Eight years ago today, Brenda Wong walked into my life, stole my heart and made me whole. Four years ago today we were married. Not a day goes by that I don't express my gratitude for having been granted the gift of sharing my life with her.

Since we met, we have always marked our anniversary in a very nice restaurant in some far away place. Sadly, most of these fine resaurants have ended up being disappointments with food, ambience and charm far less appealing than the usual Mom and Pop, tourist free dining spots we tend to seek out.

Yesterday, while we were wandering the streets of Saigon, we came across Lemongrass, supposedly one of the 101 best restaurants in all of Asia. We decided this was where we would celebrate our 8th/4th anniversay and made reservations for 7:00 PM. No sooner had we walked 100 meters than Brenda began having trepidations about our choice. "We always choose these fancy places and end up walking away disappointed. Let's hope this year is not a repeat." And so the conversation went until 6:00 this evening.

As we sat and chatted over a glass of Prosecco, we decided we would not make the same mistake again. Instead of Lemongrass, we opted for a bowl of noodle soup at Pho Thanh Canh, an 8 minute walk from our hotel. Brenda had spotted the restaurant on a local foodie's blog where it was described as havng the best Pho in Saigon. Well, I don't know about that, but I do know it was the best Pho Ba I've ever tasted. So good in fact that when I finished my bowl of the beef Pho, I tried to order a bowl of their Pho Ga (chicken), but sadly they were sold out. We will in all likeihood return tomorrow for the chicken version. How much did this year's anniversary dinner set me back you ask? The two bowls of Pho and 1 Tiger beer cost 110,000 VND (about $ 6.00 CDN) tax and tip included. Nothing but the best for my gal!