Quang drove the car and Nam and Tien came with us. Here is Quang relaxing at Vinh and Binh's house in Hanoi after the two hour ride.
Tien and Quang enjoying refreshing smoothies Binh made. The room is air conditioned and it felt really good to relax.
Binh and Nam talking about teaching English. Nam is going to be ordained a transitional deacon this December and he is in charge of the summer program for the children of the diocese.
We all decided to go out for pizza for lunch. This is leaving Binh's house. The street is barely wide enough for a motorbike, but really easy to walk around in.
Quang drove us to the biggest and newest mall in Hanoi. This was his first time parking in an underground garage and he did a great job.
Pizza after being in Vietnam for a month. Well, it's not really Italian or American pizza, but the taste was close.
Vinh (right) joined us. He picked up Nam Vu (lower left) from school. There was lots of pizza and Binh even ordered chicken wings.
Nam Vu and me mugging for the camera.
Me and Nam Vu again.
We spent almost two hours eating and talking, and eating...and more talking.
Nam Vu and Quang pushing hard, but it never fell over.
The mall had a large aquarium that enthralled Nam Vu.
Tien and Nam checking out the faux tree.
Me and Nam in front of the elephant that was at the entrance to the indoor waterpark...yes, and indoor waterpark. On that hot day it looked cool and refreshing.
Nam Vu checking out the skating rink. The mall takes up three levels below ground. The ground floor is a very expensive private school, and above that are very expensive apartments starting at $1,000 for a studio, really high for Hanoi.
The escalator was long and gave us time to take it easy before the next floor of stores.
After checking out the mall and having lunch, we said goodbye to Nam, Tien, and Quang. All good friends. Then Vinh, Binh, Nam Vu, and I walked outside to the fountain and large outdoor pedestrian mall. And yes, those statues in the back are real Carrera marble. We then went back to the house and relaxed some more.
Here is Nam Vu working his keyboard. Now entering 8th grade, he is quite the conversationalist. It's hard to believe that I have kn...