I need some dudes who speak American.

Well, the language and cultural barrier hit an all-time high in a Nine West shop. I naively asked if they had size 11. Their eyes grew big as they tried to comprehend the fact that a woman could have feet as big as skis.

We have had little trouble getting around. Even when we encounter someone who doesn't speak "American," we seem to be able to get our point across. The people here are lovely and really try to help you.

I found some really great fashion t-shirts, one with a design of Hoan Kiem Lake and the lake's legendary turtle ("I like turtles"). The other has an artistic rendering of the Red River and the city. These were real finds...much better than any other t-shirts I've seen around town. I got them in a shop called Things of Substance, 5 Nha Tho...just down the street from Nagu where you'll want to go to order a custom teddy bear for your baby (we put our order in Monday). There was also a cool purse/jewelry shop on that street called Ipa-Nima, 17 Nha Tho. I think we may go back to that street now for lunch.

The smells here are weird to the western nose. Brad claims he smelled "Hills popcorn" (Mom!) yesterday on the street. I never caught a whiff of that. The hotel is lovely but the hallway going from our front door to the elevator smells odd.

Finally, a bit about the heat. It's HOT and HUMID. I don't mean you break a little sweat after walking around for 30 minutes. I mean you take a step outside and in less than 5 minutes, you're bathing in your own sweat. No joke. It's that intense. What's amazing is that I'm standing in a puddle of my own sweat wearing a little t-shirt and thin capris while the Vietnamese around me are wearing pants and thicker shirts and they're not even perspiring. I want to know their secret!