This space will be used to document and record my adventures in Vietnam and throughout South East Asia over the course of the next year.

Sunday, November 21, 2004

Teacher's Day

In Vietnam, they don't have mother's day or father's day but they do have Teacher's Day. Teacher's Day is when students pay respect and give thanks to those that have educated them and given them knowledge. Students visit all their favorite teacher's from previous years and thank them too. It's a really big deal and, I think, a nice tradition.

This years Teacher's Day was celebrated on November 20th, a saturday.
Because it fell on a weekend, we celebrated it on friday. I was showered with gifts including a beautiful silk bag with a lotus flower on it, roses and hair products. The students organized a feast of food and held a small ceremony where they nominated one student to give a speech who thanked us for being such wonderful educaters. They then sang a song for us and required that we returned the favor. It was very touching and made us all feel very special and worhtwhile as teachers.

Friday, November 19, 2004

Restaurant row

Last night after surveying our brand new furniture in our beautiful, brand new house, we ventured over to an alley way that we were told had "a nice restaurant." As we turned the corner, we were greeted by a street unlike any I have seen in Vietnam thus far. It was packed with energetic restaurants teeming over with customers. The alleyway was clean and organized and abundant with lively people eating their feasts. Restaurant upon restaurant line the alleyway with fresh shrimp, shellfish, lobster and more on display.

We finally chose our destination and settled in for a meal of squid and shrimp, clams and fresh salad rolls. Mike had to translate the menu for us, cos in that part of the city, there are no English menus... The food was spectacular, the atmosphere was enchanting and I felt so elated thinking that as of Saturday this will be MY neighborhood in Saigon.



Wednesday, November 17, 2004

Motorbike maintenance

I was running late for school today and didn't have time to fully prepare myself before I left home. My trusty Xe Om driver pulled up to pick me up as I departed my alleyway, and wordlessly we zoomed off to American Pacific University. On the way to school I re-arranged my bag, untangled my headphones, chose songs from my iPod, ate breakfast and applied a few finishing touches to my make up. All this in the space of a twenty minute motorbike ride in the middle of insane early morning Saigon traffic! When I think that less than two months ago I was absolutely terrified by the idea of crossing a road and now I'm that girl thoughtlessly getting ready for work on the back of a bike, I'm astounded... How easily we do adjust!!

Tuesday, November 16, 2004

Big pimpin' in Saigon

Carrie and I are moving into a house in Saigon. It's one of those situations where you can't quite place yourself. Am I really signing a 6 month contract for a house in Vietnam? Does that mean I acutally live here? Is my new house really a 4 story, brand new house with marble floors, a spiral staircase and not one, but two terra cotta tiled roof terraces? Am I really only going to be paying $250 for all this splendor?

Hell yeah, is what I have to say. Carrie and I are now living large for $500/month for the two of us!

Specs of our house:

A brand new 4 story house with marble floors
2 bedrooms
1 study
3 bathrooms
1 living room
1 dining room
1 closet room (this is the only way I can think of describing it)
2 terra cotta tiled roof terraces, each with a separate view of the city!

So yeah, life is good. I'm moving into a house nicer than I'd ever dreamed of! Big pimpin' in Saigon...

Monday, November 15, 2004

Dear Alison...

Last night, while grading my advanced students' midterms, I realized to my horror that two of them had indeed failed and the other two had not done particularly well. I addressed this issue with my course director who suggested that I have them write a letter explaining what they thought was difficult, how they went about studying and what I could have done to help them prepare me for future exams.

In descending order of grades, here is what Oanh, Ai, Trung and An had to say.

Saturday, November 13, 2004

Student blogs...

Another sweaty teaching week bites the dust. I'm growing accustomed to the freakishly early mornings, the incessant questions and the fear of not being able to answer them. I've faced more challenges this week than I could ever have imagined. I've taught Compare/Contrast essay writing, Subordinator and Coordinator sentence connectors, the inner workings of the American Justice system. I've assigned homework, drawn up midterms, graded students on their speaking abilities... Last night at a bar I told my TEFL trainer that he hadn't prepared me at all for what I'm now encountering in the classroom. I was half serious, half not. Later in the evening I introduced him to my boss and he told her what I'd said. How embarassing for your boss to be told you have no idea what you're doing. But I'm enjoying teaching. My students are adorable.

