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    Hoa's Place

    Social Issues Vietnam
    Picture

    Fusion Maia—one of many luxury resorts on Non Nuoc Beach.

    You might think that in a Communist society, the government would want to take from the rich and give to the poor, but in Vietnam, it's the other way round. Take the case of...

                          Hoa's Place

    I was nearly finished with my update of Danang for the new edition of the guide. I had checked out the Cham Museum and Cao Dai Temple to make sure there were no major changes, I had carefully marked on the map the location of new bridges crossing the river, including the spectacular, fire-breathing Dragon Bridge, and had stood on the 20th floor of the new Grand Mercure and Novotel hotels, listening to PR reps wax lyrical about the benefits  of spending £150 a night to sleep in their rooms perched high above the city. I had also found  some new restaurants that cater to Westerners' tastes, and a couple of reasonable mini hotels to recommend for people looking for mid-range accommodation. All I needed was a hostel or some cheap lodging to list for backpackers, who are now visiting Vietnam in droves, before I could head off to Hoi An, one of my favourite towns in the entire country.
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    Let's Play Extinctathon!

    Post Apocalypse Reviews
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    Next for the chop in Extinctathon?

    I read an intriguing book recently--Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood. It’s a kind of ‘1984’ for the 21st century, a post-apocalyptic novel (date unspecified) that mentions various factors, such as rising sea levels flooding major cities, holes in the ozone layer and a pandemic along the lines of the Ebola virus (which has just re-appeared in Guinea in the last few days), which  have wiped out virtually all life on the planet. All that remains are a few human survivors and genetically-modified life forms gone wild, like wolvogs, pigoons, and rakunks.
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    An Ambition Realized

    Publishing Vietnam
    Picture

    Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark






    Like most writers and photographers, I have always seen National Geographic as the pinnacle of excellence for travel writing and images, so have often dreamed of seeing my work in their hallowed publications. A few years ago, out of the blue, I got that opportunity when they asked me to update the National Geographic Traveler Guide to Vietnam. And while that made me feel proud, I still longed to see an image of mine in a Nat Geo publication as well.

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    When I next set foot in Britain

    Social Issues UK
    ‘Tis a strange island, shaped like a pregnant woman dipping her toes in the sea, where I happened to be born.

    It seems especially strange to me, having lived in voluntary exile abroad for nearly 40 years, and only popping back for short visits to see family and friends every few years. I always leave bemused by recent developments and wondering where this country is headed.
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    Maidenhead High Street on a sunny Saturday evening—not a soul in sight.

    This visit is no exception. Though the climate and countryside is familiar enough, the towns and people wandering the streets are oddly alien. The high street of Maidenhead, my home town, is a commercial wasteland, a windy corridor bordered by charity shops and empty premises, which are now brightly decorated with artwork extolling the town’s merits, compared with white-washed windows on my last visit. Meanwhile the people I pass are speaking Polish, Romanian, Urdu, Hungarian, Russian or Chinese—anything, it seems, but English.
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    Water Summit Sunk by Hot Air

    Photography Social Issues Thailand

    I had an interesting job last week—shooting images for a company that was exhibiting and presenting technical workshops at the 2nd Asia-Pacific Water Summit in my hometown, Chiang Mai. My brief was to provide images of interested visitors at their booth as well as members of staff interacting with VIPs (mostly heads of state).
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    Though my task was only to take photos, I couldn’t help forming an impression of the event as an interested bystander. Like everyone else, I’m a big fan of water, and I dread the day when our taps run dry. Unfortunately, now the summit is over, that day seems closer than ever. 
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    Photographers at the Water Summit

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    On Blamming and Spogging

    Writing
    On blamming

    Don’t you just hate the internet? I mean, the worldwide web is amazing, with more information and entertainment out there than any of us could cope with in one lifetime, but when bugs start creeping in with unwanted attachments to emails, or suddenly your cursor freezes with no warning, cyberspace can become a real drag.

    One of the worst problems for email users is spam, but I see on Wikipedia that my current problem, people spamming on my blog, is now referred to as ‘blam’. I’m now being blammed on a daily basis, and although it’s rather irritating, it has its amusing moments too.