Bangkok and Hue , June 1995

In June of 1995, I returned to Vietnam once again, my third trip within a year. I guess I was on some sort of vision quest as now I was determined to experience Vietnam with more focused awareness of how I processed things as a young American. In looking back, I was at a real turning point in my life.

I had been born in the city, grown up in the suburbs, gone to an internationally attended art school, and returned to the city. But nothing was challenging my sense of critical thinking like these trips to Vietnam. In order to make sense of it all and maybe validate the journeys I began to act as a reporter, covering myself in a sense. Eventually the data I recorded at this time became about 100 pages of an abandoned nonfiction novel.

So as not to bore anyone who doesn't care, two of the chapters I wrote around 1996 can be found by clicking HERE.

The chapters cover the same time period that I did the below sketches. On this trip I spent a few days in Saigon and about week or so in Hue.




Presented in greater detail in the chapter postings is my account of randomly meeting a married artist couple, Anh and Vinh, at the Art University in Hue. Both professors at the school, he was a sculptor and she a painter.
Speaking English with me, they very graciously invited me over to their house one afternoon where I spent about 4 or 5 hours drinking tea, looking at their artwork, and sketching portraits of each other.



Additionally in Hue I unexpectedly found myself in a very innocent romance with a local woman for several days. She and her family ran a popular restaurant and for some reason she found me worthy of her attention, so volunteered to be my guide to the countryside outside Hue. What made it especially interesting was that she was deaf and mute. (My old neighbor Steve, who used to hire me as a laborer in high school at his construction sites heard just those details and cried, "She sounds perfect!" as his wife rolled her eyes.)
These interesting and fond times are also written about in the chapters.



Also on this trip, I had two chance encounters with people in Saigon. I was hanging out with a recent grad in the expat bar "Apocalypse Now" talking about RISD, my alma mater.

" You went to RISD?" he asked, " That guy over there went to RISD too", pointing to Andrew, a stocky short guy with glasses across the room.

I went over and introduced myself to Andrew and talked for about 10 minutes before I stopped and really recognized him.

"Wait a minute! I know you. I painted houses for you one summer. You fired me!" This was true, but I hadn't recognized my old boss as he had cut off his long hair. Andrew broke out into a big smile at the weird crossing of paths.

" Frankly I was a lousy painter anyway" I confessed.

On another night, in another expat bar, Q-bar, I met Adam Yauch from the Beastie Boys. After introducing myself he showed interest in my sketchbook, telling me his father is an artist who always used to bring sketchbooks to family outings.

Adam was starting his first big non-concert trip through Asia with some high school friends. He told me later he was going to visit several other countries of interest, including Tibet. I guess it was on this trip that lead to his own personal quest as Tibet became a very big cause for him a couple years later. I understand he eventually even married a Tibetan woman.