Ok, it took a few days (and a couple of hours at work this morning), but here is a link to some pictures from my families visit. You may notice that it is in an album with pictures from last Christmas too. I love the contrast from one year to the next. Last December I spent most of Christmas break stuck in my house in Portland because of the giant snowstorm. I read 3 of the 4 Twilight books. I bundled up to trek to Safeway. This Christmas I was on a whirlwind tour of Viet Nam. I spent days lying on a beach. For Christmas Eve I was in the busiest city I've ever seen. Life changes so quickly, doesn't it?!
The Temple's In Vietnam
PS I hope this link works...if it doesn't, just check my facebook :)
It's the best and worst idea I've had
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Back to "Normal" Life
My family has come and gone. Why do good things have to go by so quickly?! It was wonderful. I loved every moment of it: showing them Hanoi, eating dinner with my host family (and all the relatives they invited!), spending days on the beach in Nha Trang, renting motos and driving all over, eating at Pizza Hut in HCM City (twice! Including Christmas Eve, so good), seeing more people than I ever knew possible in one place for a holiday that supposedly isn't celebrated in this country, making Robby take ten million pictures with us and just being with them. Because my Dad is the great man he is, he managed to bring a small fake Christmas tree, our family Christmas stockings and speakers to play Christmas music from just so we could have a Christmas morning that was a teeny bit like if we were home. He was very proud of himself for the idea, and I loved it. The stockings were even filled with the same things as if we were at home, fruit, a toothbrush, chapstick, and new underwear (Santa has always been very practical when filling our stockings!). I can't imagine spending Christmas any other way.
Now I'm back---to Hanoi, to work, to normal life routine. I've decided to cope with having to say goodbye to them by eating the dark chocolate MM's that my mom left behind for breakfast. So far, it's pretty successful :) Although I think it will take a few days for me to accept life being back to normal again. Normal, what even is that?! Does anyone really ever know?!
I'm sure I could tell you lots more about the last 10 days but I think pictures will explain it better. So, if you don't mind waiting a day or two, you will soon get a glimpse of what a Temple family Vietnamese Christmas is really like :)
Now I'm back---to Hanoi, to work, to normal life routine. I've decided to cope with having to say goodbye to them by eating the dark chocolate MM's that my mom left behind for breakfast. So far, it's pretty successful :) Although I think it will take a few days for me to accept life being back to normal again. Normal, what even is that?! Does anyone really ever know?!
I'm sure I could tell you lots more about the last 10 days but I think pictures will explain it better. So, if you don't mind waiting a day or two, you will soon get a glimpse of what a Temple family Vietnamese Christmas is really like :)
Thursday, December 17, 2009
The Whirlwind Begins
Today!! Today!! Today!! Today!!
My family arrived in Việt Nam last night and will be coming to Hanoi in only 4 hours!!!!!!!!!! Yay! Yay! Yay!
If you can't tell, I'm a wee bit excited :)
I get to spend the weekend showing them around my city, then together we're off on a family vacation, hitting Nha Trang, a southern beach, and Hố Chí Minh City. Christmas is already going to be a drastically different experience, why not head south where it is warm and relaxing?! It's what one may call a whirlwind tour of Việt Nam. Eck, I cannot wait!
I don't come back to Hanoi until the 27th. Nine whole days of family bliss :)
I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday. Wherever you are in the world, I hope you have time to enjoy your family and friends and to find the peace and hope that exists even in the midst of a sometimes hectic, consumer driven, holiday season.
One last thing, what is Christmas without this special treat?! Merry Christmas dear friends. This is my gift to you:
My family arrived in Việt Nam last night and will be coming to Hanoi in only 4 hours!!!!!!!!!! Yay! Yay! Yay!
If you can't tell, I'm a wee bit excited :)
I get to spend the weekend showing them around my city, then together we're off on a family vacation, hitting Nha Trang, a southern beach, and Hố Chí Minh City. Christmas is already going to be a drastically different experience, why not head south where it is warm and relaxing?! It's what one may call a whirlwind tour of Việt Nam. Eck, I cannot wait!
I don't come back to Hanoi until the 27th. Nine whole days of family bliss :)
I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday. Wherever you are in the world, I hope you have time to enjoy your family and friends and to find the peace and hope that exists even in the midst of a sometimes hectic, consumer driven, holiday season.
One last thing, what is Christmas without this special treat?! Merry Christmas dear friends. This is my gift to you:
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Foreigners: A safety hazard!
This morning something reminded me of a funny event that happened the other day. And while I may have a lot to do here at work, the fact that my family comes in just 2 days (2 days! 2 days! 2 days!) seems to leave me quite incapable of sitting still or doing anything too incredibly productive. So why not update you with yet another blog post this week?
I think it was Monday, and I was riding my bike home from work. I am now used to this mode of transportation and used to the looks it provokes from people--a white girl on a bicycle is not something you see everyday here. My route between MCC and home is short and usually pretty uneventful. But for some reason, on this particular day, I noticed this man and his double-take. It was an extreme double take. He passed on his moto, then fully turned his head and stared. Stared to the point that I was beginning to be concerned for his safety because he was not watching the road. But he survived and continued on, in one piece and probably only a bit confused by my presence. I laughed to myself and went on my merry way.
Then, just a few blocks later, what do I see but a foreigner walking down the sidewalk. Foreigner? Walking? In my neighborhood? Now it was my turn to do a double take. I was baffled. Where did this man come from? Why is he here? Is he lost? I only observed him for a moment before remembering that I was on my bike and I should be concerned for my own road safety. I continued on home, a little ashamed of my own lack of tack and that I contributed to the stares this foreigner received that afternoon. I guess I am not immune to unabashed staring when I am surprised by things.
Fast forward to this morning, and again, on my way to work, there was another foreigner. A different one, but still, someone walking. And I realized why it is so strange to me, I don't think I have ever seen another foreigner in my neighborhood. In my small, new residential development full of Vietnamese families and a few small office buildings, I make no sense, just like these strange men. No wonder people stare at me!
I don't know if this foreigner spotting pattern will continue. But in case it does, I need to practice not staring. If not for them and their comfort then for my own safety. Goodness, I never even thought of myself as a safety hazard, but I guess I kind of am!
I think it was Monday, and I was riding my bike home from work. I am now used to this mode of transportation and used to the looks it provokes from people--a white girl on a bicycle is not something you see everyday here. My route between MCC and home is short and usually pretty uneventful. But for some reason, on this particular day, I noticed this man and his double-take. It was an extreme double take. He passed on his moto, then fully turned his head and stared. Stared to the point that I was beginning to be concerned for his safety because he was not watching the road. But he survived and continued on, in one piece and probably only a bit confused by my presence. I laughed to myself and went on my merry way.
Then, just a few blocks later, what do I see but a foreigner walking down the sidewalk. Foreigner? Walking? In my neighborhood? Now it was my turn to do a double take. I was baffled. Where did this man come from? Why is he here? Is he lost? I only observed him for a moment before remembering that I was on my bike and I should be concerned for my own road safety. I continued on home, a little ashamed of my own lack of tack and that I contributed to the stares this foreigner received that afternoon. I guess I am not immune to unabashed staring when I am surprised by things.
Fast forward to this morning, and again, on my way to work, there was another foreigner. A different one, but still, someone walking. And I realized why it is so strange to me, I don't think I have ever seen another foreigner in my neighborhood. In my small, new residential development full of Vietnamese families and a few small office buildings, I make no sense, just like these strange men. No wonder people stare at me!
I don't know if this foreigner spotting pattern will continue. But in case it does, I need to practice not staring. If not for them and their comfort then for my own safety. Goodness, I never even thought of myself as a safety hazard, but I guess I kind of am!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Power Outage
I have a new favorite thing: the power going out.
Its not for the whole city, only on the street with my office (sidenote-that street used to be my least fav in all of Hanoi, it was SO bumpy and muddy and HORRIBLE for bike riding or walking or anything. BUT! Recently it was PAVED. Now when I get to that street in the mornings it is such a joy!). This seems to happen fairly frequently here. It isn't the government regulating electricity use like in so many other countries, or even a lack of power resources, so I haven't quite figured out what it is. It might be constuction related. But somehow the Chi Oanh, administrative woman at the office, can call someone and find out exactly how long it will be off. It's strange. It also is one of those things that reminds me that I'm not in the US. Sometimes that is easy to forget.
But it made today so much more interesting! Instead of working in the office I got to come to a cafe. I was working on a report that had to be finished as soon as possible, so I was encouraged to leave and work somewhere else. The power came back at noon, but I decided I might as well stay out the entire day. I got to go downtown and eat lunch with Calah and Hannah, and then just chill here, with my iced coffee, music and free wireless. And of course my MCC project report. What a lovely afternoon!
