Getting Lost...

...is a great way to get to know a city. However, the amount of time I spent lost this past week was a bit excessive.

...By Bus
After teaching at the orphanage Thursday, I took a different bus home than the one I usually take. It said "Quang Trung" on the front, and since I live on Quang Trung street, I assumed it was going there. After about an hour on the bus, it was dark out and the rain was pouring down. Nothing looked familiar, and I was eventually the last passenger on board. Luckily, the bus driver spoke a little English, asked me where I was going, and pointed me in the right direction. When I realized I was outside some huge corporate building with "Quang Trung" on the front and not the street, I hailed a taxi. It was a short ride home, which means I wasn't that far away. Nevertheless, I now know I won't be taking the 48 bus back from the shelter again.

...By Car
Thanh, the woman who coordinates my teaching at the language schools, called me Friday night to ask me if I could teach Saturday afternoon. I had nothing else planned, so I agreed. Normally, Thanh has a driver who knows how to get to the school take me so I don't have to worry about getting reimbursed for the taxi ride. Saturday, though, she told me to just take a taxi there and a driver would take me back home. We left District 1 at 1pm on the dot, and after multiple stops to ask for directions, I arrived at the school at 3pm, an hour after I was supposed to start. I figured that the regular teacher would start after 10-15 minutes or so, but instead, I was swarmed by the entire class of 9-10 year olds as I stepped out of the cab. I taught for a swift 15 minutes before that class was dismissed and a new group of cute, eager Vietnamese kids filled the desks. After my frustration from being lost wore down and I got into the swing of teaching, I had fun.

I was relieved to see a driver waiting for me outside the school when my second class was done at 4:25pm. We went to pick up a couple- an Irish man (John) and a French woman (Fabian)- who were teaching at a nearby school and headed back to District 1, where the couple were living. Just as a reminder- District 1 is the center of Ho Chi Minh City, and is often referred to as "Saigon." It's where all the tourists hang out, where the famous Ben Thanh market is, where the bus station is, and where all the major hotels are. For anyone to not know how to get to District 1 is like a Parisian not knowing how to get to the Eiffel Tower...or a New Yorker not knowing how to get to Times Square...or a Herzl staff member not knowing how to get to the chadar. Somehow, we had probably one of the only Vietnamese drivers who didn't know to take the main road from the northern province straight into the city. Consequently, we drove around for hours and in the midst of rush hour as well. Even though it was Saturday, the streets were saturated with motorbikes as we "explored" one of the districts before finally arriving at our destination at 7:30pm. Instead of having the driver take me back to my place, I decided to just get out where John and Fabian got out and get a different taxi home. It's about a 45-minute ride back from District 1, and I wasn't willing to take the chance of it being 2-3 times that amount.

Although I was in the car for a total of five and a half hours and taught for just under an hour and a half, the drive home with the couple was delightful. He got laid off a bit ago and she quit her job- both in Ireland- so they took their severance pay and decided to travel. They arrived in Vietnam a few months ago, and before that, had traveled across the US on a motorcycle. They went down the east coast, around the everglades in Florida, then headed west through Monument Valley and lots of desert. I was intrigued by their travel tales about places in my country that I hadn't even seen. Additionally, John has lived all over the world, and had multiple interesting stories to tell.

Ultimate
We were able to use the fields both Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon, which was wonderful! There are new expats that come every time, so in addition to playing hard, it's also great meeting new people every week. It's not Bella, and it's weird not having sprint workouts in between practices, but Saigon ultimate definitely satiates my frisbee appetite.


Goodbyes/Happy Birthdays for Traci
Since Traci's birthday is Sunday, but she leaves Vietnam to head home to Dallas tomorrow, a bunch of us celebrated her 24th by going out to dinner on Sunday. It was a fairly eclectic group, but everyone seemed to have a good time. The festivities continued through today when the nuns at the orphanage threw a big party for Traci. It consisted of:
-Balloons

-A variation of the same lunch the kids get everyday
-A feast for all the workers
-A 3-tiered cake
-Me face-painting the kids
-Tons of excitement from the kids due to a level of stimulation that's rarely there.

