SANYA

Sanya was overcrowded with Russian tourists. They are so many that it has reached the point where you can eat Russian food at the restaurants, the restaurants have Russian names, the menus are in Russian, the music is Russian, the locales speak to you in Russian (- what the HELL does that mean?! , I am not Russian!!), and oh, you can buy Russian souvenirs there to!

This is of course not merely the case with Russians in Sanya. It's the same with Swedes at Mallorca or Cyprus, or Swedes in Thailand.

I really can not seem to understand this. So I was thinking that maybe it is just a mistake, maybe the locales believes that this is what the tourists wants, and the tourists believes this is what they want. But the truth is that it is just an obsolete thing left from the early days of charter where the only purpose to go abroad was to exploit the warm climate and the sandy beaches.

SJ and I rented a motorbike and went outside Sanya and found this beautiful village, where every kid playing on the streets says "Hello", to you and wave their little hands. Beautiful!

Guilin

Pictures from where I lived in Guilin, China. It was only a few degrees outside, and without a heating system and a broken window in our room, it was not much warmer inside. But still, we spent some of our best days in Guilin January 2011.

I MISS SCHOOL

I miss school. One of the reasons for me taking a study break for one semester was to seize the opportunity to travel but also to engage in matters I usually don't have time for, in order to find out what I want to do with my life.

I do feel that I have been spending time for this cause. However, not as much as I would need to, and wish for. And now I am starting to miss school.

One of the things at DIS (Department of International Studies) at Hanyang University that differed from my Swedish education and that I also came to value, was the use of You Tube, TEDtalks and other Internet sources as learning material. I especially found several RSAnimate videos inspiring. Today I found this inspiring Talk at TED which I think has a lot of appealing ideas and telling truths. It is by Ken Robinson who talks about Education and Creativity. HIs idea is that the education system kills creativity, taking Paul McCartney and George Harrison as an example. They both had the same teacher in Music at school, who failed to see their talent and both disliking the subject Music through school.

SJ made korean friends in Mui Ne.

Mui Ne is becoming the capital of Kitesurfing. For me to try Kitesurfing I first needed 10 hours of lessons. Which would cost me 500 USD in Mui Ne. Damn.

But, as we arrived to Mui Ne in the middle of the night, and swisched by resorts after resorts on the main (only) street SJ saw a korean restaurant. So one day we took our motorbike to try to find the restaurant. Which we did. And the owner was there and SJ being the proud korean he is, try to stop him from talking to other koreans, anyang haseyo. After they'd chatted two hours away, I was finally let in on the conversation which was; if we work for the korean guy we can stay at the resort for free, and I would get free Kitesurf lessons (because it was also a resort and a Kitesurf school). Agreed. Come back tomorrow night and we talk more about it. Yes.

Next day.

-       I cant stay in Mui Ne, I have to go back to Guilin.

-       Fuck you.

So now we are back in Ho Chi Minh. But  Mui Ne was good times, it offered us other adventures.

YESTERDAY SJ TOLD ME A STORY

  

I love stories, and SJ is full of it. 

Yesterday SJ told me the story about the Korean cookie Choco-pie.

Choco-pie was born allready in the 60’s, and has since then made it's way into most Korean households. The original Choco-pie is made by ORION, but today there are several copycats on the market, such as  well known LOTTE. But Koreans know their Choco-pie, almost every one can tell the difference in a blind-test.

And everyone has heard about "the cookie and the North Korean". In the military in Korea you can eat the Choco-pie cookie for free. And once in DMZ, a South Korean soldier met a North Korean citizen. He was very hungry, and the South Korean wanted to give him something, but all he had was his Choco-pie, so he gave the North Korean his Choco-pie.

The North Korean ate the cookie, and was very impressed by it’s taste. He started to feel that he really wanted to feel that taste again. So he escaped, he survived the mines and he passed the military zone, and he made it to Seoul. Several years later he was asked, what made you escape?

- I really wanted to eat Choco-pie again!

Hmmmm, when I think about it this story is almost too good for the Choco-pie companies not to be made up by them! Like the IKEA- story, it’s all made up.

But on the other hand, the cookie - story is too good to be made up to! If it is made up to sell more Choco-pies, I would like to know who came up with the idea, it's great PR!

one sunny winter day Jong Hee and I went out for a walk.

One sunny winter day I was out walking with Jong Hee in Hongdae, Seoul. As we passed Club Crack, the venue where the New Year Punk Show took place a few days earlier, Jong Hee got an idea!
- This place is perfect for another tattoo convention!, he said.

