When It Rains, It Floods

It has been raining in Ho Chi Minh City nearly every day at about 4-5pm since I arrived in Vietnam. The rainy season was supposed to end in October, but apparently it has continued through November the past few years. You'd think they would construct roads that would be able to accommodate the motorbikes, taxis, and buses sufficiently in the rain. However, as the rain accumulates, the water level on some roads can reach nearly two feet. It's times like those when I am actually glad to be taking the bus as opposed to riding- or walking through the flooded street in most cases- a motorbike.

In addition to rainy, it's been a busy week and a half, so I'll try to recap most of it.
I taught at two different language schools on Thursday and Saturday, which were both super fun. I taught one advanced class for an hour, and the title of the in-class reading was "How the West Was Won." It was interesting to discuss the Westward expansion of the US in the mid-1800s with the Vietnamese students. They were familiar with old Clint Eastwood Westerns and asked such intelligent questions.

There was pick-up ultimate on Saturday instead of Sunday last week, and the 10am sun was significantly less agreeable than the usual 4pm clouds we play under. Nevertheless, I wouldn't have wanted to be doing anything else. David Jensen, the guy that brought ultimate to HCMC, finally returned from his hiatus from ultimate. He had taken some time off to focus on work and his family, in the middle of which I started playing here. He started his ultimate career as a freshman at BYU in Utah, studied Vietnamese before coming on a Mormon mission trip, and then moved here. He married a Vietnamese woman and has a gorgeous four-year old daughter and an adorable two-year old son who he brought to the fields. He taught ultimate to students at RMIT International University, and now most of the players are RMIT alum, current students, and expats.

Saturday night, I went to Acoustics with Khuong, my Australian-accented Vietnamese friend from ultimate, and a couple of his friends from "uni" (university). There were two different bands that played, and a few different singers, of which one girl in particular was amazing. She made it to the top 5 of "Vietnam Idol" and had a Rihanna-esque style and voice. They played some Bon Jovi, Beatles, Allison Kraus, and Kanaan's "Waving Flag" amongst others. The old house singer that was there the last time I was at the bar is always a crowd pleaser with his Vietnamese-translated verses interjected into each song he performs.

Vi, one of the girls who works for ELI, invited me to go with her family to Vung Tao on Sunday. We just chilled with her nieces and nephews at the beach, walked around the neighborhood of her aunt's house, and ate, of course. When we got back from the beach, Vi's aunt had prepared a beautiful lunch which consisted of shrimp, shrimp spring rolls, mini shrimp, and shrimp pho (traditional soup). I decided I would finally take the plunge and try some of it because I wasn't going to have Vi's aunt, who was exceedingly generous, make me something separate. Not only have a been a vegetarian for just under a year, but since I've basically kept kosher my entire life, this was my first time EVER trying shrimp. I didn't fall in love with it, but I wasn't repulsed by it either. It was the first step towards trying Vietnamese food that I haven't felt comfortable eating up until now. I have, however, tried nearly every type of fruit here. Between the fruits that Traci's mom has introduced to me and the ones I've been excited to learn the names of, I've had sort of a fruit frenzy the past couple weeks. If only I could remember what they all are called...

Tuesday night, I was kindly taken out to a beautiful dinner by Fred Apple, Molly & Liz's dad, who was in HCMC to speak at a scientific meeting. It was great to see someone from home and share the cultural knowledge I've gained in the couple months I've lived in this city. My calendar is flexible, so you're more than welcome to come visit anytime!

Last night, after a wonderful yoga class, I met up with Ellen, another teacher at her school and her boyfriend, and Khuong. They had heard about a great band from New Zealand that was playing at the Hard Rock Cafe, so we decided to check it out. The opening band from the Philippines was terrible, and the headliner was not really our cup of tea either. We all had a good time, though, and I actually got home at a decent hour.

I finally read "Eat Pray Love" last week, and I'd definitely recommend it to males and females, travelers and non-travelers alike. Elizabeth Gilbert impeccably articulates we what it means to be a foreigner in a new land, and all the difficulties as well as rewards of placing oneself in a culture other than your own. Furthermore, she gives great insight into Yogic spirituality, some of which I think everyone can learn and apply in order to enhance individual energy and overall religious tolerance.

I'm not sure what I'll do this weekend in addition to ultimate on both Saturday and Sunday. I might hit up the zoo, see the rest of the War Remnants Museum, and catch up on some e-mails. I love hearing from so many of you, and I hope you're appreciating the cool fall weather. I always thought I preferred the heat to the cold, but at this point, I'm craving a nice autumn breeze and the color-changing leaves that comes with November in the Midwest.


If you're interested in some new music, check out a couple friends of mine pursuing music careers...they're both amazing!

Kevin Paris (friend from my semester abroad in Cape Town and UW): http://www.kevinparismusic.com/music.html

Lucy Schwartz (sister of one of my roommates in Cape Town): http://www.lucyschwartzmusic.com/