The JSC Vietnam Break Away Trip

Vietnam & The United States of America: Resistance

2006-06-14T13:59:00.000+07:00

So I have physically left Vietnam now, but the experiances and images will never leave me. I feel such a deep connection to the people and land there. I experianced much more than I wrote about and I feel a saddness for not conveying my emotions while they were raw.

If I had to sum up my trip to Vietnam in one word I think it would be revelational. Everything about Vietnam was vastly different than what my white bread US of A American lifestyle has taught me. I was untaught many things in the process. The people of that land have influenced me in ways I am yet to fully comprehend. The land feels incredibly sacred to me, possibly becasue of the (over) 3 million Vietnamese people who have lost their lives on that soil while fighting for their independance from colonial/imperial rule.

The legacy of war was something I was mainly intrested in learning more about when departing the States on May 15th, 2006. But now (one month later) that I have been there I can see that Vietnam is more than a country torn apart by centuries of war and foregin control/ownership. What I seen was a resiliant, brialliant and compassionate people who have not only learned how to defend their land but also how to live with their land. The Vietnamese are survivors and even though their government is about the enter the WTO, I think the people will continue to strive towards independance.

I spoke with some elders and some youth and got the same impression: "we won't be colonized for much longer." I am inspiried by their strength and courage and can only hope that mentality continues to find its way into the rest of the world.

Several times I was told "America #1" by locals (in the Saigon and Hue, not Hanoi) and I would respond "it's a lie..." But now I see what they mean. They are talking about the myth of America...the myth that America is free and that all "all men are created equal." They don't see the rampant racism, sexism, homophobia, classism, ect., and how could they when all the US exports is the idea of our moral superiority slapped between the well disguised bread of imperalism. I am not saying that these same things don't exist here as well (the womyn want to be as white and thin as possible and I was told that "it's okay to be gay just as long as their kids are straight...") but it's not so obvious...yet. There really is no seperation between the classes, all live together. There might be a super wealthy foreigner living right across the street from the boat people.

I know that every nation has their problems, but like Howard Zinn says, when a country like the US declears itself a democracy and then runs off to kill thousands of innocent (and maybe even guilty) people for oil, or when 1 out of every 5 children in our "democracy" are born into poverty, or when there are more then 40 countries that have better records on infant mortality rates (including Cuba) or when we lead the world with the highst incarceration rate (more then 2 million), I don't belive that is a democracy. When I was told "America #1" these are the kinds of things I thought about when I responded "it's a lie..." and to me it is. We have a great constitution, but we don't follow it. Funny how Ho Chi Minh adapted our national anthem after the war was won...

I think one of the biggest lesson's this trip has taught me is that there is no absoultes (which people have been telling me for ages). There really is no perfect nation, and yes, even in the US there are great things (like the fact that won't be hung for writing this...but who knows really, things are always changing!)

But I do still think war is the ultimate failure of progress. War is brutal and I have now seen it from a first world's perspective (the people suffer) and a third world's perpective (the people suffer), the one thing we have in common: suffering. Washington, not the people of the US, spends our money on mendacity and murder and theft and rape and... Hanoi spends it's money on trying to become just like America...Let's hope that the people of Vietnam will stop it before it happens and take back their land from foreign compaines like Cannon, Nike and North Face. I can only hope for us in America to do the same.

The real power does not lie in obsequiousness but rather in resistance to the power machine.

Peace out my fellow global citizens...
Christina Prew

As the world turns...

2006-06-13T06:22:00.000+07:00

So we're back and the jet lag is beginning to wear off. I slept past 6:30am for the first time today since we've been back and I'm gradually grasping my bearings on where I am in the world. Though I've been spending most of my time the last few days trying to orient myself and have not officially begun to process any of what happened while I was on the other side of the world. I've been in too much shock of the cold and wet weather and the time change and the overwhelming bombardment of questions like "how was it?" and "what did you do?" I've only been able to unemotionally answer with amazings and greats and other such words that do nothing to explain our journey. I feel as though I can't answer either question without sitting down and having hours to describe and discuss. This weekend I attended a wedding where I knew virtually no one but the bride, groom and his mother's immediate family. I spent saturday and sunday meeting new people and being introduced with the phrase "she just got back from Vietnam" attached to my name as we usually do when meeting new people as to create instant subjects of conversation like "this is tom, he's a pediatrist and is origanally from South Dakota". Though my little tidbit of info was of great interest, I became frustrated with the difficulty it was to answer the canned questions that followed in the intended breif introduction period and resorted to shallow meaningless adjectives. I did have a moment of glory today when I was invited in to my brother's high school U.S. History class. I made a short powerpoint highlighting the three main organizations that focused the most directly with post war; Friendship Village, CPI and the Peace Village. His teacher was very interested and pulled his chair right up to the screen and asked a lot of questions. The students for the most part seemed interested and a couple asked questions that gave me the impression I had their attention. It was really cool to do and I was so glad to be able to tell people about my experiances and pass on vital information that may give them something to look into further or just the knowledge that our war there continues even after all these years. I thrived on his enthusiasm and was really excited that he would like me to come back for his class next fall. (Good advertising for break away too...aren't you proud Jill:))

So that's what I have to say on the note of returning. Welcome back gang, Miss you all! Happy to see all those that I missed from the other side of the world and kara, hope you savored every last bite of that lasanga, I got my brownie sunday mmmmm.

Cheers,
Ali

Sunday Adventures -- Part II

2006-06-13T03:40:00.000+07:00

After this second ride, I was happy I had hopped on with the driver I did as the others were flying ahead of us while mine slowed down at bumps that could potentially send me flying and corners that at a moderate speed may have left me wishing I had knee pads to accompany my helmet. Though it was irronic I inevitablly picked the driver who was left in the dust as I often am in many aspects of my life, I was ok with it today being that I felt safe and only worried about how badly my legs were getting burnt and the severity of my butt falling asleep by the end of the day.
Our first stop after the beach was a japanese style foot bridge named Thanh Toan Covered Bridge with a Tile Roof. It was beautifully carved and when we got closer saw that the side benches were filled with lounging men and some children. One of the drivers took on the role of enthusiastic and knowlegable tourguide in which he told us that the bridge was well known for it's cool breeze within and in turn collect many werry folks needing a cool place to rest. We experianced this wonderfully 'cool' phenomenon for ourselves when we strolled over the bridge stopping in the middle for some photo ops, short fantastical conversation with some young men and a brief snack of vietnamese plums. We made our way to the other side of the bridge and discussed what the rest of our day would look like. After taking on last look at this amazing covered bridge and the lily pads beneath it, we got back into the saddle on our way to our next destination. As we made our way down the dirt road we followed an irrigation stream where at one point was covered with hundreds of ducks that had to have been trained, the way they were all in formation. It was incredible. Our next stop was the arena in which the king would pit an Eephant against a tiger within a huge brick arena. We walked around the other side which was a feat in itself with the crumbling wall on one side and pits looking down into the holding areas for the animals at lease ten feet down to the ground, the whole time being followed by children trying to sell us cold water and bracelets. Kara's driver took a picture of us from the otherside and when we saw it we thought it was pretty funny how far away we looked. We decended the steep brick stairs slowly and took off again. Around a few bends we came to an elephant monument where we took a couple pictures and found out that the tiger usually won in the battles between the two and that it was biased because the tiger was usually starved before the fight making it more agressive and sometimes leading to it's escape and the murder of whoever it encountered.
In the travels between this country side experiance and the next stop, we experianced the most amazing view I have yet encountered and fortunately or unfortunately the only picture I have is in my head. We creased a hill and before me was a clearning in the trees and houses and in the distance was monument after monument covering several rolling hills on a backdrop of hazy mountains. The site was one I don't want to forget.
We made our way through narrow roads and past small towns to some American bunkers that sit on top of a bunkers that sit on top of a hill overlooking the Perfume river. We climbed a hill surrounded with pine trees. It was intersting that an area occupied so heavily by Americans would so closely resemble parts of the U.S. natural landscape. I wonder if that was intentional. Once we got to the top, there were a couple cement structures but what we were most intersted in was the view. When I was finally able to climb up on one of the stuctures (which was just short of setting me on fire when I touched it) for the use of a lame cliche, the view was 'breathtaking'. The river below with little boats chugging along; mountains surrounding us on three sides. What an awesome sight!!
From there we stopped on the way down the road at a place they make incense. Out front were these risers of colorful bundles of sticks that were not yet rolled. We were able to see a young girl rolling incense sticks that smelled like ciniamon. Emily bought this really cool set of hanging incense spirals. I didn't buy anything because I didn't find any smells that I wanted. We met a woman while there who was a voice teacher.
A last stop was a pagoda that a famous Buddhist writer studied at (I don't want to butcher the spelling of his name). As soon as we stepped through the entry way of the grounds, a peacefulness came over me. I think it's one of the most calming places I've ever been and someday want to devote time living and studying in such a place. While at the pagoda, we spoke with a student. He is twenty years old and has been a student there for ten years. At ten years old he chose to leave the civilian life and enter fully into the lifestyle and mindset of a Buddhist. No parent can send their child to a monestary, they can only choose. I think it's amazing someone of that age has the wisdom to make such a life altering decision that requires such a huge commitment and devotion.

As for the day, that's basically the short and the long of it. We got back to the hotel and had some lunch and after all the sun and adventure called it a day.

On the road again...

2006-06-02T18:58:00.000+07:00

Thursday we got to go to the Hue Medical University. It was super intense. We met with Dr. Nhan. He works in the office of "Genetic counseling & Disabled Children." All of the children he works with have conditions ranging from severe to mild heart conditions. They all have genetic defects and there is no research taking place right now to find its origins or a cure. There is not enough money for research in Vietnam. Research is such a huge component to getting to the root of the cause, so it can be stopped. The Doctor suggested it could be related to Agent Orange or vaccinations. Most of the children can not afford the expensive treatment ($1000, when the adverage income is about $32 dollars a month) So they suffer and they grow slowly and die...

Meeting with this doctor has totoally given me a rebirth in my passion for medicine. I want to continue my path towards medicine (regular medicine) becasue if I want to help people in places like this I need to be a "regular" MD. Alternative medicine is what I tototally belive in but it's not really accecpted. Only people who can afford it get it and people in places like Vietnam certinly won't be able to, or people in the inner-city in the US. I know I can do better in science, I just need to work harder. It is such a priviledge for me to live in the US and I should take full advantage of it. If I can go to medical school in the US or Canada I need to. I need to help people who are poor and can't afford treatment. Medicine is not supposed to be for profit. It is a basic human right that all are entitled to. Having this experiance changes my entire perpective on priviledge. I know I am do it, I mat be difficult but it's something I feel strongly committed to. How could I not dedicate my life to helping people after today and this entire trip. Too many doctors go into this profession just to make money, just like lawyers. Medicine is about as political as it gets.

Sunday Adventures -- part I

2006-06-02T11:26:00.000+07:00

Sunday 5/28 -- part I

Today was amazing! I deffinately felt like I made up for some lost time I had spent lounging around. Yesterday Kara set up motorbike drivers for herself, Emily and I to take us to the beach and we later decided to get as much exploring in as possible. So we headed for their corner on this morning around 8:15 and were eagerly greeted. As we strapped on our helmets we logistical chatter kept us from introductions and formal choosings of who's driver was who's. As we were heading down the street I was thinking how much I hoped these were good drivers and that there would be no need for our helmets. At that same moment we came to a quick and complete stop nose to nose with a truck...I pondered whether I should stop hopeing and start praying. The rest of the ride out to the coast was quite smooth though, my driver and I in the rear of the pack. We made and unexpected stop at Ho Chi Minh's house that he lived in for two years while his mother was ill and his father was in prison (1898-1900). He took care of an infant sibling during these years I believe.
While Kara and Emily signed the guest book I looked around the garden and took pictures. I also met the caretaker who is an old an with a cigar attatched to his lip almost perminately. He was beautiful and I would have loved to sit down and hear his story. He was a hardworker from the looks of the beautiful surrounding garden. After having a moment shaking his hand, we went next door to a small museum documenting teachings and historical content (though the building ws huge compared to the shackes surrounding it). We said our thank yous and goodyes, strapped the helmets back on and made our way down the narrow path way and crowded market entrance back to the main road and back on our way to the beach. The sites and sounds on the way to the beach surpassed anything we experianced while there...in my oppinon. Huge houses mixed in with shacks, fishing areas sectioned off in the bays, grave monuments raised on grass platforms in the middle of rice feilds, huge hay piles that we later found out were for drying or cooking rye. The commissoners mansion, gate and all. Some kind of grain spread out on the side of the road, Kara says was rice. On the way back from the beach people were raking this grain. Schools: secondary, high school and college. Hundreds of fishing boats in the harbor, the mountains in the distance. All incredible sights that begged to be seen at a slower spead. When we got to the beachthe drivers said they would wait for us. We walked down to where a few people had already settled and lathered on the sunscreen. Soon after arriving and being warned about watching where we stepped (poop) we were bombarded with children with baskets of shrimp flavored chips and gum they were trying to pawn off on us. We're beginning to learn that the children who sell for a living don't know NO as an answer. While Val searched diligently for shells and others were off exploring, Danny, Jonah, Jackie and I played frisbee witha guy who was quite entertaining and someones motorbike driver. It soon ended up just being myself and the driver who encouraged me to throw from where I was standing when I had to run after a throw that went over my head. He was very good and we played until my feet were smoking from the sand, in which case I dunked my feet in the water. OUr small four person tent soon turned into two tents together and all of us and the vounteer in terpretors under one roof. They brought watermelon and vietnamese strawberries and after taking some time out of the sun I took my one and only swim in the South China Sea. It had to have been at least 75 F though felt great considering the nearing 100F tempatures outside the water. After some more snacking Emily, Kara and I decided to call it a day at the beach and made our way back up to uor older male companions for the day. We rinsed our feet of sand and one more time with the helmets and we were watching the se4a, the tents and the posse of child laborers surrounding the others fade into the distance.

To be continued...

Mini-side-adventures

2006-06-02T11:23:00.000+07:00

This morning the group left to go to the Peace Village, but left without me as the owner of the bikes was looking for a wrench to fix my bike seat. I raced after the group, but didn't see which way they went. Thinking they went straight or right down toward the river, i headed in that direction. I was kind of tiffed at first, but then decided if i was going to be on my own for the morning i might as well make something good of it. I rode up the hill, and rode around Tu Duc's Tomb-a little path around the back side-and then found my way onto some back paths in the hills. After that i went down and sat with a family that makes insence for a while, and had a cold sugarcane drink. Then i went for a visit at Hue and Nhi's house. It turned out to be one of the best mornings since i've been here. I guess we must adapt and change situations to ones that suit our current placement in the world, and keep a positive mindframe in each and every moment. This is something that fits into life wherever you are and whatever you are doing. Sometimes it is more pronounced a need though.
I missed the Peace Village and i missed the celebration at the school last night because i couldnt be far from the john, but i feel OK about it because i experienced other things that were a vital part of my personal experience. When traveling with a group it is important to balance personal time with group time--our whole group has been remarkably understanding about this. Really, i think we are very fortunate because we couldn't have asked for a better group dynamic. There are little moments here and there, but when are there not, even among old freinds. If there weren't i would wonder what is wrong with us.
Things have gone so fast here in Hue. I can't believe we are starting our last weekend here. It is sad. We have made many freinds with the Vietnamese student volunteers, and within our own too. I think i will have group withdrawl syndrome when we get back and go our own directions. Of course, it takes effort to keep freindships alive in this modern day and age.
The Hue Festival starts tomorrow--elephants and horses and costumes and music and fireworks and puppets and and and--it should be a good time. And then off to Ho Chi Minh City and the States.

blah-dee blah-dee blah...