Like the progressive, modern teacher I am, I now have my advanced students blogging. Click on their names to see what An, Ai, Trung and Oanh have to say.

Monday, November 08, 2004

Dave's take on the ladies of Vietnam...

An Open Letter to Western Men

Dear Male Traveler,

Please heed my advice- DO NOT date the Vietnamese women. Unless you
plan on taking one as a bride, do the women a favor and leave them
alone. It will not turn out good.

Yes, they are very beautiful. Yes, they are extraordinarily sweet and
innocent. Yes, they will wait on you hand and foot. And yes, they are
sassy with Western men. DO NOT be fooled. These are not girls
interested in a good time or a hot night. In fact, these ideas are as
appalling to them as a nude beach or an all-night drinking binge.

These are women who desire a husband, for richer or poorer, that they
can follow to the end of the earth, cooking and cleaning and baring
children. Not to say that is all they are capable of, but this is what
their culture instructs them to be. And this is a culture they are not
going to escape for a long time.

Opposite sex relations is very traditional in Vietnamese culture. Men
and women remain largely separated from each other and are often seen
holding hands and affectionately petting members of the same sex only.
Courtship is quick and marriage the sole point of dating. What we
would consider a “crush” is overwhelming love in their eyes. And, as a
result of repressed sexuality, their fantasy life leaks into their real
life and they often cannot tell which is which. So, while you may be
enjoying the attentions of a delicate flower, they are most likely
dreadfully and fatally caught up in a in Prince Charming fantasy in
which you will whisk them away from their small village like some
Cinderella story and take them to the magical Kingdom of the West.
Their hopes for their future are placed solely on a dream, but it is
no dream for them. And when you inevitably leave , as you always do,
you leave behind a flower so crushed that it could severely damage her
daily life. Plagued by images of you courting more beautiful
Vietnamese women, she will not be able to concentrate on work and
will be severely reprimanded by her ogre boss. Or, caught up in
daydreams about the time you where there, she will cheerlessly traverse
down the same roads you walked down together , (although in reality
you never walked down them together because that would be wrong. You
actually had to trail 10 feet behind her to make it proper) she will
absent mindedly walk these avenues putting herself in harms way as the
motorbike traffic dodges the cheerless dreamer.

Have you ever been to a wildlife preserve and a conservationist
sternly warns you not to feed the wild animals? He is not saying this
because he is a mean, green tree hugger. It is because your food is
foreign to the animals’ stomachs and can give them digestive problems.
You have bacteria on your hands that they have no natural immunity to
and it can be fatal to them. Or, even worse, you may make them bold
and brash around humans so that they venture further and further into
people’s territory, eventually leading to their destruction when they
are deemed ‘dangerously inappropriate.’ Well, think of Vietnam in much
the same manner. From dating the women to over-paying beggar children-
you can’t imagine the repercussions. But they are there, they are
very real, and they will be repercussing long after you haul your
sorry ass out of town.

Although you may be reading this, you may already be thinking how it
won’t happen to you, how you can avoid these same issues. Well, you
can’t. At best, in the end, you might leave town with a dreamy heart
and fond memories. But you will inexorably leave behind a girl who
will wait until the end of time for your return, or a heart so broken
that it would be like crushing a newly blossomed flower. And if you
think maybe you will at least hook-up for a night - forget about it.
Not gonna happen. You can’t even walk down the street next to your
partner at risk of them being labeled a whore for as long as they live
in that town, which will be forever since they are too poor to ever
leave .

So, unless you plan on taking her to the alter, don’t take her to
dinner.

And if this is still not enough to convince you to look but not to
touch, picture your worst, most heart-wrenching breakup ever.

Remember that psycho ex-girlfriend who somehow became your girlfriend
without you knowing when or how? And when you try to kick her to the
curb her pained look haunts you in your sleep. She will find you and
recount your broken promises one by one. And while you don’t remember
actually making these promises, she will almost convince you that you
did actually say it, twisting your every word into a slipknot. And as
you try to talk yourself out of it the noose only gets tighter and
tighter.

