Finally ready...

I've wanted to make a calendar with our pictures for a while. I actually have used a couple of different companies to make them, but when I got the final product in hand, I wasn't so pleased. I finally found one, though, that offered exactly what I want. A desktop calendar with our photos, captions and dates marked for Vietnamese holidays. Woohoo! I'm stoked. Here's a composite of all the pages:



And of course you can get one yourself! I'm charging $8.99 and the couple extra bucks will go toward the shipping of all those clothes to the Tam Ky Baby Orphanage. I'm also selling some of the not-as-useable-for-Vietnam stuff on ebay to pay for postage, as well. All these shirts and pants have been sitting here for far too long.

[I've tried a dozen times to get this button to work, but nothing seems to help. Ugh. So, if you want the calendar, hit me up on paypal. Donate [at] teresaandkids.com is the address. So much for simple and easy.]
THANK YOU!

mm, mm, good~

I've been madly depressed lately and can't quite seem to shake it. Until this afternoon when I decided to spend my last few dollars on Vietnamese food for lunch. I headed over to Fubonn, our Asian mall in Portland, picked up some spring roll wrapper, Choco Pie and some instant Chinese noodles. There happened to be a Vietnamese restaurant outside the grocery, so I checked out the menu. Typical fare: Cha gio, goi cuon, banh xeo, bun ba Hue, then, there it was.... Bún Chả Hà Nội!

I have looked for months for this lovely meal, first introduced to me by Keith on Hang Manh street in Ha Noi on my second night in the country. That restaurant made bun cha like it's supposed to be made, and try as I might I couldn't find anyone that even made it in a similar style (pork patties, noodles, veggies, nuoc mam). Until today.

May good luck fall upon the fine folks at Bánh Cuốn Tân Dịnh. The food was wonderful, service great. I asked about ché and sure enough, they have it on Sundays. Looking through the cooler, I queried each item until I heard "homemade yoghurt" at which time I squealed with delight and pulled out my cash. Oh, how I've yearned for VNese yoghurt. And here it was!

I am happy, so happy, with my belly full of bún chả and yoghurt.

Bánh Cuốn Tân Dịnh: 2850 SE 82nd Ave; Suite 11; Portland, Oregon

two bits

There's an interesting article in the NY Times, from a few days ago, about the excavation of the old capitol in Ha Noi. There have been "millions of artifacts" found and the work continues in preparation for the 1000 year anniversary of Ha Noi in 2010. Read the full article.

Audrey's article is going to be on newsstands soon! Her article about living in Vietnam, including photos, will be in the November/December issue of New Moon magazine. Look for it at your local bookseller. Should be good. :)

helping the children

For those of you in Ha Noi:
Inc. Vietnam will be arranging the fund-raising run / walk around Westlake, in Hanoi on Sunday, 14 October 2007. We shall be greatly thankful for your (financial) contribution to this cause. We would be delighted if you and / or your friends / colleagues could also join us for the run/walk. *The event will start at 6:30 am at the Hanoi Lake View building, 28 Thanh Nien Road, Hanoi.* Should you need more information or would like to register for the event, please contact our local coordinator, Mr. Au Minh Tuan at tuanamATadb.org>

For everyone:
I have three more boxes of clothes that were donated for the kids in Tam Ky, but they cost more than $100 to ship. I'd like to send one more box of warm clothes, since it's starting to get cool there, and hoping I can get some help from y'all. If you can spare $10 or so to help with the mailing costs, I'd be ever so grateful. The paypal address is donateATteresaandkids.com. If you would like to include a card or anything small (and very light), let me know and I'll give you a mailing address.

Favorite Places in Ha Noi

Museum of Ethnology a great place for all of us with plenty of interesting things to see, including a variety of ethnic minority houses


The Children's Park at Lenin Parkseveral play areas for different ages and abilities, plus a so-called roller coaster and plenty of walking paths

One Pillar Pagoda (Chua Mot Cot)not so interesting to see for the kids, but it's a must-see just because you'll recognize it elsewhere as a symbol of Ha Noi

Temple of Literature (Quoc Tu Giam) an ancient university of sorts, the grounds are lovely to walk in and beautiful for photos

Hoan Kiem Lake the center of the city, it's best early in the morning before the tourists hit

St. Joseph's Cathedral an excellent navigational point in the Old Quarter, watch for Sunday services.


Vincom Tower head to the top floor for the arcade and a great break from the sellers and tourists