Sightseeing in Ho Chi Minh City

Had some spare time after my workshop was over on Friday and spent a really interesting day sightseeing in Ho Chi Minh City. The most interesting place to visit was the Vietnam War Museum, which explained in graphic detail the story of the War from the Vietnamese perspective. Lots of military hardware and harrowing photos were on display. It all felt very vivid. Not America’s finest hour.

Apart from that, it was a case of wandering around the hot and humid streets and getting a feel for the place. It’s not particularly vibrant, but compared to other Asian cities I’ve visited It’s very friendly and relaxed. What’s distinctive is the number of motorcycles and the constant noise of revving engines. You soon get used to zig-zagging through the traffic when you cross the road.

Would like to see more of Vietnam. A few pics below.

In Vietnam

Just flew into Ho Chi Min City today (formerly Siagon) where I'll be working for the next few days. Am staying in a lovely hotel - the Caravelle in the city centre. Changed at Doha in Qatar - never been before, which was surrounded by desert. Saw Quantum of Solace on the in - flight entertainment, which I rather enjoyed.

Not slept much so need to get some kip. Nice views from my bedroom window.

Pester Power

You read a lot about pester power when you're doing consumer research ie the power of children in influencing purchase decisions. It happens most commonly in supermarkets, where children ask for stuff they like or simply drop things in the trolley without you noticing.

However, at the moment all conversations with my 11 year old daughter revolve around her wanting a mobile phone. I see this as a completely irrational request - who would she phone? Hardly any of her friends have one and she never goes anywhere on her own. However, she constantly points out the 3 or 4 friends who do have phones as evidence that I'm being unfair.

It goes beyond conversations. I get print outs of competing phones left by my bed from websites. I get pages torn out of newspapers. She even asks me how my work is going as she knows I happen to working with a mobile phone operator at the moment.

When she goes to senior school in September and she has to walk to school on her own, then I can see the argument for a mobile phone. Before then, its just simply a desire to impress her friends.

Being a marketing consultant I can hardly complain about pester power...but it is annoying and I guess is how our economy works. The desire to impress others - as well as satisfy your own personal craving - lasts a lifetime.

Red Nose Day

Red Nose Day was a big deal in our household, with the kids dressing up for school and the teachers doing lots of funny stuff at.

Yesterday I went to Dublin. The Aerlingus flight back to London was due to take off at 530pm but was delayed by an hour. On the front row I saw Ronan Keating. (It was definitely him - I overheard an air hostess)

By the time I got home I saw him live on telly doing the Red Nose show. How did he do that?

Life Drawing Class

On Sunday I went to my first ever Life Drawing class, run by a friend of mine Trevor Flynn who runs a company called Drawing at Work . Drawing, for many people – including myself - is a scary subject. It’s something we don’t do regularly and as a result we feel we can’t draw. I had no idea what to expect or what I would produce.

However, in the hands of a fabulous teacher like Trevor it becomes less scary and genuinely enjoyable. A lot of it is down to learning the ability to look, learning basic technique and lots and lots of practice. Staring at a naked body for several hours is not something I do very often.

Now, after one day I’m not going to pretend that I’ve got any real talent for drawing, but I do feel that I could improve and develop. However, as with most things in life there are no short cuts and to produce work of genuine merit is a lifetime’s journey.

If you’ve not done any drawing for a long time I can recommend you attend a drawing class – particularly one of Trevor’s.

Day Trip to Venice

This morning I caught the 650am flight to Venice and have spent all day at the airport in a meeting. Am about to fly home and have seen absolutely nothing. Next time maybe. Wasn't there a film about a bloke who lived in an airport?

In New Jersey

I arrived on Monday morning after a nice, but rather empty BA flight. Highlight was watching Vicky Christina Barcelona, Woody Allan's latest. Escapist nonsense with some very sexy actors. I loved it. Managed to glimpse the New York skyline in the distance on the way to a large conference centre where I've been based for the last couple of days.

