Rest Better on Airplane Mode
May 26, 2020
Life in Saigon has resumed to normal from COVID-19 for several weeks now, and so has the city’s infamous hustle and bustle. This lively city felt suffocating after a month of calm. The Vietnamese government successfully kept the COVID-19 pandemic under control, in what felt like a flip of a switch. Just as suddenly as the city went quiet, it…
Read More
Saigon Visitor Guide: Restaurants, Cafés, and More
May 21, 2020
Ho Chi Minh City, more commonly referred to locally as Saigon, is a vibrant and energetic city. The rapid urban development leads to an ever-changing city, balancing between the new and old. My favorite thing to do in Saigon, as is in any city, is to wander aimlessly, looking into alleyways. Saigon has no shortage of hidden gems. I love…
Read More
Practice Cooking Meditation to Live Slower
April 23, 2020
Like many, I’ve been cooking and baking up the storm. But for me, this has been going on well before the global pandemic began. I’ve had some time to reflect on why cooking brings me so much joy, and why you, too, should practice cooking meditation. An Incapable Cook in College In college, I was a terrible cook. I often…
Read More
2020 Q1 Business Update
April 11, 2020
The first quarter of 2020 felt never-ending. Amid a global pandemic and a new job, I managed very little progress with the blog. I contemplated whether to continue these updates, since this blog, much like my new day job, is more a nonprofit endeavor than a business. Out of curiosity, I went back to the first update I published a…
Read More
Saigon in the Time of Corona
March 30, 2020
By now, you are probably so tired of reading about Covid-19, the novel coronavirus that has led to a global pandemic. I’m impressed if you even clicked on the link to get here. If you got here by accident, feel free to close the tab. My feelings won’t be hurt. Like most of the writing on this blog, this post…
Read More
Tet Holiday on Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam
March 29, 2020
After our year-long whirlwind travel, we were looking for a vacation. Not travel, but a vacation, where we don’t feel pressured to check out all the sites, and hanging out all day by the beach is perfectly acceptable. Five days on Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam checked the boxes. The Night Before Tet Holiday We flew out the night before…
Read More
A Toddler Taught Me How to Live More Intentionally
March 8, 2020
For 2020, I had set the year’s theme to “Live More Intentionally.” I wasn’t sure how I was going to achieve this other than being slightly more aware of my daily activities. Before getting a new job, I had booked a three-week trip to St. Louis to spend time with my nephew. I was looking forward to some quality family…
Read More
The Luxury of Doing What You Love
January 22, 2020
On a Monday morning, as I sat in the Grab car that is weaving through Saigon’s nutty morning traffic going a new job I love, a thought came to me, “Doing What You Love is a Luxury.” I was immediately filled with gratitude as I bask in this very luxury that I couldn’t afford just a few years ago. The…
Read More2019 Q4 Business Update
January 12, 2020
After the existential exploration of my writer identity in Q3, I decided to focus on writing in Q4, and worry about everything else (how to make money, career, etc.) next year. While I dove into writing, the universe presented new plans on how I should spend time in 2020. #NaNoWriMo Writing Challenge In the world of blogging, it’s easy to…
Read More
2019 Year-in-Review: Be Uncomfortable
December 30, 2019
Year-in-Review post is always my favorite post to write each year. It allows me to reflect on the year, identify all of the marvelous changes, and prepare for the year ahead. Usually, I lament at how quickly time has passed. But for 2019, I marvel at the way January feels like a lifetime ago. This year, I gave myself a…
Read More