I am getting a kick out of today’s pop albums in Viet Nam. Even the most heartbreaking tune could make you giggle. Minh Hang’s Mot Vong Trai Dat is a perfect example. The album is filled with real talk like “Long Ich Ky,” “Nguoi Dien Yeu” and “Yeu Lam Anh.” Get past the lame-out rap, range-less delivery, breathy vocals, generic arrangements, and what you get is straight-to-the-point conversation. The duet between Minh Hang and Thanh Dai Sieu on “Chia Doi Mot Trai Tim” cracks me the hell up. Not because of their vocal chemistry, but their shameless approach. You just have to forgive a guy for such a sincere confession: “La tai anh co loi khi anh da yeu ca hai / Khong muon mot nguoi phai buon cung khong muon bo mat ai.” He sounds so damn sweet even with such a wimpy voice. He just happens to love two girls even though he doesn’t want too. Don’t you wish you could get away with shit like that? I envy you, kid.

Caught a glimpse of Thien Kim’s live show (on DVD that is) and her performance of Ngo Thuy Mien’s “Niem Khuc Cuoi” takes me immediately back to our first dance. All that I can say is that Thien Kim’s rendition is nowhere near Thu Hoai’s. From articulating the words to capturing the emotion, Thu Hoai sang like a man in love, something not easy to accomplish from a female vocalist. It was a wise choice that she didn’t switch the roles from his to her like Thien Kim did, which ruined the intention of the song.

A few guests had questioned our song choice. The title, “Niem Khuc Cuoi,” alone is already sad and some of the lyrics are even sadder. We picked the song for both its sweet and bitter content. We wanted to share both sides of love, not just the good side. We had our ups and downs and I am sure more down moments in the future are inevitable. We have to recognize the reality of love in order to work out our conflicts.

Our initial plan was to go with Thuy Vu’s rendition on CD. It was the version that we first danced together over an intimate dinner at her apartment back in Beacon, New York. Unfortunately the mixer didn’t work at our wedding. The sound was badly distorted even from the original album, so I requested Thu Hoai to cover it and she didn’t disappointed us. She was right there inside the music and I could felt her every word. Where is Mr. Truc Ho? Scoop her up, please.

While we danced, my wife whispered in my ears, “I love you and we will be together forever.” The only thing I could do was to hold her tight and kiss her. That particular moment has filmed inside my mind. Every time I hear this song, the sound, sight, and sweet lips begin to play. It was simply unforgettable.

Lines I can’t get off my mind:

Boi chinh em da yeu mot thu tinh yeu nho nhen
Boi chinh em da yeu mot thu tinh yeu khong cong bang
Minh Khang’s “Nguoi Ra Di La Anh”

I do anything when I put my mind to it
A whole lot more when I put the nine to it
Jay-Z’s freestyle

Sure, Duc Tri continues to collaborate with Ho Ngoc Ha even after they broke up, but does he give her a hundred percent of his effort? Hell no. Judging from her new and previous albums, he doesn’t give a shit. Can’t blame the guy though. Any dude would have done the same. Although he is not totally responsible for her new release, the least he could do was to give her some advice. Khi Ta Yeu Nhau is her lamest album up to date. Sort of like high-end restaurants with tasteless food, the productions are crisp and top-notch, but lack the flavors. Her voice is dark and raspy, but she sounds more sleepy than sexy. The lyrics are so banal that the only line sticks out after listening to eleven tracks is “Cho du anh khong cao lam / Ma trong anh rat duyen.” Thanks for throwing us shorties a bone.

Our honeymoon in Jamaica was short but sweet. It gave us a chance to recuperate from the wedding. We didn’t do much except eat, drink, swim, a whole of sleep, and a whole lot more of activities that honeymooners come to do. Our inclusive package includes a nice crib in Negril Gardens, free meals at the fantastic restaurant, and all-you-can-drink at the bar that opens from ten to midnight. Best off all, these three essential places were right on the calm, gorgeous beach. Isn’t it a perfect place to be lazy or what?

The foods served at the Negril Gardens resort were delicious and they had theme nights including International, Oriental, Beach BBQ, Jamaican, Gala and Mexico. The drinks were fantastic. I had tried plenty of cocktails and my favorites were Hummingbird, Make My Day, Rum Runner, Come Again and, most of al, Lemonade and Rum. The bartender was awesome. In fact, Jamaican folks in general are friendly. Much respect, mon.

If I were to take one thing from this trip, it has to be the beach incident. Friday morning, my wife and I woke up at seven and we jogged along the beach. We took a little swim in the morning water before breakfast. While I was swimming, the wedding ring slipped right off my finger. I was frantic. This can’t happen to me, but guess who found the ring in the water? That’s right my lovely wife. I was about to give up because it was like “mo kim duoi dai bien” (Vietnamese phrase for “trying to find a needle in the ocean”). I felt awful after an hour of search and told my baby to forget about it and I’ll get a replacement as soon as we get back to America. But my baby didn’t want to get up and she actually found it. Isn’t that something?

