Who wants to spend their b-day at a Vietnamese bus stop? My answer to that question at 9am on my 36th b-day is NOT ME. The dusty parking lot where we sit is a place where buses stop, but my no means is it a central hub where bus lines start. We go there thinking we would buy a ticket and a bus would soon depart to Dien Bien Phu, our final stop before the Lao border. We soon realize there is no bus leaving at 9am. We just have to wait for a bus to pass through that is not full and catch a ride. Two hours later we are still sitting on our bench. Pete asks for my camera, and I hand it to him grumpily saying “What is there to take photos of here?” Three hours later, after we've both had a turn with the camera, I flip through the photos and come to the realization that after only two and half short months of travel I have become desensitized to all the amazing things that surround me on a daily basis. There is always something new and strange; images I will never see again unless I return here some day.
Eventually the bus arrives and I wish I had more time to sit and take it all in. I now have to ask myself .....How can I spend all my birthdays at a Vietnamese bus stop?
Natasha