Viet Nam travel

Viet Nam Diary 4: A Day in Hue

Published August 2, 2017 | By Clark Norton

Here’s part 4 of Myles Stone’s Viet Nam Diary.– a day exploring the former imperial capital of Hue, which combines both ancient and modern history, including stark reminders of the Viet Nam War.

For those who missed Myles’ previous three posts, he’s a Tucson physician who recently spent two months in Hoi An, Viet Nam, with his wife, Aimee, and baby daughter, Mimi. They were joined for part of their stay by my son, Grael, his wife, Nona, and baby son, Conrad.

How did two toddlers do in Viet Nam? Just fine.

The Vietnamese dote on babies. When you’re in restaurants, for instance, and your young children get restless, the owners will often happily insist on looking after them, perhaps even taking them outside. (At the end of the meal, the conversation may go something like this: “May we have our check, please? And our two babies — please?”)… Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Baby boomer travel, cultural travel, History, Viet Nam | Tagged Hue Citadel, Hue Viet Nam, Viet Nam, Viet Nam travel, Viet Nam War | Leave a comment

Viet Nam Diary 2: A Visit to the Tailor Shop

Published July 26, 2017 | By Clark Norton

An Bang Beach, Hoi An, Viet Nam

This is the second in our series of guest posts from Myles Stone, a Tucson physician who recently spent two months in Hoi An, Viet Nam, with his wife, Aimee, and baby daughter, Mimi.

Our son, Grael, daughter in law, Nona, and our then-16-month-old grandson, Conrad, spent two weeks visiting the Stones there this spring.

These are slice-of-life pieces that provide insights into what Viet Nam — a country that played such a huge role in the baby boomer experience of the 1960s — is like today.

You can read about the usefulness of their local neighborhood “fixer” in Myles’ first post.

In this post, Myles treats us to a visit to one of the many tailoring shops in Hoi An, where you can get custom-made suits, shirts, and other items of clothing made from scratch for a tiny fraction of what… Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Baby boomer travel, Budget travel, Family travel, Fashion, Viet Nam | Tagged Custom clothing, Hoi An Travel, Hoi An Viet Nam, Viet Nam travel, Vietnamese tailor shops | 2 Comments

Viet Nam Diary: The Local Fixer

Published July 25, 2017 | By Clark Norton

Today I’m delighted to introduce guest poster Myles Stone, a physician and friend of my son, Grael, and daughter-in-law, Nona.

Grael, Nona, and young Conrad P. Norton, who was 16 months old at the time (all pictured above arriving in Viet Nam), recently spent two weeks visiting Myles, his wife Aimee, and their baby daughter, Mimi, during their stay this spring in Hoi An, Viet Nam.

Though their experiences were those of a younger generation — none were alive during the Viet Nam War that so consumed the formative years of most baby boomers — Myles’ observations on their two months in Hoi An offer insightful and amusing glimpses of what life is like there today more than 40 years after the end of the war. (His complete blog can be found here.)

In this installment, one of a multi-part series, Myles describes the key role that the… Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Baby boomer travel, Family travel, Viet Nam | Tagged Hoi An Viet Nam, Viet Nam, Viet Nam culture, Viet Nam travel | Leave a comment

According to government and private surveys:

Leading-edge baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1955) and seniors account for four out of every five dollars spent on luxury travel today.
Roughly half the consumer spending money in the U.S.--more than $2 trillion--is in the hands of leading-edge baby boomers and seniors.
Baby boomers (born 1946-1964) travel more than any other age group.
When asked what they would most like to spend their money on, baby boomers answered “travel” more than any other category, including improving their health or finances.