I have no agenda for the day, so I have been wandering, mostly in the Old Quarter. I started my day with a visit to a pagoda just south of the Old Quarter, Quan Su. I've read that it's one of the busiest pagodas in Hanoi. ("Pagoda" is a word used only for Buddhist temples in Vietnam. There are many other kinds of temples, but only Buddhist temples are "pagodas.") Indeed, there were a number of people chanting, praying, and doing prostrations. Not for the first time, I noted that most of them were women.

Then I slowly walked back to the shores of Hoan Kiem Lake. It was late morning and it's a hot day, so I treated myself to a small cone of green rice ice cream. (My friends and family know that in the U.S., I follow a vegan diet. I have found it challenging to do that while travelling and still stay healthy, so while I am in Vietnam, I am enjoying a vegetarian--but not vegan--diet!)

Then I did some shopping. A friend asked me to bring her a water puppet, so I stopped into several stores until I found one I liked. I hope she likes it, too! The same shop sold items made by some of the indigenous people of Vietnam, and I fell in love with two jackets made by the Hmong people. So those found their way into the bargaining...

For the third time during my stays in Hanoi, I ate at the Hanoi Garden restaurant. It is next door to my hotel, so it's convenient, but it's also lovely and quiet, and the food is good. I chatted with a couple from New Zealand and made notes in my journal. Then I walked to a lovely cafe/restaurant, Moca, near the main cathedral in Hanoi, and sipped what will probably be my last cup of Vietnamese coffee here.

Finally, I walked up to the north end of the Old Quarter to Baguette and Chocolate, a cafe that employs and trains Hanoi street children. They have a delectable selection of French pastries. I had one very small pear tart and wished I had room to sample something else. Now I am back in my lovely hotel, the Hong Ngoc Hotel on Hong Manh street, settled into a cool suite five stories above the horns and motorcycles. (See a few new photos, including one of Hong Ngoc, at the end of my photo album at http://tinyurl.com/2sbdac.)

I'll return to the U.S. with a few items to remind me of this beautiful country, with many photos, and a journal full of memories. It is, however, the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh and the wisdom of the many Dharma friends I met and travelled with that will stay with me the longest. I read an article on the Internet that said over 2,000 people turned out for the Great Requiem ceremony in Hanoi this past weekend. That is such wonderful news! During one of his Dharma talks, Thay said:

"The seeds of Buddhism have sprouted green and fresh in the soil of the West. Practice there is very different than it is in Vietnam. People do not offer fruit and incense. Buddhism in the West is not for devotion but for concrete methods of practice to unravel difficulties. Donation and devotion [as practiced in Vietnam] can help us relieve suffering, but Buddhism isn't only a religion. It is a source of wisdom that can help us and help us to help others."

Integrating traditional Vietnamese Buddhism with the practices of mindfulness that Thich Nhat Hanh has taught so successfully in the West will be an ongoing effort. I have appreciated the soothing effects of devotional Buddhism here, feeling at peace in the incense smoke and dark, cool interiors of the temples. But I also know personally the great benefits of mindfulness practice and wish for all Vietnamese Buddhists that they will find a way to incorporate these beautiful practices into their existing traditions. And I thank them for all that they have taught me during my time as a guest here. Nam mô A-di-đà Phật

Farewell to Vietnam remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Malacca is a beautiful town with a rich history. A seaport, it has been home to Chinese, Indians, Portuguese, Dutch, Japanese, and British. Each group has left its mark to some extent. Ivy said that the city had changed a lot since she was last there in the early/mid 1990s. The four or five museums we visited were all new, and there were a couple of new shopping malls. ("Malaysians love to shop," Ivy tells me.)

We enjoyed dinner last night at what we Westerners would call an outdoor food court, a style of eating I'd experienced before in Malaysia. But this food court was in a beautiful new building with a historic feel. It isn't easy being a vegetarian in Malaysia, but I got to sample some Indonesian specialties, including cassava greens and bamboo shoots! And I washed it all down with the juice of a fragrant coconut.