I realize that if this happened all the time it would definitely make life more difficult and I do not envy those who deal with this issue on a regular basis. Structurally it probably isn't a very good thing for a society.. But selfishly, I appreciate a little excitment in life every once in a while :)
Its not for the whole city, only on the street with my office (sidenote-that street used to be my least fav in all of Hanoi, it was SO bumpy and muddy and HORRIBLE for bike riding or walking or anything. BUT! Recently it was PAVED. Now when I get to that street in the mornings it is such a joy!). This seems to happen fairly frequently here. It isn't the government regulating electricity use like in so many other countries, or even a lack of power resources, so I haven't quite figured out what it is. It might be constuction related. But somehow the Chi Oanh, administrative woman at the office, can call someone and find out exactly how long it will be off. It's strange. It also is one of those things that reminds me that I'm not in the US. Sometimes that is easy to forget.
But it made today so much more interesting! Instead of working in the office I got to come to a cafe. I was working on a report that had to be finished as soon as possible, so I was encouraged to leave and work somewhere else. The power came back at noon, but I decided I might as well stay out the entire day. I got to go downtown and eat lunch with Calah and Hannah, and then just chill here, with my iced coffee, music and free wireless. And of course my MCC project report. What a lovely afternoon!
I realize that if this happened all the time it would definitely make life more difficult and I do not envy those who deal with this issue on a regular basis. Structurally it probably isn't a very good thing for a society.. But selfishly, I appreciate a little excitment in life every once in a while :)
Sunday, December 13, 2009
School of Peace
There is nothing much to report from my weekend, it was really low key. Which was nice. Last week I think I saw my host family for a total of something like 2 hours, so it was a good thing that I spent time with them this weekend. I also read the book Blink. It was really interesting, a pretty quick read with lots of fun facts and studies. Blink is pretty psychology based, about how we make decisions and first impressions and such, but I've heard his others (well, maybe just Tipping Point) might be more sociology. I'll have to look into that. When I first got here I started a list to keep track of the books I read--Blink is the 9th book on the list. I have a feeling that list will end up pretty long by the time I leave here...
Enough rambling. What I started out with the intent of writing is that since I have nothing new to report, maybe I'll fill in some holes about my job.
Recently, one of the big things I've been working on is the School of Peace (SOP). This is a program started from ICF (Interfaith Cooperation Forum), one of the organizations Max has started here in Asia. The goal is to bring together people from all different cultures, backgrounds, and regions to break the barriers that often exist between different religions and to cultivate the ideas of reconciliation and peace through addressing root causes of inequality and violence. Gosh, just writing that sounds exhausting! It's only a 3 month school, so it doesn't intend to change everything overnight. But Max is a strong believer in grassroots movements and change coming from the people who directly experience conflict as opposed to being brought in from the outside (like foreign NGO's you might say). All participants in SOP have to be already working for an organization that is active in the community they come from so that they have both a support network and a place to implement the changes they are learning about. One of the objectives is give people the resources to stop supporting a culture of reaction but instead to create paths towards a culture of transformation.
I love that language. Culture of transformation. It just sounds inspiring, doesn't it?!
SOP takes place in India, from February to mid-May. There is only the budget for 20 students and this year we had 30 applicants! I've gotten to do most of the correspondence with the applicants and, now, with the people who will be attending. We have people from Indonesia, Philippines, Nepal, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Bangladesh, all very different regions within the countries and different religions. It is interesting being on this side of a process like this. Them asking me questions about their Visa and passports and various things. Many people haven't travelled out of their country before. But who am I to know!? Most of the time I pass on the question to Max, who then responds to me so that I can respond to them. I feel very "official" sending these emails, except that a lot of times I can't figure out which part of people's names to use. Each language does names so differently! Is this the family name, the first name, the gender identifier? I don't know! I try to copy what they've done, but sometimes it's tricky. Hopefully I haven't horribly offended anyone yet. I have definitely identified those who are the over-eager question askers. I just chuckle when I get another email from them.
I guess that's all really. Just a bit more about what I spend some of my time thinking about.
Enough rambling. What I started out with the intent of writing is that since I have nothing new to report, maybe I'll fill in some holes about my job.
Recently, one of the big things I've been working on is the School of Peace (SOP). This is a program started from ICF (Interfaith Cooperation Forum), one of the organizations Max has started here in Asia. The goal is to bring together people from all different cultures, backgrounds, and regions to break the barriers that often exist between different religions and to cultivate the ideas of reconciliation and peace through addressing root causes of inequality and violence. Gosh, just writing that sounds exhausting! It's only a 3 month school, so it doesn't intend to change everything overnight. But Max is a strong believer in grassroots movements and change coming from the people who directly experience conflict as opposed to being brought in from the outside (like foreign NGO's you might say). All participants in SOP have to be already working for an organization that is active in the community they come from so that they have both a support network and a place to implement the changes they are learning about. One of the objectives is give people the resources to stop supporting a culture of reaction but instead to create paths towards a culture of transformation.
I love that language. Culture of transformation. It just sounds inspiring, doesn't it?!
SOP takes place in India, from February to mid-May. There is only the budget for 20 students and this year we had 30 applicants! I've gotten to do most of the correspondence with the applicants and, now, with the people who will be attending. We have people from Indonesia, Philippines, Nepal, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Bangladesh, all very different regions within the countries and different religions. It is interesting being on this side of a process like this. Them asking me questions about their Visa and passports and various things. Many people haven't travelled out of their country before. But who am I to know!? Most of the time I pass on the question to Max, who then responds to me so that I can respond to them. I feel very "official" sending these emails, except that a lot of times I can't figure out which part of people's names to use. Each language does names so differently! Is this the family name, the first name, the gender identifier? I don't know! I try to copy what they've done, but sometimes it's tricky. Hopefully I haven't horribly offended anyone yet. I have definitely identified those who are the over-eager question askers. I just chuckle when I get another email from them.
I guess that's all really. Just a bit more about what I spend some of my time thinking about.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Bursting.
I feel like I am bursting at the seams with excitement and joy and thoughts and things to be passionate about and all sorts of good things. Somehow this last week has just been one that keeps building. Nothing extraordinary has happened, I just feel right, you know?! Which is interesting because part of it comes from the harsh reminder last week in Quang Ngai that the world can be a ugly and painful place for so many of the people that live in it. It was a vital reminder, one that breaks my heart but also points to the things that I want to be about: hope and passion and the belief that things can be different, the world can change, hope exists in the midst of even the harshest realties. Young and idealist? Without a doubt. But you know what, I kind of love it about myself.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Weekend Update
The weekend turned out to be lovely. Sunday the rain stopped and I got the chance to spend most of the day at the beach. I walked there (a decent walk) then spent the morning walking along in the sand and waves. By the afternoon the sun had even come out!
Probably my favorite thing that I did was gather sea shells. I think Viet Nam is turning me into a small child, but I guess I'm just fine with that. It reminded me of being at the beach by my grandparent's house. I LOVED the shells. But at Oregon beaches it's harder to find in tact, pretty, shells. Here there were millions!! They were small, but still great.
Here are a few photos:
I've been trying to play with my camera more recently. Here I was just playing with the shutter:
During my rainy Saturday I went to a museum about the ethnic group that used to live in the area. It was interesting. Lots of sculptures!
Those are the only pictures I have from saturday. Saturday night I ordered pizza and had it delivered to my room and watched movies on tv. I'm such a lazy American! I have to admit though, it was pretty much fantastic :)
Here is my day at the beach. I think this boy was a life guard, or something along those lines. I also think he was really bored. He spent a while making shell shapes with me. He insisted we make a heart. He also had very specific ideas of how pictures should be taken of the shell heart, which was essentially just straight on, and very boring. That picture is not here for your viewing.
So that's it. My first weekend adventure alone. I'm going to go ahead and predict that it probably won't be my last...
Probably my favorite thing that I did was gather sea shells. I think Viet Nam is turning me into a small child, but I guess I'm just fine with that. It reminded me of being at the beach by my grandparent's house. I LOVED the shells. But at Oregon beaches it's harder to find in tact, pretty, shells. Here there were millions!! They were small, but still great.
Here are a few photos:
Could there be any more of one pattern in a room? I think not...
I've been trying to play with my camera more recently. Here I was just playing with the shutter:
During my rainy Saturday I went to a museum about the ethnic group that used to live in the area. It was interesting. Lots of sculptures!
Those are the only pictures I have from saturday. Saturday night I ordered pizza and had it delivered to my room and watched movies on tv. I'm such a lazy American! I have to admit though, it was pretty much fantastic :)
Here is my day at the beach. I think this boy was a life guard, or something along those lines. I also think he was really bored. He spent a while making shell shapes with me. He insisted we make a heart. He also had very specific ideas of how pictures should be taken of the shell heart, which was essentially just straight on, and very boring. That picture is not here for your viewing.
