Calling the past month eventful would be a huge understatement. The past four weeks have been filled with fun, food, flowers, & friends. Tomorrow is the first day of the lunar new year, "Tet Holiday" in Vietnam, and I couldn't have been happier to be around for the preparation. The city has been hustling and bustling like never before, and now there is a calmness so uncharacteristic of Ho Chi Minh City. Every park has been turned into a flower market packed with all sorts of interesting, beautiful, and colorful plants. Most shops and restaurants are closed already because, similar to Thanksgiving in the US, everyone goes to their hometowns for the holiday. More than half of the residents in HCMC are from elsewhere in Vietnam, so besides tourists and some Vietnamese people, the city is eerily empty. The markets, however, have been busier than I thought was possible.
Highlights of January:
Having an awesome roommate/co-volunteer, Monika, from Australia
Weekend at Madagui Resort with VUDOO (Vietnam Ultimate Defense Offense Organization)
My birthday celebrations 
Goodbye party at the orphanage 
Day trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels 
Tet Holiday season in Ho Chi Minh City 
For those I haven't talked to recently, I will be leaving Vietnam some weeks short of the six month time period I planned on being here. Although it isn't under the happiest of circumstances, I'm super excited to reconnect with everyone back home and breathe in some clean, cool, crisp air.
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