The honeymoon had given us a bit of time to be recharged and ready to work into our future plans. We still have tons of work ahead of us. The immediate one is to pick up where we left of on the search for our house. My mom’s seventy-first birthday is next week and we will have a reception for her with about forty guests (mostly family members). I am very excited about it because she seems to be happy. We’re also looking forward to trip to Las Vegas with her sister and her husband after their wedding. (Her sister’s future husband is actually a very nice man. Him and I are getting along quite well and he was a great help for our wedding.) After that we’re planning on going back to Viet Nam to visit my dad. But for now, big props go out to her sister and her future husband for this exceptional wedding gift. You guys rock!

The wedding turned out to be one of the happiest days of my life. Although it was not perfect (which wedding is perfect?), I am proud of the fact that we had made the most out of it. So here is a brief recap of how the day went.

I woke up at five thirty in the morning. Aunt 9 who flew in from Texas and I took a walk around the park to catch up on family matters. We went back to my mom’s little apartment to get ready. Our family left together from my sister’s house at a bit passed eight to get to the bride’s resident in Flanders, New Jersey for the ceremony. We arrived a few blocks from the house to get everyone together for the walk-in tradition. The ceremony was kept short, simple but no less moving. The bride looked gorgeous in the red traditional dress (ao dai). She was indeed the brightest star of the day. The most memorial part of the morning is when both side of the family were in tears. They were happy for both of us.

After the ceremony, light brunch was served. At that time Dung and I escaped the scene with the photographer for some photo shoots at the gorgeous campus of Princeton University. We hit a bit of snag trying to find the place we wanted because we weren’t familiar with the area. Big thanks to the photographer for being patience with us. Not sure how the photos will turn out, but he did a great job of getting us relax and felt comfortable in front of the camera.

The reception, which took place at Golden City Chinese Restaurant, was to start at six thirty, but we were there at six because the campus photo shoot turned to be longer than what we had planned. Thanks to my wife’s sister and her future husband for setting up the whole place for us. When we got there the place looked warm, intimate and elegant. Guests began to arrive at around six thirty and the place almost filled at seven thirty so we got the party started.

Big thanks to our beautiful MC with a lovely voice for holding down the program. After visiting my blog and having read our Love Notes, she was able to incorporate some of the lyrics into her introduction. Father of the bride gave a warm, heartfelt speech thanking our guests for coming. My speech also turned out decent after I had a few drinks.

What kept the wedding exciting had to be the music band. Thu Hoai and the Magic Night band brought down the house. Thanks Thu Hoai for covered Ngo Thuy Mien’s “Niem Khuc Cuoi” with such a romantic vibe as well as the special dedication to my mother with “Me Hien Yeu Dau.” The young crowd at my table loved her version of “Vi Do La Em” without even clear understanding of the lyrics. Big props go to the band for keeping everyone on the floor all night long. We started our first dance early on so that folks could come out and dance. We even chucked out the traditional formal greetings so that people could have more time to enjoy the music. Dung and I went around and greeted everyone individually.

The music was great. The wine was tasty. The cake was awesome. The food was fantastic. Everyone seemed to enjoy the party. Most folks stayed and danced until eleven thirty at night. Everything was perfect until the next day. About a dozen of folks including myself got sick from the food. I am still recovering and hopefully I can go on to Jamaica tomorrow. I apologize to anyone who came to the reception and got sick from the food. I made the call to the restaurant immediately and the owner blamed it on the weather. Although the food was good, I wouldn’t even reconsider Golden City Chinese Restaurant for future occasions. Once again, I truly apologize.

As I sat down to write about “our story,” I couldn’t possibly sum it up without delving into the details. Dung and I met through my website (Visualgui.com). I invited her to a movie. On our first date, she impressed me with her appetite by cleaning up a huge plate of shrimp pasta at ten o’clock at night. The long hours we sat by the Hudson River trading our stories. The first time we held hands and didn’t want to let go. The days filled with continuous emails back and forth. The evenings filled with food, music and laughter.

The memories are endless; therefore, I would like to do something a bit different instead of writing a novel about us. One of the things that connected us is music, particularly Vietnamese intimate ballads. So we wanted to put together an album with the songs we have loved and shared. And instead of writing the sleeve notes, I put together the “love notes” for the seven tracks that recollect glimpses of our story:

Tình Tự Mùa Xuân
Music & Lyrics: Từ Công Phụng
Vocal: Tuấn Ngọc

I can still remember the fresh vibe of the clear, breezy summer night like yesterday. On a dark, lonesome throughway, I was driving Dung home from our first date. We glanced at each other as “Tình Tự Mùa Xuân” began:

Em lại đây với anh
Ngồi đây với anh
Trong cuộc đời này.
Nghe thời gian lướt qua
Mùa xuân khẽ sang
Chừng như không gian đang sưởi ấm
những giọt tình nồng.
Come to me,
Sit by my side,
Share this life with me.
Listen to the time glide by,
As the soft approach of spring,
Warms the air
And our tender tears of love.