So that's it. My first weekend adventure alone. I'm going to go ahead and predict that it probably won't be my last...
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Rain, Rain, Go Away....
Currently I'm sitting in the lobby of my hotel in Da Nang, a beach city in central Viet Nam. I came south for work and, at the suggestion of my boss, decided to stay for the weekend. Brillant being that MCC paid for my flight down and changing tickets is free. I got a relatively cheap hotel (about $14) that is actually nicer than many I've seen in Viet Nam on the main street in town. Yesterday I was stoked to have the weekend to myself to read and wander and go to the beach and do whatever I pleased :)
Then this morning I woke up to rain. Lame. How can I go appreciate the beach in the rain? How can I aimlessly wander through town in the rain? I found a few things to do (read in a cafe, lunch at a great Western Bakery, go to a musuem) but now I'm running out of ideas...there is only so much you can do by yourself.
I hope tomorrow the rain stops so I can head to the beach. I think at this point I'll probably do it anyways even if it's raining!
Then this morning I woke up to rain. Lame. How can I go appreciate the beach in the rain? How can I aimlessly wander through town in the rain? I found a few things to do (read in a cafe, lunch at a great Western Bakery, go to a musuem) but now I'm running out of ideas...there is only so much you can do by yourself.
I hope tomorrow the rain stops so I can head to the beach. I think at this point I'll probably do it anyways even if it's raining!
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
It's Gonna Be Great!
Today is December! Crazy Crazy Crazy. Don't worry, I'm listening to Christmas music here at work. I'll work hard this month to spread the Nô-en (Christmas in Vietnamese) Joy.
Actually, I have a really good feeling about this month. I think it's going to be great. Maybe I'm creating too many expectations and am going to be sorely disappointed, but I don't know, there is something about December...I just feel good about it! Here are some things that contribute to the positive December vibes:
1. Recently, I've felt a lot like a grown up. Earlier I realized that in even saying that, it probably negates the statement itself, but eh, oh well. I think there is something about being busy at work that makes me feel, I don't know, like I'm working; this isn't school any more. Recently I've had tasks to do and I feel useful here. At this point, the month looks like it is going to continue this way, although I guess you never know. Here's a couple of the things I've been working in the past few weeks:
3. I guess this one could be a not so good thing too, but today Calah and I completed 100 hours of Vietnamese language learning! This means we now have to take a break for a month and then start financing lessons on our own come January but for now I feel quite accomplished!
4. Christmas happens in December. Even if I'm not at home, I still love the atmosphere of Christmas. I'll just have to create it here.
5. Last, but certainly not least, my family is coming in only 17 days!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!
All that to say, December is going to be great :)
PS I added a couple pictures to my last post so you could better visualize the ugliest cake ever.
Actually, I have a really good feeling about this month. I think it's going to be great. Maybe I'm creating too many expectations and am going to be sorely disappointed, but I don't know, there is something about December...I just feel good about it! Here are some things that contribute to the positive December vibes:
1. Recently, I've felt a lot like a grown up. Earlier I realized that in even saying that, it probably negates the statement itself, but eh, oh well. I think there is something about being busy at work that makes me feel, I don't know, like I'm working; this isn't school any more. Recently I've had tasks to do and I feel useful here. At this point, the month looks like it is going to continue this way, although I guess you never know. Here's a couple of the things I've been working in the past few weeks:
- I helped to prepare for the MCC Workshop that took place last week
- Working with Max to sort through applications for the School of Peace that he runs in India February-May. I gathered everyone's applications, organized them, helped him choose participants, emailed them to congratulate them (I let him send the not so congratulating emails) and am now fielding questions about passports and visas and religious dietary requirements and other various things
- Tomorrow I leave for Quảng Ngãy, in the central part of Viet Nam with Derek and Cô Bảy. MCC does some relief work there (it is where the storms were the last couple of months) and I'm going to help document it and write stories about what MCC is doing. Yay for new places!!
- Continuing to edit the mastheads (website header) for Max's Websites
- Organizing articles to send out as a monthly newsletter for CJPA (Center for JustPeace in Asia) and ICF (Interfaith Cooperation Forum)
3. I guess this one could be a not so good thing too, but today Calah and I completed 100 hours of Vietnamese language learning! This means we now have to take a break for a month and then start financing lessons on our own come January but for now I feel quite accomplished!
4. Christmas happens in December. Even if I'm not at home, I still love the atmosphere of Christmas. I'll just have to create it here.
5. Last, but certainly not least, my family is coming in only 17 days!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!
All that to say, December is going to be great :)
PS I added a couple pictures to my last post so you could better visualize the ugliest cake ever.
Friday, November 27, 2009
A Vietnamese Date...and other things from a busy week.
I had my first Vietnamese Date this week! I wore my shiny dress and heels, we went by taxi, he payed for everything, we had great seats at the Opera House for a famous Italian pianist, we sat in the same room as the PRESIDENT of Viet Nam, we even got ice cream afterwards. It was great!
Too bad he's 12 :)
It actually was an amazing performance! It was in honor of the upcoming visit of Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet to Italy, the first of it's kind in 36 years. My family got 2 tickets from their conductor friend, and I think in their attempt to inspire Minh to keep up his piano practicing, had us go together. We had an excellent time.
Too bad he's 12 :)
It actually was an amazing performance! It was in honor of the upcoming visit of Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet to Italy, the first of it's kind in 36 years. My family got 2 tickets from their conductor friend, and I think in their attempt to inspire Minh to keep up his piano practicing, had us go together. We had an excellent time.
My date added to what was already a really busy week. MCC hosted a workshop in Tam Dảo, a mountain region about 70km outside of Hanoi. The office was hectic all week preparing for it, we had about 40 of our Vietnamese partners from the Provinces where we actually do most of our work come to share about their experiences with the environment and development. MCC is phasing out of a few districts and beginning in new ones this year so the plan was to give people a chance to interact. In my opinion it was quite a success!
This week was also Hannah's birthday. As you know, I LOVE LOVE LOVE birthdays, even other people's. All of Wednesday was taken over by celebrating. I made sure MCC bought her the ugliest cake possible (imagine GIANT frosting cats!) and we went to dinner with friends and then on the Duck Boats (paddle boats in the lake by the Zoo). I was lucky enough to share a boat with the birthday girl herself. Together we acted like 5 year olds, laughing hysterically, paddling in circles around the other boats, in general being a nuisance, and yet loving life :)
Sunday, November 22, 2009
A Thanksgiving Craft
I spent all day Saturday hanging out with Vàng and Minh. Yep, I had a lot of fun playing with my 12 and 7 year old friends!
First, we walked to the store. Vietnamese people don't seem to like walking very much, so this was a feat in itself.
The trip to the store was to find supplies for an idea I had for later in the afternoon. I wanted to make a Thanksgiving craft. I like crafts, and they like learning about American things, so it seemed like a great combo to me! And I've been trying to find new things to do with them. It should come as no surprise that the store didn't have anything like construction paper. I don't know why I thought it might. So we made due with sharpies (rumor has it they have crayons or markers or something, but when the time came to use them no one seemed to know what I was asking about), and recycled school papers.
I did most of the craft myself. Truthfully, they had little interest in it. I think it was more for me. I wanted to feel like I was participating in the holiday season that is beginning this week, even if it isn't happening in my corner of the world. But Vàng loaned me her hand for the feathers and was at least entertained watching me make a silly hand turkey.
First, we walked to the store. Vietnamese people don't seem to like walking very much, so this was a feat in itself.
The trip to the store was to find supplies for an idea I had for later in the afternoon. I wanted to make a Thanksgiving craft. I like crafts, and they like learning about American things, so it seemed like a great combo to me! And I've been trying to find new things to do with them. It should come as no surprise that the store didn't have anything like construction paper. I don't know why I thought it might. So we made due with sharpies (rumor has it they have crayons or markers or something, but when the time came to use them no one seemed to know what I was asking about), and recycled school papers.
Vàng does not like being in pictures. The only way I got her to be in this one with me was by promising to play cards with her. Some of you may know me as a not game loving person. Well, that was the old me. The new me plays games ALL THE TIME. Seriously. On Saturday I think I played at least 20 times. We got through a variety of Vietnamese and American games. It's fun, for the first few hours...but to get her to be in a picture, a few more games was totally worth it!
Turns out our little Turkey friend will soon be famous. Minh is going to take him to school (English Class) to show his class about Thanksgiving. Mission accomplished :)
Friday, November 20, 2009
Chúp Mừng Ngày Giáo!
Happy Teacher Day!
