See the World Differently
A sharp squawk and some frantic scuffling caught our attention on the train in Vietnam. Subtly peeping between the seats, we saw a lady scrabbling around on the floor. She was berated by a member of staff and everything quickly settled down again. She had been sitting quietly, snacking on an orange and stuffing the […]
The barren landscape stretched as far as the eye could see, pockmarked with crater holes and devoid of vegetation. Looking up from the photo our guide was holding, the modern day reality could not have been more different. There were trees and flowers here and the undergrowth was so dense we could barely see the […]
We marched briskly, in neatly regimented rows, down the path and into the plaza. The bleak expanse of grey paving slabs perfectly matched the surrounding buildings and the steely sky above. We were led by a member of the military honour guard, dressed in a pristine white ceremonial uniform. He made a sharp left turn […]
As we stepped off the boat, gravity took over and we hit the sea with a splash. Icy water flooded into my oversized, baggy wetsuit and with the shock of the cold, I gasped for air. I’ve been here before I thought, diving in Tasmania, I just need to wait a minute to acclimatise to […]
Ever heard of a religion formed after somebody spoke to God at a seance? Around 100 years ago, a Vietnamese civil servant received a message from a spirit during a seance. Befriending the spirit, they spoke regularly and he finally concluded his new chum, Duc Cao Dai, was God. He introduced some friends to his […]
“No! No! Don’t sit!” the driver bellowed at the bewildered woman as she made a move towards the nearest empty seat. “But where can I sit?” she replied, clearly wondering how seat allocation might be managed on this curious mode of transport. “Anywhere” came the gruff but not overly helpful response. This general state of […]
At the first sight of enemy aircraft, the watchman hammered out a rhythm on the hunk of bomb casing. The clanking of the homemade gong warned the villagers of the impending attack and they ran for the nearest trench. Hidden beneath the undergrowth, the trenches led to the tunnels where families could safely wait out […]
With an explosion of sparks the scaly dragon burst from the water, twisting and writhing across the surface to the rapid rhythm of the drum. The dragon danced and whirled, stirring up the water as a cloud of acrid smoke from the fireworks rolled across the audience. We had guessed that a water puppet show […]
The impressive iron gates crumpled like paper as the tank rammed its way into the palace grounds. The communist forces of North Vietnam had finally seized the Independence Palace in Saigon, the heart of South Vietnam. This moment marked the end of the Vietnam war and the beginning of Vietnam’s reunification. Following the war, the […]
Crowded on the back deck, we all peered keenly into the turbid water. As one of the lures came up, we finally saw the pearly white tentacles we had been waiting for. A tiny squid was wriggling around next to the hooks, not quite caught but tantalisingly close. The back deck erupted with shouts and […]