Found

It always feels great to find things.

Finding things is part of the ex-pat experience, and once we find things, we tend to share the information with others who are part of the wider circles in which we live and move. Mostly because of our shared need, but also that deep, inner sense of having just 'discovered' something - that wonderful elation of finding the 'buried treasure'!!

Some buried treasure comes on a map with an 'x' to mark the spot where it is worth trying a dig or two. Some buried treasure is shrouded in mystery and myth - so you wade through the stories and try to glean the truth embedded in the tales.

Citric acid may not sound like treasure to you, but to me it represents one of the very few items of treasure that remained elusive. I use it when I make cordial - usually lemon cordial. I really prefer home-made lemon cordial as I know what is in it - and it's delicious too, of course. However, it does require some citric acid to finish it off, and help it to keep. This item became part of my 'find the buried treasure' game that we ex-pats play.

Excitement - the moment you find it on a shelf in a shop whilst looking for other things! Our 'go-to' shops are in district 1 and seem to stock everything an ex-pat would ever want or need. I've found lots of exciting treasures there, from good quality rolled oats to mixed spice, from stone-ground unbleached flour, to vegemite. A certified 'Aladdin's cave'.

Tailors are also treasures - but a great tailor becomes the prized jewel that is sometimes jealously guarded. This type of treasure is revealed via the afore-mentioned 'map with the X'....if you dare....you need to step confidently into the taxi, show the address, and then sit back for one of the more adventuresome taxi-rides as you take turn after turn into more and more traffic. The prize at the end is well worth the hairy ride....this tailor is one of the best, and can create a wardrobe that will be certain to fit you perfectly at a fraction of the cost back in your (western!) home country.  I am now the proud owner of 7 new skirts, all based on my favourite Wild South one from a few years back, but made in so many different patterns that the similarity of style doesn't matter at all. Along with the skirts are a selection of tops that could be made with the left-over fabric - all perfectly fitted, and looking fantastic.

 Another great find is the flower market - not that I am 'in the market' for flowers, it is just a feast for the eyes and nose, even on a wet Saigon morning. These beautiful bunches of roses went for about $3NZD - $5 - with about 50 in each bunch, I can't figure how on earth the rose growers make any money.  One of the mysteries of life in Vietnam...

 Ho Chi Minh is a city of hide-away-places, and one of the other joys is finding the wonderful cafes, restaurants, shops etc, which can sometimes be missed when driving around as they exist down side-streets, behind alleyways, upstairs above other less interesting looking businesses. Recommendations from colleagues are worth their weight in gold, but finding places still can take a bit of patience and fortitude as the signs are sometimes obscured, and easily missed. Some new favourites have taken the place from where our first discoveries once stood. 

Nha Hang Ngon is one of those recommended places, where it is safe for foreigners to try local street food - in a environment where food safety is a consideration, and personal comfort (aka bathrooms) is catered for.  A great place to try some of the local delicacies, and at a pretty good price. Dinner for two with a drink - about $30-40.


Finding newness in everyday activites like eating, shopping, and simply getting around helps to make the everyday life in a different place more exciting. Settling into patterns happens soon enough, and before long we will become 'regulars' at some of the places we have discovered. With our current dispostition of 'wanderlust' I'm sure we will continue finding treasures for many months, perhaps years, to come.

As I dip my carrot stick into the hummus dip made at home using the prized garbanzo beans and tahini paste procured on an earlier food expedition, I am amazed once again at home the world is really quite an amazing place, with so many different people groups being able to live side by side. Here's to travel, multi-culturalism, and peace!