WALK which incorporates meditation, is essentially about slowing down. On a personal level, she has seen its benefits on herself, from when she began practicing to teaching it. “It has had a huge impact on my relationships and I find myself able to interact with people better; I’m not so quick to react, but rather pause, breathe and respond,” she says citing one example, adding that watching it have a beneficial impact on her students brings her much joy. “I have seen it transform people in a very positive manner. They may come in to practice yoga because they want to lose weight but over time they find that the practice provides a much more profound and wholesome effect on their physical, spiritual and mental health. This is what keeps them coming back to their practice.” I ask whether the mushrooming of yoga Getting off the motorbike or out of the taxi and using some leg power has numerous advantages. Apart from the obvious health benefits, taking the time to walk the streets will give you a new perspective on the city. Driving in HCM City requires a lot of concentration, so it is naturally difficult to really take in your surroundings. All those hidden gems, the great café or quirky boutique, you miss while speeding by will make themselves known. Taking the time to stop and chat means you might also get to know your neighbours a little better. COOK The ‘slow’ movement originated around the idea of taking time to prepare and eat quality food. It sounds great in theory, but being time poor is the very problem we struggle to overcome. The answer is simple: the stockpot, crockpot or slow cooker as it is variously known, is widely available and can help you create delicious, slowcooked meals without the arduous preparation. Put the ingredients in the pot in the morning and when you come home from work dinner is ready to serve. Countless recipes are available online at sites such as slowandsimple.com. outlets in HCM City is indicative of a demand for more places where people can go to switch gears. She thinks so and adds that such spaces encourage one to “turn down the volume of your internal dialogue, chatter and tune into the breath.” She stresses that yoga allows people to connect with themselves for the time they practice it which in turns gives them a moment’s of silence, peace—“whether that moment is five minutes or the entire yoga session,” she adds. “Coming to a studio to practice provides the environment where people can learn how to slow down and enjoy peace of mind, methods which can be taken with them when they leave the yoga mat and go about their daily lives. Bringing awareness to your breath throughout the day, five minutes at your desk, for a taxi ride, whatever... That also is a huge part of the yoga practice.” Slow Food, Slow Pleasure The importance of eating well—and slowly— cannot be stressed enough. Again, it is a fact we are all too aware of but find difficult to implement. While Vietnam may not be beset by the scourge of fast food, or reliance on processed convenience food, and meals are fairly healthy (and for some of lucky ones, prepared by staff) slow food isn’t just about a meal that is leisurely prepared. The slow food movement began in 1989 by Falco Portinari as a reaction to fast food and the damages it would cause to the body and eating culture. He propagates the ideology that taste must be developed, not denigrated as is wont to happen on reliance to fast food. “We are enslaved by speed and have all succumbed to the same insidious virus: Fast Life, which disrupts our habits, pervades the privacy of our homes and forces us to eat fast foods,” he writes on his website. Granted that eating fresh healthy food, which is fairly in abundance here in its fruit 28 <strong>asialife</strong> <strong>HCMC</strong>
READ Instead of turning on the idiot box, or trawling the Internet for hours on end, find a good book. Relaxing and enjoyable, reading is a sure-fire way to slow down. The accusation that HCM City has little to offer in the way of top-quality reading material is no excuse. Borrow from a friend whose returned from a trip home, invest in a Wi- Fi-powered Kindle or even nip down to the backpacker quarter for a cheap book. Otherwise, visit Amazon and have the latest titles delivered to your door within three weeks. <strong>asialife</strong> <strong>HCMC</strong> 29
Change language