Karaoke

Across Asia karaoke is ubiquitous. Vietnam is not immune to the great attractions of communal singing, and those who have read Destination Saigon will know that I too have been known to succumb to its lure.
Back in my undergrad days, while doing Asian studies, I actually spent quite a bit of time looking at the academic study of karaoke (confined, for the most part, to Japan and Korea), and so I find it not only socially attractive, but intellectually fascinating.
This is a pic of my good friend Thien, who is in fact an industry insider. He is head waiter at a karaoke palace in the suburbs of Ho Chi Minh City, and was always packed full of good karaoke gossip whenever we met. The things that go on in karaoke bars in Vietnam would make your hair curl.
He would also book a room for us on a slow afternoon and invite the entire waiting staff to join us for an afternoon's revel (beer paid for by me, naturally).
My advice to anyone planning to spend any time in Asia is to work out a karaoke repertoire now - you will almost certainly be called upon to sing in public. Best to be prepared.

Macau - Inspirations Along the Way #5

One of the pics I kept on the wall above my computer as I was writing Destination Saigon was of the ruins of St. Pauls in Macau.



It might seem an unlikely inspiration when writing a book about Vietnam, but Macau is one of my favourite places in the world, and whenever I think about it I become excited, literary and ever-so-romantic.




It is just one of those places. For centuries it's been a retreat for criminals, vagabonds, dissidents and every sort of neer-do-well. It has always played host to gangsters, pirates and every shade of underworld figure imaginable. It is, quite possibly, the most enchanting and fascinating island in the world, and I can never get enough of it.
I really hope to write a book about Macau one day, and I certainly plan on spending more time there in the coming years.
And no, I am not a gambler - I only ever set foot in the casinos to enjoy the outrageous buffets or admire the ultra-kitsch decors and architecture. But mostly I love the old Macau, the crowded, cobbled streets filled with churches, temples, restaurants and curio shops.



Just walking down a Macau street makes me happy, and makes me thankful that I live in such an incredible world filled with so much diversity and mystery.




It may take me a few years, but some day soon I am going to hole myself up in a little Macau hostelry and write the definitive book on the island.



Until then I will let my memories of the place inspire me in all of my creative efforts.

Hello Kitty

You see a lot of Hello Kitty in Vietnam.
I was delighted recently to read in the blog of one of my Twitter friends (Vietnam720) that a Hello Kitty shop has now opened in Saigon. I am so there as soon as I get back to Vietnam.
To me, Hello Kitty is just another manifestation of the feminine Divine - I'm being serious about this!
In so many ways Hello Kitty is THE great Asian Goddess. I am certain that in a thousand years time, when archaeologists are digging up the great cities of Asia, they will simply assume that people worshipped this mouthless pink cat with a ribbon in her hair, so ever-present is her image. Hello Kitty fascinates me, and I do plan to write a book about her one day – no-one better steal that idea. That’s my retirement book right there. I know an awful lot about Kitty, having once lived above a Hello Kitty shop in Taiwan. I know, for example, that Hello Kitty weighs exactly the same as three apples.
Look it up people – this kind of information is out there.


(Photo by Vietnam720)