I'm not much for crowds; I get claustrophobic when I can't see what's around. But Asian crowds aren't so bad because everyone's so small. And last night (Christmas Eve), the streets were filled.
From the Opera House to the Ben Thanh Market, a critical mass of people, some walking but most on motorbikes, congregated to celebrate. While the outer lanes of traffic slowly lurched along with riders waving the red flag of Vietnam, the central lane down Le Loi was jammed with groups of people loitering around the odd drum circle (by drum, I mean any thing not tied down: bucket, water cooler, pots and pans, etc.).
But were all these people really that excited about the Fat Guy shimmying down their palm tree? Were they hoping to get their names on the naughty list? Were they out buying milk and cookies? Had they forgotten that Buddhists don't worship idols?
Hell no.
They were celebrating Vietnam's 2-1 victory over Thailand in the first round of the AFF Suzuki Cup Finals. This was a sweet win for Vietnam, pitted as the underdogs, and now the boys will bring it home to play the final in Hanoi on December 28th.
December 25, 2008
'Twas the Night Before Christmas
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1 comments:
Dear B. Hawkins Pham,
My name is John Wilpers. I am the Global Blog Coordinator for GlobalPost, a new international news organization set to launch on Jan. 12 (see www.globalpost.com).
My job is to build a list of blogs that will appear on GlobalPost where we will have approximately 65 correspondents in some 46 countries. We are looking for enlightening, informative posts from bloggers writing (in English) in those countries.
I am pleased to extend an invitation to you to have the most recent post of "Saigon Blues" included on the Vietnam page of GlobalPost.com as part of our "Global Blogs" service. (I also sent you an e-mail to double the chances of reaching you before we launch next week. Please pardon my enthusiasm for getting your posts onto GlobalPost.com!)
After reviewing thousands of blogs worldwide, we have found "Saigon Blues" to be one that is thought provoking and gives readers your unique perspective on what life is really like in Vietnam.
The way it would work if you accept our invitation is that we would use your RSS feed to place your most recent post on your personal page on GlobalPost.com. We would point back to your actual blog for comments and for archives, hopefully driving lots of traffic to your site. Each time you write a new post, it would replace the older one so only one post would appear on GlobalPost.com.
By appearing on Global Post's exciting new international news website, your words, viewpoints, and pictures would gain worldwide exposure. Your posts would not only appear instantly on globalpost.com but also possibly on the sites of our partners, including the Huffington Post (7.8 million U.S. and 9.7 million global monthly unique visitors) and other news and information websites.
You don't need to do anything differently. We do request that you consider pointing back to us from your blog (we will send out logos shortly for your consideration).
You should know that we have a few guidelines that we observe here at Global Post:
1) We do not publish racist, sexist, or misogynist comments (unless those comments are the subject of the post).
2) We do not publish obscene language or photos. While we recognize that obscenity can be difficult to define, we know it when we see it and we will let you know if we think you have crossed our line.
3) We do not permit plagiarism. Any work taken from another source must be attributed to that source.
4) We do not publish libelous or slanderous language.
5) We do not tolerate repeated errors of fact or misrepresentations of facts or quotes.
6) We do not publish work inciting violence.
Failure to observe these guidelines would result in the removal of your blog from GlobalPost. We would contact you, of course, to discuss the post in question.
Because we have a broad multicultural audience holding every conceivable political and religious viewpoint, we want to respect their views while also possibly challenging them. We will host controversial work. We will encourage robust debate of the hottest topics. We will not stifle discussion, only abuse of people, belief systems, and laws.
We hope these guidelines are acceptable to you.
I look forward getting your permission to put your RSS feed on our site. Please reply to: jwilpers@globalpost.com. Thank you!
Sincerely,
John Wilpers
PS If you choose to accept our invitation and would like a photo and a short biography to appear on GlobalPost, please send both to me with your confirmation e-mail or at some time shortly thereafter.
JOHN WILPERS
Global Blog Coordinator
The Pilot House
Lewis Wharf
Boston, MA 02110
617-688-0137
jwilpers@globalpost.com
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