Food tour across Vietnam in tour HoChiMinh

We're back in the UK for a couple of more weeks still so it was extraordinary to see Vietnam emphasized on primetime TV on Thursday night, when Rick Stein, a prevalent UK gourmet specialist, used a hour voyaging and consuming through Vietnam as a feature of his Far Eastern Oddessey, which can be seen here on BBC iplayer.

We truly appreciated the show - and it was extraordinary to see a travel program on Vietnam where for once the sustenance emphasized was about significantly more than macho moderators drinking snake's blood - nourishment in Vietnam is so divine it generally disturbs me to see innumerable moderators accumulating out over dishes that numerous individuals in Vietnam wouldn't consume, either.

Related post: Vietnam travel

Backtracking the voyage 

For the individuals who have created a taste for Vietnam in the wake of seeing Rick's demonstrate, here's a brisk agenda of his ventures, if you wish to investigate a portion of the spots he saw and sustenances he consumed!

He began the show going by skimming towns and the business sector in Chau Doc, at the outskirt with Cambodia, profound in the Mekong Delta, before heading to the exchanging center of the Mekong, Can Tho - celebrated its coasting business, however he didn't visit it.

On the banks of the Saigon stream and brimming with frontier appeal it is an incredible spot to stay when going to Saigon - as is the Hotel Continental, where Rick consumed inverse the Opera House.

He then went to Ben Thanh Market with Cathy from Gastronomy Blog who used to blog on Vietnamese sustenance from Saigon - her blog chronicles still have an abundance of knowlege on road nourishment in the city (as does Noodlepie) so on the off chance that you are arranging a visit look at these to get a thought of the delectable treats in store.

Skipping over the 1,000 odd miles and numerous incredible goals in Central Vietnam, Rick headed straight to Hanoi, Vietnam's capital, where he stayed in the perfect Sofitel Metropole, an alternate delightful frontier building - viewing the ravishing nourishment, lovely view and extravagance inns he was appreciating we were all inclination truly desirous by this point! He completed off the outing, as is standard, to Ha Long Bay, one of Vietnam's most renowned destinations of common magnificence. With a huge number of delightful islands climbing from the ocean its an incredible spot to strive for a journey.

In case you're feeling motivated you may need to look at these visit organizations that offer culinary treks to Vietnam:

A Taste of Vietnam - 14 days of tasty Vietnamese sustenance as you go from the North of the nation to the South with Imaginative Travelers

Gourmet Indochina - a 14 day devour crosswise over Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, taking in the significant sights and the best sustenance, with the larger part of time used in Vietnam.

Associations Vietnam offer cooking classes and road sustenance visits in Saigon

La Antigua | Foundry Photojournalism Workshop

Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved

Well, tomorrow I'll be flying off to Guatemala to join the rest of the faculty of the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop. I'll be spending most of the week-long workshop teaching the fundamentals of multimedia and storytelling, but I'll try to fit some street photography.

Having been to La Antigua a few years ago, I remember its streets offered strong contrast between shadows and sunlit corners, and hopefully I'll be able to do some interesting work with that.

I have a small class...which is what I always ask for and much prefer, since there's a substantial amount of one-on-one coaching in the audio editing module of the class. Having a larger class would be unmanageable, and would diminish its benefits.

I'll try to post while I'm in La Antigua, and keep my readers appraised about what I'm up to there....whether it's about the Foundry itself, my street photography, excellent coffee hang-outs or restaurants.

Keep tuned.

Okay... so what did I miss?

Just a quick note to say I'm home safe and sound from the Amazon. I had a fabulous time, and will be sharing photos, stories, and video from the trip soon. It was everything I could hope for and more, with plenty to see and do. The River itself is vast and powerful, and the jungle is thick, dense, and teeming with life.

Now comes the fun part of a vacation when you have to return to reality, and get caught up on all the work that was neglected while you were away. I know of several stories that I need to post on already, and regular updates should hopefully resume later today.

Until then, thanks to everyone who sent me encouraging words while I was away. I promise to share plenty of information on my trip as soon as I get settled and caught up a bit. :)

Will Gadd in ESPN the Magazine

It's not often that climbing, in any of its fashions, is reported on by the mainstream media. And when it is it's generally to report bad news. That's why it's always fun to find a story on a climber in a periodical such as ESPN the Magazine, which has devoted some space to ice climber Will Gadd.

I've posted on Gadd before. He's the globetrotting climber always looking for a new challenge to sink his ice axes into, and he's put up some tough routes all over the planet. He was even on the Jeep World of Adventure Sports when he did some underground ice climbing in an abandoned iron mine in Sweden.

This article is a profile on Will and his approach to ice climbing. ESPN caught up to him in December while he was working a small frozen waterfall in Kootenay National Park, British Columbia's, a short distance from where he lives. The training was preparation for a much bigger, and more challenging, water fall that he had projected to climb this month, with a slew of filmmakers and photographers in tow.

The story goes on to look at some of Will's other climbs, his start in the sport and his motivations. He's one of the top ice climbers in the world, and it's a nice profile that will probably not resonate with much of the ESPN crowd, but it is cool that they at least did the story, and showed him as the athlete that he is. Good stuff.

And check out one of Will's climb videos that they included with the story.

Adventure Week: Two More Endurance Legends Added

The roster of endurance athletes coming to Adventure Sports Week 2009 continues to grow with the addition of Rebecca Rusch and Michael Emde to the already impressive list of names that will be on hand at Farragut State Park near Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho this June.

Rusch, who has earned the nickname "the Queen of Pain", has an extensive and impressive resume in the world of outdoor adventure sports. She has raced in, and won, adventure races all over the world, and has become one of the best endurance mountain bike athletes as well. She will be taking part in the Mad Dash 8-hour mountain bike ride, as well as the Crux and the Crucible Adventure Race, and one of several orienteering events too.

Emde is the winner of the Furnace 508, and endurance cycling event that runs for 500+ miles through Death Valley every year. He has also competed on an international level in a number of other cycling events as well, and will be riding in the Mad Dash race as well.

These two talented athletes will join the likes of Mike Kloser, Ian Adamson, Robyn Benincasa, and Dean Karnazes in Idaho this summer. Adventure Sports Week will run from June 5 through the 14 and will offer outdoor athletes "10 days, 24 races, 1 great party". Looks like it'll be an amazing week!

From Beijing to London... On Horseback!

We've seen some long distance journeys on horseback before. Remember Bernice Ende, who rode 5000 miles through the Western United States back in 2007? Or how about Tim Cope, who rode from Mongolia to Hungry over the course of three years, covering more than 6000 miles in the process? Well now we have another epic ride to join those two.

This past Saturday, a British woman named Megan Lewis set off, along with Li Jing and Peng Wenchao, both Chinese, set out from Beijing, China, with the intention of riding all the way to London. The trio will cross China, ride into Inner Mongolia, ride into Central Asia, before moving into Europe. The plan is to arrive in the U.K. in time for the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Olympics, to be held in London.

Each of the riders is an experienced adventurer, and have plenty of time in the saddle. Lewis is riding to raise money for the Schoolchildren for Children charity as well, and you can read her blog of the expedition by clicking here. Also, be sure to checkout the official website of the journey at the appropriately named TheLongHorseRide.com.