Good Afternoon Saigon!

As far as large Asian cities go Saigon is pretty tame these days. Granted, one has to be careful not to get hit by a scooter when crossing the streets, but it isn't nearly as overcrowded or smoggy as, say, Beijing or Bangkok.



Saigon is a friendly city with smiling people and surprisingly confortable coffee shops (not Starbucks, thank God, but Highlands coffee.) And while this is probably the most expensive place in Vietnam, everything is quite affordable--$6 for a large cocktail at the poshest bar atop the poshest hotel.



Right now I am enjoying an iced latte at Cafe Terrace in the Saigon Centre, a building that houses among others Deutsche Bank, Thomson Reuters and the US Department of Homeland Security.



Back to the roads. It seems the hierarchy in traffic here has pedestrians nearly at the bottom. Really it is the scooters that rank at the bottom. The scooters swerve around pedestrians, get squeezed by cars and trucks and pushed onto sidewalks by busses.



If you want an adventure, rent a scooter in Saigon. Make sure you have your will updated though.



Oh, finally, a shout out to Hung and Exotissimo for great guidind and organizing of our trip here!



(Pictures to follow later.)

Bergamo is top!

If you happen to be in northern Italy (say around Milano) you should make the time to also visit the lovely town of Bergamo.

While Milan is crowded with people on foot, bicycle, moped, in cars, buses and trucks, Bergamo is quiet and quaint. Bergamo is also ancient and very picturesque. You can stroll narrow cobblestone streets along buildings with thick brick walls and discover beautiful squares with historic churches and other buildings that it just gives you a sense of going back in time.

We were in Bergamo's upper city on a weekday and outside the summer vacation season and I think that's the best time to go, I predict that it gets pretty busy there with visitors in peak season. Still, the streets are narrow and many don't allow cars on peak visit days, so it should still be good.

Some pictures I took:

Oranjegekte II

So, the Dutch national team is stunning the world of soccer. Tomorrow they take on Russia in the semi finals of the European championship soccer. Normally I don't care about sports on TV, in the paper or on the radio (I only care about being active myself), but for the Dutch national team I will come out and cheer every other year--provided they qualify for the world or European championship. It looks like every Dutch man and woman, boy and girl will be wearing orange tomorrow. Here are some images of oranjegekte (orange craze) right now:

Oranjegekte

Or "orange craziness" has once again taken hold of The Netherlands. Stores are selling everything in orange and many Dutch people and businesses are showing their support for the Dutch national team by decorating their houses or stores.

This is all a prelude to the European Soccer Championships starting in a week or so. It is one of the few sports events I will actually watch on TV, so I am bringing back some orange wear and other items to wear to wherever the game is showing in the Silicon Valley area :)

No jet fuel in NYC?

Delta Airlines is taking me, along with a large group of others, from JFK to SFO. They just announced that the flight will make a refueling stop in Salt Lake City.

I've been on a lot of transcontinental flights and this is new to me. A plane that can't carry enough fuel to fly coast-to-coast is being used by Delta on a New York to San Francisco flight?

There may be other explanations, for example Delta may have lower cost fuel in Salt Lake than in JFK. Or the airline didn't calculate correctly the weight of passengers and luggage. Like me there are many folks on this flight transfering from trans Atlantic flights who typically have bags checked.

Anyway, I will be home later than I hoped.