First, some latest news: The war in Iran got a bit muddied yesterday, for there was a minor skirmish at Bandar Abbas, but the ceasefire is supposedly still holding.  Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated that the peace deal is only a few words away from settlement, and President Donald Trump continues to send mixed signals about a deal, so the world awaits. Apparently, there are 1,500 ships stranded in the Persian Gulf, now for three months, and before this war, only 130 ships transited the Strait of Hormuz/day.  Plus, there will be the matter of cleaning up the strait of mines, so you can expect high gasoline prices to the end of the summer. In the meantime, considering the drop in support from voters, rebuff from the Congress, worsening economy and gasoline prices, continuation of those two wars, and looming Epstein consequences, the troubled mind of Trump is worsening.  However, a "perfect" physical exam at Walter Reed yesterday is his personal diagnosis. Trump's e...

We are docked at Tien Sa Port, Vietnam, 7.5 miles from Danang, the third largest city in the country.  What most remember of this area is China Beach. Why?  There was a TV series that ran for four season from 1988 to 1991, set in an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War  in the late 1960s at My Khe Beach, Danang. China Beach , had a  Rotten Tomatoes  score of 94. Show was actually filmed in California. American soldiers use this R&R spot, and provided the nickname, China Beach. No official length, but a series of beaches over a 21-mile stretch of the coastline beginning in Danang, going south. I was here in 2010.  A quote from my posting. I am now at the Furama Resort in Da Nang. I walked out to the beach, looked one way, and couldn't see the end of the beach. Then I looked at the other end and couldn't see the end of the beach.     China Beach is 20 miles long   and mostly about 100 yards wide. Some of you might have watched   ...

Today will be the first time I will leave this ship.  On a bus to Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh City.  Saigon in the Rain sounds like a film, but that is what happened.  Started with a pho for breakfast, with a Bloody Mary and orange juice. Boarded the bus for our one-hour ride to Saigon, Took a photo of a cannonball tree.  The balls and flowers have terrible smells. We got to our drop off point, the Bitexco Financial Tower, also known as the Skyrise Tower, where the skydeck is on the 49th floor.  Was once the tallest building in Saigon.   However, in 2018, the Landmark 81 tower was completed, making it it the second tallest in southeast Asia to Merdeka 118 of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.  Those numbers reflect the number of stories. We had available an hour to walk around the area, but it began to rain, so we decided to remain on the bus.  Thus I called today's posting, Saigon in the Rain.  Wonder what motorbike riders do in the rain?  Well, h...