2006-05-29T11:52:00.000+07:00

We picked up trash and washed windows at the school for the blind today. Later on it is off to the street children's school for some English lessons. Yesterday was a trip to the beach. The day before, orphanage and hangin out at the street Children's school. The day before that...? More of the same, plus some meeting with Vietnam veterans.

The meeting with the Vet's was a lot of information about how the people of Hue staved off the Americans during the tet offensive. I took notes and listened diligently, politely, and about halfway through hearing the details of the battles I started to become irritated. By the end, I was ready to put my fist through a wall. I am still not really sure why about this...War is just kind of messed up, don't ya think? On a side note, it would be nice to hear the women's story of the war. They were there too...

The ride to the beach was incredible. Not only did I not get lost, but I found a quicker way back home. I swam in the South China sea. Okay time for lunch.

Going to the beach

2006-05-29T11:15:00.000+07:00

i realized I have not posted since Hanoi. It has been hard for me to process my experience in words. This city is so busy and it has my mind moving rapidly then at night it just crashes. Yesterday was our first full free day since we have been here. We all decided to go to the beach. Ali, Emily and I befriended some older men that sit on the corner and asked them to take out out on thier motorbikes. They were clearly excited about this idea because every time we passed them during the week they would yell "Sunday!" We climbed on the back of the motor bikes after securing our helmets (a very bizarre concept to us in Vietnam). The ride took us out of the city, through small streets in between rice fields and giant piles of hay. The river ran on both sides and giant fishing nets hung from trees. I was very taken back to see eice spread over the sides of the road, with people standing in the middle raking the rice on the street. Rows of palms spread out to make fans were drying in the middle of the road. My driver took us off the main road telling us he wanted us to understand thier culture more so he took us to the house that Ho Chi Mihn lived in for 2 years when his mother had died. Next to the house was a small museum. The beach was refreshing but also a bit overwhelming. In alot of ways it looked just like teh beaches I would normally go to. But people do not bring thier own umbrellas and beach chairs, instead small shaded areas are made from bamboo and cloth and you ahve to pay for them. The women go swimming in thier clothes, the interpreter students told us it was because they were shy, but we've also been told that they do not like to have dark skin. Children lined up behind our chairs the whole time trying to get us to buy gum and chips. We stayed for a few hours and left sun burnt and sticky but excited to explore for the rest of the day. Our drivers took us to a covered japenese style footbridge, which was filled with resting men. They told us that when it is hott the people like to sit under the bridge because it is so cool. When the three of us entered teh bridge we could understand why they were there. The shade blocked the sun from our skin and a cool breeze blew through the wooden beams. We were taken to the Tiger Arena. This is where the Emperor used to go to entertain by having a tiger and an elephant fight in this huge round arena that is enclosed by brick. The tiger usually won and down the street was a elephant temple to all the elephants that were injured or killed. The part that I liked the most was being taken to the old American bunkers up on top of a big hill. From the hill you could see the river down below and across the river was green rolling mountains. Next we headed to a pagoda, but on the way we stopped at a shop and watched a woman roll incense sticks that smelled of cinnamon. The pagoda was down a dirt road with pond filled with lilly pads and beautiful flowers on the left of the road. we walked around the outside of the buildings where everything felt peaceful. Ali and Emily started a conversation with a 20 year old man who had been studying there as a monk. Younger people joked and played, they had patches of hair still attached to thier bald heads, signifying where they are in thier studies (I think). The day was so full, I am glad that I got to see so much of Hue outside of the city.

Orphanage

2006-05-27T13:11:00.000+07:00

I have deffinately been lacking in postings but take what you can get I guess. Today we took a trip (a very long bike ride, up hill, both ways, in over 100 degree weather...with humidity) to an orphanage located at a converted Pagoda. After getting there and assessing the amount of sweat dripping off us we sat down at a table for a small talk with the head buddhist nun at the orphanage. We were soon joined with our volunteer counterparts and took turns fanning each other. We did small introductions of everyone and had quetion and answer about the orphanage, directly followed by child student interaction. We walked into this big open room with pillars and cement floors. There were children in a big circle and when we walked in they all started to sing. They sang us happy birthday and a few other songs in english. It was a great way to lift our spirits after that long, hot bike ride. For the next couple of hours, we played with the children as a group and then individualy. We gave them earth balls that we stuffed for them last night, candy, and happy face stickers. They seemed to have a great time and we all had a few that really took to us and we're never far from our sides at any moment. We also saw the babies. They are all beautiful children and a quite well behaved for what we saw. It was time to leave before we knew it and said our good byes. I think we could have stayed for the better part of a day were we given the chance. We all basically knew our way back so we went at our own individual paces but regardless, we were all soaked by the time we got back and were anxious to climb the 1, 2 or 3 flights of stairs to get to a cold shower!! We've now had lunch and are feeling fat and happy though we still all struggle to stay healthy and keep our digestive systems at peace.
For the rest of the day we will be preparing for our 3rd day of teaching at the Street Children School and getting all pumped for our free day (a whole one!!) tomorrow!!! For now, that's all from the almeister, thanks for checking us out!

Meeting with Vietnamese Veterans

2006-05-25T11:43:00.000+07:00

It was absolutely amazing to meet with veterans this morning and hear their stories concerning the war in general, and specifically the Tet Ofensive of 1968. In order to really understand any subject, especially one as intense and convoluted as this, we must see all the sides involved. I would have never thought that i would be hearing the story of theTet Offensive from one of the commanders of the troops of the North Vietnamese Army.
All of the speakers were very freindly and happy to share their points of view, those of the planning intention strategy and events of the 26 days of combat here in Hue, Vietnam. I found it very interesting to here about their plan to take out the administative machinery of the Saigon regime, and that they were not forced out of Hue like many military historians say, but intentionally withdrew as had been the plan all along. There are always different sides of the story, and one must compare and contrast to get the whole picture.
Sitting there in a room with generals and colonels, maps on the wall, and the statue of Ho Chi Minh and the star and hammerandsickle behind, really made me feel that we were delegates for the growing peace between our countries. It made me feel proud, honored, and joyful to be such a part of the forgiveness, reconciliation, and freindship that has occured and which will continue to grow in the future. It made me hopeful.
The colonel who spoke the most mentioned that there are many similarities between the misunderstanding and subsequent defeat of the American Government and Military in Vietnam, and the situation that is happening right now in Iraq. I personally have noticed the fact that our government did not take the lessons of the past to heart, and that we are repeating our horrible mistakes in the arena of foreign affairs, but it was incredible to hear very similar sentiments from a man in such a position. The legacy of mistaken wars goes deep into the psyche of the citizens, and this will not end until imperial America realizes what its place should really be in the world, not as a neo-colonial power, but as a mediator of difficulties and differences. This cannot be done with the gun.

Our day with CPI

2006-05-25T11:10:00.000+07:00

Perpetual Awe

2006-05-24T21:08:00.000+07:00

Allow me to work my way backwards. A boat ride along the river helped me forget my fatigue from biking and playing in the sun with children. A walk through old neighborhoods, with one hundred and eighty-something old house, surrounded by mature fruit trees and other growing produce helped me to suppress the urgent need to pee; and speaking French and English with the tour guide volunteers/interns, continuously trying to understand each other to simply communicate, kept me present. Earlier, the market: two stories of price haggling consumers and products up the walls and through the ailes. A maze of colors and shapes, smells, and tastes, from silk to smoke.

Yesterday was a visit with CPI and with survivors. This is a sadness that I cannot communicate at this time in English or French.

Monday morning sounds in Hue

2006-05-24T12:51:00.000+07:00

22 May, 7:00AM

Engines, hammers, laughter, horns, public announcements, motar bikes, birds, children playing, sand being shoveled, footsteps, squeeky bike brakes, dogs barking, saw...It's already about 90 degrees!

Womyn seem to rule the roost here. I am a bit surpised by this but that had me folled (and still seem to have the men fooled too!) I don't notice womyn being subservient or quiet. They engage in all activities. They run the house, markets, garden...they drive themselves wherever they need to go. They are everwhere: shops, banks, bakerys, universities...a real "Jill of all trades."

Met with the street children last night. When I walked in I was unsure of what to expect (I am trying to learn to let go of expectations...) The kids were amazing and funny and I can't hardly wait to spend more time with them. One little boy kept bowing down towards me, he thought I was a buddhist monk becasue of my shaved head! He is so spunky and full of life. There seems to always be at least one kid who is the center of attention. This one boy was about 8 or 9 years old. He sang for us all-he had a beautiful voice. I am beginging to see the inner workings of this government, where their priorities are and such. Some things that have stuck with me:

-The suggestion by the Hue festival volunteers ( I don't have much to say about them or the festival except that we have been working with them a little bit to give suggestions to make to festival better. I don't enjoy that work at all and don't feel like it is a reason for coming to Vietnam. I came to do port-war work...) to change the boat tour route so we do not have to see the dibilatiating poverty to "boat people" live with. I have never seen such dire poverty in my life, not even in NYC ghettos. The festival organizers are wary to let tourists see the poverty apprently so are considering a change in the route.

- The president of HEUFO (Hue Friendship Union, their representational government here in Hue) was pro Bush and pro WTO. Pretty much the Vietnamese government's biggest concern is drawing international capitol into this land which I think will only further exploit the people. So him and I had an interesting conversation. He calls Bush Mr. Bush so I said to him in 2008 we are very excited to say good-bye to Mr. Bush! I don't think he took it very well. I don't know. He might have just been kind of confused because we are delegates from the US and here I am bad mouthing our governemnt to the Vietnamese government...I am sure they have poeple following me around now! Ahhh well... :)

-The poverty, as I mentioned, is staggering. Young girls and boys on the streets begging for food. I feel so guily doing anything remotely good for myself with this kind of situation. It is truly unlike anything I have even seen. The boat people live in such unsanitary conditions. I feel demoralized in a way but it also gives me fuel to keep on fighting for global justice. I have such power and priviledge being from the US and I plan to use it to help make this place more inhabitable.

-The government only pays for education up to elementary school

- Kids with special needs do not get education, they get taught a trade instead.

I am off for now. I will write later about the last few days.

Peace,
Christina

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More on Hue

2006-05-22T11:55:00.000+07:00

Although a city, Hue is much more relaxed than Hanoi. I am forever grateful we did not have to ride bikes in Hanoi...it is stressful enough here in Hue for me although I am getting used to it. Riding on the back of a motor bike yesterday was exciting...weaving in and out of oncoming traffic w/ someone adept (or hopefully so) w/ driving in Hue. Our Ecology Tour yesterday was incredible as we rode in dragon boats on the Perfume River and canals of the Citadel surrounding the Forbidden City. Seeing the boat people living on the river is an experience I am still processing. They, who have so little, run down the river banks and to the back of their boat homes, to smile and wave. I was quite taken w/ the children...I took several photos both on the boat and in the residential area surrounding the city of them. They are so curious and beautiful. My responsibility to the group beckons...more later.

Hue

2006-05-22T11:11:00.000+07:00

I am in Hue right now and have been here for like 3 days (maybe 4?) It is hard to remember all that has happened so far as I have yet to process it.
We met the students from the College of Foreign languages. I surprisiongly was able to remember all of thier names even after they changed clothing the next day. The girls were all very nice and we got together to get to know eachother a bit,. They will be coming with us when we teach the children to interpret for us. Later that day was the cultural exchange. We sang a very enthusiastic yet unskillful round of This Land is your Land, played a mock baseball game and got some of the students involved which went really welll, and celebrated 5 of the students upcoming birthdays with a traditional American birthday party. They in turn sany\g several songs and performed dances. I loved seeing the rich culture that these people have, it was hard for us to pick what to do because I feel that we lack culture that is specific to our country. They performed a traditional mock wedding which was very different from the traditional weddings in our country. They wore beat\utiful fabrics and it was all very formal. Then we were served traditional food which was interesting to say the least. I think that most of us feklt as if we floated through the experience. Everyone was so excited to be there and to be sharing a bit of our culture with each other.
Yesterday we went on a tour by motorbike and dragon boat which was like a pilot tour because there will be a festival on the 2nd. and they wanted feedback or something, but the tour was cool. The other day we rode on our bikes for the first time which was very nerve wracking because the traffic is so crazy here. People just drive down the streets beeping like crazy. We also went to the home where the street kids lived and we were supposed to play games with them but it just ended up being kind of chaotic. In the morning I went to the market with Valerie and Annegret. It is like a huge flee market, inside and outside. The walk ways are small and there is barely enough room to stop and look at the shops. Goods were staked to the ceilings, plastic toys, fish, meats, spices friuts and vegetables. The smells here are undescribable. While there a woman followed us around and told us to visit her shop.We followed her upstairs where threr was fabrics and clothing staked in surprisingly neat piles about 4 feet high. Immediately they started dressing me in traditional clothing. They would not tell us the prices. I picked out a few things and then sat down and watched while Val and Annegret went through the piles, trying on clothing of all colors and materials mainly silk. When tehy were done it was time to bargin. Only these people wanted to bargin in American dollars and were charging extremely high prices for the area. This turned into a big ordeal that lasted at least 20 minutes. I am not as good of a barginer and had to pee really bad so I settled having bargined them down about 20000 dong. It ended with the shop owners accepting thier price and letting them leave with all of the merchandise to come back and pay. Convinced that the woman had hired someone to follow us to our hotel, we ducked into the Morin Hotel to use trhe restrooms and snuck out the back just to be safe. It was truly a cultural experience, needless to say, I will not go back to the market.
This experience is so amazing and new,. I feel like it has been flying by.

Days Full of Everything

2006-05-22T10:44:00.000+07:00

The last three days have been so full of so many things that they have flown by without giving me a chance to post on this blog. I want to make up for that by fitting a series of things into this entry, some of it writing from my journal, and some fresh out of my head. The excerpts from my journal are just that, excerpts.
Huy is one of the most beautiful places that i have ever been, not just because the amazing physical aspects of the city (architecture, market, ciclos, etc.) but because of the people here. They are some of the kindest people that step foot upon this planet, and i feel unbelievably fortunate to get the chance to meet them, to share with them the way we are, not just as foreign tourists but as people who are getting the chance to touch many lives in an intimate, personal, and beuatiful way.

5/20
This river has had great significance in the history of the people here. It is incredible. People ride motorbikes and bikes across the six-arched bridge which spans the Song Huong, the Perfume River.
As i was sitting here writing a man came up to me, sat down, and asked if we could talk. He told me about himself, Can, and how he become ill, but how he walks from his home across the river one hour every morning and is not ill any longer. He walked off and said he would see me tomorrow.
I can't get any writing done because everyone keeps stopping to talk. It brings me to the verge of tears, not from sadness, but from joy. These people are the kindest, most beautiful people i have ever met. So freindly, so graceful. How could we (Americans) have fought against such a peaceful people, who are generous and giving vy nature. The need to conquer space, time, and people is so ingrained in the very conception of America that it fills the hearts and minds of many of the people. There is a way to change this destructive ideology of conquest, and it seems that it begins in the little moments, the handshakes, the smiles among new freinds from different cultures, different continents. "The greatest journey begins with a single step".

After i put my book down i started to play jacks on the sidewalk. An girl, maybe 8, came over with her mother, and she played jacks with me for quite a while. He mother tried it just to see what we were doing, and then walked a little ways away. Shortly after this a man and his 2 year old? child came over and started to play as well. The boy couldn't quite get the hang of it, so we just started spinning them on the sidewalk instead. I then said that i had to go, and when the boy realized i was leaving he proceeded to carfully put the ball and each jack back into the bag. I walked to breakfast filled to the brim with joy and love.

The longest day. It was only seven in the morning at this point. After breakfast we met with the student interpreters from the foreign language college. We played name games and then talked about ourselves with each other. So much laughter, so much fun.
We prepared ourselves for the cultural exchange after this. Exciting, nervous energy. We were welcomed like famous people and like old freinds at the same time.