The museums we visited were quite interesting. I was as taken by the buildings as I was by some of the exhibits. The city has done a lovely job of adaptive reuse of some of the historic structures. The streets in the downtown area are quite narrow. Small shops and homes line the streets behind shaded walkways. Some of the buildings are painted a deep, rich brick red, and many have tile roofs. We returned to K.L. this afternoon, and I enjoyed a home-cooked meal and got to eat my first fresh durian. YUM!!

(See recent photos at http://tinyurl.com/32g6hw.)

I continue to think about the rich teachings from Thay. Malaysia celebrates 50 years of independence this year. Like many countries, their independence was hard won, although independence here seems to have been marked by less violence than in other areas. The primary reason for Thay's visit to Vietnam was to conduct three Great Requiem Ceremonies to help heal the wounds of war in his native land. Here are some of the words from the ceremony, which certainly are a powerful invocation for Vietnam, but are equally meaningful in many other situations marked by conflict:

"We vow that from now on we will not let the country be separated again, not even one more time. From now on, when there are internal difficulties, we will not request the help of any foreign power to intervene with weapons and troops in our country. From now on, we will not start a way for any ideology. From now on, we will not use foreign weapons to kill each other. From now on we will use our best efforts to build a society with real democracy, to be able to resolve all kinds of disagreements by peaceful democratic methods, and we will not resort to violence against fellow countrymen and countrywomen.

We vow...to build a brotherhood/sisterhood and mutual love of fellow countrymen and countrywomen. We will remember that pumpkin vines and squash vines can share a single frame, that chickens from the same mother will never fight each other. This insight from our ancestors will shine out its light for us, now and forever."

Magical Malacca remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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This is my first visit to peninsular Malaysia. I travelled to Sarawak, on Borneo, with my husband over a decade ago. That was when I met Ivy Wong, the friend I am visiting here, and got to know her when she was a university student. She's now married, has two beautiful daughters, and has a position with the World Wildlife Federation-Malaysia.

Today, I spent the day today touring KL, which is a beautiful city, and sampling some of the wonderful foods that Malaysia has to offer. Malaysia is a tantalizing mixture of ethnicities. There are many, many indigenous peoples, plus communities of Chinese and Indians. Today, we had a fabulous Indian lunch and a delicious Chinese dinner, with a foamy cup of cappuccino in between! No suffering on the food front here... We also saw an interesting photojournalism exhibition celebrating the 50th anniversary of Malaysian independence.

K.L. is also a bit of culture shock after Vietnam. Although K.L. is only a three-hour flight and one time zone away from Hanoi, in many respects, the two countries are worlds apart. Peninsular Malaysia is predominantly Muslim, while most Hanoi residents are Buddhist. This part of Malaysia is also quite prosperous compared to Vietnam. I see late-model cars everywhere (which leads to late-model traffic jams...), and there are numerous huge shopping malls with all the latest fashions. Prices are also a big contrast. Vietnam is extremely affordable by Western standards. A room at a 5-star hotel can be had for $100 a night. Here, prices are much closer to U.S. standards.

Tomorrow, we are heading for Malacca, a historic town on the west coast. I'm sure I'll learn a lot of Malaysian history!

On the Dharma front, I am missing my friends from the delegation, most of whom have returned to the many corners of the earth they call home. When I feel their absence most acutely, I try to remember the many nourishing practices we enjoyed together.

mindful eating
reciting the Five Contemplations before meals
sitting meditation
walking meditation
Noble Silence
sharing in Dharma families
chanting
singing Dharma songs
Dharma talks
touching the earth
paying mindful attention to my Second Body (a wonderful Aussie named Perrie)
the Five Mindfulness Trainings
full body relaxation
the bell

Side trip to Kuala Lumpur remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The bus ride was really enjoyable. Vietnamese people are quite friendly and are always eager to practice their English, even if it goes no farther than, “Where you from?” and “How old are you?” (We've decided these must be the first two questions that they learn in English class. I suppose no one has told them that, in most places in the English-speaking world, “How old are you?” is not the best opening line with strangers.) We chatted with a couple of students on the bus. One older woman, wearing a distinctive brown hat, eyed us a little warily during the ride out to Bat Trang. On the way back, she boarded the bus with a young man, did a double-take and then gave us the biggest smile. It was sweet to reconnect with her, even though our only relationship was exchanging glances on a bus.

