Quarantined in Vietnam

Yeap, you never know what will happen. My trip to Vietnam was planned already last September when I asked to get a couple of weeks off from work in order to travel to Vietnam and have our second wedding party to celebrate more with H's side of family and friends. I arrived last week Monday to the airport of Hanoi. That time the corona virus was spreading a little bit in Europe and nothing seemed too dangerous for me to make my trip. Last week we went around Hanoi with H, ate good food etc., even though my family had to cancel their trip since Vietnam forbid Europeans entering the country visa-free only one day after I came. That's why we decided to cancel also our wedding party. Well, there is plenty to tell about the last 9 days here but I have to start from my newest experience that got its beginning yesterday...

Last weekend Vietnam announced that all of its citizens who have returned to Vietnam during March should make a corona virus test. H wanted to be a loyal citizen and fair towards his parents and neighbors, so he contacted them and then waited for them to call back. This return call didn't come before H suddenly got a fever yesterday afternoon. That got us all in the house worried. Luckily the fever started to get down fast and when H felt better, he found out there are some testing places open 24/7 for people to go and test for corona. So we took a scooter and rode through a heavy rain to a shopping mall where one of the places was supposed to be. Well, it was not there. But no worries since only a few blocks away ought to be another one. Except that it was only a laboratory where they handle the test results. So we decided to go home and sleep and try again on the next day.

Just before sleeping H had contacted a doctor he knows and got to hear about a place where we could go right in the morning. In order to avoid busy times, we left this morning at 6 a.m. to the biggest hospital in Hanoi and found our way to the department of 'National hospital for tropical diseases'. After we filled information forms and checked our temperatures - both had normal - we were guided to a separate waiting room. Little did we know what would happen next...

We were not let to wait for too long and after a while we were guided to go outside and to our surprise step into an ambulance. It drove us with the sirens on for about half an hour, to an isolation hospital outside the city. I took the whole thing as a cool experience since I had never been inside an ambulance, not to mention one driving with the siren and ignoring red lights. Actually the ride was kinda crazy at times when the car zigzagged between the other traffic... At the isolation hospital we saw doctors covered with the protection suits that I had seen on news about corona. Our blood pressures were checked and there were a few other patients arriving too. From the discussions we found out that we are not going to get home today. Neither tomorrow. Even if our virus tests will end up being negative, they will redo it a few times. That meaning that we would stay here for a several days at least, or even a week or who knows! My flight back to France will be on Saturday and it really seemed there is a big chance that I am going to miss that... At this point my "excitement for an interesting experience" started to decline. And then we were guided to the patient room area were they asked some questions from me with bad English - I had to ask her to repeat 3 times - and we were put to different rooms since men and women had separate rooms. I had thought I would survive this whole experience when I am with my husband but now it was taken away from me. Luckily we are on the same floor and the wifi here works, so I am not completely alone, but anyway.

Inside the ambulance rushing us to the isolation hospital.

Our "taxi"

The quarantine hospital's hallways are very empty and patients are
told mostly stay in their rooms. I wish to spend more time with H.

H ended up to a room with 4 other men while my room was still empty. I was given bed sheets, a toothbrush, shampoo, a thermometer and hospital clothes. Then I waited for about half an hour until a doctor came in to do the test. I am not so afraid of the needles and a blood test is nothing for me. But oh boy I disliked the other tests she made! She had 3 long cotton sticks, two of which she stuck one by one to my mouth, too far to be pleasant. If she had pushed it a few millimeters further to my throat, I might have vomited. And then the third stick, that was for my nose. And I have to say it was even more horrible. It felt like she tried to reach my brains with it. "Did it hurt?" she asked. Oh boy, did it!

My room before I got 2 room mates. They are both Vietnamese but
speak good English since they just returned here from living abroad.

Now I am here waiting for the results. There are so many questions in my mind that make me feel a bit unease. When will I get the results? How many times do I have to make the test again? How many days will I spend here? What happens if it is positive? Will I be able to fly back to Europe if I miss my flight on Saturday because there are less and less flights every day? I don't really even have symptoms and just wanted to make the test to be sure since I have been my whole trip with H and he got a fever for a few hours...

Oh, how I wish to go outside...