5/21
My heart is opening like it never has before. It is painful and healing at the same time; it is beautiful. I could never have imagined the full impact that this experience would have, is having, will continue, will always have on me. We have been welcomed here with a kindness and excitement like none other that i have ever known. Each moment is filled to the brim with new experiences, new questions, new freinds that it is overwhelming, but in a good way.
While riding my bike by the river two boys on a bike pulled up beside me and we started talking. Thahn was on the back of the bike and had been at the cultural exchange last night. We talked all the way down the road, for ten minutes, with traffic whizzing by. It was good for everyone, i think, to have the morning free today.
I caught a stomach bug, but still wanted to go on the festival tour with our group and the Vietnamese tourguides, interpreters, and high school students. I went along but then got dizzyer and sicker and quickly rode back to the hotel. It was the only thing i could do, for i must get better so that i can be fully functional for the rest of the trip. This rationalization did not stop me from feeling remorse at my absense from the group, though, for i missed them like they were a part of me that i had left behind on that bike.
----
This morning we had a catch up session. It was very important. I am feeling much better, but still a little queezy at times. Peptol Bismol, water, Alka Seltzer just to get me back in functioning order. We go to meet with HUEFO (one of the organizations that we are working with here) this afternoon, and then go to give some feedback to the festival volunteers so that they can work on their presentation before the actual festival begins. I spent time with Can this morning again, and he said that he was only better for that day that i met him, but has since gotten worse again. He walks every morning and i will go to meet him so that we can talk. It is good to have new freinds. He just a moment ago introduced me to his cousin who works on motorbikes across from the hotel. One of the most beautiful men i have chanced upon on this earth. He teaches me so much just from his presence. So much we have to be thankful for.

Hue City

2006-05-22T10:27:00.000+07:00

Hue is a little less electric with more open air than Ha Noi. It is quieter, and more colorful, less contrasted. The patterns and shapes of and within the streets exude a less abrasive aura. Still, I like it.

My last day in Ha Noi was unforgettable. I wandered off with my guitar; must'a packed up my clear-consciousness and left it on the hotel bed with my luggage, because I ended up lost as hell, running late. I will spare the details, but the experience is worth mention.

The first full day in Hue was really no better in terms of unplanned, uncontrollable, unwanted circumstances. Sickness hit me hard around lunchtime, and I spent the rest of the day trying to convince myself that I wasn't dying. Once again, I'll spare the details.

But every time I go outside of myself, to the cultural exchange, to the orphanage, to the bike/boat tour with the festival volunteers, I am humbled and grateful for this time here, and reminded of the need to SERVE.

Motorbikes!!

2006-05-21T21:37:00.000+07:00

I just have to say, when on a motorbike, they are amazing!! Walking is a different story. But while we spent a great deal of time on the back of them today, I came to appreciate the chaos that accomplanies the whole experiance. Today was a lot of fun and I really have a good feeling about the students we will be working with for the time we are here. Good day!

Un Chai...

2006-05-21T11:54:00.000+07:00

Sorry about not writing yesterday. I was exhausted and had, for the first time ever, a migraine. I will forver empathize with people who have them from this day foward! I went to bed really early and got to catch up with some of my sleep. I still think I am somehwere around 6 hours behind...or ahead...

Yesterday was INSANE! Riding our bikes through the streets was so exhilariting. I have never exoperianced such a high in my life as I did yesterday riding through the streets of Hue. In Hue (and Hanoi) people ride alongside with traffic (like we are supposed to in the US). The main form of travel is bikes or motarbikes, very few have cars. The bikes own these streets! Emily and I could not stop laughing because I kept falling and becasue riding a bike with traffic is so nuts!! I fell in the middle of an intersection at one point and could not get up becasue I was laughing so hard! It was hysterical. Such a great time. Emily is sooooo funny. We have a great time together. I am excited to think ahead to our next big adventure to Thailand (her and Tess and myself are going), although I don't like to think to much away from here. I want to absord as much as I can about this experiance.

I am enjoying the food thanks to 2 phrases:

"Un Chai" and "Kom Nouc Mom"

Un Chai means "I am on a vegan diet," Kom Nouc Mom is "no fish sauce." The intresting thing is that in Vietnam there is only vegan or omniverious, not vegetarian. So I am good to go! Vegans are highly respected here (unlike in the US). People think of it as a major sacrifice, but vegans in Vietnam eat sooo well! Fresh fruit, smoothies, tofu glaore! It's awesome! I asked Nhi (our interperter, she's awesome!) about how the Vietnamese think of Vegans (or vegetarians) and she said "great!" I told her how many people from JSC told me it was rude to not eat meat when it is given to you and she laughed! She seemed more insulted that people from the US think Vietnamese people are so ignorant and ethnocentric that they would not understand it...they were ALL wrong! So all I have to say is "Un Chai!" The people here are very intrested in it. So I shaved my head to be vegan but did not have too! Ohhh well, I love my head this way, it feels really great. I am sweating so much...like never before. It is so humid here, but I am loving every minute of it. The heat, and sweating feels so good, so cleasning.

So we (Emily, Jacqui and I) just got back from a relaxing bike ride down the Purfume river to the Bao Quoc Pagota. It was founded in 1670 by a Buddhist monk from China. There is a school for training monks there that opened in the 1040's. It was such a sacred space and I had a chance to meditate in front of one of the Buddha's. The place was made of concrete stone with colorful, beautiful tials (Sp?). I took some photo's. I am exicted to share this with everyone once I get back. Very sacred and special. I felt the most grounded there since being in Vietnam. They were bringing food for their ancestors (they have a beautiful alter set up for them on both sides of the main alter)...all vegan of course. It was just magnificant, and I am so lucky to have had this opportunity. Riding to there was also quite the visual expeircane. Shacks line the streets, people congregating on the sidewalks...open doors, smells untold...something to truly savor.

We also went to Ho Chi Minh's Museum. Wow. That place was something else. Ho was from Hue originally and then went to university in France. The one thing I took out of there is that he led his people in the fight against colonial rule. He taught brutal tactics, yes, he killed people, yes...but that is war, brutal and killing. I think what he did was brave and his legacy lives on in this counry. They LOVE him here...people have a deep sense of national pride. Comunist flags hang from many homes (even the shacks). There is an intresting dichotimy here with the living arrangements and such. It reminds me of what I understand the beginging stages of capitolism to look like: merchants, pesants, intelligensia, workers, etc. It's really intresting to see it play out in the everyday, again I feel highly priveldiged to have had this opportunity. Don't get me wrong, this communism is not genuine and certinly has it flaws! For example I had to pay to get into Ho Chi Minh's Museum! What kind of communism is that?!

Experiancing this international life makes me realize that I like it more than living in the US. I want to travel the world, spend lots of time abroad and help contribute to positive changes. The US is so artifical to me, so phony. There is some of that here beginging to creep in. Like in the advertisments and such...all american models and products... gross.

Yesterday when we did our cultural exhange at Hue University, I realized this even more. US culture is silly and wasteful. We decided to play a game a baseball, have a traditional US birthday party and sing Woody Guthrie's "This land is your land." The vietnamease students must have practiced for at least a month for their performances. They had a tradicationl Vietnamese wedding, some song and dance and authentic food of Hue. It was so beautiful to watch their dress and hear them sing. It costs as faimly $1 a month to send their kids to speciality school, we bought a cake for $6 for our birthday celebration. I think that puts the US's culture into a bit of perpective for me. We are a throw away culture. We had party hats made out of paper, and confetti made from plastic and plates made out of paper, napkins...you know how it goes if you are from the US. ALL of it was thrown away. Plastic Bat, Plastic ball, plastic, paper and more plastic. It's quite disheratening to me. Our distructive and unsustainable culture is being exported to them ( and many others). I am shocked to see how many people speak english... Bit the students went mad for the baseball bat and wiffle ball, mad! They were actually lined up to touch it. I don't know. I was a bit disturbed.

So I am going to sign off for now and head out for some more awesome vegan food. Peace out!

Christina

Hue...the life of the rich and famous...well, the later at least

2006-05-20T21:14:00.000+07:00

So yesterday was our travel day. We hung around for the morning, took the ride back to the airport and had sudden pains of airport syndrom all over again. We were still checking our bags at boarding time so we were cutting things a little close so by the time we got on the plane they were just about ready to shut the doors and get ready for take off. The ride was only 55 minutes and to us felt like a walk in the park...a short one. We barely had time to get comfy and we were landing. our ride from the airport to the Inn was a very sudden realization that this was a much different place than Hanoi. Light traffic, cleaner streets, much less honking. This place is much more open and spacious compaired to Hanoi and it doesn't smell like trash!! Once we reached the hotel, we came to a second calming realization. This place was sooo much nicer and more peaceful (and friendlier) than the our previous residence. We all had our spirits lifted and I think experiancing Hanoi (the big city) first allows us to appreciate Hue so much more.

We got to the hotel and after the family and staff (tiny girls) in a loud, confusing mass lugged our suitcases up the stairs as we claimed rooms, we relished in our new home for the next three weeks and some of us (me) unpacked. Then we had an early dinner (since most of us, if any declined the prepackaged, processed meat sandwich on the plane). Practiced for the cultural exchange, and I thin all but three of us fell asleep (whether we wanted to or not) before 9. Today we met our volunteer interpretur counterparts. 9 female vietnamese university students. we said (and spelled) our names several times around before playing a gazillion rounds of name games. (still don't know who's who and took us the entire morning to even figure out if we were pronouncing the names right). Vietnamese is hard...

After the meeting time we had a little free time, then lunch (a feast might I add) and then last minute practicing before the cutural exchange then on the road to the school. Crazy experiance! I rode on the back of Nhi's (n-ee) motorbike while the rest of the group rode rusted cruzers. It was awesome facing death trying to cross the road and manuvering the busy streets of people and bikes and whatnot. When we got there, and walked into this old gymnasium, it was as if we were celebraties! university students against the walls and in a balcony above with the middle as the center isle for us, cameras flashing and people yelling and clapping and pointing. it was like a movie. incredible! We all did our profomances and though we deffinately didn't spend half the time on ours as they did on theirs I still think they appreciated the effort and our precence. If they weren't impressed with our singing skills they were deffinately impressed with Emily, Danny and my balloon animal skills. We're lucky to have any balloons left for the kids after that frenzy!! At the end of the experiance we all had a great time and felt very excited by the energy that was flowing around the room.

Our ride back the the inn was a wet one with raining pouring down. The rain is beautiful. It has cooled everything down and the smell of it is amazing. I think sleeping tonight is going to be very nice.

Day in the life..

2006-05-20T11:37:00.000+07:00

Leaving Hanoi was something I am not sure I was ready for. I did not get a chance to see Ho Chi Minh's Mauseoloum (not sure how to spell it) on his birthday, which I really wanted to see and many other awesome sounding sights. Apprently Ho is enclosed in a glass casing and gets shipped to Russia once a year to be "fixed."

I feel like today is the first real day I am adjusting to this culture. So much to look at. So much to do. I am planning on taking the DMZ tour which goes to many old war sites...tunnels, bases, villages. I wish my Dad had come to join me. I think he would love it here under these circumstances. He kept warning me that the people here would not be welcoming, that they would not be happy of my presence. I figured it made sense, but thus far I have only encountred thoughtful, compassionate, smiling faces.

I woke up at 7:00 got dressed and had the best fruit smoothie i've ever had for breakfast along with some fresh, tropical fruit-passion friut, pineapple, watermelon, papaya-it was a great breakfast. I don't feel like things have been to eventful but I wanted to blog anyway to keep people updated.

So after breakfast we met with the Vietnamese students who are studying english. We played some name games, had some laughs and here I am now. Hue is much different from Hanoi. It is not so busy and oddly enough has stop lights and crosswalks. I am really gald I got to see Hanoi. It was a world of a difference. Here in Hue it just feels like NYC, so it's not unusal to me.

I just went to a fabric store and picked out some beautiful fabric (red linen) and got fitted. They will be ready tomorrow and only cost $12! Hand made! I am excited about this. I would love to bring stuff back for Maria, but I don't know her measurments. There are just reams and reams of fabric to choose from. Amazing!

I am sorrounded by young children right now who are all playing video games on the computers. it's funny to watch them talking to the screens...

It only costs 6,000 dong to use the computers for one hour (thats less than one dollar, one dollar is 15,000 dong) I am excited to go exploring. I will try to write everyday...

Peace,
Christina

Hanoi: Day 2

2006-05-19T09:31:00.000+07:00

The Vietnamese street vendors possess this profound ability to bargin. I guess it makes sense when their livelyhood depends on it.

Today we went to the Friendship Village. I am not sure where words can even begin to explain the emotion I felt while at this place. The Friendship Village is a rehabilitation center for victims of Agent Orange ( a nasty carcinogenic toxin the United States government used to defoliate the lush forests of Vietnam during the war). They house a great deal of children (120) and war vetrans, including womyn, (50). I have never felt such a connection to people I do not even know as I felt with them in the village. They were all so incredibly welcoming and accecpting to us Americans. The children...ahhhh....the children. What can be said about someone who's life is ruined by something they've never even seen. the defects and handicaps these children live with are deplorable examples of what war does. But still yet they remain happy, loving, strong and compasionate.

War kills people, community, villages. It creates distruction and chaos. War has no enemy, war is the enemy. I wish I had the ability to flash what I've seen today to all the people I encounter who supoport the concept of imperialist wars. This type of war is the ultimate failure of progress. Innocent victims: 6 years old-blind, 9 years old-muscle disfunction, 12 years old-unable to speak...

When I first entered the village this little angelic cross-eyes boy with missing teeth and spiky hair ran up to our group and wrapped his arms around the person closest to him (Kara). He has such a beautiful soul. I took to him pretty quickly, how could I not! I carried him around with me.

I had this amazing opportunity and priviledge to meet with elder womyn. Wise. Strong. Teachers. powerful. There was one womyn (a veteran) who grabbed my hand to hold it. She was missing several fingers. She held my hand so tightly and rubbed my back with the other. She looked past my eyes to my soul and we met there in a place of understanding. I knew she knew war was wrong, she knew I knew war was wrong. My sense of deep guilt was lifted temporarily because she knew where I stood. She knew I do not support my government and their evil actions. She knows I love her and all the people I've encountered there. I knew she loved me. We share this common planet together and even though she is over 4,000 miles away from my "home" she now is as close to me as can be. We shared tranqulity and peace-it was a powerful experiance. I love and admire elder womyn. I cherish them. I know their lives have been filled with struggle and strength is what gets them through-I want to know their stories. Story telling is such a healing process. They shared their stories with me through touch and genuine human contact. I want to embrace that. I want to learn that. I want to share that... and I will.

Ho Chi Minh's picture is everywhere. The veretans at the village made sure his picture was in the pictures I took of them. He is their national hero...take it or leave it, they love the man. He was their liberator, he fought for independace from colonial rule. First it was the Chinese, them the french and fianlly the Americans-he helped push the Americans out of their homeland. Ho's birthday is today, the same day as my brother Joey. The entire country celebrates this day. We might have a chance to go see his burial site.

Towards the end of the week we are going to have the incredibly priviledged opportuinuty to meet with actual Vietnam veterans. Different then my understanding of Vietnam veterans. These are actual veterans from Vietnam who faught in the war.

Being in Hanoi is intresting in the concept to process. I assume that most people over 50 or so must have been in the Viet Cong or as American's call them "Charlie." I wonder what they would tell me if we could communicate. I am really looking foward to this experiance. I wish my Dad could be here. I think it would be so healing from him to sit down with Viet Cong and the like who are not the enemey, but rather just fighting for their rightful land. They could share stories. Again I'll say it: tellling your story is so helaing. I am really looking foward this and am trying to prepare myself for what I know will be deeply intense.

