When I was back in Oz I mysteriouisly got a thorn in my elbow.Sitting at a computer chair is hardly the place where you are in jeopardy of being pierced with sharp objects but alas thats what happened. I felt a sharp prick in the arm and when I looked at it I saw a thorn sticking out. Later it got very painful so I went to the doc in Dford and he gave me some pills for skin infections. They seemed to work although the swelling didn't go away entirely and in VN it swelled up to halof a tennis ball size. So My Le took me to the same doctor who did my skin tags a few trips ago the same one who tripled her price when she found My Le and I weren't married. Thankfully she is quite old so My Le told her we were married this time and she didn't remember me. I was sitting on a stool in the waiting room and My Le and the doc were looking at me and chatting and having a good laugh about something. I asked her what they were saying and she told me the doc asked her" if I could do it anymore". My Le told her no he's too old. Oh what a giggle they had. 

So the doc rubbed some liquid on my elbow and later took me into the surgery. No niceties here, she propped my arm over a stainless steel bowl and took her scalpel and slit me open. The blood and pus spurted out into the bowl as if I was a slaughtered beast. After it had stopped running she took the bowl and held it in front of me so I could see what came out. No spiders thank allah. So a quick stitch and a bandage and that was that. I have to go back tomorrow to have it cleaned out she said. The marriage subterfuge was simply to make it cheaper for me and it cost 250,000 about $13. Even though I had the tablets prescribed in Oz My Le insisted on going to a pharmacy to get some more, and what an extravaganza she came up with, and which Nhi carefully wrapped up in morning, noon and night packages. Two grey and pink capsules,two white tablets and one Tydol Codeine Forte.

The mystery of Na staying for a week and not going back to An Khe immediately is partly solved. My Le told me today she is going to An Khe tomorrow to visit her mother so Nhi and Na will look after the shop while she's gone. When she comes back Na will go.

A few pics added from various dining venues and one pic of the ugly edifice being erected on the island between Hoi An and Cam Nam island. This was just a sandbar until someone got the idea to develope it and now the are building a replica of Hoi An old town and are going to have performances of some sort. The building in the pic is the back of a sort of amphitheatere with banked rows of seats and the poles you can see hold huge speakers. Austins house is directly opposite and he is a bit wary of how it might effect his ambience.