Today Vietnamese class was cancelled because it is Việt Nam's Teacher Day. Classes for all students are cancelled and teachers get lots of presents. Directly translated, people say that today they have a "rest" instead of what we would call a day off.
Yesterday for class, Calah and I took our teacher out for coffee. We also had a little mini-photo shoot with her. Here is our group photo:
Today Vietnamese class was cancelled because it is Việt Nam's Teacher Day. Classes for all students are cancelled and teachers get lots of presents. Directly translated, people say that today they have a "rest" instead of what we would call a day off.
Yesterday for class, Calah and I took our teacher out for coffee. We also had a little mini-photo shoot with her. Here is our group photo:
I realized that I haven't written about learning Vietnamese in a while. Well, if you've been wondering, I LOVE Vietnamese. I still say it's the most challenging academic learning I've done, maybe ever. But it's fun! Class is my favorite time of the week. In part because our teacher is so wonderful. We spend most of the class just chatting. I love that I'm encouraged to interrupt the book learning with whatever commentary comes to mind, as long as it's in Vietnamese! Cô Giang is incredibly patient and remarkably she understands a lot of what Calah and I attempt to say, despite the fact that I have no doubt we say things wrong the majority of the time. We have a chance to tell stories, chat about random things, ask about Vietnamese culture, ask about her life, and anything else that comes to mind! It's great!
What's funny is that I'm still horrible at Vietnamese. At least half the time I forget about the tones and ask questions through with my voice rather than with words, a big no-no in this language. I feel accomplished when I know words in my head for things or remember something close to the word even when I don't know the accurate tone, which normally means no one can even guess what I'm trying to say. Last weekend my family had a party and twice in one day I was told, "You really should just speak English, no one can understand when you try to speak Vietnamese". There goes any confidence I was beginning to build!
But then there are those moments. A brief time where I say something and the person responds normally; no look of confusion, no questioning stare, no interrupting because they got bored while I attempted to tell a story, just a normal response. Or maybe they ask a question and I can answer. Whatever the case, it is so rewarding! Recently my host mom has been understanding me a lot more often, not so much other members of the family, but at least there is one! I may not be able to express much to people here, either for lack of ability or lack of understanding at how things are expressed, but I can hope that at least my attempts at Vietnamese show that I'm trying and that I care. And that I'm enjoying Viet Nam!
What's funny is that I'm still horrible at Vietnamese. At least half the time I forget about the tones and ask questions through with my voice rather than with words, a big no-no in this language. I feel accomplished when I know words in my head for things or remember something close to the word even when I don't know the accurate tone, which normally means no one can even guess what I'm trying to say. Last weekend my family had a party and twice in one day I was told, "You really should just speak English, no one can understand when you try to speak Vietnamese". There goes any confidence I was beginning to build!
But then there are those moments. A brief time where I say something and the person responds normally; no look of confusion, no questioning stare, no interrupting because they got bored while I attempted to tell a story, just a normal response. Or maybe they ask a question and I can answer. Whatever the case, it is so rewarding! Recently my host mom has been understanding me a lot more often, not so much other members of the family, but at least there is one! I may not be able to express much to people here, either for lack of ability or lack of understanding at how things are expressed, but I can hope that at least my attempts at Vietnamese show that I'm trying and that I care. And that I'm enjoying Viet Nam!
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
A trip to the Post Office
I heard a rumor about a month ago that my family was sending me package. It was about the same time that I sent them a card, which they received maybe 2 weeks ago. I was starting to get worried that it got lost on it's journey between Portland and Hanoi, somewhere in the:
11,012 Kilometeres or 6,843 Miles or 5,946 Nautical Miles
(I was just going for the distance in miles, but when google gives you all of that information, why not use it!? And I'm working on my understanding of the metric system anyways---another sidenote: according to Wikipedia, the US, Burma and Liberia are the only countries that have not adapted the Metric System! Sometimes the US is so weird.)
But never fear! Today I got a letter from the Post office and a package was waiting for me. There happens to be post office on the main road right by my work, so I waited until I thought for sure it would be open (past nap time) and rode my bike over.
But oh wait, I don't actually speak Vietnamese. I walked in and realized that the different counters were labelled, but I had no idea what label was for me. So I just held my package notice in my hand and walked to a random counter. The women pointed me to the next one over, perfect. Then I had to wait in line. Hmmm...lines are an interesting thing in Viet Nam. Meaning that they don't really exist. You can't wait politely for it to be your turn or it will never be your turn. So you slowly push your way to the front and make sure the woman notices you. Once she did notice me, I didn't know what to tell her. So again, I just handed over my slip of paper and ID, assuming she'd want that at some point. That seemed to do it. I signed a couple of things and then waited.
Through the glass at the counter I could see her searching. She seemed confused. And the "line" around me was growing. She then pulled a package out, set it aside and kept looking. She even called another woman over. They seemed concerned. Eventually she just handed me the first package that she had found. I wasn't sure if that was all I had to do or not, so I waited there for a few more moments, then left. Not before paying the little man out front for "watching" my bike. It's only 1,000 VND, which is about .05$, but it's just strange to me sometimes.
I think I found what concerned them:
So thanks Meeko! And the Temple Family that houses her!
(for those who don't know, Meeko is our cat. As it happens, the card in the box is signed from her. Maybe this is to make up for all the time's she has attacked me or trapped me on the stairs!)
11,012 Kilometeres or 6,843 Miles or 5,946 Nautical Miles
(I was just going for the distance in miles, but when google gives you all of that information, why not use it!? And I'm working on my understanding of the metric system anyways---another sidenote: according to Wikipedia, the US, Burma and Liberia are the only countries that have not adapted the Metric System! Sometimes the US is so weird.)
But never fear! Today I got a letter from the Post office and a package was waiting for me. There happens to be post office on the main road right by my work, so I waited until I thought for sure it would be open (past nap time) and rode my bike over.
But oh wait, I don't actually speak Vietnamese. I walked in and realized that the different counters were labelled, but I had no idea what label was for me. So I just held my package notice in my hand and walked to a random counter. The women pointed me to the next one over, perfect. Then I had to wait in line. Hmmm...lines are an interesting thing in Viet Nam. Meaning that they don't really exist. You can't wait politely for it to be your turn or it will never be your turn. So you slowly push your way to the front and make sure the woman notices you. Once she did notice me, I didn't know what to tell her. So again, I just handed over my slip of paper and ID, assuming she'd want that at some point. That seemed to do it. I signed a couple of things and then waited.
Through the glass at the counter I could see her searching. She seemed confused. And the "line" around me was growing. She then pulled a package out, set it aside and kept looking. She even called another woman over. They seemed concerned. Eventually she just handed me the first package that she had found. I wasn't sure if that was all I had to do or not, so I waited there for a few more moments, then left. Not before paying the little man out front for "watching" my bike. It's only 1,000 VND, which is about .05$, but it's just strange to me sometimes.
I think I found what concerned them:
There seems to be a hole in the box. A hole that attacked my mm's! Hmmm....suspicious. Possibile scenarios:
- Someone needed to verify the contents of the box so they cut a little peep hole that happened to also damage the mm's bag. The holes are strikingly similar in shape.
- Someone "needed to verify" the contents of the box and stole some of the treats. There definitely is not half a bag's worth of mm's floating around the box
- The most likely, and least favored possibility---a mouse. Yep, my coworkers seem pretty sure a mouse got in the box. Or attempted to. It had been suffiently re-wraped in tape.
Eh, oh well. I'll probably (and by probably I mean that I already started to) eat them anyways. Mm's are SO expensive here, I would not waste them on such a silly concern :)
The rest of the package is in tact and FULL of fantastic treats! I'm going to be eating candy for weeks and weeks to come. Two bags of halloween pumpkins. My favorite!!! And I can now afford to make brownies (also VERY expensive!)! How lucky am I!!!
The rest of the package is in tact and FULL of fantastic treats! I'm going to be eating candy for weeks and weeks to come. Two bags of halloween pumpkins. My favorite!!! And I can now afford to make brownies (also VERY expensive!)! How lucky am I!!!
So thanks Meeko! And the Temple Family that houses her!
(for those who don't know, Meeko is our cat. As it happens, the card in the box is signed from her. Maybe this is to make up for all the time's she has attacked me or trapped me on the stairs!)
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Afterwork Snacks
Most of the time when I get home from work it's about 5pm and I'm hungry. But often my family doesn't eat until much later. I can never figure out what kind of snacks people eat, it seems like you just eat a lot at each meal and not at all in between, unless it's fruit, which my house doesn't have a lot of. So a few weeks ago I attempted asking my family if they had any ideas of something small and not too filling that I could eat as a pre-dinner snack. I suggested something like peanuts. They looked at me like I was crazy. Eventually Cô Sa (host mom) said she would get some cracker things for me, which she did and they've been just great.