One of the founders of the Friendship Village is an American veteran who faught in Vietnam. His story is something all should hear. He teamed up with the VietCong leader who implemented the ambush of the platoon he was leading during the war and all his men were killed. Together they have formed an amazing connection and center. They became best freinds. They both know war is ulgy and brutal and horrible things happen. I think that story is meant to be brought back to the US and told. The VC and the GI's can be best freinds. It's when a government steps in and makes decisions for you. We all have individual minds and conscoiusness' to make those choices ourselves. "Just following orders" is not a justifed excuse.

So my travels begin again. I am off to Hue today. Hue-Tet Offensive-synonomous. Should be intresting to say the least.

Dad if you are reading this I love you, no matter what I see or hear. Unconditional love is what I have for you, always.

Peace.
Christina

Leaving Hanoi

2006-05-19T06:11:00.000+07:00

Hanoi has been a trip..."What a long strange trip its been." Although incredibly exhilirating it is also wrought with choas and contrast. The newness of the culture is exciting, yet the traffic is anxiety producing. Imagine trying to cross 6 lanes of traffic, except that there are no lanes or traffic lights or crosswalks. Also, the sidewalks are alive w/ people selling goods, eating, brushing their teeth, whole families use the sidewalks for their living rooms. In the early morning the sidewalks are quieter as to be expected, I like to sit in front of our hotel and watch the people...so much to take in. Yesterday a woman selling bread, one basket in her hip, another on her head, approached me to buy her bread. I nodded "No" to her and she gestured to my empty water bottle, I gestured back inquiring if she wanted it...she nodded yes. Amazing what nods and gestures can communicate. Later in the day I saw the very same woman amidst hundreds of people at the bus station. Our eyes met...we recognized one another...and again nodded with a smiles in our eyes.

More bottles of water than I ever dreamed possible

2006-05-18T22:09:00.000+07:00

The packed streets and sidewalks of Ha Noi are seething with cyclical movements of energy. People, produce, bicycles, and motor bikes, meats, pots and a certain pipe all beg me to touch, listen, and indulge in every flavor. This country is that exciting.

Few words come to mind at the ready to describe this experience as of yet. My mind is twisted, thumping, ready for some mild sedation. My body moves as a spinning shadow amidst a backdrop of chaotic darkness and flashes of light; and I like it.

Hanoi

2006-05-18T14:11:00.000+07:00

Hanoi:

City of energy and life. Just got back from a walk in the city-seen some people in their store-houses watching TV. Others were just watching me watching them. I tried to take some pictures of fruit vendors with shoulder baskets...They asked me to buy fruit, I did.

This city is filled with people on motor bikes. There are no stop signs or stop lights, just a free-for-all. People are graceful in their bravery...They just bike, ride, walk without a care in the world. People seem to master this sort of 2-step dance as they appear to practically collide into one another.

I noticed the look in some of their eyes, wary...Another American...An American in Hanoi. Here for now, here for what? I feel a deep sense of guilt along with an all encompassing feeling of priviledged. Here I am, some womyn from the States, visiting Vietnam, a country torn apart by my governments actions. There has been healing it seems, but now that capitalism has born its newest empire.

There are stores everywhere, people everywhere. They come up to me and pet my hands, arms, face, head. They want to touch me. They are curious. I am too.

Can't drink the water...The factories that are exporting their goods to the world are polluting the most desired natural resource. I think about the workers in those factories as we drive by. I wonder about the womyn who are trying to feed their babies. I think about the children who are still making soccer balls for the "1st world". I think about it all and it makes me nausous enough to promise myself to never forget and never let those around me either. Coke owns the local water we've been drinking. It makes me think about all the people who have been, and are still being, displaced so I can drink "clean" water. Sad. Got to think of a solution...

The sewage runs along the curb-rotting fish bones next to newly bloomed orchids- Mastery in contradiction. Went out to eat...There were hungry animals laying under my chair waiting for scraps, I fed them some of my greens- greens being morning glories, yummy. When I was walking out I seen a man eating some sort of bugs, could have been cockroaches, they were marinated. I hear they are high in protein.

Water puppets were fascinating, I felt like a small child just sitting there with my amazement and delight. Their creations are more then I could dream. The colors, the sounds. Something truly awe-inspiring. What a day... And it's only my first one!

Peace~Christina

morning in Vietnam

2006-05-18T07:20:00.000+07:00

So, this is our first morning in Ha Noi, Vietnam.
Yesterday and Monday (it is actually Thursday today, but Wed. there?) we traveled for many hours. From Burlington to Newwark,NJ, then to Seattle then to Teipei, to Ho Chi Mih City and then to Hanoi. The flights went off well, except for a delay in Burlington, we all got our luggage and we didn't crash! Not even once!
On the drie from the sirport to our hotel our eyes were wide as we watched out the window. We had been told of the hectic traffic beforehand but we had no idea! "There are no red lights!" and "This is a free for all!" were some of the exclaimations made as we made our way down the streeet beeping constantly at motor bikes cutting out in front of us, or tourist buses driving in between lanes.
Cows grazed on teh grasses directly next to the road, women worked on rice patties, peple were selling bananas in the road. Houses ranged from tall thin cement buildings painted bright colors to small delapitated shacks.
Gotta go, will post later!

Leaving Day

2006-05-15T20:55:00.000+07:00

This is all very exciting! We finished exams, and went to graduation and today will be meeting to fly half way around the world. Though we have had some chances to form our group dynamic at our meetings, this is when it really begins. Everyone has been asking me if i was excited for like a month now, and i guess i was but didn't really have the time or energy to recognize it. Just yesterday, though, i felt it bubbling up and pouring out of the top of my head (with a little nervousness as well). We have a great group, and i know we will be exchanging some amazing ideas and experiences with the Vietnamese people that we come into contact with, and finding out a lot about our our collective place here on planet earth as concerned Americans, but even more as caring members of the human race. We're off! Next time i write will be from the other side of this crazy beautiful planet earth.

Testing 1, 2, 3

2006-05-13T08:59:00.000+07:00

Okay, I am technologically inept and wanted to test my blogging prowess. Let's hope for the best. If this does work, I would like to add that I am excited/anxious...our departure date is right around the corner. This trip is a dream come true for me and I am indebted to each and every one of my fellow group members for giving so much of yourselves in our pre-trip meetings. To quote Maurice Sendak: "Let the wild rumpus start!"

And Jill, thanks so much for getting our blog up and running.

Welcome to the 2006 Group

2006-05-09T19:27:00.000+07:00

Here it is... the third and final year for JSC to lead an alternative break to Vietnam. Friends, family, and any in and around and outside those definitions are welcome here to read the daily adventures of this group. They were selected in October of 2005, and have been working together ever since: fundraising, planning for their service, learning about Vietnam, learning about peace and war, getting to know each other. No small investment, and it will all pay off as they fly into Saigon and meet with Nhi, the star translator, guide, and friend. The three weeks will fly by, in a blur of new food, sights, sounds, and smells. They will learn basic words while communicating with the people in a whole new way - through work, patiences, waves, and smiles. They will sweat like never before, and then shiver through a recovery watching Chinese game shows in their rooms at night. They will reflect as a group and as individuals, challenging themselves to grow and act. What an intense and beautiful experience - made all the better by words from home encouraging them to share the stories and the nuanced details.

Johnson State 2006 Vietnam Break Away

2006-05-09T19:11:00.000+07:00

Below is a record of the 2005 trip, should you want a preview to the 2006 experience. There is also a link to the 2004 trip on the right hand side of the blog.

Catch up

2005-06-21T04:47:00.000+07:00

I am now at home in Vermont, but wanted to update the blog and tell you a little about our last few days in Vietnam.

6/15 Before leaving Dong Ha we went to the CPI office to say thank you and farewell. This is taken from my journal: " I felt the closing with the CPI staff was important and letting them know how much we appreciated their time with us. Chi recorded most of our final visit, including Chris singing his signature Vietnamese song. I am sure we will see it on the website. Our group sang "Old MacDonald" one last time. It was so great to be with the CPI staff the past couple of days and make the connection between us stronger. I feel like now I have a greater understanding of the organizaton on a whole because I have seen the support that they are able to give to victims and their families. I have now met those families and feel honored to have heard their stories."

6/16 We traveled to Ha Noi today after saying good bye to the hotel family and all the wonderful people who took care of us there. When we landed in Ha Noi the first thing we did was go and eat Pho, a speciality. It is noodle soup with pork that stews in a bug cauldron for hours. It was an experience just as all our food consumption here has been. Ha Noi is a whole new world compared to Hue. Much bigger and busier streets. A few of us walked around and saw an old Catholic Churth that was build in the beginning of the French occupation of Vietnam. We played soccor with some kids on the street outside the church all the while dodging motor bikes and other various vehicles.

6/17 We were able to visit the Friendship Village this morning, which was long anticipated. It is an organization and community that works with children and veterans who suffer disabilities, both physical and mental, that are a direct affect from contamination of Agent Orange. Our visit there was so wonderful! It is amazing to see a community that has pulled together their resouces in the best way possible to serve their benificiaries to the best of their ability

In the afternoon we went to see the Water Puppets. In order to fully understand this, please ask the people you know who went on this trip, it is difficult to put it in words for this.

6/18 It is my birthday in Vietnam! The group through me a great party and i was able to spend the morning with Ho Chi Minh at his moseleum! I was fantastic!

6/19 10 am we send Jill and Angie off to Cambodia
12:40 pm We begin our journey home

A morning with MAG

2005-06-15T22:36:00.000+07:00

Day two in Dong Ha. This rural setting has changed some of our morning habits: Dave can’t get up at 5 to hit the badminton scene, people aren’t running back from quick communiqué via the internet, and no sweet French morning pastries. Here we wake up and march into the day like soldiers: 7 am sharp, quiet round tables, and the simple hardiness of eggs, a small baguette, and an inch of thick and very black coffee. It does the trick and we file into the van dispatched to our first morning stop back at the CPI office. Today, we will be with their neighbors and peers in landmine work - MAG (Mines Advisory Group -- www.mag.or.uk).

The JSC group shuffles into a small room garnished with few maps and plenty of three-ring binders. The uniformed worker, Cliff, introduces himself: a former long-time British military engineer who now heads up MAG’s mine removal efforts in Vietnam. He is direct and succinct as he explains MAG’s work, which delays some of the shock of his words: “There is easily one UXO or landmine accident a week”, “There were just 2,000 American mines cleared from Gio Lihn”, “Five mines found this week, and it’s just Tuesday”, “We can find 900 pieces in one day at a metal scrap yard”. He answers our questions, and each group member seems to have one or two -- funding, personal reasons, clarifications. He is not patronizing us, and explains everything in detail and frankness.

In a pause, he moves our discussion to the hallway to show us shelves that display many of MAG’s educational souvenirs from 30 or more years ago. It is staggering, the malevolent genius that designs, manufactures, and utilizes these weapons. Necessity is the mother of invention, but war necessitates such a loss of humanity to those involved. Mind boggling to think about, and draws my sympathies to all involved in conflicts. When talking of landmines, Cliff makes the point to say they were designed to maim and demoralize, but not kill. All three categories are covered now in the civilians and beneficiaries we have been meeting.
We are behind now, and so hurriedly head off to visit some MAG mine removal teams in action. The first stop is at a site in a rice field and farming area. The roads to get there are so rough we abandon the van and are shuttled, high speed, in Cliff’s vehicle. Once there, we get a close up view of tedium: crystal clear procedure, basic and simple equipment, methodological sweeping and probing inch by inch and foot by foot -- each worker wearing the dense uniform of caution. The second stop still has us all shaking our heads -- a schoolyard that MAG has finally been allowed on because the children are on summer break. They found 14 pieces just doing the day long exploratory assessment, and 8 since then. By the time we arrived at 11 am, the team had three newly discovered UXO’s lined up: two active mortar shells and one Vietnamese grenade with the fuse clearly and chillingly visible. The school was build post-war on a dump of sorts, and now was a playground of sand, hiding the danger by just .5 meters. Needless to say, we walked directly in the footsteps of our guides at this point, and hurriedly retreated to sidewalk when the orientation was finished.

6-9-05 - In some ways an ending, in some a beginning

2005-06-13T17:43:00.000+07:00

First I would like to apoligize for this Blog being posted late, for some reason it was not posted when I did do it. We are in Quan Tri now and I am reposting this at Clear Path Internationals office.
Today (Thursday 6-9-05) was another long day. We woke up early in the morning and caught breakfast same place as usual, in the first floor of our great inn. At 7:30 we were off to the Blind Association to finish our last day of labor work there. When we got there our mission was set out. Some were to weed the front grounds of the establishment, while another team was to dig a sports hole for equipment that would later be installed. We had some help from three of our interpreters which was great as well. Thanks guys!! Another hot day as usual, we all sweated together as we turned the front lawn brown and dug deep for the hole. This was a sad moment for some, being not only the last labor project for the Blind Association but also this is the last day of real labor work for the rest of the trip. We said our goodbyes to everyone there but we were not worried, for we will be seeing them the next day when we are marketing products for them in the morning.
We returned to the hotel to get ready for the afternoon portion of the day. We ate a great lunch as always, and instead of people taking the usual rest, we instead bought supplies and then planned what we were going to do for the last day of teaching both at the Children's House and saddest of all the Street Children house. We got all of our gifts together, balloons, candies, pens, toys, drinks, and other various items and set off at 1:45. We arrived at the Childrens House and began our activities. It was a light session. We started with games for the first leg of it and then we ended with conversation which we had to move inside because it started raining on us. We said our goodbyes to the kids at the Childrens House, exchanging email adresses and offering them to get in touch with us any time they felt fit for any reason at all. We were off to the Street Children's House.
We arrived to slight dissapointment for some. It was great to see those who reside there as always, but most of the children that did not live at the Street Children House were not there because the day before they had not attended and they were not aware that we were there for our last day. It was after all their summer vacation at this point. We had a great time nonetheless. It was an incredibly emotional time. The head mother of the house gave a speech that almost brought tears to many of our eyes. Some exchanged words and then we played with the children giving them all our gifts. They did not open one candy wrapper, they did not rink their Vinamilks, they only played with the Hug A Planets, beachballs and balloons we had given them. It seemed as though they were saving those things to savor the moment. It is hard to say what kind of impact we had on these childrens lives. All I can say is that they had an incredible impact on mine and made me see things more clearly than I ever thought possible. Their laughter brought me so much joy, and their respect for their teachers was incredible. Some of them may not have a father or mother figure, some of them may not have someone to play with or give them undivided attention when they go back to their homes, especially the ones who resided at the school house. For them, the hour and a half a day during the week that we had with them, was their time, their time to shine. The time we spent with them for me was priceless and beautiful beyond what words can explain at this point in time. Only two of my boys showed for the day, which was sad but we had fun. They seemed very grateful for what we had for them and what we did with them. I was very sad for having to leave. I have the reassurance of knowing that I may see them again when I return next year. Before leaving we exchanged hugs, and with other children other than my own students with whom I made connections with. I was close to tears but fought it back. I hope that these children grow up to have beautiful lives, lives reflecting the beautiful nature of their persons. Children of this age are the ones most affected by landmines and UXO. Children that come from poorer families, collect scrap metal to sell off for quick money. This is one of the most common reasons why there are deaths and injuries, also Bombis look like fun balls to play with and children are quick to do so, not knowing the consequences of their actions. This is one of the connections I made, I hope to God none of them have to deal with it, but they are in that age category, living near the DMZ, in one of the most infected areas for mines/UXO. My prayers go out for a brighter day.
So it was the ending of our teaching that we worked hard for, and the ending of our last labor project while here in Vietnam, but also the beginning of the last leg of the trip, and the beginning of absorbing what we did, and digesting it, trying to reflect upon it is now the big task.

