Vietnam

This shot of a woman tending to part of her annual rice crop was taken in the village of Puco, a settlement of about 30 families near the border between Phu Tho and Yen Bai provinces in north-central Vietnam. Taken six years ago today, it remind me of many things: her modest home, her hospitality, the children she "adopted" so they could attend the…

I had risotto tonight. So I think the association here is obvious.

I forgot what I ate, but I know it was delicious.

An exceptional illusion of solitude.

Seeing an image today of Barack Obama and Anthony Bourdain eating like --and with-- locals in a small place in Hanoi reminded me of this one-man welcome…

Scene of my first street shave, too.

The coolest motorbike taxi driver in Hanoi.

A portrait of a woman who sold me a pair of pants I'll never wear.

Has anyone worked or watched a rice harvest?

At a UNESCO World Heritage Site that's leaves the impression that it's being loved to death.

Today's Pic du Jour, the blog's 659th straight, is a reminder of the day, five years ago today, that I wanted to visit Ho Chi Minh. But he wasn't there. If you…

Remembering one of the largest anti-war demonstrations in US history.

Recalling a visit with Agent Orange's third generation.

Today's 'Smile of the Day' winner.

A moment of calm before the storm.

Terraced rice fields near Nghia Lo, Vietnam

The vivid memory of this woman's smile greeted me when I woke up this morning. I have no idea what provoked it but I didn't fight it. There are worse images that can clutter a mind when one starts the day. The recollection left me no choice but to hunt this photo down and give it pride of place here as today's Pic du Jour, the 191st straight (!). I…

Fisherman on the Ngô Đồng River near Tam Coc, Ninh Bihn Province, Vietnam, October 2010.