Trains, Junks, and #ROW80 Updates!

Some of the islands in Ha Long Bay

Greetings and Salutations from Hanoi, the latest stop on my trip through Asia.

I'm posting this update from a coffee shop, where I'm getting caught up after about a week off of WiFi - having spent most of it on night trains, an old junk sailing through Ha Long Bay, and an assortment of bicycles and motor scooters weaving through the traffic of Hoi An and Hanoi...

Writing, publishing, etc?

I've knocked out another few thousand words on The Perfidious Mister Wickham, and written a few essays on the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly and still colloquially known as Saigon) and on the experience of traveling by rail in Vietnam.

Better, I've found the amazing, true inspiration for a new short story in a recurring genre of mine; the absurdity of war. Would you believe that in the middle of Hanoi, there is a busy little residential district, with a pretty little pond - out of which is sticking the wreckage of a B-52 bomber? Indeed.

I've also gotten a pair of tailored suits made, complete with shirts, tie, and cuff-links (a necessity forced on me by a pending visit with a General in Beijing) eaten numerous bowls of delicious pho, visited museums, a couple more UNESCO World Heritage sites, seen water buffalo and ducks, played with a friendly puppy, caught up with a wonderful friend, and found a translator for a French edition of Lethargica.Put away a sufficient quantity of wine, gin, and cigarettes to make Hemingway proud.

So, although not a productive week from some perspectives, a rather amazing week otherwise.I'm sure that after this current trip concludes, I'll be able to get back to the grind of writing, publishing, promoting... But until then, I'll just be enjoying the ride!

Hoping this update finds you happy and well.