"You say...I only hear what I want to..."

2005-06-11T21:57:00.000+07:00

Today was our last full day in Hue, before leaving for Quang Tri Provence tomorrow morning. We began our day the usual way, trying to decide what to have for breakfast, then stuffing ourselves and sat back for the day to begin. We did not truly realize what the morning was going to hold in store for us, until a SUV pulled up and out got a man from the US State Department. He had been in Quang Tri visiting with CPI and wanted to meet with our group to hear about what students are doing in terms of mine action. After a few questions about us...he went right into what his department does in terms of mine action. To make a long, upset-stomach-feeling story shorter, we had a rude and quick awakening of America at 8am in Vietnam. We were not at all pleased with the conversation and many had a tightness in their chests following the conversation with this official rep. Afterwards, having not expected this at all, we were floored and angry! What a strange way to begin our last hours in Hue and a crazy feeling in our political spirits of thoughts we have all the time in the States, but have put aside for a bit while being here.

The day was spent preparing for our going away party in the evening with all our partners we have worked with while in Hue. The group wrapped gifts, shopped in the market for flowers and decorated the roof of the hotel for the event.

The party was grand! At first a bit formal: Angie welcomed our guests, including the government HUFO partner who is responsible for supporting our group's presence this year in Vietnam. Her speech was given through interpretation, thanks to Nhi and stories of leaches and other crazy bugs had the crowd laughing. The director of HUFO spoke, as well as Martha from CPI.

This purpose of the formality of the party was for our group to be able to show our appreciation to the people we have worked with here in Hue and to HUFO who has supported our work here in Vietnam. The Vietnamese truly value positive relationships they make and I think that we were able to convey to them that we will hold the relationships we have have been a part of here in our memories of our experience in Vietnam.

After the formal gift giving and thank-yoga, we ate the wonderful food that the hotel prepared especially for the party. There was music and conversation. The student interpreters gave us gifts and their addresses to write to them. One of the students, Ngoc said to me, "It is amazing...when I look around the room I think of the first day we met. Look at all the friendships and sincere smiles now!" This was so sweet to hear and definitely true. We have made friends here and have appreciated working side by side with the Vietnamese people.

When the formal guests left we exchanged more gifts with the student interpreters and said our farewells, after sharing some G-Love music and a little dancing.

It is difficult to count this as a party without some sort of entertainment...so when it was just us on the roof of the hotel...a familiar thing happened. Angie put on music she could dance and lip-sink too. The selection was Lisa Lobe, and when Angie's mouth began to move to the words, the roof of the Hung Vuoung Inn transformed. The owner came out dancing with his crutches and Angie began..." You say...I only hear what I want to.." I think you know the rest.

Kareoke...an old Vietnamese favorite

2005-06-10T16:43:00.000+07:00

Today was Friday and as our days in Hue are dwindling down we take a step back and look at what we have done, been through, and come out of all in one piece.

This morning we worked with the blind association helping to solicit handmade goods to local hotels and shops. Offering up toothpicks, chopsticks, and business cards for the massage services. It was a spectacle for the locals to gaze upon. Imagine, if you will, being a shop keeper and having three sweaty, white americans, three interpreters, and a representative for the blind students all rolling up on various transportation vehicles and asking you to purchase some toothpicks. How could you say no? Exactly, hence we sold half the product given to us that morning, not too bad for some green salespeople.

After lunch we were off to party, party, party. We went as a whole group for an hour stay at the childrens center where we said our goodbyes to the teens. We celebrated our newly made friendships with our newly learned game "Palm the weasel" and sang for the last time (fingers crossed) our anthem of "Lean on Me."

Then a brisk bike ride to the street childrens house. Our baskets brimming with various gifts for all the children we have come to love so dear. The afternoon was filled with eating candies, playing games, tossing hug-a-planets around, and singing songs. Caroline was a life saver with temporary tattoos and before you knew it our time at the street house was over. Taking an extra long time loading up our bags and getting on our bikes, our goodbyes were stretched all the way up the driveway, but we finally said our last goodbye.

We musn't end on a sad note though because we were quickly whisked away by the interpreters off for one last meal of fried pancakes and then to Kareoke. Yes you heard it right, kareoke. And this is not your normal bar full of onlookers this is a place that climb flights of stairs to the top of a building and get your own private room. Complete with AC, a leather couch, non-alcoholic drinks, and of course a personal kareoke set. The group sang their hearts out to a wickedly late hour of 11pm. Singing such american classics as Summer nights, If I had a hammer, and many songs by Barbara Streisand who seems to have a strong following here in 'Nam.

It was a great ending to our stay in Hue.

The 8th of June

2005-06-08T17:44:00.000+07:00

This was written by tess, but published by jill
We wanted to give credit to the author!
This morning we worked at a school for blind kids. The same place that many of the group got massages at in the beginning of our stay in Hue. Split into a fewsmall teams, members from our group worked alongside the blind students. Some sorted straw and bamboo that they use to make toothpicks and chopsticks. Another group moved some roofing materials around. I worked in a line movingheavy rocks. Dave was at the front and he handed them to me, and then I passedthem down the line. A couple of blind student worked next to us. At first I was nervous that someone would get hurt, since the students were blind and wedid not speak the same language. Once we were taught how to say big and smallin Vietnamese it went smoothly. This way the blind person would know what toexpect when being handed a rock. Overall the work went well and we got a lotaccomplished. As most things go here in Hue, Vietnam I sweat like it was my job and today was no exception. I think that the Vietnamese are prettyunderstanding when it comes the amount that most of us sweat. In the afternoonwe taught. Some people went shopping after work while others just cooled downin their rooms.

Manifest Intent at the Teen Center

2005-06-07T21:03:00.000+07:00

We were off to an early start today. After a quick breakfast we headed out to the emerging teen center to continue our efforts. Galen and I assumed our places at the brick-slinging station. Our job consisted of placing bricks in baskets, hauling them from point A to point B, then latching the baskets to a pulley system that transported them to the top floor. I actually found the work quite satisfying. There is something to be said for using the sheer strength of your body to attain a tangible ends. The effort of my muscles becomes a place where kids can learn and recreate in. It is a way of transfering internal processes to the external environment, like art, a simple yet amazing alchemy. It is a way of manifesting intent. The engagement of the flesh somehow makes the service more complete, not a mere exercise of the mind, but grounded in the earth as well. It had a certain meditative quality. It slows me down, allows my mind to clear. It was also a way to really be with the Vietnamese people around me. Perhaps we could exchange only limited words, but we grew a natural sort of intimacy that can only be achieved through shared sweat and labor.
Later that evening we experienced a crazy flash flood that bears mentioning. In what seemed like a matter of moments, a seemingly benign rain storm ecscalted into a full-fledged city emergency. The streets were filled with about a foot and a half of water. The people of Hue seemed largely unphased by the situation. Children splashed around in the filthy waves. Mother and fathers quietly walked there bikes home. Cyclo drivers donned tarps and sought customers completely undaunted. One fellow fished an eel out of the murky depths. The mood was generally quite cheery, people smiling and laughing. It was a break from the usual routine, the kind that awakens one to life's spectacle, and to the grace of having one another's company in this mad adventure.
The lower floor of our hotel is a restaurant that is completely open to the road on one side. The high water mark was essentially exactly level with the floor of the hotel, having swallowed the front steps. As if by divine providence, the flood did not rise that last fateful inch. Meanwhile, we all sort of took the cue of the locals and calmly finished our supper by candlelight (the power went out as well). It was one part fiddling while Rome burned, and one part romantic lakeside dining. Somehow the lack of panic seemed utterly normal. I think the Vietanmese spirit possessed me at that moment. Somehow it seemed as if we were all in this together, a peaceful resignation, a genuinely felt sense of community. Not the community we yammer on about in cliched sermons, but the real kind that develops after years of struggle and quietly plodding on. The sense of knowing exactly what is important, and knowing exactly how much the human spirit can take. It reminds me of a Joyce quote, "Go on loving, it's your only revenge."

Orange Dust

2005-06-07T13:17:00.000+07:00

Well, another eventful day. We awoke early to meet for breakfast at 6:30 for 7 am departure to the work site of a teen center being built in Hue. Upon arrival we load and unload heavy orange bricks, about five pounds each, that are hulled up flights of being constructed walls, or wheeled from the tiny mountains of surplus piling bricks to neat organized structures where the bricklayers can reach them with convenient ease. Some of us pick and shovel at the clay like dirt, triumphantly with hope for making a long foot deep trench along side the building. This is a morning of intense physical labor. While our clothes are drenched with sweat and carpeted with orange dust, our muscles are screaming and our minds are meditating. After working hard all morning we leave the work site at 11 to return to the hotel for showers and lunch. Following is an hour or two of sleep and R+R for most. After, some of us go to the high school to teach English to the summer students who want to learn more about American culture and improve their English. They are eager to learn American songs so we teach them to sing “Up on the Roof Top” which they learn quickly. At 3:30 we teach at the street children’s house until five. Today was a testing day for my class on questions like “How are you? What is your name? How old are you?” and their reciprical responses. After we break and return to the hotel we have a group builder comprised of stuffing and sewing ‘Hug a Planets’ to be handed out as gifts later in our trip. This is a calm peaceful time upon the roof of the hotel as the dusk descends and the techno music radiates from the street below. “Have any stories Jill?” someone asks. Jill seriously responds “Yes…actually,” after we laugh. The story unfolds as she explains a conversation she had with a local reporter who came to interview us that day while we were working at the teen center. The Vietnamese newswoman commented on how much dirt and filth was on our pants. Jill had laughed and said something along the lines of ‘yes we’re dirty’ when she noticed the woman’s lip was trembling. “It just makes me so happy…no words can explain…” the woman replied before breaking down in tears of happiness. We silently listened to Jill’s story, I think all of us felt both a bit surprised and humbled by the account.
After our Hug a Planet party up on the roof, we’re all starving and craving nourishment. Nhi takes us to a Vietnamese style sports bar where we get French fries with garlic and hot pots, one filled with tofu/vegetables and the other with seafood. The place is a scene of entertainment as we walk in to a long table of about 20 drunken Vietnamese men watching the home football team (soccer to us) play a game on TV. With mirth and song, they raised their glasses and cheered loudly. Ten minutes after we were seated for dinner, their group changes tables so the waitresses can pick up the array of Huda and Tiger beer bottles scattered on the floor. Once at a fresh new table, we watched as the beer bottles pile up again on the floor by their feet.
Following dinner everyone dispersed for the night, some to get shakes from our favorite shake restaurant, some to check email and some to bed. I checked my email and walked back to the hotel where Nhi was sitting on the steps outside. “Want to go for a drive?” she asks me. Though I am physically tired from the long day, its still only 8:30 and going for a drive on her bike sounds fun. We drive past the Citadel where people are playing sports and games in the field, and past Forbidden City, whose presence feels different to me now then when I had been there a few days earlier in the day. Dark, deserted and seemingly haunted, I imagine what it was like two centuries ago when the king and royal court would have filled the place with life. We drive through the streets to Nhi’s brothers house. It’s nice and her family is very hospital as we sit in her living room drinking water and sipping homemade frozen yogurt (yum!) I meet Nhi’s niece who, as it is explained to me, took her senior examination today, a very big deal for a Vietnamese. This exam will greatly determine the course of her life and because of its pivotal importance everyone in the family calls for support. “She’s born the same year as you!” Nhi says sitting next to me on the couch. We both smile shyly at each other as Nhi translates bits of conversation for me with her family. However, despite the enjoyed company and time, it’s weighed on a sad note: one of the family dogs was poisoned and killed earlier that day. When Nhi’s husband, Hugh, arrives I ask him why someone would poison their dog. “They poison dogs with rat poison and steal the carcass for meat to serve at restaurants…Something’s,” he says, “I don’t like about Vietnam.” I nod thinking how much I like tofu.

Sunday - A Day of Rest

2005-06-05T21:03:00.000+07:00

Sunday, sunday--our rest day. This is the day we normally don't have any scheduled activities, work or otherwise. Still, most of us found it impossible to rest and relax. There is so much history in Hue, the city and the landscape are beautiful, and we will have seen only a fraction of it by the time we leave. So, we take each opportunity to witness its magnificence while we can. Despite the slow but steady modern development of the city into a tourist hot-spot, much of the ancient architecture and traditions are visibly intact.

Two groups set out into the country to tour pagodas and garden-houses. Chris, Dave, Galen, and Trinh (an economics lecturer and one of the local volunteers we have worked with) visited some of the oldest sites: Theravada pagodas (traditional Buddhist monasteries), and elaborate garden-houses (with pineapple, coconut, and banana trees as well as ponds filled with lotus flowers in bloom. These garden houses still serve as home to some--can you imagine?
Meanwhile, Tess, Trista, Caroline, and Tara visited pagodas, tombs, and lastly an American bunker. At one of the sites they posed for a priceless photo wearing traditional Vietnamese dress.
Elsewhere, Celine and I were headed for disaster. We headed to the market to "window-shop" and take pictures of things that we could not explain by words alone. We took plenty of interesting pictures but were spotted by someone who knew our group. She led us to her shop and in the midst of conversation she deftly turned to business. Before Celine and I knew what was happening she had a crew dressing us and fanning us and trying to sit us down. We were laughing hysterically watching one another be twirled into one outfit and the next. This is not uncommon--the Vietnamese in Hue are entrepenurial beyond belief. A young boy tried to shoe-shine my Teva-like sandals yesterday. The tenacity of a vendor is formidable, and my transactions usually end in disbelieving laughter. When we left the market we were without enough money to buy even a watermelon and each had instead a lovely pair of pants.
On our way back to the hotel we met Jill who had been held captive by a stubborn computer and faulty disk all morning. Budgeting is a Zen-art apparently and Jill & Angie are devout artists--Buddha bless them. It was, however, a very hot day and high-time for most of us to head to the beach. Tara and Caroline were already there. Tess went with Ha, Loan, and Quyen (three of our saintly volunteer student interpreters from Hue University) while Angie, Jill, Celine, and I rented the most competitive motor-scooter drivers in Vietnam; arriving in one piece was a blessing as was the cool Pacific salt-water. Swimming and basking in the sun made it worth the race home in the dark, which Jill's driver won, by the way. Kudos to Jill and her crazy speed hawk.

Photos Added

2005-06-05T12:33:00.000+07:00

... to the CPI site (www.cpi.org), and will be located in the slide show.

The Rehabilitation Center

2005-06-04T10:23:00.000+07:00

Toady we traveled to a Rehabilitation Center for Disabled Children. The disabilities ranged from children who had down syndrome and mental retardation to children who were born with a debilitating disease like cerebral palsy. The center works with the children for up to three months on their ability level. Things that are offered to the children are schooling if they are age appropriate, physical therapy and tasks to help them further develop mentally. We toured the center, and spent time with the children in each room. The first room had mostly younger children, some with down syndrome and others with CP. The second room that we visited had older children who all had mental retardation. They were working in their school books, the wall covered with their art work. The last building that we visited was made up of two rooms, and was once again mostly younger children with CP or severe mental retardation. So many beautiful, precious babies. A lot of the children's mothers were there with them, and seemed to enjoy the extra attention that their child was receiving. We spent the morning hanging out with the children, trying to give them all one on one attention. We had some stuffed animals that we brought in from the states that we handed out, as well as some candy for the children to enjoy. There were so many cute faces. We all wanted to take them home. While we were there, a local lady came to interview some of us. Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel for lunch.