That evening, we went to the Old Quarter to meet Pham for dinner. We arrived early, so we strolled up and down the streets. It's a dizzying bazaar of tiny shops spilling out onto the narrow sidewalks. The sidewalks are for everything but walking. There are displays of merchandise, small outdoor restaurant operations with tiny tables surrounded by Vietnamese having bowls of soup, hundreds—no, thousands—of motorcycles arrayed in lines. All crowded onto already narrow sidewalks.

The streets were traditionally organized around specific trades, and to a large extent, like stores still cluster together. Last night, we wandered around the street devoted to supplies for temples and home altars. The early evening darkness made it very dramatic—the red banners and lights, the gold altar acoutrements, the bright statues.

Today was Sandra's last day in Vietnam, so we planned our agenda around what she most wanted to do. We took a taxi to the largest market in Hanoi and browsed around. Then she suggested going to the Museum of Ethnology, which is very well known. We took a long (and over-priced) taxi ride there and spent several hours going through the museum. There was a special performance of the water puppets in an outdoor pool. Having already seen then in an indoor theatre in Hanoi, it was fun to see them in a more natural setting.

The museum has a large collection of buildings representative of the lifestyles of the many indigenous peoples of Vietnam. This was a side of the country that we missed on our big-city tour, so it was really enjoyable and educational for us.

Tonight, I enjoyed what will probably be my final temple meal. We returned to the Bo De Temple, where we ate yesterday, for a lovely meal. The temple has an orphanage that is home to 40 children, and many of them were running around this evening.

It isn't clear to most of us what the next few weeks in Hanoi will bring for Thay and the monastic and lay delegation. It seems, although no one has told us so, that officials here are not as enthusiastic about this visit as those in other areas of the country. Tomorrow, Thay is giving a Dharma talk at a temple about an hour outside the city, and it is likely that that is where the weekend ceremonies for the deceased will take place. The forthcoming celebrations of the reunification of the country and of May 1st will be an interesting juxtaposition to the Dharma that Thay is bringing to the Vietnamese people.

Tomorrow evening, I leave for Kuala Lumpur to visit my friend, Ivy Wong, and her family for a few days. It will be sad to leave my delegation friends, but our practice teaches us that we really are never separated from each other, so we will try to follow that practice as we say goodbye to each other.

[See new photos at http://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=jumpalagi&P=&AID=4398711&CID=1948278&T=1&E=Y&ILD=3281253

Last days in Hanoi remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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sunrise over river boats...
people exercising at daybreak near lakes, sea, rivers...
Vietnamese laypeople fanning us at temple as we fanned young monks...
silent meal with 2000 people...
walking meditation with 2000 people...
beautiful 5-color Buddhist flags flying at temples...
tiny lizards in the bedroom...
bats flying at sunset...
cicadas singing...
sitting in a puddle of water listening to a Dharma talk...
standing in formal procession with sweat running down my spine...
listening to talks in Vietnamese and understanding only two phrases: Vietnam and Thich Nhat Hanh...
Vietnamese lady who sat in section reserved for Westerners and hit the guards when they tried to move her.

These are a few of the things I will remember about this trip, and memories that sustain me here when it is challenging to be here. What also sustains me is the mindful practice of the delegation and the love and messages from friends and family back home.

Moments in Vietnam remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The massage therapist who drew the short straw and got me was a 20-something-year-old, probably from south Vietnam, although we actually didn't talk much. After hearing for years about the joy of having someone walk on your back, I finally experienced it for myself. She climbed on the massage table and started walking up my legs and onto my back. Every few steps, she'd stop, dig her toes into my back and crack it. Massage and chiropractic all in one! Then she turned me over, massaged my face and head and proceeded to crack my neck.