I told Jong Hee what Professor Cabuay from my Leadership Workshop class had taught me, that "to know and not to do, is really not to know".  He seemed to like that Jong Hee -today the 19th February there is a Tattoo Convention at Club Crack!

A THIEF ON A MOTORBIKE!!

here they come, watch out.

So, we were trying to cross the street outside our hotel when one motorbike swished by me superclose, and the next second I realized my bag I was wearing around my neck was gone!!!

Motorbikes thief's are pretty common here, Vi lost his telephone too. He was driving his own motorbike and talking in the phone, and all of a sudden he didn't have a telephone in his hand any longer!

Now, after more then two weeks in this city, I am tired of the constant sound of three million motorbikes! And I am tired of the impossible, daring number it is to cross the street!

So, let's go to the beach again! Tomorrow we leave for Mui Ne, a place for me to kitesurf, surf and wakeboard, weehooo!

protect you from the sun! gloves and socks important during the day!

sexy cats are out rollin' too. with less clothes during the night.

KOREAN PERFECT

While in Korea, where it is impossible to escape K-Pop, it kinda drives me crazy. It was actually a relief to here some good ol' american commercial music once I arrived to China, even though you can't escape k-pop completely anywhere in Asia. Now I've been away from Korea little bit more then a month, and I miss it and quite enjoy it! At least some of it. You have to admit that they are pretty good at what they are doing. And then you can question what they are doing, but thats another story.

2NE1 is the best and I think some of these outfits genius, some ridiculous, but mostly I love how playful they are.

SAIGON FASHION

Saigon Fashion, better then any shopping mall in the world!

God daaamn vad det är skönt att vara i en stad utan Starbucks, och utan McDonalds! Och, framförallt, utan super jätte klädkedjor som H&M och Zara.

I mitten av 80-talet genomgick Vietnam en ekonomisk reform till en mer marknadsorienterad ekonomi vilket gav landet en sving i tillväxten. Idag är landet ett av de mest öppna i Asien, och tillväxten bland de mest lovande ( dock har dongen fått lida bara de senaste månaderna ).

Men rapporter och analyser och analyser och rapporter, på plats i Ho Chi Minh city kan man faktiskt känna i luften att något är på gång!

Hundratals motorcyklar ständigt på väg, till överallt. Och häromdagen fann jag mig själv på en restaurang med Vi, som äger hotellet vi bor på och karaokebaren bredvid, och hans 20 nånting super stylish, supervackra väninnor med varsen Iphone diskuterandes hur man kan se hur stor penis en karl har (det kan man tydligen se på hans näsa, är den lång är hans penis lång ) Detta måste helt enkelt vara tecken på välstånd och ljusa utsikter! Dessutom med tanke på att hälften av Vietnams invånare är under 25 år, alltså en ung, stark attraktiv arbetskraft (till skillnad från Europa där arbetskraften blir äldre ) . Jag antar att det tyvärr också innebär att det bara är en tidsfråga innan McDonalds och H&M poppar upp. Om vi inte gör något för att förhindra det. Upscale alternativet har vi förstås också, jag har svischat förbi fina gatan med Louis Vuitton- butikerna några gånger.

Men ännu är de inte här, klädjättarna, och det innebär naturligtvis för någon som mig, utrustad med den goda smaken och hökögon som jag är, ett ypperligt tillfälle att kamma hem några guldklimpar. Gilla utmaningen dessutom! 

I quite like Vietnamese fashion!

Allt är naturligtvis inte bra i Vietnam ännu. Långt ifrån alla blir rikare. Inkomstklyftan ökar här precis som i övriga världen. Censur förekommer fortfarande, Facebook är tex blockat av 2 utav 3 stora telefonoperatörer. Och varför måste ekonomisk tillväxt gå hand i hand med kapitalism?

jag minns gamla mettan och galningarna pa beyond retro dessa heta dagar i ho chi minh-staden.

Att vara tillbaka i stan har ocksa vackt galningen i mig som KRAVER att den far lamna sitt avtryck pa YTAN ocksa, for det ar ju sa javlar kul att kla pa sig varje morgon!!

Nar jag 2001 som 18-aring flyttade till Stockholm kladde jag mig som jag lyssnade. Ar 2001 var jag en pandabrud som hangde pa LEGENDARISKA (!!) indieklubben Metropolis pa Riddarholmen Stockholm. Pa Mettan kom de 50 forsta conversen in gratis. Sedan fick jag mitt forsta jobb i en kladbutik och detta var ungefar nar gratisfesterna borjade poppa upp, och efter ett tag insag man hur superduperdoviktigt det var att fixa basta outfiten till de har festerna som borjade aga rum bade har och dar. Fast det var ju kul ocksa! FAN VAD KUL DET VAR ATT SPENDERA 2000 PIX (jo pa den tiden kunde man faktiskt fa sej de senaste skonheterna for bara 2000 lax) PA SASONGENS ACNE SKOR!!!