In the afternoon, we split into two groups. We were given the choice of visiting a landmine victim survivor that was in the hospital or one that was at their home. Chi and Toan from Clear Path International met us at the hotel to bring us to the survivors. Chi took a group to the hospital while Toan took her group to the home of the survivor. I went with Chi to the hospital. There we met a 13 year old boy who was in a landmine accident in March of this past year and a 22 year old who's accident just happened in May. The young boy lost both of his legs below the knee and one of his arms in the blast. He was with his father, visiting a family member when his father instructed him to take food out to his mother who was still working in the field. He brought food out to her and on his way back, he saw a shiny piece of metal.

Addendum to the Poem

2005-06-03T11:49:00.000+07:00

The poem below was written at the urging of Galen Dickstein, as we wondered what to do to capture the sweet anguish of being lost on our way to the work project of the morning. The rest of the group made it to the Thuy Xan Children's House to "weed the center's garden". From what I understand, this was a vigorous and dirty digging project done in blazing heat. But the school was absolutely beautiful, and is again, a place that we would like to expand our relationship with next year, after spilling the drops of sweat on their soil.

Meanwhile, Galen and I were riding our bikes for 2 hours trying to find the group. When we thought we did, but then didn't at all, we sat in the silence and Galen began to sketch the desolate, but beautiful view in front of us. She encouraged me to write in my journal, or an accompanying poem. I sat in sweat for the first 10 minutes, working out our chances of survival if all we had were the contents of my bike basket: 2 bags of chewy candy for the kids, 1 liter of water, and 2 machetes. In my carry bag, I also had a melted piece of gum, the emergency contact list for the group, my journal, and 20 dollars. I counted our chances of survival as high, so I was finally able to write.

We all reunited at the hotel for lunch, dirty, tired, and sweaty from our various labors. Sickness is tapering off in the group, so we are starting to be represented in our entirety at meals and work. Nhi was so excited by this that she led a round of 3 toasts.

The early afternoon was spent as usual... in preparation for teaching our kids and recovering from the morning exposure. FYI, each day begins at about 7 for breakfast, showing up at our project by 8. We work until 11, get back to the hotel for lunch at 11 or 11:30. 12:30 - 3 is spent doing prep and recovery, and then from 3-5:30 we are with the street kids. When we come home from that, we usually gather as a group for a reflection or a group builder. Then dinner at 7, and home again by 8:30. Depending on energy levels, members of the group then go to internet cafes, browse the shopping, chill out downstairs or outside, or go to their rooms to watch a parade of horrible 80's HBO movies. Usually the last option is the most dangerous: plot lines with evil robots or Kurt Russell or dragons can create rather fitful night's rest.

Anyway, four members of our group went earlier to a new project - teaching English culture at the Children's House. This group of students (about 20) have been exposed to English longer and more extensively, so they are less about the alphabet and more about music, folk stories, and other cultural influences of the U.S. Smaller off shoots of our group will be alternating work with these students for all of next week... amazingly enough this will be our last week in Hue. Next Sunday, we'll head to Quong Tri to work more directly with Clear Path at their offices. When we get back from that stint, we'll head back up to Hanoi in preparation to come home. Meanwhile, we will continue to work with the street kids on their ABCs and numbers. Dave Whitaker was the genius of today... the got his kids playing a version of twister with numbers and the ABCs. Got some fine pictures of that flash of brilliance. The rest of us continue to work on in our various groups... three of us and two Vietnamese student interpreters work with groups of kids varying from 15-35. We've divided up the kids according to their grade, which doesn't necessarily match their age. They continue to just thrill us and break our hearts with their earnest, eager, and loving nature. We've made name tags for them, and one young boy asked Nhi if he could take his off to bathe... "but then I'll put it right back on, I promise. And I will sleep with it here, over my heart, and wear it back to school."

Angie and I led a quick discussion before dinner, about our work as a group and as individuals, and then we were off to our night plans (see above). Each day presents a challenge for growth as a group and as a person... even to the point of being overwhelmed or exhausted. Thanks to all who write comments on the blog. We are encouraged by it all, and grateful to have a chance to share and process this experience with our circles of support.

Poetry While Lost

2005-06-03T11:46:00.000+07:00

Poetry to the Lost and Directionless

It all begins with such little mishaps

Forgotten water, broken bike chains, or a brief judgmental lapse

Suddenly now you are just a bit behind

Wondering if you will be found or will find

The group which is your umbilical cord

(Except for during lunch – conversation gets us bored)

Your lifeline, your crutch, your everything

The group which you’d stand in front of 1,000 to sing.

Anyway, such was the experience of Galen and I

On the second of June, not the second of July.

Two minutes into our ride to the morning project site

Galen’s chain just slipped off, to her non-delight.

So she pulled over and Jill followed after

And both engaged in a short burst of resigned laughter.

Then shouting ahead for the group to go on

They walked the bike back to Mr. Hoang.

A quick exchange for a sweet blue beauty

(That rides a little high and makes a sore booty)

And off they were again to catch the group,

Riding the Lei Loi, a familiar street loop.

But then, once passed the familiar street kids house

There was no JSC sighting, not even a mouse.

So we pulled out the brilliant yellow itinerary

(Some may mistake it for a flattened bright canary.)

And began our quest, by asking for directions

From the slew of drivers, pedestrians, and men who give inspections

If you had a tag or a uniform on

We’d show you the address, you’d point, we’d say “cam on”

This was the way

We covered all of Hue.

We found out indeed, that Vietnam has mountains

And that Galen and I both contain inner sweat fountains.

Back and forth, right and left

We did it until we felt completely bereft.

We went back to Le Loi and hired one of the first asked drivers

To guide us straight to Thuy Xan as bedraggled survivors.

And thus began our Tour de France training-

The way we were sweating, people thought it was raining.

He, ahead, on his fast moto scooter

Was going with such speed, he seemed a fleeing looter

We pedaled furiously up Mt. Hue

Looking sometimes to see if the other was okay

Taking a very (20 minutes off course) wrong turn

Made our hearts (and Galen’s neck) with vengeance begin to burn.

But at last, here we were, one last huge hill

I slapped my own face wondering it if was real.

We paid the driver and said a French farewell

And then dragged our bikes through this last step of heck.

The group would be cheering! Rejoicing our arrival!

No doubt that most, nay many, had doubted our survival!

But the further up the hill, and closer to the place

The quieter it got, the sparser the human face.

And then we saw the schoolyard, desolate as any—

Where there were few, there should have been many.

Greeted only by a beautiful vista and a danger sign

We were finally lost, but found, at half past nine.

So here we sit, no voices stirring, to capture the scene

And shortly ride back home—what adventure this has been.

Children’s Day in Hue, Viet Nam

2005-06-02T13:35:00.000+07:00

A new day came. Everybody looked refreshed. We all were ready for a day full of children’s activities as June 1st is Children’s Day in Viet Nam: visit the children’s painting festival in the morning, celebrate the Children’s Day Party with sweet children at Street Children House in the afternoon, and take part in the music performance for children at Province Children House in the evening.

Leaving the hotel at 7:45 AM, we turned into the poetic Le Loi street riding merrily under the shade of trees, enjoying the fresh air. I drove my “steel horse” (meaning a motorbike) and the rest of the group was on their bikes forming a long line on the street as a group of working “aunties” traveled side by side on their way to work. Sometimes, people on the street looked at us with surprise and wonder and then gave us a smile.

Where we stopped there is a greenery park by the side of Perfume River. Hundreds of kids were sitting in groups on the grass. They looked so cute with one hand holding the paper while the other was running the tiny paint brush up and down, left and right as the pro painters do. Here and there, the US students were walking around. Jill, Angie, and I (three big babies) quickly joined a group of “tiny painters”. Sitting under the tree in the middle at the park, Caroline, Tara, Laura were chatting gaily. Further along the path, Galen and David were taking a walk around several groups of children. The theme of painting festival is “free the children’s imagination,” therefore the kids chose to bring the spaceship, star, sun, moon, and even the whole planet into their painting. Many of them picked up blue to paint the sky, earth, and the ocean. “You chose a very nice color, why don’t you choose the other ones?” I stopped, sat down by a young boy and asked. “Blue is a very pleasant color and it symbolizes peace and dream of discovering the world,” he replied and smiled. Leaving that boy, I stopped and kneeled next to two little cute girls working on their painting. It looks very simple with 2 colors: black and white and so many number tens. Trying to interpret the meaning of number ten, I was hardly successful with that. “What do the number tens mean?” I asked. “An excellent mark at school is ten: I want to be an excellent pupil and this is my dream.” Oh, it turns out simple but a 23-year-old person like me could barely find out.”

We left the painting festival when it was still going. Back at the hotel, we met to prepare for a singing performance with children in the evening. There were so many ideas that we hardly knew which songs should be chosen. However, we finally decided the introduction of each member’s name in Vietnamese. “Toi la...” means “I am….”. We decided to start there first, and then sing three songs.

Time passed quickly and we were at Street Children House. There the kids sat neatly in rows. They could not cover their eagerness to see us coming. Some of them even got out of their seats, running to sit next to their favorite American teachers. The celebrations began with a couple of speeches by government officials and teachers, and then the teacher honored the kids who had achieved excellent study results in the year. As planned, we came to bring gifts and candies for the kids. But you know what? It actually ended up as a singing performance. The US students stood against the children audience and as usual, I was moving around to make sure the kids pay attention to our performance.

‘Old MacDonald’ was the first song we sang. Amazingly, this song made people laugh their heads off, especially when Jill, Caroline, Christ, and Angie imitated the sounds of a dog, goat, cow, and pig. A small game came up after the song. Children had to say the names of the animal they recognized in the song and imitated its sound. Who did it correctly would get a small gift. All of them were fighting to answer the questions and it took me so hard to pick up some. The Street Children House seemed to be bath in the laughing, chatting, and singing. I have never had such a day in my childhood so to see the kids laughing and being happy on the Children’s Day meant so much to me. Another game came up. The kids would listen to one sentence of the song “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” sung 3 times by the US students. Then they had to repeat that sentence and the one who did the best job got a nice treat. Ten children were in a row and started singing. “Ro, ro, ro yo bok”, sung the first child. “Ro, ro, so, cro...ha...ha (laughing)…’ sung the second one. They continued to sing and everybody burst into laughter till the last one ended up his singing like this: “Ro….huh...huh…ro…hi...hi...hi (laughing)’. So, what should we do? Laughing, we laughed from ear to ear from the beginning till the end. That was such an incredibly wonderful time to be with street children.

Despite of the singing in front of the street children house in the afternoon, we could not resist our anxiety to perform it again tonight on a real stage with a huge audience. By the time we got to the Children House, it was already full of children and parents. I tried to calm down myself, but still felt my heart beating like drum. We all were the “special” guests and proudly sat in the two first rows of chairs for VIPs. Surrounding us were easily one thousand children. The program started with lots of games, singing, dancing, and kung fu performance. Our eyes stuck to the stage upon the appearance of the kids in the beautiful kung fu uniform. Wow, their moves were so smooth and gentle sometimes, then quick and strong at other times. It was the most impressive show I had ever seen in my life. Also another extraordinary show was dragon dance. It is always the favorite show of the children in Viet Nam. Just before our singing, it started to rain slightly. Angie and I were almost happy to think that we could escape from our singing if it rained harder. Hence, it stopped. Our wish was not fulfilled and the consequence of this was we had to get up on the stage in front of our little angel audience.

‘Um…blah…um…blah… “Be calm, Nhi” I talked to myself. Taking a very deep breath, I finally could open my mouth to introduce briefly our group and our performance. After that was the name introduction of the group in Vietnamese. They did a good job, I think. Then the group sang “Itsy Bitsy Spider” doing the hand illustration. Next was “I’m a Little Teapot” and then “Old Mac Donald.” Again, the animal sounds for this song really stirred up the atmosphere. Lots of laughing from the children, especially the game going together with this song: thank God, we finally can have a minute to breath easy when Chris came up to sing a Vietnamese folk song “Ly Cay Bong” to close our performance. This is his fourth time to sing it and he’s no doubt the right person for this beautiful song.

What a day! Extremely exhausted but my heart is blooded in the joys and happiness of being with the little angels. A day full of laughter and happiness, I hope everyone in the group entirely enjoy it. In my dream that night, I was singing with somebody and we were both very happy. Children’s Day was over but the rhythm of the songs, the sound of laughter, and the smiles on the bright faces of children will stay with us forever.

Photos and a Slideshow

2005-06-02T12:05:00.000+07:00

We've sent a bunch of photos to our friends at Clear Path International (where the blog is also being published). Check there (www.cpi.org) for some visuals of all the stories up to this point! We'll be sending in photos to build a slide show, as well as photos which compliment the entries. Thanks to James Hathaway at CPI for his work!

Another Fine Day

2005-05-31T17:15:00.000+07:00

(Written by Celine Riendeau)
Today we started off the day three people short. Tess, Angie and Chris were sick with the “thing” (various types of aliments that we all seem to be coming down with). The rest of us ate a wholesome breakfast at the cafe to prepare for our day of work in the heat. Then we saddled up our bikes and traveled through many busy intersections, one of the intersections on which I am guilty of having had a collision with a fellow biker only yesterday. We traveled to the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled to spend the morning placing a second coat of paint over the fence that we painted the day before. This turned out to be a quick job and was finished in about an hour and a half.

We were then taken into a side room, furnished with many intricately done, beautiful chairs carved and created by the carpenter students the center trains. There we talked with the chairman of the center and many kind words were exchanged. He then presented us with gifts of thanks, including bouquets of flowers, fruit (bananas and oranges) and gift plates with various pictures of famous landmarks in Hue on them. We enjoyed the break and then took a tour of the center. We brought the left over fruit to all of the students, who were either learning the trade of carpentry or of sewing.

After our rounds were done, we gathered up our gifts and headed back out into the heat to go back to the hotel for lunch. Waiting there for us was a table spread out with Vietnamese dishes. We ate tofu and shrimp soup, morning glories, rice, and fried pork ribs. Afterwards, we had a little time to digest our food before we got ready to go to our afternoon job of tutoring the children at the Street Children House. At three o’clock we were on our bikes again, headed in the direction of the school. Our task today was challenging, being that three of us were sick and Tess and Chris were in the same tutoring group. Jill was the third member of their tutoring group, and I joined her in case she needed an extra hand with the kids. But as I expected, Jill had it under control the whole time. After an hour and a half of teaching, we pedaled back to the hotel, had a group reflection, and followed by dinner and various wind-down activities before bed.

Still sweating...

2005-05-31T12:21:00.000+07:00

Like all our days in Vietnam, this one began with a breakfast of watermelon, maybe a cold coffee and generally bread with cheese is involved as well. We gathered together with bike keys in hand and headed off into the sea of bicycles and motorbikes, over the bridge which is now a familiar route of our morning travel. Following Nhi on her motorbike has become a game, trying to keep her in sight while trying not to get into any accidents in the meantime. We arrived at our worksite after a little bike crash and losing our guide once, hot and sweaty and ready to work.

Our work today was painting the fence at a Vocational Training Center that is sponsored by the Association for Support of Disabled and Orphaned Children. We learned from the group last year and from Nhi that the center is a place where this demographic of children can learn a trade they can use in life to support themselves. When we first arrived all I could hear was the tapping of what sounded like mallets on wood. Later we saw that the sound was the children at work doing wood carvings for furniture and other various amazing creations. We also learned that many of the residents at the center are from poor families in the rural areas and live at the center while apprenticing.

We were there to paint and so got to work with paintbrushes and smiles. Our task was to paint the railings on one side of the back courtyard of the new building. Since the group was here last year, the the center has been expanded on in a major way with the help from a donor in NYC. As we painted a few of the residents there joined us and we also had an audience from boys peeking out of the workshop. After getting the first coat of paint on, we said our farewells and "see you tomorrows" and mounted our bikes to head out back into the "sea."