Escaped for dinner in Princeton tonight with my work colleagues. Its a very posh and quaint little town, famous for its Ivy League university. There's certainly a lot of smart shops and we had a lovely dinner in an Italian restaurant.

One more day of the conference and I'm off home tomorrow. I love coming to America, although this time its been short and sweet.

Klosters Pics

Karen, Posing

The Girls Skiing

Look, There's Snow on My Board

Snowboarding Lesson

Yesterday it snowed non-stop. Tons and tons of white powdery stuff covered the slopes. Perfect conditions for my snowboarding lesson. Dominic, my 19 year old teacher took me up on the nursery slope behind our apartment and taught me the basics of how to stand up, balance, turn and stop. I fell down lots of times, but there was always a soft landing.

Meanwhile loads of little kids from the ski school kept whizzing by trying to avoid me. Mae and Lia are loving it and making fantastic progress. Karen – after some coaching from Sally - looked cool and relaxed coming down the slopes. Klosters is a lovely place and can understand why it’s so popular with the rich and famous.

I managed to get down the gentle slope a few times. Today I’m on my own. Hope I can remember all the things Dominic taught me.

In Klosters

This is the first time we've ever been on a family skiing holiday, thanks to the generosity of our friends Sally and Roger who have lent us their apartment in Klosters. This really is a pretty place and apparently the skiing is amazing. Its just a shame I can't ski. It's snowing at the moment so conditions are really good. Behind us there are some nursery slopes where kids go whizzing by. I imagine I'll be spending quite a lot of time on them too. Think I'll have a crack at snowboarding. Must book some lessons.

Not seen Prince Charles yet, but will keep my eyes open. If I see him. you'll be the first to hear.

In Monza

Arrived about 2 hours ago, but still managed to squeeze in a pizza and a beer whilst watching Brazil v Italy at the local restaurant. Feel immersed in the local culture already. Here until Thursday evening. Hope the flight leaves OK. Off skiing the following morning.

Forest 2 Derby 3

There's nothing more satisfying for a footie fan to see your team come back to win. Derby were 2 nil down within 14 minutes, yet still managed to score 3.

Also, it was even more satisfying that we beat our local rivals and have got a home game against Man U in the next round. We've beaten them once. Can we do it again??

View From My Bedroom Window Overlooking Lake Geneva This Morning

Not that much snow here. Hope I manage to get back to London tomorrow.

Roman Holiday

Just back from a lovely weekend in Rome. It really is the most fantastic city. Although its a capital it feels small and intimate with narrow streets and quiet neighbourhoods. It's so easy to get around and you can see so much in a short space of time.

Stayed in a lovely area called Trastevere in a very friendly hotel called Hotel Santa Maria. Managed to eat al fresco on a couple of occasions.

I feel a bit overwhelmed by its beauty and feel I've only just scratched the surface of the city. The kind of place you want to return to again and again

A Few Rome Photos

The Curse of the Ex Player

Derby lost again last night. This time to Birmingham. Once again an ex- Derby player, Lee Carsley scored against us. (My sister bought his old house - he had very dodgy curtains)

I remember Tom Huddleston played over a 100 times for Derby and never scored a goal. He then went on loan to Wolves and in the game against us, guess what? He scored his first ever goal.

The club's cursed, I'm convinced of it. When Derby moved to the Baseball ground the club allegedly moved some gypsies off the site, who cast a curse on the club and said that they would never win a major trophy. I'm sure they're responsible for the ex-players' goals.

My First 10K Run of the Year

On Sunday I completed my first 10K run of the year in Epsom. Because of the heavy rain, parts of the run were completely waterlogged. However, managed to complete it and the rain kept off during the race itself. My time - as ever - was really slow, but I didn't finish last which was the main goal.

Am keen to do some more this year. Once again my New Year resolution is trying to get fit. For about the 20th year in a row.