There was also a group of Australian 9thgraders that visited yesterday. It's awesome to see how much fun the kids have with visitors, how much the nuns and staff appreciate it, and how touched those who come and play are by everyone at Thien Phuoc when they leave. It's a constant circulation of positive energy, and I feel so privileged to be a part of it all.


Etc.
I keep picking up books that past volunteers have left at the house, and I just finished Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway. If anyone can tell me what it's about, I'd greatly appreciate it. It's not exactly Shakespeare, but it wasn't the easiest English to understand either...

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/

The Central Highlands; A Break From the Heat

I was super excited to head to Nha Trang and Da Lat this weekend, the most beautiful beaches and the central highlands respectively, with Traci and some of her extended family. However, the rain barely let up and thus put a huge damper on the trip. We only walked the shores of Nha Trang the evening we arrived, and did all the touristy things in Da Lat on Sunday, the lone dry day. The crew consisted of Traci's mom, aunts, cousins, and us. While it was overwhelming at times not being able to understand most of what they were all saying, they were a riot to travel with. They brought supplies to cook in the hotel rooms and had the driver stop anytime there was good-looking fruit or vegetables being sold on the side of the street.

In a way, it was like "Little Miss Sunshine" getting in and out of the van but with far less dysfunction and a lot more laughter. Since the only English one of the aunts knew was "Number 1," the name of a Vietnamese energy drink, that was her nickname for me throughou. Traci's mom kept calling me "Laura" even though she speaks some English and Traci had told her what my name was. "That'll be your Vietnamese name then," she said, which Traci and I got a kick out of.

Overall, the weather was gloomy and the sites were quite unimpressive. Although I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the Crazy House, nothing else was that captivating. Nevertheless, I took a few hundred pictures. Here are some...

The National Oceanographic Museum:




The view from our hotel in Da Lat:

The family Skype-ing Traci's dad in Texas:

The home of Bao Dai, a past emperor of Viet Nam:


The Crazy House:


Camly Waterfalls Park:


Cho Da Lat (The Da Lat Market):...which we went to at least 5 times in 2 days






Da Lat Flower Park:






Vallee D'Amour:


(Da Lat is famous for its wine ^)

After the long drive back to Sai Gon, it felt good to be "home." It felt even better to get back to the kids at the orphanage.

Teaching at the Cambridge Language School last Thursday was rough. I planned lessons out of the wrong books, and I didn't even have one of the books in my possession. I taught on the fly in all four of the classes, but I guess it could have gone worse. I also taught on Saturday morning for the first time. I initially thought it would be hard waking up earlier than I do during the week, but I was no less energetic than the evening shifts. I actually had the right lesson plans this time, and the kids were super enthusiastic about learning. In the last class, the lesson was about "bigger-smaller," "stronger-weaker," and "taller-shorter." To illustrate "stronger-weaker," I conducted an arm wrestling tournament for the students. After each round, one student in each pair had to say "I am stronger than him/her," "S/He is stronger than me," "I am weaker than him/her," or "S/He is weaker than me." The kids had a blast, the teacher was entertained, and I was excited to crown a girl the class arm wrestling champ.

I spent the next couple hours just walking around the city and window shopping. I walked into a boutique with cute clothes. Everything in the store was either solid, floral, or patterned, but there was nothing with writing on it. As I was going through the last rack of shirts, I was baffled when I saw a gray, loose-fitting T-shirt with "MINNESOTA" written in black. I told the girl working that that's where I'm from, and she laughed. She said the designer is actually her boss, and she's from Korea. I had to try it on, but unfortunately I didn't like the way it looked. If it was less expensive, I might have bought it just for the fun of it, though.

Later in the day, I went to the War Remnants/Evidence Museum, but I didn't give myself enough time. It was incredibly powerful to see pictures and other documentation from the war. I was overcome with emotion, and I was glad I was alone so nobody would hear my American English. Although I haven't really sensed any animosity stemming from the events from 40 years ago, it was not a time when I was proud to be an American, to say the least. There was a lot that I learned about the "ecocide" that the US Government committed; wiping out entire ecosystems and contaminating the water and air beyond repairable in a single generation. In addition, it was tough looking at the deformities caused by Agent Orange, and the effects of recently set off land mines that were not set off or recovered following the war. I was only able to look around the first floor before the museum closed, so I'll have to come back another time.