Earlier in the morning, the delegation was treated to a ferry ride over to Bamboo Island and the Vinpearl resort. Thay had been invited there, and we all accompanied him over. We were given a tour and then taken to a huge air-conditioned auditorium. The resort representative made a few remarks and then the exchange of gifts took place. As always, Thay offered a gift of his calligraphy.

Then Thay went on to tell us about the calligraphy. He sat at a small table on the large stage and, in his very calm and quiet voice, recited to us a line of poetry from a Vietnamese Zen master. The gist of it is this: the silk thread from the stem of the lotus can bind the tiger.

When the stem of a lotus flower is broken, there is a filament inside that holds the pieces together. This thin thread is very, very strong. A friend here told me that, in Burma, they actually harvest the fiber and weave fabric from it. In any event, the significance of this line of poetry is that our habit energies are strong, like a tiger. Our practice, which is gentle but strong, like the thread of the lotus, can calm and control the tiger.

We were all refreshed by this short and unexpected Dharma talk, even those of us who had thought we were going to be treated to a few hours on the beach at this resort. Instead, after the talk, we went to a cable car station and climbed aboard gondolas for the trip back to the mainland. It was a beautiful trip back across the water and is apparently the longest cable car in the world.

Today, we got up early and flew to Hanoi for the final stop on this segment of the trip. About 40 of the lay delegation traveled with Thay and the monastics. It was a treat to be with them, especially away from the craziness of the photographers who follow Thay everywhere.

It is good to be back in Hanoi, which feels a bit like home. It is cooler here and overcast. The traffic is horrible, and the pollution is stifling, but it is still a pleasure to be here.

Mud baths and mineral waters remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Nha Trang, like most of the cities in Vietnam we have visited, seems to be on the verge of an economic boom. There are numerous large hotels being built within a short distance of the beach. What was once a sleepy fishing village is now a destination for tourists from Asia and from the West. There is good diving here, so we see dive shops and companies offering outings. The beach is lovely, wrapping around a bay and looking across at mountains that seem to rise straight out of the sea. I haven't been in the water yet, but I'm told it's wonderful—very warm, which is wonderful by my standards! It seems the currents are also strong.

This is the first place I've seen a lot of litter. One of my friends here, who lives in India, said it was the first place she'd been that reminded her of India in that way. It would seem important, if Nha Trang really wants to capitalize on tourism, that they find a way to stem the tide of litter.

We went this morning to Long Son Pagoda, which was founded in the late 19th century. There is a huge white statue of the Buddha at the top of a hill on the property. He gazes out over the city and can be seen from many places down below.

The abbot of Long Son is an old friend of Thich Nhat Hanh, and many greetings were exchanged between the two octogenarians. There was clearly a great deal of affection. At one point, Thich Nhat Hanh commented that the abbot had been “a cute novice,” and that even now that he was older, he was so fresh and lively that he could “take a bite out of his cheeks,” which, in fact, do look a lot like apples. We were served lunch there today. Two soups, one warm and one cold...fresh pineapple...a salad of mushrooms with tomato sauce...vegetables...fried tofu croquettes...and the most divine coconut buns for dessert. As with all the temple food we've enjoyed, this was prepared with so much love that you could taste it!

The cathedral, which we visited yesterday, is also built on a promontory. Mass was taking place as we arrived just after 5, so we enjoyed a little of the beautiful ceremony, which concluded with some of the congregation walking out to a small alcove with a statue of the Virgin Mary to pray before leaving.

This afternoon, I've had some time to go back through the notes I've taken during some of Thay's Dharma talks. Much of the time, I just listen—a practice we call “Dharma rain,” just soaking up the teaching the way the earth soaks up the rain. But sometimes, the teachings are so wonderful, that I just have to make a note or two. Here are a few excerpts. If you do not understand them, treat them like Dharma rain.

Anger is like a fist. Mindfulness is like an open hand that can embrace it, like a mother who drops everything to attend to a crying child. We should acknowledge the suffering and embrace it. This is our practice.

