| While my glass may be half-full, I’m always aware that it could spill—probably onto my laptop. I suspect most people with good imaginations are worriers. After all, we can envision so many possible outcomes. I’ve found that the best antidote for fear is gratitude. Life can be brutal, dreary and unfair, but it’s also beautiful. So here’s my list of favorite things. Who knows? Maybe our lists overlap.
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Hanoi JaneLooking for a book that combines travel, romance and adventure? With its fast pace, exotic locale and compelling characters Hanoi Jane is the perfect holiday read — whether or not you’re on holiday.
Vietnam A to ZVietnam A to Z uses fun illustrations and bilingual English and Vietnamese text to introduce Vietnam’s colorful culture to young children.
1, 2, 3 VietnamFunny illustrations and bilingual English and Vietnamese text bring Vietnam alive for very young children.
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| Favorite mode of transport: When a float plane is taking off you can feel it straining against the water. Everything rattles and shudders. One moment, you’re on the sea, with water sloshing against the windows, and the next you’re in the air, with the ocean flat and shiny beneath you. Float planes aren’t sleek. It’s like being in a VW bus that can fly. I love the improbability. | ||||||||||
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Favorite novel: I’ve read Michael Ondaatje’s In the Skin of a Lion at least three times, and still couldn’t begin to summarize the plot, which follows the building of the city of Toronto. What’s stuck with me is a scene described with such beautiful language that I swear I was there, on a frozen lake in the 1920s. |
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| Favorite non-fiction book: If ever you’re feeling uninspired, I recommend Lesley Blanch’s captivating In The Wilder Shores of Love, which recounts the adventures of four nineteenth century European women who escaped boredom and convention by traveling East. If they could lead such fulfilling lives, so can the rest of us. | ||||||||||
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Favorite kids’ book: Great illustrations, great rhythm and a genuinely funny story make this book fun to read out loud—over and over and over again. | |||||||||
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Favorite poet: When I learned that Yehuda Amichai had died, I felt like I’d lost my most brilliant, yet humble, friend. This is the man who wrote: Forgetting someone is like forgetting to turn off the light in the back yard so it stays lit all the next day.But then it’s the light that makes you remember. |
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Favorite building: Myanmar’s most sacred pagoda, Shwedagon, has an incredibly buoyant atmosphere full of hope and reverence. Go there to watch the sunset. | |||||||||
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Favorite island: Pender Island, British Columbia, Canada. As a kid, my best friend and I were sitting on a rock near the ocean when a killer whale surfaced, less than three meters away from us. As the whale rose it turned onto its side, so that one eye was looking right at us. Every video clip I’d ever seen of a killer whale taking a seal club ran through my head. Before it dove, I swear, that whale winked at me. Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of killer whales around Pender, but never as close as that first one. | |||||||||
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Favorite city: Hanoi, Vietnam. As well as being crowded and noisy, Vietnam’s capital has awful weather. So what’s to love, you might ask? After eighteen years in Vietnam, each time I go to Hanoi, I see something new and surprising. This city is like life itself: between the mess and frustration lie moments of heart-stopping beauty. | |||||||||
In My LifeThere are places I remember Though I know I’ll never lose affection In my life I love you more |
Favorite song: Some people don’t care much about a song’s lyrics but I hear the words before the music. As a baby, my son was a screamer. When nothing else helped, I’d sing the Beattles’ “In My Life” and he’d stop bawling. Even now, at the age of six, he regularly begs me to “sing Places, Mummy.” | |||||||||
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Favorite pastime: Not much makes me happier than snorkeling. Last year, I was snorkeling off the coast of Lombok when I came face-to-face with an adult sea turtle. I froze and she drifted by, close enough to touch. Watching that turtle I felt like both of us were flying. | |||||||||
| Favorite tree: I have a somewhat superstitious love of trees, and suspect that certain trees possess magical powers. When I first came upon this banyan, not far from Hoi An in central Vietnam, I told my kids it was home to fairies. It’s definitely inhabited by some sort of supernatural spirits. | ||||||||||
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Favorite quote:
“Be silly. Be honest. Be kind.” |
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