Food alchemy

Nha Trang was not high on our list for places to go, but now we've been here 6 days and don't have a plan to leave yet. A big beach, low crowds, and the first sunshine we've seen in awhile has kept us here. They also have insanely good, crusty, fresh baguettes, which doesn't hurt.

Ryan's chin is inflamed, and quite swollen. Back in August, he fell off his bike onto his face and the only thing left was his '2nd chin' of scar tissue under his mouth. Something has happened, and now he has a chin that looks like the victim of elephantiasis. We're both hoping that this doesn't cut our trip short, or that we have to be rushed to the hospital by this guy, in which case it might take about 3 hours.

At the cafe where we've discovered the perfect baguettes, we've also befriended a Quebecois gentleman who lives here with his Vietnamese wife. He rolls up on his motorcycle around 8:30am every morning and has started saying 'hello yanks!' each time. He told us that he hates the rest of Vietnam and only wants to stay in Nha Trang for the international food, the beach, and his wife. I'm fascinated by the expat scene beyond young holidayers - how do folks live abroad with such apparent luxury and no committments? We've met some jewelry designers that travel to China and SE Asia every year to source their gems, lots of older male retirees (and often with young, beautiful Asian wives, hmmmm), and a guy that runs an incense factory in Thailand. There doesn't seem to be a formula for figuring out a way to incorporate international travel and living, each person seems to find their own way.

So far our favorite meals have been the roll your own springrolls. We went to a traditional restaurant and were the only people there, with an overly attentive waitress who monitored our every move. We ordered something, which turned out to be goat (surprise!). They first served pickles, puckered little figs, leaves that looked like they had been plucked from a bush, and unripe starfruit. Gingerly eating everything, we concluded that this was the worst meal we had been served. Finally the goat was brought out, and we were taken pity on. Ah! You roll everything in the unsoaked rice paper and dip it in the sauce! The most amazing chemistry comes about when you combine all the sour, bitter, savory tastes in the roll, defying our previous judgement. Unripe starfruit is exquisite when you put it with everything else. Here's Ryan, rolling up a good one.