After lunch and naptime the group again prepared to go to the Street Children's House where we have been teaching each day. Today the groups were focused on reviewing our previous lessons because of the weekend and also set out to make nametags and try our best with pronunciations, which is beginning to come to us naturally with the children. They say their name once, we repeat and so on until it sounds right to them. For me...this has gone on for almost ten minutes with some children. And wow do they giggle at my voice! What precious little beings these children are. What a privilege it has been to be in their presence each day. Today was no different... a joy!

After teaching we went out for "sweet soup" with our student interpreters. We have done that three times so far and each time it is an experience we do not forget. "Sweet Soup" usually consists of some sort of vegetable or meat concoction we would serve for dinner, put in a glass with sugar and ice. The interpreters taught us that you stir it up from the bottom until is is like a slushie and they spoon it into your mouth. When you finish they usually order another for you until you plead... no more! Hehe!

Free Day!

2005-05-30T13:48:00.000+07:00

Today was a freeday for all of us. It began in the morning with some of our English student friends. They took some of us to a pagoda near the outskirts of Hue. It was amazing. There was a ceremony going on for a student who just recently took his own life due to having an incurable illness. All of our prayers go out to him.

In the courtyard were orchards with trees growing fruits for the monks to eat. The establishment had been around since the 1600's, built by the Chinese. It was wonderful seeing monks doing the same things that they were doing 400 years ago. The architecture was amazing and you felt felt such a sense of peace walking within its walls.

Members of the group went seperate ways throughout the day, getting ready for the week to come.

Thanks for tuning in.

A slightly easier task...

2005-05-27T21:34:00.000+07:00

Today was the day that we were to continue in our ditch digging efforts with our second group of Vietnamese economic students. We were told that this had been changed because of the flexibility of our service projects. We were told that we would be clearing away weeds and repairing the backyard of our beloved school house we have been teaching the children english. This sounded not only as a great relief, but also as a service project that really had a true connection with the group. These children, ranging in various ages, have become our greatest find here in this busy city.
Tucked away behind a busy bicycle filled street, tennis courts and chain link fences is this tiny yellow school house, complete with small playground and play areas. My first day entering such a rabbits hole was nerve racking due to the inexperience I felt with children. All my fears have been cast aside now that I have met and spent many times laughing and both teaching and learning each day.
Working with the economic students here in this Secret Garden of a place was truly a delight. The children were all there , not really sure of what we were doing there so early in the morning. The Hue students and Jsc students stood ina circle exchanging names and undergoing a brief talk about what we were to be doing for the morning hours. Clear away weeds, pricker bushes, and anything in the way of a new socce...er, I mean new football field.
We took amost no time picking up the tools, Hue and JSC students alike and getting too it. The next few hours were filled with chipping away at weeds, carrying baskets of brush to the back of the property, and clearing away broken glass that had hid inthe soil. Dave, the big dog of our group, wasted no time in helping to reerect a fallen chain-link fence. Even going back to re-wire parts that needed to be tied according to the little woman that runs the school. During all of this work the children filtered in and out helping out and picking up tools here and there to show us they can do it too. Everyone became friends that day.
After hard work and bidding farewell to our Economic friends, the Jsc gang returned to the hotel for another delicious lunch and cooled off before our return to the school for english lessons. I must brag a little bit about our group. They have mastered the ABC's and 0-10 eager to learn more. All along they are teaching me different vietnamese terms. I can now count from 1-10. The lessons went well and we will need to brainstorm to keep them learning for the next two weeks here in Hue.
Teaching can be pretty exhausting so we needed to refuel with sugarcane juice with our new friends from the English department. Here we decided that we must all meet up on our free Sunday morning and they can show us the sights. Who better to get a tour from then students? Our experiences here in Vietnam are so much in such a short amount of time that it is hard to sum it all up for this blog, but I hope that I have given this day justice to all you readers.
peace and goodnight,
tara

Mud Bath!

2005-05-26T20:13:00.000+07:00

Today was an intense day...one of our most so far. It began as we sped on our bicycles in the early morning to the irrigation trench where we would be vigorously hulling sewage and vegetation out of its polluted murky waters. We were prepared for labor, anticipating sweat and grime, but few expected the infested waters with such visible wildlife as leeches, (poisonous?) spiders, frogs, crabs, snails, snakes, etc. And we, being the diligent determined hardworking Americans that we are, went in and all out, knee deep in mud, waste deep in water, as if to prove a point to our horrified Vietnamese compadres who looked on while politely picking at the sludge, dressed in their dressy attire. It was an interesting site for sure, as neighbors around the trench stopped and starred, smiling and laughing at our mud soaked clothing and the eccentric nature of in our pursuit. We could only grin and bare. As I take a break by the side of the road two older Vietnamese woman walk past me carrying fresh produce from the market. They smile and stop to talk to me speaking in Vietnamese. I understand nothing of what they are saying and turn to one of the economic students to ask for a translation. “She say you are very beautiful.” In my shock and surprise I laugh out load thinking how funny the comment is as I stand there dripping with sweat and plastered with manure-scented mud. To explain my feelings, I theatrically shake my head while using hand motions toward my now disgusting clothes. They laugh with me before continuing on. During a short break from labor I hack a soccer ball with a cluster of young boys who have gathered to watch the spectacle. The game is fun and they mimic my laugh and shriek when I miss the ball.Afterwards, showers are in order followed by an elaborate spread of squid, avocado shakes, shrimp soup, rice, and melon salad. We eat our fill, before taking a break for a couple hours to roam the streets or nap before making our way back to the school where we teach English to the children. I’ve made nametags which I hand out for my kids. Brilliant children! They have already learned the alphabet (as well as memorized the song), numbers 0-10 and as well as their spelling, and today was only our fourth day teaching! It begins to pour shortly after we arrive, so rather than do our usually class routine outside with chalk and flashcards, we seek refuge inside one of the small crowded classrooms. After we finish, we come back to the hotel for an hour group meeting to discuss current events and touch base with one another before dinner. Our time here has been amazing, more so than can be translated in words.

Brand New Song and Dance

2005-05-25T21:19:00.000+07:00

Today we had the pleasure of meeting with the economic students here at Hue University. Once again we were called upon to perform. It seems as if we are morphing into a song and dance troop of sorts. We did our now famous rendition of "This Land is Your Land", followed by a rousing "Lean on Me." Luckily, Vietnamese people are extremely polite and our efforts were well recieved. The economic students sang us various songs as well. At this point some of the Vietnamese tunes are becoming familiar.We also played games and chatted with the students. There was a question and answer period as well. We fielded questions ranging in subject from why-we were-here to which-country-we-would-live-in-if-we-were-getting-married-to-a-Vietnamese-person. This latter question was no doubt directed at Chris, the sex symbol of the group. At any rate, we will be working with these students in coming days digging an irrigation trench. I look forward to getting to know them better.
This afternoon we taught lesson number three to the street kids. I'm proud to announce that our group has successfully completed the ABCs. I am teaching the youngest group along with Laura. Actually we are sort of the American mascots while our "interpreters" do a lot of the heavy lifting. It is really awesome to see them interact with the kids though. So much more physical affection and closeness is shown than in America.The kids are ridiculously cute and incredibly smart. At that age kids are like little sponges. I really think they are going to download a lot more English than we had imagined in the coming weeks. It is also increasing my pressing need to learn more Vietnamese. I wish I could be in on their cute little banter.

Give the Shout Out, People

2005-05-25T14:34:00.000+07:00

Hey, if you are reading this blog, at least say "hi". We don't want to be writing in a vacuume, and if no one is reading this, we are going to divert some of our water-hydration campaign money into agressive subscription/readership marketing.

Sometimes I Sweat in Vietnam.......

2005-05-24T20:52:00.000+07:00

This morning we met officials from the Friendship Union. For this we sat in a long rectangular room....black and white checkered floor, all charis were lined in a long row, each chair seperated by a stand with 2 water glasses and bottled water, making the meeting feel very official. We answered a series of questions and got some background info. about the Friendship Union. Overall I think we made a good impression, even though we were drenched in sweat and probably smelled.
After this...back to the hotel quickly and off to a local high school. This is the same school Ho Chi Minh studied as well as many other famous leaders. It's 1 of 3 national schools and students must be selected to attend. Upon our arrival we were greated very warmly. Shortly after we assisted students in doing some yard work. This lasted about 15 minutes, porbably because they noticed we were all drenched in sweat. The school was beautiful, hallways were wide open and awarm breeze blew in all directions. The window shutters were very ornate, and the school itself was painted a very cool redish color. After yard work we exchanged songs and dances. The Veitnamese once again delivered a beautiful traditional dance and we performed our token song "This Land is Our Land". Also, I performed a duet with a Vietnamese boy to a Mariah Carey song. Needless to say, I was right on point, just kidding, but he was. We all said our so longs and some exchanged addresses.
Off to teaching english........for this we are partenered with Vietnamese students learning english. I don't think we would be able to teach without them. They all have so much to offer, especially since english is so fresh on their minds. I really enjoy this partnership.......we get to experience Vietnam through the Vietnamese vs. being tourists.....very rich and insighful. The children at the school are a pleasure to teach and they absorb so much. We are moving right along with the alphabet.
I'm getting tired and this is the second time I wrote this blog. The first one was a lot better, but unfortunately the computer shut down in the middle. Hope all is well with everyone!!!

5/23 - Teaching the Alphabet

2005-05-23T14:16:00.000+07:00

As usual, breakfast itself was an event with delicious pastries, fresh fruit,warm bread, and even eggs. Following breakfast, we headed to one of the rooms and discussed the importance of the reflection process during this trip. Our first topic was humility as central to any learning experience, especially one that requires a partnership created in equality. Next, we discussed the benefits of reflecting: awareness of feelings & discusion/consideration of our actions--the combination of which basically keeps us in the moment and so,engaged in the experience. We couldn't have broached this topic without including the active citizen continuum. The consensus was that reflection is how our experiences and feelings will translate into action, here and at home. Our reflections will last a minimum of 1/2 hr, and maximum of 1 hr, and are alternated daily with group building to maintain our cohesive team--and to have fun. We then discussed the day's activities: meeting w/officials of the FriendshipUnion, and teaching English to "street" children (those who cannot afford standard schools and are most often orphans).

Then, more eating! Our elaborate lunch spread: a suqid dish w/pineapples, carrots,and potatos; shrimp soup w/tofu, baby corn, tomtato, and chives, and ourFaVorite--morning glory greens sauteed in garlic. To top this meal off we we were each given mixed fruit shakes and shared a lot of laughter. I have never eaten so well.

After lunch we did some lesson planning for the afternoon and designatedstudent interpreters to each of our sub-groups and prepared our materials--flash cards, crayons, (and Caroline's hit) connect-the-dot ABC practice sheets. Then we raced off into senseless traffic on our bicycles and headed for the Friendship Union. At the Friendship Union we met with delegates of CPI (Duc &Toan) with whom we will work in an outpatient hospital and the home of a CPI beneficiary. Inside the building we sat in two rows of beautifully carved chairs facing one another. We were meeting with Binh Nguyen (the secretarygeneral of the Friendship Union) and Le Van Anh (the president). We introduced ourselves and explained our interest and enthusiasm for working with the Friendship Union and CPI. We also expressed our excitement at being in Viet Nam and getting to know the Vietnamese people. Binh Nguyen and Le Van Anh explained the purpose of the Friendship Union: To build international relationships based in peace and undersatnding of one another's culture; and to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Viet Nam. Both officials spoke with us in English and shared jokes as well. It was and is an honor to work with the Friendship Union. There was even discussion of possibly building a sister-university relationship between JSC and Hue University. It was an honor to meet them and is an honor to work with the Friendship Union.

Following this meeting we rode our bikes to the school for "street"children. It is impossible to accurately describe the beauty of Hue (the intricate architecture, the exotic plants, and the candid people) but it was all there in the children's smiling faces. We all split into our respective groupsof JSC students and Hue University student interpreters and the children assembled and were split into groups according to age/grade level. We proceeded to hesitantly get to know one another playing various games, and then jumped into our first lesson--the alphabet. We were outside and gathered in circles around the school yard, some in front and some on the side. The children were curious and intelligent and we slowly built trust with one another, moving from slow enunciation with flash cards to clapping and singing a portion of the alphabet.

I was with the youngest group of children so we broke the song downslowly while I could hear the other groups trying their own angles on their ownage groups. When we realized that a few of the children were illiterate altogether we invited them to sit down and trace connect-the-dot letters, to then try writing and saying them. When we pulled out the papers and crayons all of the children headed toward them. The children enjoyed writing the letters and then showing us the finished product; we were also very enthused and challenged them to pronounce each one with us. They were so interested and attentive that they learned easily although they were very small. As we prepared to leave the children sang a farewell song thanking us for coming. The Vietnamese are always singing, warmly harmonized, and it was very moving.

We departed on bikes with our interpreters and headed for a park near the river. There we enjoyed freshly pressed sugarcane juice in the shade. We discussed the lessons--what worked well and what didn't. Then, we toasted in English (Cheers!) and Vietnamese (Zo!; pronounced 'yo'). When we returned to the hotel we did a reflection activity to process and discuss our busy day. And yet more eating! Supper at a nearby family restaurant was delicious: Country-style tofu, crispy noodles w/vegeatbles and tofu, spring rolls, and fried squid. Some of us headed for our rooms with full stomachs, finally fatigued by the day's excitement. Other's headed out w/Nhi into the bustling night-life to enjoy singing at a local coffee shop. There they enjoyed a band, various singers, strawberry tea, cold yogurt drinks, and iced fresh fruit juice. It was a very full, and very wonderful, day.

Cultural Exchange

2005-05-23T13:52:00.000+07:00

Our overall welcome from the Vietnamese people has been extremely warm. We receive random hellos and smiles by all we meet or even cross in passing on the street, or by bike and foot. At a cultural exchange with a local school yesterday afternoon, our welcome to this country became quite elaborate and was more than our group expected.

This wonderful opportunity to participate in a cultural exchange, was with students at the English Education Department, formerly a branch of local Hue University and currently an independent school. We were told prior to our getting here that we should prepare a program that would be representative of our “American” culture. For a while we were stumped…but thank goodness for the creative minds of this group that help make things come together. Group participants Caroline Cole, Tara Duffy, and Chris Anderson put together the program that consisted of a description of where we come from, a mock Birthday Party, and a music piece about the different kinds of music in America.

Early Saturday morning two of our participants (Caroline and Tara) were shipped off with Nhi (our interpreter) to meet with the English Education Department representative. They were to go over the program for the cultural exchange. When Caroline and Tara returned, they met with the group and debriefed us about the meeting. The overall gyst was there are potentially five hundred students that were invited to attend the exchange, and they want us to dance, sing, and plan something that would be interactive with the students. In addition to these things the Vietnamese students would be sharing Hue specialties with us and performing traditional songs and dances.

Our group wanted to be as prepared as possible for all of this, so after throwing around a bunch of ideas about how we really could capture “American” culture through song and dance and still remain politically correct to our own likings, came up with something good. Finally we decided that we would sing as a sample from our culture “This Land is My Land”, with some hand choreography. You would think that a group of college students and two staff members would be irritated about singing with hand gestures in front of strangers. Or maybe not even irritated, but they would feel very childish. You would think. The opposite actually happened and the group really loved the singing part of the program.

When we arrived at the school there was no more than fifty students there; much less then anticipated. Slowly the room began to fill and before we began there were at least one hundred and fifty students present. We began to mingle with the students and teachers and fit ourselves into seats scattered around the room amongst the local students.