Fast forward to two nights ago. It was just Cô Hue (house helper) and I at dinner and there was this peanut mix thing that you can put with your rice. Cô Hue and I struggle to understand each other most of the time, her Vietnamese being quite different than many other peoples and much faster. My Vietnamese on the other hand is just so bad that she never has any idea what I'm trying to communicate. At this meal though, we rather successfully talked about a few different things. One being that I think peanuts are "ngon" (delicious, the only word one uses to talk about food!). The next day when I got home from work she had made me a bowl of roasted peanuts! I'm not sure why a month ago what was a crazy idea is now perfectly normal, but I really appreciated it. Despite our sparse communication, and her sometimes intimating demeanor, Co Hue is a really sweet woman. It is moments like that where I feel like I'm a part of a family.
Fast forward to two nights ago. It was just Cô Hue (house helper) and I at dinner and there was this peanut mix thing that you can put with your rice. Cô Hue and I struggle to understand each other most of the time, her Vietnamese being quite different than many other peoples and much faster. My Vietnamese on the other hand is just so bad that she never has any idea what I'm trying to communicate. At this meal though, we rather successfully talked about a few different things. One being that I think peanuts are "ngon" (delicious, the only word one uses to talk about food!). The next day when I got home from work she had made me a bowl of roasted peanuts! I'm not sure why a month ago what was a crazy idea is now perfectly normal, but I really appreciated it. Despite our sparse communication, and her sometimes intimating demeanor, Co Hue is a really sweet woman. It is moments like that where I feel like I'm a part of a family.
Giants Steps
This is one of those times where it feels like there is so much to say and too many events to describe and in the process of thinking about what to blog things keep happening which consequently only makes my decision of what to write more challenging and in the end nothing ever gets written down. And being that I don't want to overwhelm one post with too much information about every thought I have had this last week and the things I have done maybe I'll just go with this:
Last night Derek and Ana hosted an MCC dinner at their home. It was a chance for all the service workers here in the city to just get together; a kind of team building event one might say if one was viewing it from the pragmatic view of a program administrator. This was the 2nd one since I've been here. The first one was right at the beginning, while Calah and I were still living at Derek's house, before we were even over our jet lag. In fact, I remember being proud of our ability to stay awake through dinner--even if it was just barely. Now it is almost three months later. Sitting around the table last night the conversation was much livelier than before. The company was much more familiar: Derek, Ana, Hannah, Calah, Max, Hiro, and Sawako. The food was much more appreciated: chicken (not boiled and with flavor added!), green beans (yes Lauren, I eat green beans now and I greatly enjoy them!), pasta with basil and tomatoes, and 3 types of bread (I had no point of comparison for the bread from the good bakery before, how could I have known that the bread you saw everywhere only looks good and in actuality is quite tasteless?). Overall, I was much more comfortable and felt able to relax and be myself.
We sat around the table for a while after the meal, enjoying tea, fruit and delicious home made peanut butter cookies. We laughed and joked. Calah and I have decided our new goal is to provide Derek with a plethora of stories after we're gone. I think our best ideas so far include China, this man we've met from Africa, an oversized lamp and a desperate call to Derek from a foreign country for money. Tell me that doesn't sound like the makings of an epic story?! We'll see how it goes...
I think this meal felt significant because it provided a really good tangible example of how much can change without one realizing it. Well, that's not exactly true. I realized it to some extent. But that first week seems like a distant blur. All along I've felt like I was taking baby steps towards adjusting, but as it turns out, I've been taking giant steps! Now Viet Nam is not a destination, but a normal fact of my everyday life. So much has happened since then! It was encouraging to be reminded of that.
Last night Derek and Ana hosted an MCC dinner at their home. It was a chance for all the service workers here in the city to just get together; a kind of team building event one might say if one was viewing it from the pragmatic view of a program administrator. This was the 2nd one since I've been here. The first one was right at the beginning, while Calah and I were still living at Derek's house, before we were even over our jet lag. In fact, I remember being proud of our ability to stay awake through dinner--even if it was just barely. Now it is almost three months later. Sitting around the table last night the conversation was much livelier than before. The company was much more familiar: Derek, Ana, Hannah, Calah, Max, Hiro, and Sawako. The food was much more appreciated: chicken (not boiled and with flavor added!), green beans (yes Lauren, I eat green beans now and I greatly enjoy them!), pasta with basil and tomatoes, and 3 types of bread (I had no point of comparison for the bread from the good bakery before, how could I have known that the bread you saw everywhere only looks good and in actuality is quite tasteless?). Overall, I was much more comfortable and felt able to relax and be myself.
We sat around the table for a while after the meal, enjoying tea, fruit and delicious home made peanut butter cookies. We laughed and joked. Calah and I have decided our new goal is to provide Derek with a plethora of stories after we're gone. I think our best ideas so far include China, this man we've met from Africa, an oversized lamp and a desperate call to Derek from a foreign country for money. Tell me that doesn't sound like the makings of an epic story?! We'll see how it goes...
I think this meal felt significant because it provided a really good tangible example of how much can change without one realizing it. Well, that's not exactly true. I realized it to some extent. But that first week seems like a distant blur. All along I've felt like I was taking baby steps towards adjusting, but as it turns out, I've been taking giant steps! Now Viet Nam is not a destination, but a normal fact of my everyday life. So much has happened since then! It was encouraging to be reminded of that.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Another Eventful Morning
I am always amazed by the amount of things that can happen before 9am. Somedays at 9 I feel like I'm barely awake, other days it's like I've already run a marathon. Today was one of the marathon running days!
I got up earlyish to talk to my fabulous Kansas City friend. Our Skype date was set for 7:30. I didn't actually get out of bed until 7:15 and was pleasantly surprised at my ability to move extra speedy this morning: get dressed and ready, eat breakfast, have my things ready to go for class and have my computer set up by 7:30. The internet stuck around long enough for me to verify the time we had agreed on, then it was gone. The little internet box only had three of the five flashing lights necessary, not good. I tried the few tricks I know that might fix it--essentially just restarting it and waiting for various periods of time. Nothing. Still only three lights. I was starting to get so sad! How am I going live vicariously through my friends and their post-college, English-speaking, equally as strange but in a very different way, American lives if my internet won't even work? And on top of that, I was ready for Vietnamese class almost an hour earlier than necessary. What to do...
Thats when I had a brillant idea! There are about 10million internet cafes in Hanoi, three within walking distance of my house. I would go there and if it was too late to Skype, I could at least send a message explaining my absence. So I rush out of the house, grab my bicycle and ride down the block. I stop at Trung Yen Cafe because it's one of my favs. Not the cleanest, but good, cheap coffee and internet I've used before. First I try sitting outside, no wireless connection. So I move inside, still nothing. I ask the server if he knows why I can't get it (ask being a very relative term, a few Vietnamese words and some pointing to convey my confusion is more like it). He rushes up the stairs to see if he can find out. He and I then began a 30-minute journey of trying to solve the missing internet conundrum. His iPhone (yes, his iPhone) says there is internet, but it can't seem to reach my computer. He tried some things on the computer, nothing. Then he takes my laptop and starts wandering around the cafe, searching for service like in the "Can you hear me now" commercials. At this point it is almost time for me to go to class, so I pay my 12,000 VND bill (about $.67) and pack up my things. But just then, he gets a ethernet cord and plugs my computer in. Even this takes a few attempts, but finally, success! I quickly send off my email and leave. Not so quickly that I didn't see the rat running across in front of me though...
I arrived at Vietnamese a few minutes early to find Calah sitting at the cafe across the street. Before it was even 8:30 I sat down at my 2nd cafe of the day. At this point I was more entertained than anything at the course my morning had taken. Seriously, it was a marathon of a morning.
I got up earlyish to talk to my fabulous Kansas City friend. Our Skype date was set for 7:30. I didn't actually get out of bed until 7:15 and was pleasantly surprised at my ability to move extra speedy this morning: get dressed and ready, eat breakfast, have my things ready to go for class and have my computer set up by 7:30. The internet stuck around long enough for me to verify the time we had agreed on, then it was gone. The little internet box only had three of the five flashing lights necessary, not good. I tried the few tricks I know that might fix it--essentially just restarting it and waiting for various periods of time. Nothing. Still only three lights. I was starting to get so sad! How am I going live vicariously through my friends and their post-college, English-speaking, equally as strange but in a very different way, American lives if my internet won't even work? And on top of that, I was ready for Vietnamese class almost an hour earlier than necessary. What to do...
