I took this picture in the early part of our trip to Viet Nam while we were walking around Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi. I was instantly drawn to it for some reason before I even realized that I had just taken a picture of a wheel barrel of trash. But it was beautiful to me, so I didn’t really think twice about it till now.

Looking back I think I was so drawn to this wheel barrel because I was just fascinated by the non la hat that was placed on top of the just picked flowers. For some reason that non la... more

I had read about the streets of Hanoi; the motorbikes, the honking, the difficulty crossing the street. But to witness it myself was nothing short of amazing. We got our first taste of how the city lives our first night in our hotel. The honking never stops. Literally. It continues 24 hours a day! We had a room that faced a small street and we were fascinated with the noise. It would die down from time to time, but it would never completely stop. It actually became kind of soothing, believe it or not! And the honking in Viet Nam is nothing like the... more

Soon after arriving in Viet Nam, another family in our group who had been in country previously and were familiar with the area, took us down to Hoan Kiem Lake (also known as Turtle Lake). After this first trip, we wound up choosing to go down by the lake frequently and became quite familiar with the area. You can try every kind of cuisine, find all kinds of shopping and even take in a water puppet show in this area of Hanoi.

That first day at the lake we walked the perimeter and I spotted a small group of artists working on their renderings of the lake and the surrounding area. I love that in this photo the lake is the focus. The artists actually appear to be in the shadows, and... more

My time spent in Viet Nam was life changing. Not only did I meet my daughter, but I was able to experience her amazing country. I would like to share a view of Viet Nam with you each week. If you've already been to Viet Nam, I hope these views bring back happy memories. If you're waiting to travel, I hope they make you feel more connected to the country you'll soon be experiencing for yourself!

The exchange rate and dealing with Vietnamese dong took a little getting used to. Good think my husband is a quick thinking, good with numbers kind of a guy! When we were there $1 US converted to approximately 15,000 dong. When we converted large amounts of US dollars for even larger amounts... more