Sunday, I went to a yoga class taught by someone who has a connection to Minneapolis. It was good to finally meet her after a number of e-mail exchanges and of course, start my day with some yoga. I went to a specialty food store next door after the class, and an older man rambled on about Sai Gon for about 15 minutes. He's initially from Korea, lived in the US for 30 years, and has lived in Viet Nam for the past decade. He told me about the restaurant he was going to on Monday morning to watch the Vikings-Packers game and assured me he would be rooting for the Vikings. The man was so entertaining to listen to, but was suggesting far too many places and restaurants for me to visit than I could have possibly retained. Needless to say, I left the store chuckling to myself.

I went to play pick-up ultimate later that afternoon, and I was happy to find that my bum toe wasn't the impediment I thought it would be. I'm sure the adrenaline rush that came from just being able to play helped, too. The rain held off this time, and it was fun to see everyone after a two-week hiatus. An American couple from Idaho showed up to play, and it was the girl's first time seeing the game. I explained the rules, etc. to her, and we inevitably talked about life in general as well. Her and her fiance had spent the previous year teaching English in the Dominican Republic and moved to Viet Nam about a week ago to do the same. There was also a new guy from Mexico and a few other Vietnamese guys who had just returned from the States and Australia. I, of course, was on cloud nine as we played until we couldn't see the disc in the dark.

As the weekend went on, that imminent cold began to take hold of me and by Monday I was sick. In addition, my terrible itch was back after finishing the week-long prescription of anti-histamines. I went to a doctor at one of the international clinics Monday morning because the first doctor I saw said he would be on vacation this week. I got some more drugs and am feeling significantly better. Plus, having Traci's mom here adds a mother's touch.

The energy at the orphanage this week has been high because the kids have been trying to have as much fun with Traci before she's done. Today was her last day at Thien Phuoc, but her mom and her don't depart for the States for another few weeks. Lauren and Sandy (Australians) brought materials for oragami today, which the kids loved. Although they couldn't do much on their own, I had Tai and Nhi help me press down the folds that I had started, and they were proud of the finished products.

Yesterday was Dieu's (pronounced you) birthday, so Traci and I went to her older sister's apartment for dinner and cake. Her sisters were hysterical, and the meal was beautiful. It was fun to meet Dieu's siblings, nephew, and a couple of her friends, and celebrate her 20th in true Vietnamese fashion. They were all so warm and welcoming, as expected, and wouldn't take, "I'm so full!" as an excuse to stop eating.

Although there are Halloween costume shops and decorations around HCMC, the Sunflower Festival will take precedence next Sunday. I don't know much about it, but we made sunflowers with the kids at the hospital today. They turned out super cute, and all the kids wrote a wish in the middle of the flower as well. The mood turned somber, though, as the news that one kid passed away traveled throughout the floor. As I walked down the hall, I saw the mother standing over the child who was covered in blankets. The room across the hall was packed with two room-fulls of people, and the kids seemed puzzled about their own feelings on the matter. Apparently, two other kids passed away over the weekend. This was the first time that the fact that cancer is paralyzing and in some cases overpowering the lives of these children became real to me. They seem so strong and beautiful when they're in the play room, so it's hard to imagine that their internal strength and beauty as anything different.

A bunch of Traci's aunts, cousins, and mom's friends planned a trip to Nha Trang and Da Lat for this weekend and kindly invited me to come along. We'll leave early Friday morning in a 15-passenger van and come back late Monday night. Traci was not informed of any other details about the trip other than not to worry about it. Regardless of what we do, I'm excited to see how gorgeous these places actually are. When asking the students in one of my classes last Thursday what the most beautiful, cleanest, most interesting, most popular, etc. places in Viet Nam were, practicing the use of superlatives, Nha Trang and Da Lat were the top responses.