Exercise regime in Vietnam.

When away from home, it is easy to get out of the exercise habit, so I have. I do try a bit. Many years, well about 8 years ago, I was shown some Pilates exercises by an instructor. I had to pay her, for the instruction too. They are easy to do, so I do them for about 45 minutes every 3 days or so. The “so” part varying greatly. Some days I wander onto the veranda, when I get up, and think I’ll go for a walk. Good exercise for me, even if it is not enjoyed. This works out really well. The first time I went, I headed left out of the house and got about 150 metres. There were four of the neighbourhood ladies swinging in the hammocks outside Co Ba’s house. They stopped me for a chat, so I sat for a few minutes trying to understand them and vice versa, then Co Ba sent her son to go and make cafe da and told me to wait, so I waited and the coffee appeared and we nattered and people, kids and various animals, came and went. Not that kids aren’t people. I sat a bit longer, then Dung appeared and ordered me home for breakfast, so I did about 300 metres in an hour. Pretty good going.

Another day, I hung a left and managed to sneak past Co Ba’s, there were no people in the hammocks. I wandered on around a few turns in the path and onto a field in front of a house, the path continued about 50 metres on over the field. The bloke who lives in the  house by the field was putting his cow out to graze. He wandered off, into somebody else’s land, I think, staked the rope that was around the cow’s neck and wandered back. He stopped by me and we did some pidgeon Vietnamese, at least I did, his was perfect. I got the drift, he invited me to drink tea at his place. A local custom to make friends. I had actually been to his house last time we were in Vietnam, but he was 3 sheets to the wind on ruou, so he probably didn’t remember. It was his 2 girls who were jumping in our pond when it lashed down. I think his wife has a hard time, she goes off to work in a factory and from what I have seen, comes home to work again. Dung says she will be alright when her old man pegs it, as he has plenty of land. Dung thinks he will kill himself drinking and smoking, but he looked healthy enough to me. We nattered about the always favourite football and did some more talking which I don’t think either of us understood, I drank some more tea and made my exit. I found out later he is selling some land and has offered it to me and Dung, but the goalposts keep changing, or the post of the land he wants to sell do.

Her Dad asked me for the tea. She is on her way home from shcool.

I set off over the field again and this time made it to path. The path stops about 50 metres short of the one by the house, because the land between it and the house belong to the householder and the land by the road to another man, who had tried to buy the land in between, but for some reason I don’t and probably never will understand, the householder wouldn’t sell, so the path stops short. Another 50 metres would have linked the up and coming industrial area to our neighbour hood. The workers in Tan Duc, the industrial area, who come from our place would have been happy to see it completed, it would have meant motos could go that way. Now, only a couple of ladies go on their push bikes, getting off for the missing path part. It seems once the road is built it becomes unofficial public property, or right of way. I can see that working in the UK with our ever friendly farmers etc.

One of the ladies who uses the unfinished path.

 Anyway, I continued on heading for Tan Duc. I was just curious where the path went. I meandered between houses, paddy fields and other agricultural plots. Not very far, if the truth be known, about a kilometre, 2 at the most. I get some strange looks, as if I have 2 heads as I wander, but a smile usually gets one in response. Sometimes the kids leg it crying and today was no exception. I got a welcome from a dog as I approached his home, as I passed it and after I had passed it. Alarms are not needed in Vietnam as most houses have dogs and barking is their favourite pastime. There bark is worse than their bite, usually one step in their direction and they bark “I’m going to tell my owner if you come any closer”, then they leg it. Although I am glad this one is behind a big fence. He is one of the biggest I have seen out here.

The house with the big dog alarm.

 I got some long looks from a lady in a non la, conical hat, as she walked home with her young daughter and her chau. True to form the daughter legged it off as soon as she saw that I have 2 heads. Plodding on a bit further, I recognised where I was, I think, that is to be proven, so I turned around, the sun was starting to get high and hot, like George Michael on a sunny beach. I offered some chat to the dog as passed this time, this seemed to appease him and he just followed me along the fence until I had passed. I fooled him though, because I didn’t keep going, I turned a sharp right just past his fence and mossied across the field next to his house. He fooled me though, he spotted me and came over to check me out, but no barking. I went to check out some land. The field looked dry, so off I went, it was too, mostly dry. The cow  had made it a bit uneven, it must have been staked here regularly and when the land was wet, as hoof prints are everywhere. The paddy fields look really beautiful when the rice is at it’s greenest, flat or not, there is something about them that catches the eye and imagination. I think it must be harvest time soon, as more and more fields are turning luscious green. They had better ripen soon, it is New Year in about 30 days and I think life slows down for a while around this time, except in the drinking stakes. Done with my trekking, I set off home. I had picked up a stick, a small branch from tree when I got to the rougher area, so I stashed this for my next foray in this direction. I think I have worked out a good loop, with a cafe half way around, so I’ll bring a few bob for a brew and a break.

