Lost In Viet NamA love story

Field Study Aims

• Better understanding of street food in Saigon and Hanoi

• Learn where the food comes from• Find differences between hanoi cuisine and

saigon cuisine• See how cities affect minority groups on

outskirts

Changes

• Original plan to volunteer at food stalls fell through.

• Fell in love with the city again and was inspired to write

• Wrote more in the past 6 weeks than I have in the past 2 years at Evergreen.

• Developed my own recipes throughout my time here

More changes

• Immersed myself in street life culture in Saigon and Hanoi

• Daily sat on the street at a café, drinking tea and talking with locals

• Had several near death experiences in the city.• Found myself and discovered what I want to

do with my life.• Improved my Vietnamese

Changes Cont

• Took nearly 2000 pictures.• Stayed at a Vietnamese house for two weeks

and cooked meals for the family• Spent four days in a mountain town (city)

populated by hill tribes.• Spent a weekend at a fancy hotel living the

high class life in Saigon• Experienced birthdays, deaths and births

Week 1

• Drove nearly 20 km to district 9 on the outskirts of Saigon.

• Had a feast with a Vietnamese family, didn’t spend any money

• Used a makeshift grill

Use what’s at hand

Week 2

• Mi quang-Turmeric noodle pork and shrimp dish

• Sparrows• Thai-style Vietnamese hot pot• Chicken Feet

Weekend in Hanoi

• Flew solo in the kitchen for the first time• Made caramelized catfish• Saw a woman who runs a pho stall making her

chili sauce• Ate some spring rolls• Rained like crazy

Frogs and traffic

• Met an old friend• Got stuck in traffic• Ate some frog curry

Chicken

• Chicken salad• Chicken soup• Chicken pieces

Nha Trang

• Locals• Tourists• Fun in the sun

Moving North

• Went back to Hanoi• Cooked for a family• Took an overnight train to Sapa, a mountain

town about 9 hours northwest of Hanoi.• Motorbiked and hiked through the hill tribes.