping around on poles.  As quickly as they came into the yard, the onlookers and performers vanished at the conclusion of the show.  We rejoiced in our find over a mooncake back at my house. 

A few days later, Andy and I went to a park in Da Nang and because we went during the day, it was like a scene out of Zombieland – old run down rides and attractions with no one operating or riding them… archaic looking bumper cars and swan paddle boats lined up on concrete… and an unfortunate zoo of understimulated animals.  Aside from the sad animals, the place was pretty cool, and suddenly I started seeing all these things to climb on.  Some kids and I scaled a mini climbing wall, then there was a large banyan tree calling to us and all was well and great until I downclimbed the banyan tree and the hulky-looking branch all my weight was clinging to wasn’t so sturdy. “Kelsey noooo!” I heard as my entire body barn-doored to the left, ripping holes, my favorite bra (so unfortunate), my arms and wrist.  No, I didn’t totally flash the adolescents, but I did dash behind the banyan tree and get creative with hair clips.  Not sure if I’m going to find a crash pad in Da Nang but I might prepare a little more next time I decide I haven’t climbed in a while.

Everything else is going well.  The typhoon we dooms day prepped for made a sharp turn away from us, work decided to make me full time, and I haven’t seen a gigantor spider in two weeks.  Thanks for givin’ me some space, guys.  I’ll come around.