The next time I sauntered out onto the veranda after lazily awakening, for this morning’s exercise regime, I decided it was time to go right. Actually I was going over to see Ki Ki, the toddler over the way, she was playing out front by herself, but by the time I got there she had gone indoors to see her uncle who arrived before me, so I just kept going, to where I didn’t know, but sometimes that is the best way to keep going. I said a few hellos along the way and got a few smiles back, then I hung a left into territory unknown, but I have a feeling this is a shortcut into the back end of town. There were a few twists and turns along the way and another bloke staking out his cow. This lad just asked if I was out exercising. I said yes and that was more or less it. I think I should know him, but the face doesn’t ring any bells yet. I definitely should know him, he cut back across the field to what, I now see, will be a short cut home, he lives on our lane, but where I don’t know yet. The path is a bit narrow through the fields, but it can’t be that narrow, as a few motos come past me. I stepped aside, so it is a bit narrow. Meandering on I could see the back end of town ahead. There are a few rooms to rent along this way, but none are inhabited. It is a bit out of the way, in fact there are a few unoccupied houses along this track. Perhaps the government has bought the owners out, but as far as I know this is not a development area. This area just seems a bit rundown and it is only a couple of hundred metres from our area and that isn’t rundown. It isn’t thriving, but definitely not rundown. What do I know. I plodded along and an old dear spotted me from behind the hedge that separates her house from the track, she shouts and then informs her companions that there is a bloke out here with 2  heads. She wasn’t like that. The 3 ladies came out and nattered and chuckled, but the oldest lady was determined to get me to go for a natter and how could I resist an 88 year old, charming, little lady. Impossible, she grabbed my arm and wasn’t letting go until I had been in their house. I sat on the traditional wooden bed, which doubles as a chair, triples as a sofa and so on. They are smashing old pieces of furniture and don’t look out of place in the living room. The ladies start to give me the 3^rd degree. I will have to improve my Vietnamese. We had a good laugh. One of the others  is 75 and the last younger, she wasn’t giving out here age. The eldest lady got out her betel nut tin and started to roll a chew. I was determined to watch, as I have never seen these being rolled. The ladies chew them and spit brown gue, like the old cowboys and baseball players chewing baccy. I was so determined that I missed it again. There was too much nattering going on and another lady was going passed on her bike and got called in to see this strange being. This lady knew me and so filled in the others as to which planet I come from. The ladies are very lovely, full of laughs, good fun. The eldest lady checked out my arms to see how strong I was, after it had been noted that my arms and legs are a bit thin. The spritely 88 year old rolled up her trouser leg to show me how strong she is and flexed her arm muscles for me to check. She must smile more than most 88 year olds. A smile was hardly ever off her face. She loved the fact I was there talking to them, or that is the impression I got. I decided to trog on a bit, so begged my leave. I was asked to go back tomorrow, but I never know where my strict exercise regime will take me next, it could be any of the far reaches of Duc Hoa. I did agree to return though. I’ll have to get a packet of biscuits or something to take along. Perhaps they will put the finishing touches to the old dears teeth, the betel nuts do not do them any favours. I carried on a way and found a couple more unoccupied places and then a dead end, which is nearly what this area seems, a bit of a dead end, so I headed back. The track does go into town, many motos head this way, but not to the dead end I went to. I got another burst of chatter from the ladies as I headed back and I took the shortcut across the field and through some people’s front yards, collecting a few smiles along the way. The houses in Vietnam vary greatly within a few metres. There can be a rundown, hanging together with mud house next to a new 3 storie affair and next a traditional Vietnamese style mid of the range house with pigs out the back and all 3 houses will have chickens and at least one dog. It is an interesting country and I don’t have to go far to be intrigued by what I find and now I have found my way home, so TTFN. Until the next tough exercise session.