We are like clouds. Clouds are not born, nor do they die. They can change form. They can become rain or snow. But they do not die. The cloud is in our tea, as water. The cloud is in our bodies, as blood. In the relative/conditioned realm, birth and death exist. But in the ultimate realm, they do not. We think when we die, we will no longer be here. We think when our loved ones die, that they are no longer around, but that is not true. Yesterday's cloud is today's rain. Our loved ones are still there and may be close to us. Like clouds, we manifest when conditions are appropriate and change forms when conditions are no longer appropriate.

Breathing in, I invite my father to breathe in with me.
Breathing out, I feel joy.
Breathing in, I smile to the mother within me.
Breathing out, I invite my mother to breathe out with me at the same time.
The two of us together, breathing in, what great joy.
Breathing out, I invite my mother to breath out with me at the same time.
The two of us breathing out together, such great joy.
Breathing in, I fell well.
Breathing in, do you feel well, mother?
Breathing out, I feel light.
Breathing out, do you feel light, mother?
Today I am here with my father.
Today, I invite my mother to sit with me.
It is a great joy.

(With love to my parents, who are with me here, now, and always.)

Dharma sunshine and Dharma rain remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The first two temples we visited were outside Hoi An. They were quite old--someone said 400 or more years old--and so beautiful and peaceful. All the temples have gardens. Some are large, as at Thay's root temple, Thien Mu, and some are small. But always, there are lovingly tended plants, many cultivated in a sort of bonsai style, although much larger.

The Vietnamese also have a lovely form of water garden that I've fallen in love with. It represents a mountain and is surrounded by a pool of water. These are constructed in basins or small ponds and come in many sizes. There are usually bonsai or small plants placed on the rock, and often small figurines. Sometimes there are fish in the pools. They are so peaceful and lovely.

At each temple, we are greeted by the venerables (the monks who are in charge at the temple). There is always an exchange of gifts, as well. And invariably, we get water, cookies, or a meal.

Our luncheon in Hoi An was at a large temple, and the meal was the most amazing one we've had. Not that every temple meal hasn't been delightful...believe me, they have been! But this one was a feast. The laypeople kept bringing plates of food. Just when I thought, "Okay, now THIS is it," here would come another exquisite platter. We were ravenous, having eaten breakfast at 5 a.m., so it was a little hard to know when to stop. And of course we wanted to try a little of each dish. At the end of the meal, we sang to the laypeople to thank them for their warmth and hospitality.

We had a little time to walk around Hoi An. It's a shopper's paradise. The town is well known for its clothing, and everywhere you look, there's a store with even more beautiful clothing than the last one. Several people had clothes tailored, including Sandra, who got the most divine outfits. (Don't worry, Billy, they were reasonably priced.)

Thay was invited by the owners of a resort outside Hoi An, and the entire delegation enjoyed a couple of hours of hospitality--a luscious buffet of fruit and cold drinks (and the ever-present Vietnamese coffee), a visit to the beach, a swing in the hammock. The monks played volleyball (my guess is that the Western family on the other side had no idea when they got up that morning that in the afternoon, they'd be lobbing the ball back and forth with a group of Buddhist monks!). The nuns went for a swim. It was a nice bit of downtime for all of us.

Yesterday, we deviated from the planned itinerary and took the train rather than the overnight bus. The train (the Reunification Express) was well maintained and the ride was so scenic. It was really the first we had seen of the Vietnamese countryside. Water buffalo, rice paddies, corn fields (yes, corn fields). Children playing soccer. Women and men tending the fields. It was like a moving meditation to watch the scenery.

Now we are in Nha Trang, a seaside resort. Not that we'll do much resort-ing. We have temples to visit!

See some new photos at http://tinyurl.com/326l3h.

Temple marathon remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Each day, we have enjoyed a Dharma talk from Thay. The first two days in Danang were marked by an incredible, indescribable festival at Kwan Um Temple. It you think "carnival," that's about as close as I can come to describing the atmosphere. The first night, the crowd was very lively and talkative. Thay had the monastics do a lot of chanting to try to help calm the crowd.

Thay's talk there, and the several he has given since, are marked by such warmth and compassion. Our Vietnamese Buddhist brothers and sisters practice a devotional form of Buddhism, which has its own beauty and effectiveness, but Thay's hope is to introduce the practice of mindfulness and to begin, ever so gently, to show people the simple forms of meditation that he has developed in his work with Westerners.

