Fresh veggies

I know, I know, I haven't been as positive about Vietnam in general as I would have liked. I know there are a lot of things here that piss me off or drive me nuts or baffle me or make me want to go home.

HOWEVER.

One thing that I simply cannot get enough of in this country is that I can pay for a full bag of veggies for 11,000VND (or approximately 55 cents), all while having a funny market experience.

And that, an hour later, I can turn those veggies into this:

Yes, that's right. A meal of entirely fresh vegetables (minus the kalamata olives and capers in my homemade puttanesca sauce, that is).

If it weren't for all of my indulgent trips to Hanoi that include steak-frites, chicken parmesan sandwiches, and pizza, along with plenty of stops at French cafes for lemon tartes or profiteroles for dessert (none of which I am complaining about, by the way!!!), I would be living the healthiest possible lifestyle with all of these fresh vegetables and homemade meals. Nonetheless, I think I like my trips to Hanoi a bit better than the possibility of becoming Vegetable Woman.

In any case, I'm thrilled with my fresh meals and will probably miss the farm-to-fork lifestyle quite much once I return to the States...