Ha, I remember Lani's in Tirana. I was living on that street for a while.
Tirana is changing/has changed A LOT just in a few years . Nowhere is safe!
A good read but coffee number 3 has a similar negative effect on the rest of the day as beer number 3.
I wonder if there isn't a kind of an ennui represented here.
'As for foreigners here, almost none can penetrate the language or society. Even if they were interested, it would take too much effort. Many, if not most, are merely sexpats hanging out in expat bars. With vehemence, they will insist that Thais, Vietnamese, Cambodians and Filipinos are mostly whores, pimps and hustlers. Whatever, man. People believe what they want to.'
I think for some people it's just not their goal to integrate into the new place and it's not necessarily a bad thing. Were you studying Albanian hard in your time there? Sometimes it's more about ones own personal journey, although there is an inherent narcissism in that. Some people already define themselves as outcasts and living among a culture utterly alien to them becomes a natural step for them.
Isn't the purpose of hanging out in expat bars kind of similar to this coffee shop hopping? People are just trying to be around some kind of life.
Hi Linh, lovely essay. I learn a lot from your little snippets of history via street names. The market streets you wander in the mornings are authentic neighborhoods, full of life lived in public. I've been busy but school year is almost ending and we'll catch up soon.
I saw your face on a large sign outside the Vietnamese American School today! Since I've stopped drinking, I can't slow down my mind, so I've been writing like mad. Look for me at Cóc Cóc.
Ha, I remember Lani's in Tirana. I was living on that street for a while.
Tirana is changing/has changed A LOT just in a few years . Nowhere is safe!
A good read but coffee number 3 has a similar negative effect on the rest of the day as beer number 3.
I wonder if there isn't a kind of an ennui represented here.
'As for foreigners here, almost none can penetrate the language or society. Even if they were interested, it would take too much effort. Many, if not most, are merely sexpats hanging out in expat bars. With vehemence, they will insist that Thais, Vietnamese, Cambodians and Filipinos are mostly whores, pimps and hustlers. Whatever, man. People believe what they want to.'
I think for some people it's just not their goal to integrate into the new place and it's not necessarily a bad thing. Were you studying Albanian hard in your time there? Sometimes it's more about ones own personal journey, although there is an inherent narcissism in that. Some people already define themselves as outcasts and living among a culture utterly alien to them becomes a natural step for them.
Isn't the purpose of hanging out in expat bars kind of similar to this coffee shop hopping? People are just trying to be around some kind of life.
To be fair, Linh, that coffee tasted like used batteries.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/vietnamese-factory-caught-producing-deadly-cheap-coffee-from-used-batteries-and-dust
That's how coffee is supposed to taste, man!--Linh
Maybe that's why I look 80?
I'll second Matthew Rossman's opening comment:
"Hi Linh, lovely essay."
It is lovely, indeed!
Goalie Grandma, tagline: the puck stops here!
Good one!
Only hockey goaltenders get called "Goalies".
Go 'Nucks; go Jets; go Oilers, good luck "Never Agains"!
good look at Down, Out and Under in OZ; service is our most important product; silver service ya gotta pay.
".....as coffee, but for this price, I shouldn’t demand anything more than ground roasted Arabica, Ethiopian or Colombian rat droppings"
Priceless!
Hi Linh, lovely essay. I learn a lot from your little snippets of history via street names. The market streets you wander in the mornings are authentic neighborhoods, full of life lived in public. I've been busy but school year is almost ending and we'll catch up soon.
Hi Matthew,
I saw your face on a large sign outside the Vietnamese American School today! Since I've stopped drinking, I can't slow down my mind, so I've been writing like mad. Look for me at Cóc Cóc.
Linh
P.S. Since Cô Ba and Cô Giang were sisters, streets named after them tend to be next to each other.