Miscellany: 2019 Hyundai Kona SE review - Holiday Roads

Regrettably, this year's Thanksgiving was spent shuttling Mom to and from the hospital where my Grandpa was staying. The occasion and the weather were as dreary as our method of transport - a 2019 Hyundai Kona SE:

The Kona's exterior styling isn't bad, but it promises a more upscale experience than you'll get. Every ride reminds you that you're in a 4-banger crossover built to a price point ($20k MSRP back in 2019). At highway speeds, you can hardly hear yourself over the din of the clattering tires, and - no exaggeration - the plasticky climate control switches feel like they belong on a kid's toy.

The 147 hp engine is gutsy enough, with surprisingly good acceleration from the six-speed auto (reportedly 0-60 in 6.6 seconds, which feels right) and decent fuel economy (I got about 30 mpg in mixed driving, which is in line with the EPA estimate). Handling is just okay; I found the steering to be darty, but that may have been the overeager lanekeeping assist rather than any electromechanical fault.

The infotainment was hit and miss. I was able to get wired Apple CarPlay working well enough, but sometimes the connection would drop for no reason, and it totally crashed on one occasion (mind you, I drove the car only for a few days total).

Cargo and passenger space is tight. The folding rear seats work fine, but even with them fully down, it was a chore to stash Grandpa's wheelchair, or to lug home a 55" Samsung TV back to his house. Everything fit, but just barely.

I'm probably being too harsh on the Hyundai Kona, which in the end did serve its purpose. If I ever drive it again, I hope it'll be under happier circumstances. 

Miscellany: I Think I'm Learning Vietnamese, Part 3 - V-Pop for beginners

It's been almost eight months since I started learning Vietnamese, and I've been trying to keep myself motivated by injecting some fun into the process. Case in point: listening to some Vietnamese pop artists and trying to decipher the lyrics. Here are my favorites so far:

MIN - Cà Phê ("Coffee")

This song was a top 10 hit in Vietnam this year, and it's not hard to see why - catchy chorus, simple idea, and very modern production.

Sample lyric: Ngồi uống cà phê đến tối ("Sit and drink coffee all night").

Suboi - N-Sao? ("How?")

Suboi is Vietnam's "queen of hip hop."  While many of her songs contain English, she also exploits Vietnamese's monosyllabic nature to full effect in her verses.

Sample lyric: Tui là Vinja cờ xanh năm lá ("I’m a Vi(etnamese) (Ni)nja green five-leaf flag" [note that "cờ xanh" sounds like the Vietnamese word for cannabis, "cần sa"]).

Sơn Tùng M-TP - Chúng Ta Của Hiện Tại ("We at the present")

In turn, we have Vietnam's "king of V-pop." There's a little controversy on this track, as Tùng was accused of plagiarism, but everyone was paid off eventually.

Sample lyric: là áng mây bên trời vội vàng ngang qua ("The clouds in the sky hurried past").