Napalm Be Gone
Posted on 08. Sep, 2013 by Paul Sochaczewski in Golf

NAPALM BE GONE That boom you hear in Vietnam is an explosion of golf courses DALAT, Vietnam My favorite golf course in Vietnam owes its existence to a puppet king, a French architect who restored Roman ruins, and a rich American who craved virgins. * * * I spent part of the Vietnam War […]
Read MoreLast Great Elephant Hunter Achieves Indochine Glory
Posted on 30. Jun, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Curious Travel

He’s notched up 298 pachyderms, and a lucrative product endorsement contract BUON MA THUOT, Vietnam. Stardom can be defined in many ways. For Ama Kong it is a number, 298, the sum of wild elephants he has captured. Now 90, with failing eyesight but still with a healthy head of hair, Ama Kong is […]
Read MoreMona Lisa On My Mind
Posted on 30. Mar, 2010 by Paul Sochaczewski in Curious Travel
Vietnamese artists search for that enigmatic smile HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam ______________ She has many identities and genders. She was kidnapped, maybe by Picasso. She lived in the Palace of Versailles. She spent time in Bonaparte’s bedroom. Nat King Cole, Cole Porter, Santana, Bob Dylan and Britney Spears sang about her. She appeared, twice, […]
Read MoreInto the Frying Pan
Posted on 20. May, 2008 by Paul Sochaczewski in Curious Travel
Vietnam’s street kids learn the restaurant business HANOI, Vietnam “Postcards, mister?” I explained to the teen-aged boy outside a luxury hotel in Hanoi that I didn’t need any more postcards. “Please mister.” So I bought a few more postcards, hoping my dollar would buy the young man a meal or two. Officially there are some […]
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