I’m very sorry. I thought I would have time for keeping this blog up-to-date while I’m here in Vietnam, but for many reasons this has been impossible. I have not even been able to keep my friends back home informed of my activities. I feel pretty bad about it.
I realize now that Vietnam (and Asia, for that matter) is a beast I’ve yet to understand. It’s been a roller coaster like I’ve never experienced.
Next week I’ll be going to Japan. Believe it or not, I hope to get a little rest there and get my thoughts in order. I’ll also try to recapture your hearts after I get back to Vietnam.
Filed under Timen Talks, On the Road.
Trying to make money by blogging is currently very popular. Very few are opting out. in my All Stars has been running ads since its inception. Today I am opting out. I am, at least for now, choosing to make in my All Stars revenueless.
I’ve been planning to do this for a while now. But I’ve also been planning on finally finishing and fixing the current “new” in my All Stars theme, which still needs to be attributed correctly to the sources of inspiration. I also want to finish the about page. But none of this happened before I left Holland. In any case, removing ads was an easy change. I hope to finally address some of the other points this week.
Why remove ads? I didn’t think they brought in enough money to be worth the screen real estate that they were taking up. in my All Stars is a small blog. On good days I get about 500 visitors. The best I’ve seen is 2000. Normally it’s around 350. This kind of traffic does not result in a decent profit. And so, as you can see, AdSense will have to wait till those figures improve.
As of today, until further notice, I make no money off of my online activities.
Filed under Timen Talks.
I’m finally done with my first job here in Vietnam. I was surprisingly busy. Didn’t think it would really take so much of my time! But alas, it did, and this blog did suffer as a result. In any case, today has been my first day off. I’m free till saturday, but I hope to do better next time around.
One thing that baffles me every time are the children here in Vietnam. They’re fantastic little critters. They’re full of cheer and very smart. And easy to photograph. Easy because they like it and they’re hella photogenic. And they are everywhere. More than 50% of Vietnam’s population is under 25.
So this is ideal for an easy welcome-back series. Here you are. Eight of my favorite children photos of the last month here in this beautiful country. Let me know what you think. And thanks for sticking around.
Click here to keep reading…
Filed under Asia, Vietnam, On the Road.
I’m currently at Doha International Airport, just south of the capital of Qatar. It’s my first time in the Middle East and, despite it only being an hour layover, it really is a fascinating place to be.
I landed just before 6 o’clock in the morning, local time. Qatar Airways was fantastic. We were transported by bus to the main terminal, and so I just a few breaths of genuine Qatar air. And even before 6 in the morning, this stuff is hot. Another something that had slipped my general understanding is that Doha lies on the edge of a desert. Not like those in California. I mean a real desert like those in the Nights of Arabia.
It’s also the first airport where I’ve witnessed Islam being practiced in very visible, open rooms along the sides of the main terminal. Great views of the surrounding areas. And it has free Wi-Fi. But the bathrooms are disgusting.
Question to Mr Oil Sheik: If you make such a great airline, beutiful cities, and free Wi-Fi, why can’t you go that extra step to profide decent bathrooms?
In any case, I’m hoping to compile a short little presentation of my experiences flying the Amsterdam-Doha-Ho Chi Minh City route. Next stop: Vietnam!
Filed under Asia, On the Road, Qatar.