Look, I am not innocent here. Obviously I am talking from experience.

But I am regretful. So, heed me now- although the fruits of
temptation may lay low in Hoi An, the lotus blossom floats delicately
down the Mekong, the apples of desire lie deliciously all around Ho Chi
Minh the taste is not as sweet as imagined and it will linger for a
long long time in the mouths of all parties involved.

Sincerely,
A Regretful Traveler

Sunday, November 07, 2004

Birthday on the beach

I just returned from a wonderful birthday weekend in Mui Ne, a beach town a few hours away from Saigon. 6 of us ventured up there on Friday night and spent our days basking in the sun, rocking in the waves and receiving manicures, pedicures and massages on the beach. Last night we drank cocktails by the ocean and then ate a delicious three course dinner with multiple bottles of wine for a grand total of $30 for all of us. Amazing. We continued the party at a local bar and ended the night swimming in the water with the reflection of the moon in the waves. It was a beautiful weekend with good friends, food and weather.

Agent orange fundraiser

FUNDRAISER FILM EVENT TO BENEFIT THE VIETNAM ASSOCIATION FOR VICTIMS OF AGENT ORANGE

*WHEN: *Tuesday, November 9, 2004, 6:00-9:45 P.M.

*WHERE: *The ImaginAsian Theater in New York City on 59th Street(between 2nd & 3rd Avenues)

*WHAT: *Two Films, Guest Speakers & Performance:

· 6:00-7:00 PM the NY premiere of Battles Poison Cloud by Cecile Trijssenaar (England) A documentary film examining the long-term health and environmental damage of the use of Agent Orange in Viet Nam.

· 8:00-9:00 PM A Story from the Corner of a Park by Tran Van Thuy (Vietnam) A documentary film that portrays a day in the life of a Vietnamese veteran who was exposed to Agent Orange during the war years.

· Special guest performance by influential singer & songwriter

· Between and following the film showings, the filmmakers and special-guest speakers will lead discussions regarding the issue of Agent Orange, the current lawsuit against U.S. chemical companies, and Agent Orange's effects on Vietnam, the country and its people.

*WHY: Raise Awareness and Funds for the VAVA?

· A not-for-profit, non-governmental Vietnamese organization devoted to raising funds to assist Vietnamese victims of ! Agent Orange (AO). Over one million Vietnamese people (including children) are believed to be affected by Agent Orange (the defoliant sprayed over Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia from 1961-71 during the Vietnam War).

· VAVA has also brought a lawsuit against manufacturers of Agent
Orange in U.S. federal court in New York (*_none_* of the proceeds from
this event will be applied towards attorneys? fees or costs.*)*

*DONATIONS*: $30.00 for one film + one item made by disabled Vietnamese children **

$45.00 for both films + one item made by disabled Vietnamese children

20% discount for students **

**To purchase tickets, visit www.ffrd.org .

355 West 39th St. New York, NY 10018. Tel: 212-760-9903 Fax: 212-760-9906

Volunteers are welcome, call Trinh at 718-496-9137 or email her at tbk@nyc.rr.com

Thursday, November 04, 2004

President Bush

Just a quick rant on politics and then we're back to 'Nam issues... Ha, I almost sound like Kerry throughout his campaign. To me, yesterday's decision seems like a foreboding cloud descending upon the U.S's future. I can't even imagine the havoc that the Bush administration is going to wreak domestically and abroad. Even though they stole the last election, they still went ahead and did what they please. Now that they have been legally voted in, it blows my mind what they may be capable of. I guess it just proves that the U.S really is a conservative country with right-wing values and beliefs. For an interesting and less dramatic analysis in the New York Times, click here.

Tuesday, November 02, 2004

Alive and kicking

I'm elated to report that my students did not throw rotten food at me or boo me out of this hemisphere. I survived the first day of teaching intact. Whew. They did, however, challenge me on my 3 paragraph homework assignment, as they had previously been told that an essay should be a minimum of 5 paragraphs, no less. They then corrected my mispelling of succeed and this left me horrified and humiliated but I perservered through and managed to make it back for a second day. Oh, here's a picture of the entrance to my school. And here's the website.