Late Night Musings

So 11 p.m. isn't really all that late unless your jet-lagged brain wants you asleep by eight and awake around three or four. I will try to fight off sleep long enough to share some thoughts from the past two days.

Sustainability
Roger told us more about his efforts to create sustainable funding for Kids First Vietnam through the sale of products. I had already read about their peppercorn/grinder product on their web site, but also learned about a chopstick set and roasted cashews. All the products are sourced and finished in Vietnam, so that a purchase will support not only Kids First Vietnam, but also the local economy. They are also planning on manufacturing and selling wheelchairs and related wheeled mobility aids. The goal of this project is to generate continuous funding for Kids First Vietnam while helping disabled individuals achieve greater self-sufficiency.

Privilege
Why are some of us born into lives with so much opportunity and material wealth and so many others born into lives full of hardship? Should the standards for how one should live their life differ in these scenarios?

Food
The food has been absolutely amazing since we arrived in Hanoi. Fresh flavors and ingredients ranging from sweet to pungent to salty to spicy. Endless variety at emberassing prices. Tomorrow we are taking a cooking class at a restaurant around the corner. We will spend the morning cooking, and the enjoy the fruits of our labor for lunch. Yum! On a totally tangential note, has anyone had good watermelon in Asia? So far the watermelon in China and Vietnam has been consistently poor to mediocre. I don't recall how the watermelon was in Japan, but suspect it was also generally bad. With the long humid summers here I expected that the watermelon would be delicious. Watermelon from Eastern Washington is much better. Not to mention watermelon in the South. Any ideas? Is it losing flavor in transportation and storage? In any case, check below for some pictures of the delicious food we have been eating.