Odds n' Ends

Travel Tech

I just started the washing machine machine here. Lights on the panel are lit up which is good. The sounds are foreign to me, sort of like a groaning pulse that indicates it is not enjoying my clothes, which to be fair are rather long plane ride worn and/or sweaty from cycling. Hopefully the result will not shrink or shred my silk and Angora dainties! 

I have an app on my phone that will translate text on any surface when the camera is viewing it, I can speak English and the phone will translate on screen the designated language and it will track and translate conversations as well. It came in handy today as I needed to buy a face cloth. I have been using low tech hands to shower. 

I was little concerned about a possible My Big Fat Greek Wedding fiasco, like the Vietnamese translation might be "Ho Chi Minh had stocks in General Motors."

I brought a nifty little case to keep my tech cords etc organized. 

My portable power charger (with the paw logo) is indispensable. If I'm out and about and the phone charge is low I just plug it in and continue on my merry way. In full transparency, one reason my Sunday walk was almost 21 km is because I forgot to bring the portable unit with me and I couldn't access google maps. 😳

Vietnam uses the two prong outlet, so my trusty adapter is the ticket. 

The stove is embedded in the counter and is touch sensitive. Tap "on" and slide the slider to the desired heat factor. Level 6 seems to get a quick boil. I think it's an induction unit. I do have to take care cleaning the elements as a light tap is all that's needed to turn one on. 

The two TV's in JP3 look impressive but one has to sign up for the streaming apps. I tried my NF account. I subscribe to the lowest level, with commercials. That level doesn't work in this part of the world and I won't sign up for the next level up. Prime and Tubi don't fly here either. Some movies on Kanopy, the Cambridge Library website will play. Yay for the little guy! 👍 I watched "Wicked Little Letters" the other night with Jessie Buckley (she's one of my fave actors and singers) and Olivia Colman (who played the Queen on the Crown). I'm surprised the censors didn't ban it as there is a LOT of swearing in it. But it is a fun movie to watch and is based on actual events during the 1920's British suffragette movement. 

The washing machine beeped 5 times so I'll check the condition of the clothes. And in full transparency, I still had 2 pair of underwear, 2 shirts and 2 shorts that are clean. 😁 Yay! Everything looks good!

On my cycle back from town I stopped at a recommended coffee cafe owned by a Viet couple. I ordered a coconut coffee and croissant. The coconut and ice were chopped up in a blender, and placed in about two centimetres of coffee Toasted almond slices and coconut are drizzled on top. The little jug was coffee to add if it wasn't strong enough. Man it was refreshing on a 25 degree humid day. Oops! Sorry for that reference Ontario. The croissant almost literally melted in my mouth. And the owners were so easy to chat with. 

I loved the sign on their wall. 

I sure am living in the now these days.