I didn’t need to say a word. Tuấn Ngọc’s romantic voice said it all.

Bài Ca Hạnh Ngộ
Music & Lyrics: Lê Uyên Phương
Vocal: Thiên Phượng

Although the journey ahead could be rough and treacherous, we can make it if we hold on to each other’s hand. We promised never to get go like Lê Uyên Phương had suggested:

Rồi mai đây đi trên đường đời
Đừng buông tay âm thầm tìm về cô đơn.
Later, on the journey through life,
Don’t let go of my hand to seek your quiet solitude.

Vì Đó Là Em
Music & Lyrics: Diệu Hương
Vocal: Quang Dũng

Dung used to call me “dẽo miệng” (slick mouth) when I lip-synced the following lyrics to her:

Không cần biết em là ai
Không cần biết em từ đâu
Không cần biết em ngày sau.
Ta yêu em bằng mấy ngàn biển rộng
Ta yêu em qua đông tàn ngày tận
Yêu em như yêu vùng trời mênh mông.
Who you are doesn’t matter,
Where you’re from, I don’t wonder,
What you’ll be, I don’t worry.
My love is a thousand oceans strong,
My love will fight winters and eternities long,
My love, like the sky, will always be.

Sure my dear, I love you just the way you are.

Nụ Hôn Gởi Gió
Music: Hoàng Việt Khanh
Lyrics: Hiền Vy
Vocal: Quang Lý

Besides Hoàng Việt Khanh’s composing skill and Quang Lý’s gorgeous delivery, what makes this contemporary folk tune irresistible is Hiền Vy’s playful poetry:

Môi em mọng đỏ, là đỏ như mơ
Cho anh nhờ gió hôn vào là vào môi em.
Your full red lips, crimson like a ripe apricot,
Let me summon the breeze to give them a gentle kiss.

Dung pointed out how folks back in the days revealed their feelings in such a graceful approach. I wanted to sing this tune dedicated to Dung on our wedding day but my voice fails me.

Niệm Khúc Cuối
Music & Lyrics: Ngô Thụy Miên
Vocal: Thụy Vũ

We danced to this romantic ballad together for the first time and we knew it has to be the theme song for our wedding:

Cho tôi xin em như gối mộng
Cho tôi ôm em vào lòng.
Xin cho một lần, cho đêm mặn nồng
Yêu thương vợ chồng.
Be the pillow I embrace,
Let me hold you in my arms,
Let us share warm nights together,
Loving one another as husband and wife.

Rồi Đây Anh Sẽ Đưa Em Về Nhà
Music & Lyrics: Phạm Duy
Vocal: Mộng Thúy

A lovely ballad from Phạm Duy reminds us of the days we sat in the Eastman Park talking about life, family, music and everything else until two in the morning. Accompanied by a simple, elegant piano, Mộng Thúy’s sensual soprano brings back the memories:

Rồi đây anh sẽ đưa em trở về
Về nơi công viên yên vui lặng lẽ.
Hãy ngồi đây, ghế đá ngày xưa
Dưới hàng thông có gió lửng lơ.
And I will return with you
To the quiet park of our youth,
Where we may sit on the old bench
Under pines caressed by the breeze.

Bài Không Tên Số 28
Music & Lyrics: Vũ Thành An
Vocal: Tuấn Ngọc

Our story is long and filled with memories and this is just the beginning. Each day our love grows stronger than the day before and we’re looking forward to sharing our lives together like Vũ Thành An had written:

Cho đến trăm năm vẫn còn say
Xin đến trăm năm không rời tay.
Until a hundred years pass, our love shall never end,
For a hundred years more, never letting go.

The big day is coming, so I won’t be blogging much. After the wedding we will head to Jamaica for a short honeymoon; therefore, I am going to leave you with the album we have compiled for you to enjoy while I am away. Thanks everyone for being such wonderful visitors.

Thanks to Trong Do and Anh-Chi Do for all English translations.

Laura Hall:

But no matter how tired or hopeless I am feeling, hip-hop helps me look beyond my own circumstances to find the determination I need to move forward.

I haven’t followed this season of American Idol that much, but I was surprised that David Cook won instead of David Archuleta. Clearly, Archuleta was a much better performer on Tuesday night. Did America try to prove that Simon Cowell was wrong?

Chuyen xe ky di (via Khong Co Ai).