-^-for posterity-^-

buoi, buoi. buoi buoi.

if you say it with one intonation it means grapefruit. if you say it with another intonation, it means something that makes all the women blush and say "no, no, no!" make sure to say it with a downward accent. if you say it with the slightest upward accent it means something.

we have afternoon snacks here at the mcc house in hanoi. they consist mainly of grapefruit and apples with dipping salt. dipping salt? yes, dipping salt. this salt is just regular coarse salt with chopped up spicy red peppers. one must take the buoi (pronounced correctly...) and dip it into the spicy salt. then one must eat it. grapefruit with spicy salt. who would have ever thought. we were going about our buoi dipping and chatting when i picked up an apple slice (tao. say it with an upward accent and, to my best knowledge, as much as i butcher the pronunciation, it can't mean anything too terrible). i dipped the apple slice in the spicy salt. oh, no my naive american friend. the dipping salt, laced with enough spicy red peppers to kill a small phonician army, is only, and i repeat only, for the buoi. everyone laughs and i blush bright red. something like the women's faces earlier.

also, an important event takes place: one of the ladies, a miz ang, or something, peals an apple. she does it with the knife facing away from her body. for homework, i would like all of us to try to peal an apple with a knife and have the knife facing directly away from our bodies. it's impossible. oh, and the skin can't tear. it must be pealed away as to end up in one continuous piece. we would naturally peal it towards us. when we bring this to miz ang's attention, she says, politely, "no, no, that is dangerous!" so, i show them how it "is done" and they are all shocked. i even go on to split the apple with the knife cutting towards me. they are appalled! they go on to quarter the apple much more safely, with the knife slicing away from the body. go home and try it yourself. it's all a matter of perspective. it's all a matter of culture. it's beautiful.