Efter att se de dar atravarda guldklimparna forvandlas till en hog med sopor pa REA bordet efter ungefar tre veckor, dvs en sasong, sasong efter sasong pa NK Stockholm, stod det mig upp i halsen och jag INSAG ATT DET HAR, DET AR INGET HALLBART HALLNINGSSATT INTE, och jag blev en bum som verkligen inte brydde mig. Sen borjade jag jobba pa Beyond Retro och FICK SA DET BLEV OVER AV DAGLIG INJEKTION INSPIRATION AV GALNINGARNA SOM HALLER TILL PA BEYOND RETRO..

Och idag har vi problemet med Hipstern. Vilket jag diskuterade pa bloggen litegranna har. Men nar jag ser nagon som lyssnar lite till galningen inom oss varje morgon och later sej influeras litegranna av denne innan man gar ut pa gatan. da stinger det till litegranna i mitt hjarta och om jag ar pa det humoret sa kan det sakert komma en liten tar ocksa. Det ar ju nagonting sa vackert med det.

Sa idag ar jag ingen hipster, fashionista eller tillhorande nagon subkultur, jag tycker bara att det ar sa javlar kul att kla pa mig varje morgon!

CRACKER YOUR WARDROBE ar en alldeles utmarkt Street Style Magazine (som jag ocksa har dissat har), fran Seoul Sydkorea som bjuder pa massor av sadana inspirerande streetsnaps. Latom er inspireras Sverige!

I LOVE LIVIN IN THE CITY.

Sanya tropical paradise allright, but that tourist bullshit really bores me after just a few hours on the beach.

I am T H R I L L E D to be back in the city to smell gasoline and fall asleep to the tune of the traffic and wake up to the same tune of traffic god I love cities that believes in the unnecessaries of sleep and drink coffee walk outside hope that today wont be the day I get hit by one of Ho Chi Minh-Citys three million motorcycles as I really have to cross the street either saying "hello" and wave back to every vietnamese man cause it is a damn good day.

V I E T N A M !

So, we have arrived in Ho Chi Minh-City Vietnam and we are loving it! (more more more about that later!!)

So the plan was to find SJs good old friend Vi. Problem was that SJ had not spoke to him for five years and didn't have a phonenumber, the only thing he had was a vague memory of his house, where SJ lived for four months - five years ago that was. So in the Ho Chi Minh heat (over 30C), we set of to search for chinese-vietnamese Vi's house. Me thinking it might be a little bit weird to knock on someones door after five years... However not questioning it at all, since by now I know that when SJ say he has a "brother" somwhere, he really has a brother somewhere.

It took us about 15 minutes to find the house. And just as SJ were certain it was the right door, the whole family came back from some kind of new year celebration - first one to see SJ standing outside their house was Mom, and then Vi came, everyone overwhelmed to see SJ standing there! We were invited for coffee (mmm vietnamese coffee!!!), and later even dinner. And I am sorry China, but that dinner was the best dinner I've had since I left Korea. It was also almost immediately arranged for us to join the familys new year celebration at Nha Trang, with supposedly the best beaches in Asia, a few days later.

Later that night we were invited to a Vietnamese New Year-celebration Party which we attended and I learned Vietnamese people really knows how to drink beer (Heineken with ice, that somebody actually is hired to change every five minutes as it melts) and everyone wants a hold of that microphone on stage, as well as that microphone in the karaokeroom!

That day it was also arranged for us to move in at Vi's hotel the next day. And that is where we are at the moment. The plan was to stay in Vietnam the 15 days you are allowed to without a Visa. But I think we will deffinately apply for a longer stay.

Best Wishes
Emmy. ,and oh happy new year!

Beijing Punk

Så Beijing Punk dokumentären går ännu inte att se. Den visas fortfarande på festivaler runt om, och kommer ha premär efter detta. Det var sagt att ske år 2010, så det borde alltså ske när som helst. Det är på tiden tycker jag för det har snackats och väntats ett bra tag nu. Jag är sjukt glad att jag äntligen har fått se den. Och hemma hos en av snubbarna i filmen dessutom! På beijingpunk.com finns mer information samt länkar till flera intervjuer med filmmakaren Shaun Jefford. Jag rekommenderar ett besök.