At least the lunch was quite good.
Except that shrimps are not for me.

Catacombs & Vietnamese New Year's party

I had a visitor after a longer time! Our couch was tested for several nights sleeping for the first time since we moved to our small apartment in Gentilly. And it was very cheerful for me and H also to have other company - not because we would be bored with each other but because we also go more actively everywhere when there are others, too. And we have a good excuse to go to some of our favorite restaurants! It has become almost a tradition already that we take our guests to the best Vietnamese restaurant, Phở số 1, where I order bò bún 80% of the times we go there. It is just so good! And for the dessert we had to let our guest taste bubble tea. I am so into it, too, as it is both yummy and funny!

Since H visited the catacombs of Paris already before I moved to France, I have tried to go there with my friends. The last two times when I went there, I failed to enter because of a long line and because it was closed for an unknown reason. The third time tells the truth, as we say in Finland. With the third try I finally was able to go and visit these tunnels that are famous for holding the remains of six million people. Both I and my guest had to admit that there were so many skulls and femurs that one kind of didn't see them anymore. Walking for hundreds of meters through a tunnel that holds piles of bones on each side was not that scary after all - and that is because you don't even realize how many people six million actually is! It is like burying the whole population of Finland there!

At first it was a bit creepy inside the ossuary.

The skeletons were brought to the catacombs from
different grave yards.

They had piled the skulls and other bones in decorative forms, too.

Narrow tunnels leading the visitors
towards the skeleton area.

A monument for the revolution
fights in 1788.

Jardin Notre Dame restaurant at the center of Paris. You can enjoy
a 3-dish meal here with 16€ and a view to the Notre Dame cathedral.

The central police station at Ile de la Cite island.

The new year of the lunar calendar was a couple of weeks ago but different groups have celebrated it here for the past month with different events. Last Sunday there was a Vietnamese celebration in Massy, about 10km South from Paris. The event was held in the Massy opera house and they offered some music, karaoke, shopping possibilities for Vietnamese stuff (mainly food, books and accessories) and a big show for which we had bought the tickets beforehand. The "Tet" show was built wisely having a story inside which they could always perform some dance numbers and smaller stories etc. In the main plot there was a Vietnamese boy who had lived his life in France and his dead grandmother appeared to him telling stories from her youth or the boy's childhood. We heard and saw two traditional Vietnamese storytales, one of which resembled the story of Cinderella and the other one told about a small boy who ate a lot in order to get big enough to join the army and defend his land against the intruders. Even though we liked the show (despite the fact that both I and our guest had difficulties understanding all the French and Vietnamese), we decided to leave during the break. The two-hour show we sat there was only the first half of the whole spectacle. In the evening we wanted to eat well so we headed to the Asian district, to have hot pot and grilling at Au village de Choisy. Having at least 3 people, you can choose both cooking options for free. And we boiled and grilled lots of beef, pork, chicken, fish, salad, mushrooms, lotus roots etc.

An áo dài fashion show.

Hot pot and grilling.
One of our favorite restaurants.

This week and next week are the winter vacation of the schools in Paris area. Therefore I also work a little bit differently compared to my usual working hours. I took care of the 3-year-old for Monday and Tuesday from the noon and picked the little sister from the day care, as we always do. From yesterday on the brother spends time with the grandparents and I am in charge only of the 1-year-old. But for this week the parents also come home a bit later so I have put the girl to bed and waited for the parents either with or without the boy. I have quite short days now that I will pick up the smaller one after 6 pm and stay for ~2,5 hours but coming home late makes me still very tired. I am happy they don't need me today at all so I can have one day of rest and go to bed early. Tomorrow morning I have to get up for my Vietnamese lesson.

Louvre visit #4 and TooGoodToGo

Louvre's middle wing

Today is the first Sunday of the month so many museums are open for free in Paris. Louvre is an exception to this since it tends to offer a free visit in the evening of the first Saturday of each month. Even though I have been there already 3 times before in my life - once as a kid, once with H and once with my friend visiting me here - we thought of using this opportunity because I hadn't gone it all through yet. It is so huge that I might even go there once more after this fourth visit, as well. The entrance was free from 6 pm and unfortunately we didn't make it there to be on spot a bit beforehand. Consequently, we needed to join the line that was first squirming in front of the pyramid and after that continued through the big yard. It took one hour and ten minutes for us to get inside but luckily the rain never got too heavy (unlike my hunger). We thought of checking the middle wing but at least half of was closed. However, it still took us two hours to go through even the part that was open, so no big disappointments.