Thats when I had a brillant idea! There are about 10million internet cafes in Hanoi, three within walking distance of my house. I would go there and if it was too late to Skype, I could at least send a message explaining my absence. So I rush out of the house, grab my bicycle and ride down the block. I stop at Trung Yen Cafe because it's one of my favs. Not the cleanest, but good, cheap coffee and internet I've used before. First I try sitting outside, no wireless connection. So I move inside, still nothing. I ask the server if he knows why I can't get it (ask being a very relative term, a few Vietnamese words and some pointing to convey my confusion is more like it). He rushes up the stairs to see if he can find out. He and I then began a 30-minute journey of trying to solve the missing internet conundrum. His iPhone (yes, his iPhone) says there is internet, but it can't seem to reach my computer. He tried some things on the computer, nothing. Then he takes my laptop and starts wandering around the cafe, searching for service like in the "Can you hear me now" commercials. At this point it is almost time for me to go to class, so I pay my 12,000 VND bill (about $.67) and pack up my things. But just then, he gets a ethernet cord and plugs my computer in. Even this takes a few attempts, but finally, success! I quickly send off my email and leave. Not so quickly that I didn't see the rat running across in front of me though...
I arrived at Vietnamese a few minutes early to find Calah sitting at the cafe across the street. Before it was even 8:30 I sat down at my 2nd cafe of the day. At this point I was more entertained than anything at the course my morning had taken. Seriously, it was a marathon of a morning.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Switching Roles
Back in March I thought a lot about what I wanted to do in life after SPU. I knew I wanted to travel, but how and for what purpose were details I was still unsure of. In my decision to come with MCC, particularly to Viet Nam, a big part of it was that I wanted to experience culture in an entirely different way. I wanted to be in a place where I wasn't a part of the majority; where I could maybe start to understand what life would look like without my white, middle-class American assumptions. Not that I don't feel fortunate to have been born in the situation I was, but I know it isn't how the entire world is. And on my quest to learn and understand people and the world, I knew I needed a way to see beyond my own foundational assumptions.
So I moved to Asia. And I guess if I stop to think about it, I have found what I was looking for. But man, I don't like it. I really hate that there is no way for me to blend in. Granted there are certain parts of the city that I can go to where I can blend in with the tourists, but that is not where I tend to spend my time. There are so many things about me that make me stand out: my brown hair, along with the fact that it is curly (very rare here!), my light eyes, my lighter skin, the shape of my body, the cloths I wear, etc,. Any of these facts alone would signify to a Vietnamese person that I am not from here. I am different. Put them all together and there is no way to mistake it. I stand out.
I'm not used to standing out. The novelty of everyone wanting to talk to me has warn off and at moments it exhausts me. I feel used by people as soon as they start on the scripted questions (name, age, where one's from, and if you have a boyfriend). At home I very comfortably blend in and I never realized how much I enjoyed that. I can ride the bus in peace. I can ride my bike without motos following me (that is, if I actually was brave enough to ride a bike at home...). I can talk to people without feeling used for my "otherness".
And it is not that I feel threatened or like I am actually in any risk. If some of those things were to happen at home I might be tempted to consider it harassment, but here it is just what people do. Logically if I talk myself through it I know that people genuinely do just want to practice their English. Like a woman told me last week after running after me as I pulled up to the front gate of my house, "I've been looking for a foreigner friend". People have good intentions. They make assumptions about me and my culture, whether that regards my wealth, my tastes or my langauge just as I make assumptions about them. Both are probably wrong.
All I keep thinking is that I got what I asked for. It may be challenging, and frustrating but it is a different experience of the world. Maybe I just need to change the way I view these interactions, have a little more fun with them rather than dreading them. Maybe I'll start only responding in Vietnamese. Or, better than that, only respond in some made up language! :) That could make it interesting...either way, this living in Viet Nam thing is definitely a learning experience.
So I moved to Asia. And I guess if I stop to think about it, I have found what I was looking for. But man, I don't like it. I really hate that there is no way for me to blend in. Granted there are certain parts of the city that I can go to where I can blend in with the tourists, but that is not where I tend to spend my time. There are so many things about me that make me stand out: my brown hair, along with the fact that it is curly (very rare here!), my light eyes, my lighter skin, the shape of my body, the cloths I wear, etc,. Any of these facts alone would signify to a Vietnamese person that I am not from here. I am different. Put them all together and there is no way to mistake it. I stand out.
I'm not used to standing out. The novelty of everyone wanting to talk to me has warn off and at moments it exhausts me. I feel used by people as soon as they start on the scripted questions (name, age, where one's from, and if you have a boyfriend). At home I very comfortably blend in and I never realized how much I enjoyed that. I can ride the bus in peace. I can ride my bike without motos following me (that is, if I actually was brave enough to ride a bike at home...). I can talk to people without feeling used for my "otherness".
And it is not that I feel threatened or like I am actually in any risk. If some of those things were to happen at home I might be tempted to consider it harassment, but here it is just what people do. Logically if I talk myself through it I know that people genuinely do just want to practice their English. Like a woman told me last week after running after me as I pulled up to the front gate of my house, "I've been looking for a foreigner friend". People have good intentions. They make assumptions about me and my culture, whether that regards my wealth, my tastes or my langauge just as I make assumptions about them. Both are probably wrong.
All I keep thinking is that I got what I asked for. It may be challenging, and frustrating but it is a different experience of the world. Maybe I just need to change the way I view these interactions, have a little more fun with them rather than dreading them. Maybe I'll start only responding in Vietnamese. Or, better than that, only respond in some made up language! :) That could make it interesting...either way, this living in Viet Nam thing is definitely a learning experience.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Family Breakfast
This morning I got up early to go for a run. Don't be impressed, it was a rare moment of motivation. But as I walked down the stairs I was surprised to see that my family hadn't left yet. I stopped by the living room to say Hi and next thing I knew I was on my way with them to go get Phỏ for breakfast! Cô Sa was clearly confused by the fact that I thought I needed exercise again today when I just did aerobics yesterday. She thought that I should go with them instead. So I did! They went by xe máy (moto) and I followed on xe đẹp (bike). The place was just a few blocks away and is one of those that is set up outside with tables across the street. I enjoyed a delicious bowl of phỏ bò (beef pho) and a lovely morning meal with the fam. All this before 7:15am!
This is one of those moments that reminds me of the fact that I can't plan life and schedule building relationships with people. So often it is the little, random things that end up making situations and friendships great. In my attempts to find balance here between living with a family and establishing what feels like a normal everyday life I keep finding myself scheduling everything out: "I'll be home for dinner these nights, and I'll go to aerobics every week on these nights". Yes, some of that is necessary (who would want to miss doing aerobics to the MOST random compilation of music ever-last night we enjoyed Blue, hello jr. high!) but I am trying to not over schedule and therefore leave no room for the everyday kind of moments. The kind that steal my morning run but also remind me that I may be in Việt Nam, but life happens here just as it does in Seattle--in small and unexpected ways.
This is one of those moments that reminds me of the fact that I can't plan life and schedule building relationships with people. So often it is the little, random things that end up making situations and friendships great. In my attempts to find balance here between living with a family and establishing what feels like a normal everyday life I keep finding myself scheduling everything out: "I'll be home for dinner these nights, and I'll go to aerobics every week on these nights". Yes, some of that is necessary (who would want to miss doing aerobics to the MOST random compilation of music ever-last night we enjoyed Blue, hello jr. high!) but I am trying to not over schedule and therefore leave no room for the everyday kind of moments. The kind that steal my morning run but also remind me that I may be in Việt Nam, but life happens here just as it does in Seattle--in small and unexpected ways.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Embarrasment Comes in Many Forms...
I have gotten a bit used to constantly knowing that I'm making a fool of myself. When you struggle to both rememeber words and to pronouce them and you don't know what is going on the majority of the time, it just becomes normal life. But yesterday I found a whole new way to embarrass myself--playing tennis with a group of 15 Vietnamese Men.
It all started a few weeks ago actually. Chu Hùng (host dad) plays tennis every week with his friends and he noticed that I've played (only once, but it's something, right?!). He seemed excited about inviting me sometime. The time came this last week. He invited both Derek (my MCC boss) and me to join him on Sunday. In true miscommunication fashion, I was able to discern only a few details, which mostly turned out to be wrong in the end anyways. He said they met at 1:30 and that they go about 3km away. I asked Derek and he said he was up for it so I confirmed with my host Dad. That is when it turns out that they "meet" somewhere 3km away, where a car picks them up and drives to the courts, which are actually on the other side of the Red River. My thought was, "oh no, is it too late to back out?" But it was. Derek and I were in.
