I love the “What religion are you?” quizzes. They never seem to get my right religion. See for yourself:
1. From Quizilla:
Shintoism: Shintoism is a religion based in Japan and the Japanese culture. It’s beliefs center mainly around the kami or the spirits. They believe in many of these spirits, and they also believe in worshiping and holding rituals and festivals for these spirits which they hold with honor and respect. Followers of Shintoism hold loyalty and honor in high esteem.
Maybe I got this because I am half-Japanese with a strong Japanese influence from my mother.
Definitely not a serious religion quiz but humorous. 
2. From ProProfs.com:
Buddhism: Love and tolorance is your motto. You belief in karma, and reincarnation.
Okay, maybe my Japanese upbringing influenced me here.
3. From QuizFarm.com:
You Scored as Paganism. Your beliefs are most closely aligned with those of paganism, Wicca, or a similar earth-based religion. You may also follow a Native American religion. Scored a 100% for Paganism, 65% for Buddhism, 60% for Hinduism, and 55% for Islam.
That one was unexpected. Estrella!!! Shintoism by some would be considered an earth-based religion as well. This is not the first time I heard this described about me…
4. From BeliefNet.com: (Probably one of the most accurate online measures of religious choice according to online sources.)
- Mahayana Buddhism (100%)
- Hinduism (89%)
- Neo-Pagan (88%)
- Theravada Buddhism (83%)
- Jainism (82%)
- New Age (82%)
Again, this is probably due to the influence of Japanese culture. Both Japanese and Vietnamese are Mahayana Buddhists.
Personally, I consider myself a Muslim with a strong Sufi influence. Elements of Sufism are similar to elements of Buddhism and the Hesychasm in Christianity.
Today I had lunch at Kedai Shamsudin in District 10. My first impressions of this restaurant was wow!!! Talking about good customer service. The people here are amazing and polite. The decor was very pleasant and the restaurant was quite clean (when compared to VN.Halal). It is just a nice restaurant to have a meal in.
Kedai Shamsudin is a halal restaurant catering to Malaysian as well as Vietnamese halal cuisines. I ordered the 6 piece beef satay and the chicken/beef nasi goreng for the main meal with a Coke. Okay guys, this is by far the best nasi goreng and satay I have ever had in Saigon. Three and a half hours later, I swear I can still taste them in my mouth. I want more!!! It gets even better, the price for the entire meal was 95,000 VND! It is a bargain when compared to the other halal restaurants in the city (such as the overpriced VN.Halal).
Kedai Shamsudin is the “Best Halal Restaurant in Saigon!” Give it a try. It is about 5-10 by taxi and motorbike from District 1. They also deliver.
Pictures and address below:
Muslim Interior of Kedai Shamsudin halal restaurant
Muslim Interior of Kedai Shamsudin halal restaurant
My nasi goreng and beef satay
Kedai Shamsudin halal restaurant from Le Hong Phong street
Address: Kedai Shamsudin, 445 Le Hong Phong street, District 10, Saigon
Mobile: 0903399430 – 0908150110
Telephone: +84.8.627.17.494
Open Everyday from 6:30 AM – 10:30 PM, Fridays from 6:30 AM – 11 AM and 1 PM – 10:30 PM.
Here is a nice documentary on Islamic Architecture that should interest the likes of architects such as Antidote to Burnout. I learned a lot from this documentary hosted at Google Video. I want to travel to Isfahan, Iran, and Samarqand, Uzbekistan, some day to visit the beautiful mosques (masjids) there someday.
[googlevideo width="333" height="250"]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8018912082115778034[/googlevideo]
Today I finally figured out how to set my Al-Fajr Clock to the local prayers times for Saigon, Vietnam. I purchased the Al-Fajr CW-05 clock when I was back in the US. It has been a pain to set the clock for Saigon until I read, umm, the instructions closely.
- Select city code 999-999 press (SET)
- Select city code 58-2 press (SET)
- Select -34 press (SET)
- Select 18:17 press (SET)
I pressed 34 instead of -34 for number 3 so the prayer times were off.
Now everything is working right
Salat Time 0.9 is available from the Android Marketplace for my G1. It is getting easier to remember the prayer times now.
I was going through my image folders from a backup I made nearly 4 years ago when I found some pictures I thought were lost. They sure brought back some memories.
Back in the Summer of 2001, I was interviewed by a television crew from STV, one of the leading television companies in Turkey. The television crew interviewed roughly 30 Americans for broadcasting with Yeni Hayatlar (New Lives) during the 2001 Ramadan month in Turkey and the Turkish speaking world. My story was quite interesting for them for my experiences with Islam and the Muslim communities in Kazakhstan and the Kyrgyz Republic (See my website Salaam Central Asia to learn about my experiences in Turkey and Central Asia).
The interview went very well but I was not able to see a finished clip until December, 2001. I forgot about it until I met with Fetullah Gulen and his community in Pennsylvania on my way to Istanbul. I remembered that he told me that I looked different in person (he had already seen my program on STV via satellite). I had no idea what he meant until I arrived into Istanbul a couple days later.
During an advertisement for Yeni Hayatlar, I saw a ‘fat’ looking, umm, me on TV. Oh my God, nobody realized that interviewing me outside in very humid conditions, sweating profusing to boot, would, umm, make me look fat. The footage inside my apartment, I looked normal, but outside, oh my God!!!
Anyway, the series was a success and books are still being sold in Turkey. I still get occassional emails from Kazakhstan from Central Asians who saw me on STV. Finding me at SaigonNezumi.com kind of boggles them, I am not like the guy STV portrayed me as being very religious and spiritual. For me that is funny since I do not consider myself religious at all, though I am very spiritual
So have at it, here are my ‘fat’ pictures:
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