Vietnam

Cathy, the woman who cuts (okay, okay - and colors, too) my hair, has been traveling in Asia - Vietnam, Cambodia, and possibly Thailand.  She sent this postcard from Vietnam. 

It brings up an interesting coincidence for me:  my last name is "Doan", and I am your typical, old school American mongrel - Scotch, Irish, German, English.  But "Doan" is also a Vietnamese name (as is the name of the photographer of this photo), and I am pretty sure I don't have any Vietnamese in my background, no matter how far back you go. 

"Doan" in the Anglo-Saxon, derives from the Irish "Doane", and means low, rolling hills.  The first Doans came to the US in 1629, and it appears there were a group of Doans who were "robbers, felons, burglars and traitors".  Rapscallions, to say the least.

"Doan" in Vietnamese means "nice, elegant, united, friendly".  Not bad for a definition.  We had a friend who named his son "Eric" and one of his high school friends found a definition for Eric that meant "stinky hair".  That poor kid is probably referred to as "stinky hair" by his quasi-uncles to this day, and I think the mother is still not happy about this.

Not all language is derivative, and most likely there is no common ancestral name or term from which "Doan" in Vietnam and "Doan" in Ireland evolved.  There are only so many sounds humans are capable of making and sometimes, words just come out the same.

Hanoi, Vietnam

[Oops. Thought I had posted this yesterday, but I hadn't. In any case.....]

It's been over 30 years, but I still can't hear the words "Hanoi" without it bringing up a whole host of memories and feelings around the Vietnam War, and the images and the news and the songs and the discussions of that time.

It's supposed to be fantastic, and I'd like to go there someday. My friend, Sudha, who sent the postcard writes, "It reminds me of Calcutta 40 years ago." She was on her way back to San Francisco from India.

A note on Sudha. She is a world renowned designer who, through her work with local artisans and craftsmen, has helped revive age old crafts that were near extinction. She was engaged in fair trade practices before they were even called that.

If you live in the Bay Area, she will be hosting her 7th annual "Sudha Sale" the first two weekends in November in the Corte Madera Shopping Center, benefitting Bread & Roses and The Redwoods in Marin County. I've sent many friends to this sale in the past who have always been thrilled with the merchandise, the prices, and the fact that all proceeds go to two worthy organizations.