We have been to a number of temples here. At each one, on at least our initial visit, we participate in a formal procession with the monastics. Local people line the path, and we walk quietly and mindfully. Part of our role here is to embody the practice of mindfulness as much as possible.

I hope that it's clear from my few entries here how very much Vietnam has affected me. The warmth of the people, their gentleness and good humor, are endearing. As a Buddhist, I feel that the practices that Thay teaches will take root here. The quietness and tranquility are definitely present here. They may be buried under a few layers of "progress," but I do believe they are the nature of the people here.

On the tourist-y side, we did yesterday get a chance to do a little shopping in area of the Marble Mountain of Danang. Marble Mountain, among other things, is the site of a number caves where temples have been established. It isn't called Marble Mountain for nothing. There are many artisans in the area working in marble. We were able to browse in a few shops. I bought a beautiful marble Buddha.

Other than that brief shopping expedition, we did go to the central market in Danang. The markets are always an experience! Here and in Hue, the markets are buildings ringed by stands of people selling various foodstuffs. Inside, there are other vendors and, on the second floor, stalls selling fabric, shoes, and ready-made clothing.

On the cuisine front, we have been very well fed. We often eat at the temples, where the food is, of course, vegetarian. One person commented that the food is very sattvic, and it does feel that way. It is light, soothing, and delicious! In some places, the lay people prepare the food. In others, the nuns do much of the preparation. Always, the food is prepared with a great deal of love and mindfulness, and I know this makes the food taste better!

Tonight, a number of us are going on a boat cruise on the Han River. We'll have dinner and be entertained by musicians performing classical Vietnamese music.

Today has been a "lazy" day, meaning I chose not to accompany the rest of the delegation (120+ lay people and 200 or so monks and nuns) on temple visits and outings to the Cham Museum and beach. Our day yesterday was very, very long, and I needed some time to recuperate. Happily, it's acceptable to take a "lazy" day occasionally.

I will stop now. Rather than let this get too long, I'll try to post another entry in a day or so. I appreciate emails and comments on the blog and if I can't respond to them, know that I do get to read them and enjoy them!

Several days later... remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Arriving in Hue, we entered a different climate zone. It was 34 degrees C! Toasty. Many other group members arrived on the same flight, so slowly, we are becoming a travelling sangha.

The Green Hotel, our new home, is elegant and has all the amenities one could hope for...a lovely pool, a gymnasium, Internet access, restaurants, shops, and, of course, air conditioning. We settled into our rooms quickly. Sister Tue Nghiem greeted us and helped us get oriented. Each of us received a nametag, a grey robe, and a bowl. The grey robe identifies us as lay members of the sangha. The bowl is to use when we have meals at the pagodas.

With two hours of arrival, we were on a bus to a nearby hall to hear Thich Nhat Hanh give a public Dharma talk on power and happiness. Local government officials, as well as many monastics, were in the audience. Thay (the Vietnamese word for “teacher,” which we used respectfully to refer to Thich Nhat Hanh) spoke about the difficulties of power. He talked about the Iraq war and wondered whether George Bush, who has tremendous power, sleeps well at night. I suspect that most of us sitting and listening didn't have a hard time understanding that power is not a path to happiness.

Thay invited one of our fellow lay travellers, Cheri Maples, to speak to the audience about her experience as a police officer and a practitioner of mindfulness. Cheri was taken by complete surprise. She spoke about her work organizing mindfulness retreats and trainings for police officers and other criminal justice professionals and how it is possible to transform attitudes through mindfulness practice, even in those very challenging professions. (More information about this can be found at http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/thichnhathanh/transcript.shtml.)

Thay offered his Dharma talk in Vietnamese. Some of the nuns provided real-time translations for us as we sat on a veranda overlooking the Perfume River. As Thay spoke, the sun set, the bats emerged, and the geckos scampered across the walls.

Does George Bush sleep well at night? remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Preparing for departure remains copyright of the author jumpalagi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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