So 1:30 Sunday afternoon, Derek and I met Chu Hùng and a few of his friends at a cafe (which was actually further than 3km away). We sat there for about 45 minutes before loading into the cars and driving. We then preceeded to drive about 30 minutes out of Hanoi to a new housing development with few people and two shiny new tennis courts. Car after car of people arrived over the next hour, totalling about 15 men I would guess. So we play. I warned Chu Hùng that I am "không tót" (no good) at tennis but maybe he thought I was just being modest. Trust me, I wasn't. I'm BAD. But I played and I gave it my all. The first game I played not so bad. Not good, but not horrible. The second one though...it was bad. If I was lucky enough to hit the ball it didn't go anywhere near the right direction. My serves all failed to the point that they started giving me 3 tries instead of the normal 2 and if it was anywhere close they would just play it. When I did anything right they would cheer for me. Luckily I can just laugh because if I was a more competitive person (which I have my moments of) I would not have still been smiling after that game. I did have one dignity saving skill, when they would throw the balls to me for serving I successfully caught them. At least I showed the potential to be coordinated! I only lasted those two games until my arm was completely exhausted and I could barely lift a water bottle anymore. In fact, typing this now kind of hurts my forearm and my whole body is sore today!
The fun didn't stop with tennis though. After four hours of playing we started towards home but instead of going back they decide we should go out to dinner. Derek couldn't stay any longer because he had to get home to his family (which was an ordeal in itself. He ended up having to take a taxi back...so complicated!). I hoped to go with him because after already being out for 5 hours I was exhausted. But Chu Hùng seemed really disappointed that I was contemplating leaving. He finally asked, "If you have free time maybe you come eat with us?" Which is about as direct as the Vietnamese get when they want something. So I hesitantly agreed to join the 8 middle-aged Vietnamese men for dinner.
Fortunately the man sitting next to me spoke really good English and so I wasn't totally lost. As the rice wine and beer flowed, they all found it was increasing entertaining to talk to me. The oldest of the group was their favorite to joke about, even though he was only older by about 2 years. They told me he has 3 wives, that he swam the rivers and that he climbed mountatins (maybe because he was so old there are no roads?). Then later they were very concerned that I understood they were only joking. Overall it was really funny and I was thoroughly entertained. I'm glad I went. If nothing else the interaction with my host dad was a step towards feeling more like a part of the family and less like the house pet.
The night should've ended here, at about 8:30. But when we returned to the cafe to pick up Chu Hùng's xe máy the back tire had gone completely flat! And being that it was a Sunday night, nothing was open. We had to push the bike to a closed repair shop and then wait for a while for the man to show up. How we contacted him to say we needed help I have no idea, but it worked out. An hour later we are on the road home. But my bicycle was at Derek's, so Chu Hùng had to drive me there so I could ride my bike the rest of the way home.
And so there is the story of my epic day of "playing" tennis. I'm determined to get better at it. Maybe someday they'll invite me back (out of pity more than anything else!) and I'll have practiced and be able to to hold my own. Maybe not though. Good thing I'm getting used to the embarrasment :)
It all started a few weeks ago actually. Chu Hùng (host dad) plays tennis every week with his friends and he noticed that I've played (only once, but it's something, right?!). He seemed excited about inviting me sometime. The time came this last week. He invited both Derek (my MCC boss) and me to join him on Sunday. In true miscommunication fashion, I was able to discern only a few details, which mostly turned out to be wrong in the end anyways. He said they met at 1:30 and that they go about 3km away. I asked Derek and he said he was up for it so I confirmed with my host Dad. That is when it turns out that they "meet" somewhere 3km away, where a car picks them up and drives to the courts, which are actually on the other side of the Red River. My thought was, "oh no, is it too late to back out?" But it was. Derek and I were in.
So 1:30 Sunday afternoon, Derek and I met Chu Hùng and a few of his friends at a cafe (which was actually further than 3km away). We sat there for about 45 minutes before loading into the cars and driving. We then preceeded to drive about 30 minutes out of Hanoi to a new housing development with few people and two shiny new tennis courts. Car after car of people arrived over the next hour, totalling about 15 men I would guess. So we play. I warned Chu Hùng that I am "không tót" (no good) at tennis but maybe he thought I was just being modest. Trust me, I wasn't. I'm BAD. But I played and I gave it my all. The first game I played not so bad. Not good, but not horrible. The second one though...it was bad. If I was lucky enough to hit the ball it didn't go anywhere near the right direction. My serves all failed to the point that they started giving me 3 tries instead of the normal 2 and if it was anywhere close they would just play it. When I did anything right they would cheer for me. Luckily I can just laugh because if I was a more competitive person (which I have my moments of) I would not have still been smiling after that game. I did have one dignity saving skill, when they would throw the balls to me for serving I successfully caught them. At least I showed the potential to be coordinated! I only lasted those two games until my arm was completely exhausted and I could barely lift a water bottle anymore. In fact, typing this now kind of hurts my forearm and my whole body is sore today!
The fun didn't stop with tennis though. After four hours of playing we started towards home but instead of going back they decide we should go out to dinner. Derek couldn't stay any longer because he had to get home to his family (which was an ordeal in itself. He ended up having to take a taxi back...so complicated!). I hoped to go with him because after already being out for 5 hours I was exhausted. But Chu Hùng seemed really disappointed that I was contemplating leaving. He finally asked, "If you have free time maybe you come eat with us?" Which is about as direct as the Vietnamese get when they want something. So I hesitantly agreed to join the 8 middle-aged Vietnamese men for dinner.
Fortunately the man sitting next to me spoke really good English and so I wasn't totally lost. As the rice wine and beer flowed, they all found it was increasing entertaining to talk to me. The oldest of the group was their favorite to joke about, even though he was only older by about 2 years. They told me he has 3 wives, that he swam the rivers and that he climbed mountatins (maybe because he was so old there are no roads?). Then later they were very concerned that I understood they were only joking. Overall it was really funny and I was thoroughly entertained. I'm glad I went. If nothing else the interaction with my host dad was a step towards feeling more like a part of the family and less like the house pet.
The night should've ended here, at about 8:30. But when we returned to the cafe to pick up Chu Hùng's xe máy the back tire had gone completely flat! And being that it was a Sunday night, nothing was open. We had to push the bike to a closed repair shop and then wait for a while for the man to show up. How we contacted him to say we needed help I have no idea, but it worked out. An hour later we are on the road home. But my bicycle was at Derek's, so Chu Hùng had to drive me there so I could ride my bike the rest of the way home.
And so there is the story of my epic day of "playing" tennis. I'm determined to get better at it. Maybe someday they'll invite me back (out of pity more than anything else!) and I'll have practiced and be able to to hold my own. Maybe not though. Good thing I'm getting used to the embarrasment :)
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Keeping my Priorities Straight!
Some of you may be tempted to think, "Poor Alicia, she is in a far away country all by herself, she can't speak Vietnamese and she is the same height, if not taller, than most men in Việt Nam, how will she ever get married now that she has graduated college?!" Well dear concerned friends, never fear! I have learned some handy phrases recently to overcome the language barrier (although I haven't found a solution to the height issue yet...):
Cái nhìn đầu tiên
(Love at first sight)
Em yêu anh cả đỏi.
(I'll love you for all of life)
Em cảm thây anh thay đổi.
(I feel like you've changed-Vietnamese way of breaking up)
Khi yêu, dau tim.
(When you love, your heart hurts)
I couldn't quite write this one down, but Chú Hùng (my host dad) sang for me a song about a man who would follow his love to the ends of the earth.
I also could tell you the words for get married (kết hôn), get engaged (đính hôn), boyfriend (bạn trai), ex-boyfriend (bạn trai cũ), handsome (đẹp trai) husband (chồng) and wife (vợ).
Clearly, I am now fully prepared to find my long lost soul mate...yep.... :)
Cái nhìn đầu tiên
(Love at first sight)
Em yêu anh cả đỏi.
(I'll love you for all of life)
Em cảm thây anh thay đổi.
(I feel like you've changed-Vietnamese way of breaking up)
Khi yêu, dau tim.
(When you love, your heart hurts)
I couldn't quite write this one down, but Chú Hùng (my host dad) sang for me a song about a man who would follow his love to the ends of the earth.
I also could tell you the words for get married (kết hôn), get engaged (đính hôn), boyfriend (bạn trai), ex-boyfriend (bạn trai cũ), handsome (đẹp trai) husband (chồng) and wife (vợ).
Clearly, I am now fully prepared to find my long lost soul mate...yep.... :)
Friday, October 16, 2009
Lunch at the office!
Like any good office, MCC has birthday parties about once a month for people's birthday that are close together. MCC doesn't exactly have a lot of employees, so I can't imagine this will continue very frequently all year, but I really like it! MCC has workers both in the office and doing various things in the city, so it's a great chance for everyone to get together. And there is always cake :) Yesterday we celebrated Hiro and Van Anh's birthday. I took some pictures so you could see a little more of MCC, my work day and food! On a normal work day there are about 6 people for lunch, so imagine a slightly smaller gathering for an average day.
