Various Links
If you've not been following the news over here in Vietnam, it's been a big contrast to the news coming out of the United States.
From The Guardian: Aggressive testing and pop songs: how Vietnam contained the coronavirus

Also, from Vietnam Express: Vietnam ends 16th day without Covid-19 community transmission

...things are looking pretty good right now. (Knock on wood.)  Of course, part of the story is that Vietnam has achieved this by locking down it's boarders early on, and crippling it's tourist industry.  So how sustainable this is in the long term is uncertain.  I'm not sure what the next step is.

The country is now gradually beginning to come out of lock down. But is it safe to start travelling again?  Well, that's the debate: From Vietnam Insider:  Thousands flock to Vietnam’s tourist destinations as Vietnamese social media users divided

I guess in an ideal world, everyone would stay locked down for another month or so just to be safe.  But it's hard staying locked down in a small apartment in the city.  (You people who have been enjoying this lockdown in nice suburban neighborhoods nearby lots of hiking trails have no idea how lucky you are.)  After having been very conscientious about staying in and avoiding social contact for the last 2 months, my wife and I have decided to travel out to the countryside for this holiday.  With no cases of community transmission in Vietnam for 16 days, it seems pretty safe now.  At any rate, we were rapidly losing it being trapped in that small apartment.  We felt like we had to get out and see countryside and fresh air, or we would lose our minds.

Changing topics:
In other news, from CNN: Which languages are easiest -- and most difficult -- for native English speakers to learn?
Japanese is ranked right at the top of the most difficult list.  No surprise to anyone who's attempted it.  I did fairly well in Japanese, achieving an upper-intermediate level. (Of course, it took me 8 years to get there.)  But I never got to the point where I could read a novel in Japanese.  Few foreigners do.