The middle wing is filled with art from the ancient Egypt, Rome and Greece, so we found it very interesting. The statues, hieroglyphs and bowls are nice to admire while we are a little bored of just paintings at the moment. I didn't even mind that I had seen part of them already with my friend last year.

I was impressed by the position of the second left statue on
the upper shelf. Not so common!

I wonder if the colors are original. They are still so bright
after 3000 years...

There was a good collection of
feet in Louvre. Haha!

In my opinion one of the best art works of
Louvre is the building itself. So amazing details!

A ceiling painting

TooGoodToGo

After leaving Louvre around 9.30 pm we navigated towards a Korean restaurant where we had a "reservation" for take-aways. I was recommended an application called TooGoodToGo which allows you to buy food from restaurants, bakeries, grocery stores etc. that would throw that food away at the end of the day. So instead of throwing away food that is getting old but is still consumable, the stores sell it very cheaply to people who have patience to wait until it gets close to the store's closing time. This Korean restaurant for example offers the time range 10.10-10.30pm to come and take your servations that have to be done (since each store have only limited amount of give-away boxes and bags). One thing you have to know about this app is that you cannot choose what you will have. Each place gives a surprise box/bag that includes whatever they would have put to waste otherwise. By now, I have collected a surprise package three times: two times from a restaurant and once from a grocery store. Tonight I will go and get left-over bread, cookies, cakes or such from a bakery.

Our Korean dinner.
12€ together when it normally is double to that.

These we collected from a Chinese restaurant 1,5 km away from
our home. The price: only 8€ including it all! Usually 24€.

A 4-euro surprise bag from a grocery store Franprix. Four cheeses was a way
too much for us, I don't even like it. And it all expired at latest on the following day.

Chinese new year of the mouse

Having a Vietnamese husband, the Chinese new year - or lunar new year - has a bigger role in my life than before. The lunar new year is in Vietnam like Christmas is in the Western countries: everyone is off and families get together to eat and spend time with each other. It is also because of H that I nowadays know which animal's year it always is. Or maybe living nearby the Asian district of Paris also helps with that since many places sell stuff with the theme of the animal of the year...

Our celebrating was very small this year. We didn't do anything special on the new year's eve January 24th (except that H didn't go to work) but on the following Sunday we decided to go to the center to see the new year's parade that was supposed to start at Place de la Republic, a famous square in Paris. We were only 10 minutes late from that but there was absolutely no sign of any parade there. Instead the square was filled with music and people waving Algerian flags. Seemingly the parade was cancelled due to the fear of corona virus. Well, at least we had planned making nem, Vietnamese spring rolls, in the evening with a couple of H's Vietnamese friends who had not gone to Vietnam for the new year either. (H didn't go to Vietnam now because we have a common trip to go there in March. We are going to have a little celebration for our marriage also there. Having a foreign spouse can give you a double party!)

The end of the strike!

I am so happy to say that the horrible strike of the public transport has been over for a couple of weeks! (Okay, there was another big strike day last week's Friday, but luckily I didn't need to work on that day.) I don't need to cycle to the other side of Paris anymore, unless if I want to. And now that the weather is more like spring time already (today the temperature reached up to 16), I might use more the bike that I haven't yet returned to the grandparents of my employer family.

Mnozil Brass concert

Last weekend was filled with music. The still-continuing strike of the public transports made it a little bit more complicated to reach the concerts but a searchers always finds a way. H bought already last July tickets to a concert of Mnozil brass, an Austrian brass septet, that not only plays world-class music but also can sing well and uses comedy as a part of their show. H had introduced me to that group already before we found out that they are coming to Paris, so there was no doubt whether to go and see them on live when got to know about the day before yesterday's chance. I enjoyed the show so much that I cannot imagine what it meant for H or any other brass instrument player in the big audience. The concert hall was a world-class place, too, with fancy decorations both in the lobby and in the concert hall itself. Experiencing this concert was surely worth of the struggle I had with the transport when I realized that the metro I wanted to use didn't work before the afternoon, when the bus was too full to stop to take more people in and when I eventually had to return to take a train to Gare du Nord and walk from there.

