I have spent quite a lot of time to write about my journey in Vietnam. Vietnam deserves a lot of attention with its fascinating history and culture. It was so nice to see Vietnam. From north to south. And also to rejoin with friends from previous work at Astra Zeneca. We used to do quite advanced studies. I remember that I learnt a lot about the importance of water to be able to do MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) studies. The oscillation of the water molecule in the body. T1 and T2. Nuclear physics including eg electrons and positrons. So, I was very happy to see Raimo and his family in HCMC in their beautiful house. Life.

Just before I went to Asia I saw my previous mentor Professor Jörgen Engel at a drug addiction meeting in Stockholm in December. I am so happy that I can be a member to follow what happens within drug addiction. I like to read the “Bulletin”. I will soon write about how ethanol (alcohol) orchestrate the brain reward symphony.

I was a little sad to leave Vietnam. But, then, it was good to know that I was going to meet my friend that I made at Gothenburg University. That is more than 15 years ago. She was in our research group led by Professor Jörgen Engel. I finished my thesis work and she decided to move to England to get a license for medical practice. MD. We stayed in contact and I visited her several times in England (White cliffs) and also in Scotland.  Anu is now licensed within Psychiatry and her husband Visahan, works as a Surgeon at a hospital in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka.

I went from Saigon to Bangkok and changed planes for Colombo. I got to Colombo in the middle of the night, and my sweet friend met me at the airport to go to Anuradhapura. We went three hours by car through the jungle. We had to be careful, because sometimes elephants occur, like elks in Sweden. However, we had a skilled driver who knew all, crooked roads. At their house I got a few hours of sleep and woke up to a beautiful, peaceful and warm Sri Lanka.

It was a long time ago I saw this movie. Films are a very good way of understanding history. I don´t remember much. Humor is a very important way to survive history. Like Victor Borge. Historical events that are so un-understandable that you can only make jokes about them. Like the awakenings. I thought a lot of Good Morning, Vietnam when I was in HCMC. And that is why I had to go to the Rex Hotel, a popular base for several journalists during the Vietnam War. It was built by French colonial developers and became a focus of the social and military activities of American soldiers. The US military officers gave the daily press briefings “The Five O´clock Follies”.

My humor is academic, I think. And it might be difficult to understand sometimes. But to laugh has helped me throughout life. First, I wasn´t going to the War Remnants museum but I was highly recommended by the hotel where I stayed. I really don´t like to write about it, but a lot of war crimes are committed during war. Among the most disturbing exhibits at the museum are the formaldehyde-filled jars containing foetuses deformed as a result of the chemical defoliants (agent orange) used during the Vietnam war.