SELF IMPROVEMENT

Leaving the airport the mid-summer humidity made me feel like I had been hit by a wave of wet heat. I don't mind heat, but I was still taken aback. I noticed that there were sometimes 5 people on one motorbike, sometimes a child holding a younger child and sometimes a driver texting, smoking and driving simultaneously. The traffic was unlike anything I had ever seen, and I started avoiding looking at the cars and motorbikes around us.

Our first few days in Hanoi were a sweltering blur. We saw Hoi Loa prison, where John McCain was incarcerated for 5 1/2 years, and I developed a new respect for him to have survived more than a week in the worst living conditions I could ever imagine. We also saw a water puppet show, which was made even more adorable by the fact that Louise (not understanding my mumbling English) initially thought was a "water puppy" show and wondered where all the puppies were when the show started.