The boys in green (Phu My Hung Security, the largest private army outside of the Vatican's Swiss gaurds) strutted their stuff this morning in a fire safety exercise and just happened to do it in the apartment adjacent to us on the same floor. We had ringside seats for this dramatic exercise involving fake victims being rushed out on stretchers, a smoke machine, victims abseiling from the 7th floor window in a rudimentary winch and hoses being unleashed with their full fury.
I played my part, standing on the balcony waving my arms and holding up the baby as if to say 'Save us, for gods sake save us!'. Some of the guards were laughing but I don't think the guy barking orders with a megaphone found it amusing. That aside, it was a serious exercise as this video will show - a volunteer (or not) guard crawling out of the window and abseiling down the building.
4 comments:
Thanks for the photos.
it seems VN is becoming more like Singapore (jungle of concretes). it'll lose the appeal of the third world charms: people living almost displayed on the street, the traffic, street foods, wierd signs... which draw tourists to VN in the first place.
Hey Viet
This part of Vietnam is more like Singapore...but still definitely Vietnam! This is not the area that attracts the tourists though...!
Yes I can remember back in 2009 my Vietnamese girlfriend proudly showing me Condos in Q7 and she couldn't understand how I didn't seem impressed. I however feel very much at home in the back alleys of Co Giang Ward off Tran Hung Dao St in Q1 where I have lived ever since. The locals all seem much friendlier than way out in Q7.
Only just discovered your blog when I was doing some research on Con Dao Island. Have enjoyed reading some of your stories and yes it is a good idea to let your daughter naturally take on the extra languages. As to her its not learning another language but merely communicating with her playmates. Hence not speaking to you in French at home because in her mind why would she bother as you wouldn't understand her so to her what would be the point. Kids are much more together than we often give them credit for. 30 years ago I learnt a Chinese dialect because I had a large Edwardian house with 13 Chinese students living there. It meant I had to practice every day but it was much easier than if I had taken formal Chinese lessons. Unfortunately it wasn't Mandarin otherwise I would still be speaking it today. In those days Mandarin didn't seem important just like learning to type didn't seem important way back when I went to school.
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