This is Co Thu, the cook! She is fantastic. I really enjoy most of the food we eat everyday! I'm going to try to start helping out a little so I can learn to cook great Vietnamese food.
There are always a lot of different foods at one meal. Sometimes it follows what feels like a normal pattern to me with one meat, one vegetable, plus rice and always a Vietnamese soup. But other times it seems like there are a lot of options and a lot of equally main dish like things. For the party we had some sort of meat, although it looked more like bones than meat. I'm still working on enjoying eating meat like that, so I'll admit that this meal I skipped that part. We also had fresh spring rolls, which happen to be one of my favorites! And pho, which I have come to enjoy. I haven't eaten it that often, but my teacher at school eats it every day! It is definitely a Vietnamese staple.
Pho is always a little better if you add lime and maybe some ground pepper
I'm not a big fan of soups so Pho, along with many other Vietnamese dishes, has required some getting used to. And even when I like the soup I have a hard time finishing a whole bowl of it. Sometimes I think I get bored of eating before I actually am full! This might have been the first soup I have actually comletely finished!
And it's time for dessert! Yay birthday cake! This one was store bought, but still pretty good. You never quite know with Vietnamese sweets, especially flour based ones. But you can always count on the cutesy decorations. The Vietnamese love their cutesy things.
This is Co Thu, the cook! She is fantastic. I really enjoy most of the food we eat everyday! I'm going to try to start helping out a little so I can learn to cook great Vietnamese food.
There are always a lot of different foods at one meal. Sometimes it follows what feels like a normal pattern to me with one meat, one vegetable, plus rice and always a Vietnamese soup. But other times it seems like there are a lot of options and a lot of equally main dish like things. For the party we had some sort of meat, although it looked more like bones than meat. I'm still working on enjoying eating meat like that, so I'll admit that this meal I skipped that part. We also had fresh spring rolls, which happen to be one of my favorites! And pho, which I have come to enjoy. I haven't eaten it that often, but my teacher at school eats it every day! It is definitely a Vietnamese staple.
Pho is always a little better if you add lime and maybe some ground pepper
I'm not a big fan of soups so Pho, along with many other Vietnamese dishes, has required some getting used to. And even when I like the soup I have a hard time finishing a whole bowl of it. Sometimes I think I get bored of eating before I actually am full! This might have been the first soup I have actually comletely finished!
And it's time for dessert! Yay birthday cake! This one was store bought, but still pretty good. You never quite know with Vietnamese sweets, especially flour based ones. But you can always count on the cutesy decorations. The Vietnamese love their cutesy things.
Just because you have cake doesn't mean you don't get fruit, the normal dessert, too! Today we had apples and pomelos. I think I've eaten pomelo almost everyday since arriving here, the Vietnamese love it! It's is kind of grapefruity, but not at the same time. At first I didn't love them, sometimes they can be rather flavorless, or even kind of sour. But other times they are great!
And there you are, a little office lunch tour. I have to admit that I definitely miss food from home. Just the normalcy of it. And the ability to cook for myself and eat the amount I want. Sometimes I feel like I have to gear up to eat a meal here, because it's like eating out every meal in that it always feels temporary. But I am getting more used to it and I do legitimately enjoy most of it! I've also gotten much better at eating only the amount I want to. The Vietnamese are GREAT at putting food in your bowl for you when they think you should eat more, even if you feel like you've already eaten half of the food that was on the table. Oh the culture of food...how interesting!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Oregon Rainy Day
Today is a very normal day. I woke up, had some yogurt and toast, went to work, made myself some Earl Grey Tea, stalled actually working by sending some emails, worked on creating a masthead (which I recently learned is the title bar on a website) for one of Max's website with his new logo, ate lunch, worked some more, helped people adjust to using the new computers that I worked on setting up last week, read the paper (always entertaining to read the English version) and now I'm home. All of this to the background of an overcast day with an unrelenting drizzle. If I didn't know better, I might think I was back in Oregon, making the normal post-college transition to a the life of a big girl. And yet I'm in Viet Nam. Sometimes that fact still surprises me.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
This is the life!
We rode up on xe mai, aka motos, or bikes, or scooters (although not motorcycles). Xe Mai might be my new favorite thing about Viet Nam. So much so that I would like to think that when I come back to the states that is how I will get around! There was this moment while driving up where the air got suddenly crisper and we were driving next to a mountain so we were in the shadows and I got this overwhelming feeling that it is Fall. It was a beautiful moment.
We made up an interesting group, there was my Canadian friend, two of his roommates, one from New Zealand and one from Vietnam, then the roommate's friend from Switzerland and me. Two of the guys had worked there earlier this year, so they knew lots of the staff and various people around the town. We stayed with a family that they knew in a Stilt House, which is set up for tourists but is also the traditional housing style of the area. There is one long room in the front and then a back room, which seemed to be the kitchen and where the family slept. Oh, and it is set up on stilts and made completely out of bamboo. They were really cool houses. For some reason this weekend there wasn't power during the days. What was amazing to me is that is had little effect on our experience. Really, we didn't need electricity to do most of the things we did.
The weekend was filled with good things. Riding out of the village and exploring a suspension bridge, having the time to be intrigued by a pond on the other side of a field and actually go see it, Vietnamese food, lots of coffee, a few card games, a trek through the rice paddies (during rice harvest even!), a lot of laughing and just an overall break from city life. I look forward to many more weekends here in Viet Nam!
PS I have finally added some pictures to facebook. So for a couple more from this weekend, and other various times over the last two months, check out this album.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Mid-Autumn Festival
Happy Moon Day Everyone!
Ok, well, it's a little late. Technically Mid-Autumn Festival, or moon day as I like to call it, was Saturday. It's the full moon, and mid-fall...that is about all I know of it. But it was fun. It is kind of their version of Halloween, it's about little kids, and mooncake (this super sweet dessert) and little toys and masks. How it is already mid-fall I have yet to figure out. It did cool down a bit here last week temparture wise, and I notice a few leaves are yellowing, but that's about it. Somehow though, it is fall!
I celebrated moon-day at a party at Calah's host family's home. It was fun. Not quite what I was expecting. People kept saying that Mid-Autumn Festival is about kids, but I kind of assumed that, like Halloween, adults still did things too. But no, this party was thrown for us (the foreigners) and the kids! We played games, sang songs, won prizes, ate a lot of food, overall had a great time. I felt just like a kid at a birthday party :) Loved it!
Ok, well, it's a little late. Technically Mid-Autumn Festival, or moon day as I like to call it, was Saturday. It's the full moon, and mid-fall...that is about all I know of it. But it was fun. It is kind of their version of Halloween, it's about little kids, and mooncake (this super sweet dessert) and little toys and masks. How it is already mid-fall I have yet to figure out. It did cool down a bit here last week temparture wise, and I notice a few leaves are yellowing, but that's about it. Somehow though, it is fall!
I celebrated moon-day at a party at Calah's host family's home. It was fun. Not quite what I was expecting. People kept saying that Mid-Autumn Festival is about kids, but I kind of assumed that, like Halloween, adults still did things too. But no, this party was thrown for us (the foreigners) and the kids! We played games, sang songs, won prizes, ate a lot of food, overall had a great time. I felt just like a kid at a birthday party :) Loved it!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
A Tour? Yes, Please!
Here are a couple little glimpses into my house here:
This is the street that I live on (the redish roof on the left is my house). It is the most residential looking street I've seen in Hanoi. My neighborhood is a new development called Trung Yen. You might say I live in the Queen Anne of Hanoi...
Here are three of the four locks between the outside and me. My family is very security conscious, quite unnecessarily in my opinion....
And here is a little guided tour :) Please Enjoy.
Sadly this is the spot of the video of the downstairs, which is clearly not present at this time. For some reason it has decided to rebel against me and not load. Maybe I will be able to add it later but for now the tour of my room will have to do....
Sidenote: Hanoi is by far the noisiest place I have ever been-I would say it even beats living in the res halls! Currently there is a drumbeat coming from somewhere outside, music that sounds like The Wheels on the Bus, constant honking, plus kids playing in the park and I would consider this a relatively quiet time!
This is my house from the outside. It goes up five stories.
This is the street that I live on (the redish roof on the left is my house). It is the most residential looking street I've seen in Hanoi. My neighborhood is a new development called Trung Yen. You might say I live in the Queen Anne of Hanoi...
Here are three of the four locks between the outside and me. My family is very security conscious, quite unnecessarily in my opinion....
And here is a little guided tour :) Please Enjoy.
Sadly this is the spot of the video of the downstairs, which is clearly not present at this time. For some reason it has decided to rebel against me and not load. Maybe I will be able to add it later but for now the tour of my room will have to do....
And finally, here is an awkward self timer picture :)
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