Once they introduced themselves to us and shared some specialties with us (which consisted of strange puddings, gelatins, and soups with things we could not identify in the US) we were asked to begin our introductions for the group and where we come from. At first some members of our group (the Vermonters) described our country, particularly our state, Vermont. And in order to truly convey Vermont you must talk about the weather! Prior to departure from the states this piece was put together, so we were well prepared with everything a Vermonter might wear on a day that it was 30 below. So we long johns, snow pants, boots, scarf, mittens, ski mask, hat, and of course snow goggles, to Vietnam. We thought it would be interactive enough to ask a Vietnamese student to come up and volunteer so we might dress them in our typical winter attire. This is practically a health hazard considering the current sweltering heat. Nevertheless, we did dress a very shy and unusually tall Vietnamese student, crossing our fingers hoping that she wouldn’t have a heat stroke during the whole process. The students laughed and clapped the whole time we were dressing her. Tess, one of our participants, gave a brief description in the microphone about the piece of clothing that we were putting on her and then would explain why we would wear it in Vermont.

Next on the program was a skit of a typical Birthday Party. We intended the birthday party to display some kind of general American tradition. We prepared by getting a cake a local bakery, bringing candles, birthday hats, balloons, and last but not least "Pin the tail on the donkey"! This piece also was prepared for before departure, so the only thing that we had to get while here in Vietnam was the cake. Turned out that Nhi, a new friend and one of our interpreters, was present in the crowd and we knew it was actually her birthday that day. So, we asked her to be part of our Birthday skit. Only she had no idea that we would be displaying a party “American style” for her Birthday. We sent her out of the room with a participant as we hastily decorated the stage and passed out candy and noise makers to the students and explained to them when she comes back in the room that we would all scream "Happy Birthday" and then we would display to them what we do at a traditional birthday party in the US.

When Nhi returned to the room blindfolded, we all yelled "Happy Birthday!" Our group began singing Happy Birthday and guided her in how to blow out the candles on the cake. Next, we made a toast to the birthday girl, and then played pin the tail on the donkey. The students cheered and laughed at all of us.

The students then showed us what a traditional Vietnamese Wedding looks like, with its’ extravagant costumes and ceremonial nature. It was extremely beautiful and from an audience perspective you could tell the students were shy and bashful to act out such an intimate ceremony. There was much blushing and giggling as they performed this piece. We encouraged them with clapping and big smiles.

Shortly after the wedding, a group of young student girls performed a traditional conical hat dance to traditional music. They were dressed in pure white traditional dresses while holding weaved conical hats and moving their hats in slow sweet motions to the music playing. We were amazed at the gracefulness and beauty of the young girls. And I think it is safe to say that most of us were beginning to feel nervous about our “This Land is my Land, This Land is Your Land” piece.

Our last offering at the cultural exchange was our music piece. Caroline had made an American mix on CD’s prior to coming so it seemed proper that we should explain the different music genres in America (especially the ones on the mix CD) and dance to them as most Americans would using the mix CD music. This was hilarious. We covered everything from Steppenwolf to Jackson Five. And our silly dancing received much laughter from the audience. A funny moment I particularly remember was a few times during the dance sequences I would turn around and look out and see that in the middle of the floor-- 5-10 feet away from the other group members-- was Jill (who is 31) dancing crazy while the Vietnamese students just stared and laughed. It was priceless.

Right after that we moved into our song, “This Land is my Land…” Interestingly enough this was the piece that group knew the best and seemed to entertain the students the most. While was sang three verses of the song and did choreographed hand gestures to them, the students listened intently, which reinforced the emphasis on our silly hand motions and the volume of our voices.

One of our few male participants, Chris, then announced that he would be singing a traditional song not from our country, but from their country. The students shrieked in excitement (it is extremely polite and cute to the Vietnamese when you attempt to speak their language). Chris went to it…we were so proud of him. He sang a duet with Nhi in Vietnamese and the students had expressions of flattery all over their faces.

We ended the exchange with a Vietnamese folk dance. They demonstrated it for us and we watched a few times before being asked to join right in. By the end of the afternoon we were all dripping in sweat, American and Vietnamese! And we all had smiles from ear to ear. We were grateful to interact with the local students and share parts of our culture with one another. It is always beneficial for our group to be working with the very people we are trying to serve, regardless of the circumstances. This Break Away trip is about serving these people in whatever way we can, and this week it began with trying understand one another through culture, so that we might have a firm grasp on who the people are wom we desire to serve so much.

5/21 Entry: Meeting Vietnamese Interpreters by Dave Whitaker

2005-05-22T13:55:00.000+07:00

Today was our first full day in Vietnam. We roused surprisingly early from our slumbers with but minimal trauma from the rigors of our journey. As the light of morning glinted off the polished stone tile of the Hung Vuong Inn, a gentle harbinger of the searing heat to ensue, we savored our first meal in over 36 hours outside of “coach class”.

A walking tour of town soon followed and we were oriented with the traffic….patterns?…internet cafes and ATMs as the temperature incrementally rose. On the last stop of our stroll we straddled bicycles that will be our main mode of transportation during our stay and eased, uneasily into the rushing currents of Hue’s traffic. We pedaled through town deftly evading buses, motorbikes, and attrition…this is not the group member who has showered the least since our departure…. they too however, were avoided in a most tactful manner…and I thank them for it…ah…attrition due to heatstroke.

It served us well to learn early the lesson of adequate hydration. Meanwhile, recuperating back at the hotel we struggled with the pronunciations of the names the ten English language university students that we will be teamed with during our stay. We will be meeting on the roof at 2:00 pm. Nhi had gone over our lists with us, patiently creating the sounds we strove to replicate. It is, I suppose, good practice for us as teachers of sounds to first, be learners.

The energy and excitement of our first encounter was channeled into “ice-breaking” games. A sheet was held up between the two crouching groups with one person from each group directly in front of it. When the sheet was dropped the first of the two facing each other to say the others name claimed that person to their camp. During introductions when this game was explained it was evident that they had lists of our names as well and everyone frantically crammed to match the faces with the names on the pages. The volume of facial expressions and laughter that this game produced was priceless.

We talked for a while after the games and their enthusiasm was infectious. Their role in the work that we will do with the school children increases our effectiveness exponentially. In Vietnam it is common to refer to others in terms of family, as in “Uncle Ho” for Ho Chi Minh and these students easily deserving the mantle of older sisters and big brother of the children we will be working with. I am honored to be able to offer them assistance.

The Travel To (May 18-20) .. Part II

2005-05-21T21:07:00.000+07:00

The tricks continued. The shades were down the whole time, and we were lulled into various states of altered consciousness by watching movie after movie such as “In Good Company”, “Phantom of the Opera”, “Something About Winn Dixie”, and “Electra”. All movies that the entire group had managed to miss while in the theaters. The feeding continued, and so did our eating. Some sleep happened too. No talking. This was a 12 hour flight, and sometimes silence is the relief to pain.

The turnover in Taiwan was quick, and a bit of excitement, as it was the first time that we could look out the windows and see a world that looked fairly different from ours. We boarded for Hanoi, which was another 3 hours, and then landed after eating all garlic and anything else we feared was too organic for customs. This included Jolly Ranchers, Air Heads, Nerds, and granola bars. Thanks to all that, we again passed through customs easily and snagged our bags to meet Nhi, our Vietnamese friend, translator, and guide for the final flight into Hue.

Finally, though, a snag! Nhi was nowhere to be found! The cool headed leaders did not panic, they just walked around in a dazed state and acted like a plan was in motion. 45 minutes later, Nhi showed up, having been delayed by weather. The happy reunion (and introductions) turned into somber silence, as we realized our next flight was still about 5 or 6 hours away. We pushed the envelope (only to find out there was no laying down in this airport) and so the envelope pushed us. We marched on in silence: walking, smoking, sleeping, reading—no talking.

I, myself, lost a little bit of the edge here, and don’t remember how the time all passed. Rumor is, there are pictures of me sleeping with mouth wide open, like an old lady. On the plane to Hue, we had finally learned to reject the offered sandwiches, and most of us drifted in and out of sleep in the frigid, artificial air.

If this all sounds like misery, it wasn’t. The group pulled through amazingly well, with nary a complaint. When we arrived in Hue last night, at 7 pm Vietnam Time (VT), personalities had gone flat, but not turned ugly. It was a sweet sight to pull up and see the hotel staff, now friends from last year. The kids had grown, the hotel had been painted, but the sweet welcome was the same. We checked in quickly, and then somehow pulled off a quick meal and a quick trip to show people how to use the Internet, before they all started dropping off.

It is good to be back, despite what can seem like the modern day rigors of travel. We’ve assigned out blog entries for all of the group, so every day will be covered and hopefully, in not such prolific mundane quality. Please, friends and family, feel free to send in your comments and questions, and help us to share our experiences “real time”. Tune in for tomorrow’s report, from Dave Whitaker.

The Travel To... Part I

2005-05-21T21:04:00.000+07:00

Well, here is the story of our journey from the beginning. I promise to try and make it entertaining… as entertaining as 38 hours of travel can be. The bulk of the group left from a Johnson State College parking lot on Wednesday, May 18th, at 3 pm. This was the place to be: a swanky school van, beautiful early summer weather, and a send off like unto those days of glory when competing for the high school wrestling championship. Staff and administration from the College sent us off with waves, shouts, and signs like “You rock!” and “Thank you!” and “Try to come back!”

The trip to the airport was pleasantly uneventful, thanks to the capable driving hands of our Director, Ellen Hill. We made it on time and met up with the remaining members of the group, sans one. Check in and boarding was uneventful (this was due perhaps to impressing our fellow flyers-in-wait by peeling and eating whole cloves of garlic. This is an unwritten part of our group health regimen, to keep away mosquitoes, but like any good idea, has served us beyond the original intent).

The first leg, to Newark, was quick and pleasant. Small plane, 45 minutes. Upon arrival, we hastened to eat some fine fast food, American style, at the airport “for the last time”. This notion got stretched throughout the next 23 hours, as we were served eggs, chicken, fish, mashed potatoes, noodle soup, chocolate muffins, rolls, or fruit every couple of hours and couldn’t manage to say “no” on account of the “last meal” mentality. Needless to say, we didn’t dip into our independent treat bag. Oh wait, we did. We simply ate a lot on the way over.

I digress. In Newark we dined and then used various means to kill the 5 additional hours in the airport. We also met up with the final participant, Chris Anderson. After reassuring his mom, sister, and girlfriend that he was safe with us and indeed, would have air conditioning in Vietnam, we were able to pry him away for check in. The rest of the group followed, and soon enough (12:30 am), we found ourselves in for the first long stretch to Seattle.
In Seattle, the bleary-eyed travelers wandered off the plane in different states of discomfort. You see, the airlines had begun the trickery of trying to change your body’s time zones by light depravation and force feeding. So, in pitch dark for the first couple of hours, we were startled awake by being roused for “dinner” at 3 in the morning. As explained above, we ate. So eating, plus immobility, plus sleep depravation hurt us as people. We used our short (1 hour) layover in Seattle to recover by walking around, doing yoga, and playing reflex based card games. Then, on to Taipei!

safe arrival!

2005-05-21T13:32:00.000+07:00

I lay in bed this morning at 6 am (that's 5 pm to you ESTer's) and calculated our travel time. We spent 23.5 hours in the air, 38 travel hours total... that's 14.5 hours in airports. We went from Burlington, to Newark, to Seattle, to Taipei, to Hanoi, to Hue. The group is full of absolute troopers, so no complaints. And after a fairly early bed time last night, adrenaline kicked in a drove the group to early rising and walking tours of the already bustling city. We assigned out the daily blog efforts, which will start today, so soon all the readers will be able to see in detail what the days contain. But, for now, we made it here safely and all are happy and well!

Group Members: Tess Gauthier

2005-05-18T17:55:00.000+07:00

My name is Tess Gauthier, and I am 20 years old. This is my first year at Johnson State College. I've been involevd with service for the last couple of years. Last year, I worked for AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC). I was on a team with 9 others, and we traveled through the country doing various service projects. I'm looking forward to Vietnam and being a part of the Vietnamese culture.

Group Members: Celine Riendeau

2005-05-18T17:53:00.000+07:00

My name is Celine Riendeau. I'm a 20 year old from Orleans, Vermont, and a sophomore at JSC. I participated on a Break Away trip to teh Creative Community for Non-Violence (CCNV) my freshman year, which led me to working for a year with NCCC (National Civilian Community Corps) last year. I currently work at Clarina Howard Nichols Center, a shelter for women and their children fleeing domestic and/or sexual abuse.

Group Members: Trista Reigert

2005-05-18T17:50:00.000+07:00

Well, my name is Trista Reigert and I've been a Vermont rooted flower child all my life. Born in the town of Essex, where I lived until I was seven, when I moved with my mother to the small country town of South Strafford in Southern Vermont. Strafford has such a small population that there were only 18 kids in my class when I graduated 8th grade. Since the town was far too remote to have a high school of it's own, I attended high school in Hanover, NH, where I participated in a variety of activities from ice hockey to Amnesty International. Currently, I am an undecided freshman at Johnson State College; one of those kids who listens to indi-rock and buys organic. My personal ambitions vary vastly from music to creative literature, but as for a career path, I feel inclined to puruse psychology and political science.

Group Members: Angela Twerdok

2005-05-18T17:47:00.000+07:00

I am a native of Pennslyvania and now in my fourth year studying at JSC. I am studying anthropology and sociology, as well as pursuing certification in Nonprofit Managment. I have contributed on the statewide and national level at conferences in various roles, furthering the concept of active citizenship. I also hope to enter the world of nonprofits and NGO's upon graduation. This is my second time to Vietnam and I am very interested and excited about furthering relations that were established with the Vietnamese, as well as Clear Path International from last summer.

Group Members: Galen Dickstein

2005-05-18T17:45:00.000+07:00

I have been a students at JSC for over two years now. I have been student teaching this semester and hope to graduate in December 2005 with my degree in Elementary Education. I have been highly involved in the SERVE Office since setting my food on campus, and I am really excited to have the chance to travel to Vietnam with a wonderful group from Vermont. I love to travel and see new places, as well as learn about cultures that are different from my own. I am thrilled to be part of this group and have the opportunity to learn more about landmine issues in Southeast Asia. I hope to take what I learn from my experience and be an ambassador for this issue, which affects so many lives. I think that one's voice can be their most important weapon if it is used in the right way.

Group Members: Laura Meyerson

2005-05-18T17:42:00.000+07:00

My name is Laura Meyerson. I am 23 years old and from Burlington, Vermont. I just graduated from JSC as a psychology major. I feel honored to be participating inthe Break Away trip to Vietnam, and for the opportunity to work with Clear Path International. Most especially, I look forward to meeting and learning from the people of Vietnam.

Group Members: Chris Anderson

2005-05-18T17:37:00.000+07:00

I am a sophomore at JSC. I am a guitarist, a singer, and also very interested in the healing aspects of music. I am an Alternative Medicine major, with a focus in preclinical: Naturopathy. I am entering the program at Johnson State for the Nonprofit Management Certification. I transferred to JSC from East Stroudsburg University of Pennslyvania in hopes of seeking new horizons in my life.

I was born on Nov. 29, 1984 in Stroudsburg, Pennslyvania, where I lived my first 19 years. In the last couple of years I have been becoming moer and more in tune with my surroundings and the people therein. Along with this deeper connection, I have come to feel more and more the pains of others. I have deep concern for the welfare of all of the world's citizens, especially those bombarded by the unforseen and uncontrolled. I got to Vietnam in hopes to better understand these problems and to aid those effected by them, and in hopes that my actions can lead others to the same path. Someone once told me that nothing changes if nothing changes. Simple, yet true. For this change, everyone needs to rise up, grab hands, and leade each other towards a brighter day.

Getting Ready

2005-05-11T05:00:00.000+07:00

Well, today we are about a week away from the big adventure. I figured it is about time that we get the blog up and running so that we can start keeping people posted on all the adventure.