For anyone interested in checking them, here is a video that show some of their skills from comedy to being able to play super well while jumping around: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvUfkG0ka4E
Or to see how fast and well they are able to play: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLicpT2NfoE

On Saturday I got to enjoy some brass music played by H's band plus two other brass groups that played in Montreuil, west from Paris. Their gig started at 9 pm and was to end something after the midnight, considering having three bands playing. Even without the strike it might be challenging to come back home way after midnight by the public transport, but the situation being what it is, we willingly decided to cycle. (Like it was not enough that I had to cycle to work Monday-Thursday until on Friday the last trains of the day finally left late enough for me to come back home by those.) Luckily the road was not as hilly as my way to work. The music of each band was nice but 4,5 hours in a row is a little bit too long for me especially when getting tired... But anyhow, the weekend filled with music was so great, giving a new boost for the new week! And I have to say that I have started to like brass music more and more, thanks to my husband.

Cycling to work during strike

As we all were afraid of, the public transport strike has continued ever since the 5th of December. On some days, like Tuesday, there are even less trams, metros and buses, but even on a "normal strike day" I cannot use my travel card to take trains and metros to go to work. Trains and most of the metros run only during the rush hours and also on those times there are only 1 out of 3 or 4 of them compared to usual. Good luck pushing yourself in...

For the last week "my family" evacuated themselves to Bourg-la-Reine, a few kilometers South from Paris, to stay at their grandparents house. That way the parents could go to work while the grandparents looked after the kids. I went there daily to take over for a few hours in the afternoon and I was luckily offered a bike to borrow, so I was no more dependent on the train timetables or even on the city bikes that are harder to find during the strikes. Six kilometers back and forth was not too bad with a good bike. Except when the chain fell down on one day on my way home... Luckily I have a husband who thinks very logically and was able to figure out and fix the problem that kept making the chain fall down constantly.

Cycling through some smaller roads to Bourg-la-Reine.

This view was impressive every day.

Last Friday the family moved back to their home close to l'Arc de Triomph in Paris. The length of my commute became a bit more than double but luckily I got a ride from the family's grandmother who was taking the kids to Paris. They picked me up on the way and the grandma took us home after which I took the little sister to the nursery and stayed for the day with the big brother. The parents came home early enough for me to catch trains to return home. However, I have been and will cycle every day during this week to go to work and day by day I feel that my legs are more tired to even try to cycle the uphills. 13 km is not impossible but since I hardly ever cycle normally, my thighs are not used to that kind of exercise. Two more days to go and then I will have my rest by sitting in a taxi, airplane and train to travel home to Finland. I needed to reserve a taxi taking me to the airport on Saturday morning because I don't trust that there will be any change in the transport by that. I also need to reserve some extra time for what it would usually take to drive to Charles-de-Gaulle airport because the roads can be stuffed by cars when people have no other means to travel. Yesterday on my way home, I was much faster than the car lines. It can be such a disaster when cars block each other plus the running trams. And boy, French do like honking horns in the traffic! Haha, like that would help at all while everyone is stuck. I can only wish for the best for when I return to France in January...

Crossing the river Seine while cycling along the boarder of Paris.

My vehicle and "my kid's" vehicle on Monday when
I picked him up from the school.

Last Friday I got to participate in the Christmas party of H's work. Lots of researchers, lots of foreigners and lots of food. Kind of nice that I was able to participate even in some pre-Christmas party now that I don't work in a school anymore to have the party there.

This triple chocolate ice cream cake we had at home. H told me it
is somewhat traditional to eat this at Christmas. I don't complain.

Illuminations des Champs-Elysées

Getting some Christmas feeling

Christmas is coming! And I am also slowly starting to feel like that. It took a while to feel christmassy here since the temperature returned occasionally to over 10 degrees but the recent Christmas lights around the city and some events have got me on the mood. It began at the end of November when I started to see Christmas trees and other decorations especially when walking on the busy areas of Paris. We also wanted to go and see when the illuminations of the most famous street in Paris got its lights switched on. I thought there would be even some bigger event since the mayor of Paris was supposed to be there and it was marked to start at 5 pm but actually I ended up walking the street back and forth with H, watching street performances and quickly visiting the Disney store until the red lights lightened up most of the trees along the long avenue.

