The usual

Work goes on as usual, weekends are quite the blessing when they arrive. Some of my students have abhorrent behavior, but the handfuls of adorable and polite little girls and boys make it bearable. I ran a lot of errands yesterday, going to multiple stores and markets with the intention of following some recipes in the cookbook my mother sent over. Unfortunately, almost every single recipe requires some ingredient that does not exist in Vietnam; Lemons are actually somewhat challenging to track down, but I did find some lemon juice which I consider a success. After multiple failed attempts to get my hands on some sour cream and artichokes, I gave up and invested in some crabs and clams for a good seafood dinner. My mom had insisted on me buying a "crab pot" when she came to visit, so I thought I might as well get some use out of it. I also managed to identify the Vietnamese version of the avocado (it looks very different and I had to have Son with me in order to know I was getting the right thing) and upon smelling numerous bundles of herbs, settled on some cilantro for some fine guacamole. The idea for guacamole arrived when I saw a bag of tortilla chips in a Western store. This is a BIG deal, since I rarely come across them here. Cooking in general always proves a bit tricky since my ingredient selection is, well, very South East Asian. But in my defense, I'm getting very good at making some traditional Vietnamese sauces and food. Currently, I am steaming some Banh Bao for breakfast, which is a dumpling of sorts, filled with meat. Ideally, I'd like to bring home some solid Vietnamese cooking knowledge to share with friends and family.

Speaking of friends and family, I think I've made the decision to come home for good around Christmas time. With the thought of grad school constantly on my mind, and the necessity to enroll in a couple tech courses before applying (which all tend to start in January), it looks like I need to be home earlier than anticipated. I'm obviously a bit saddened to have to leave Ha Noi and all my current friends behind, but I would like to return here with a masters in Architecture under my belt. This city is an amazing place for real estate right now, as it is developing with such fervor. It would be great to work in a firm here, but instead of looking too far ahead, I'm just trying to focus on not going crazy at my current job. :)