Champs-Elysées was turned into a walking street for
that evening.

Disney store along Champs-Elysées.

Inside the Disney store.

These fountains were interesting. Shooting the
water down makes them look like rockets.

Christmas decoration at Les Halles station/shopping mall.

The windows of a Lego store at Les Halles. Just amazing!

Notre Dame built with legos.

The variety of different Christmas calendars at a supermarket.
I wouldn't have imagined they have a Dragon Ball version.

It was also the end of November when I got to sing some Christmas songs, in Finnish. Like last year, I participated "Kauneimmat joululaulut" at the Finnish embassy, though this time I was a bit late due to my work days that finish later than last year. Anyhow, it was nice to be surrounded by so many Finns again and listen to and sing in my own language, and I even saw some familiar faces.

One more event that got me up to the Christmas mood was when I joined H to go to his band's gig outside Paris a week ago. Their band was invited to perform at a Christmas market ~20 km to the North from Paris. We had to take two trains and then continue by cars to reach the destination. Quite some planning to move the band and the instruments so far, but I was lucky I could still fit in to the cars with everything else. It was a Christmas market of some smaller town quite much in the middle of the fields but it surely didn't look too small. There was a big decorated roof under which people could enjoy the food and drinks and other stuff they both from the stands. The band played well as usual but maybe the audience was not the best for it since I was often the only one dancing to their music. I had some photos and videos of the place but I lost them all, as well as I lost most of my contact information, when my phone was stolen at a supermarket last Tuesday... So please if you have my French number, send me a message with your name in it so that I can have them back.

French workshop & zumba

I have had my first French lessons here! Or actually I have participated a French pronunciation workshop two times. The Swiss school that teaches French to foreigners started to give free workshops about pronunciation and I joined it twice before they retreated for the holidays. They advertised that it is suitable for anyone with at least A2 level of French and that's why I was a little bit suspicious on the first time if I would be able to follow. I have no idea what my level is because I have only been learning the language in my everyday life - the life that is mostly all in English. Nevertheless, I was happily surprised I could actually follow the workshops that are completely in French. And I do plan to continue participating them in January.

How to pronounce the French vowels.
Behind there is a paper in which the students
needed to listen to which version the teacher said.

I have started another new hobby, as well. The dance school where I and H learn Lindy Hop and Charleston at, is giving zumba lessons on Saturdays. I went to test it if the lesson would be nice (since zumba lessons depend so much on the teacher if it is enjoyable for me or not), and I knew I found a place for me with the first try. The teacher plays good and fast songs and makes nice moves and uses the music well, too. I am always so exhausted after just two songs that I keep wondering how I can make it through the whole 1,5 hours lesson. But it is so much fun!

Public transport strike

It is not rare to have strikes here in France but this week I have experienced my worst one by now. It was known already weeks before that 5th of December there would be a huge strike with hardly any metros or trains in Paris. Also the following days were uncertain. Due to this strike, I didn't go to work on Thursday and I also got a free day to celebrate Finland's Independence Day on Friday for the same reason. The strike has continued for this weekend, too, forcing H to cycle to his trumpet class for 10 km each direction and me doing the same when returning from my zumba lesson. I got a tram to go to the zumba but since also trams and buses run much less often than usually, the whole tram was so packed with people that I didn't want to come back with it. Luckily the 13th district isn't too far from our home to go without the public transport. That's why we could also go out and eat on the 13eme yesterday. We took bikes (luckily there were still some city bikes because those are often taken when the other means of transport are unreliable) and went to a Chinese restaurant to have all-you-can-eat hot pot. Ah, it had been a long time since I had something like that last time! We ate so well and so much that it made good to walk back home.

Here you can go and take more food anytime you like.

I saw a small group of protesters walking on the streets of Gentilly on Friday:

I hope that the strike will end soon because it seems that I would need to cycle to work next week. And since I am dependent on the city bikes, I may have to walk from bike rack to another to find a usable bike...