Catching you up about our week in Viet Nam

Full details after the City Orientation:

Dorian, Christine and I went to check out the night market since the Ben Thanh market had long closed. The saleswomen were pretty aggressive and it was a bit off-putting. We walked through the stores and realized it was no different than many of the shops along the roads. The area we were in -Ho Chi Minh City- was definitely a touristy area. Everything was essentially priced for Americans. In fact, one boutique Dorian and I had checked out was great and had stuff we wanted...until we saw the price tag wasn't in Vietnamese Dong but rather in USD. No bueno. We left real fast lol. Anyway, we walked up and down the booths. Most had the same stuff but offered it for similar prices. We got dragged into trying some of the two piece Vietnamese outfits which I loved on the women but not on me. The saleslady got on my nerves tugging on my arm and totally ignoring my apparent disinterest. Ugh. She kept trying to invite herself to the ATM with me...and I calmly and politely kept telling her no thank you then she tried to drag Dorian into it. She told Dorian to ask me how much did I want to pay for it and all of this stuff... we both looked at each other like we need to get out of here fast. Fortunately Christine was buying something because the lady did a 360. She got real nasty and angry quick. Most people try to be polite when you don't buy something, she took it personal (although her personality killed any possibility of a sell but still) that was unprofessional how hostile she got haha. 

We split (Dorian and I had that sketchy foot massage as I mentioned in my previous post) Christine went with Eylee who we'd ran into. Once we got done with it, we ended up running to catch the last shuttle (10:30pm) saving us taxi money. It was awesome meeting up with Christine and Eylee who we told the details. They thought it was hysterical. Me and Dorian couldn't stop laughing either.




Mekong Delta Day Trip:

Too much happened to recount it word by word. It was far more action-packed than any of us could have imagined. The itinerary did not give much information about what it would entailed. Anyways, it was about a 2 hour bus ride into the rural part of South Viet Nam. Then we got into a ferry/boat thing and had fresh coconut cracked and given straws to drink the juice right out of it. It was hot but being on the water was awesome. We slowed down to look at the fisherman shacks on the water, then we got to observe some guys dumping freshly caught fish into huge bags to be sold. One of the guys held a writhing fish up so that we could take pictures. I opted out of that photo. Then we continued down the river towards an opening that I couldn't really make out from a distance. It surprised all of us because it was legit. In fact, it was almost like traveling down the Amazon. It was like a channel which connected another civilization to the rest of life. We traveled downstream for about 15 minutes. There were all types of wild plants and trees on both sides of us. It was like the forest or jungle of South Viet Nam. The guide pointed to a snake farm further in the distance. He named the freshwater creatures in the water. He pointed out the water coconut trees. All and all it was pretty cool scenery. We got off at a random clearing and proceeded to continue our commute via horses. This shocked everyone. Looks like we were getting a little bit of everything. The horse experience was a bit more sad than enjoyable. We weren't going horseback riding into the humid Viet Nam sunset as we immediately envisioned (or at least I did... I was totally planning on taking a cool picture with me on the horse for my next profile pic). Instead, there were very young looking horses tugging seaters with rather rigid owners who readily whipped them. We worried about the weight of six SAS'ers not including the owner who practically angled himself on the puny horse who was already struggling. From our seats we could see splotches where the horse had suffered from some sort of infection. We kept exchanging sympathetic glances when the owner muttered some words and whipped it. He was going as fast as he could possibly go but we were heavy. Shaking my head. That was sad. But anyhow, we waited for everyone to arrive by horse and then we were led into this woodsy patio area. There were clothes and other Vietnamese items for sale in one corner. There were a number of tables and we were seated before being served our “snack” which consisted of fruit... we had Papaya, pineapple, dragonfruit and some other exotic fruits found in Viet Nam whose names I absolutely can't remember. A group of two women and two guys sung and played the guitar. There was a huge python sitting on the table that a couple of us went over and took pictures with. I gotta say it was heavier than I expected. It was cold and it felt like a massive amount of weight on my shoulders. I begin to freak out after the fact that I had a python on my shoulders and I was holding its moving head in my hand, steering clear of my face. But hey, its something else I could say I did. We left that place and headed by motor canoe this time into another village. We had lunch at a sit down restaurant and that was the highlight of my day. I walked around simply hungry and constantly dehydrated. Viet Nam humidity and heat is like no other. This particular trip in which the list of things for us to do seemed to grow showcased whether or not we could tolerate it. Each table was served a whole fish on a skewer.  There was a server for each table as well. She prepared our food for us. She used rice paper, put a little bit of the noodles as base, placed some of the “leaves” as we called them, then she broke off pieces of the fish. She'd then roll it up almost like a sushi and plop it down on our plates. It was odd to say the least. The bulk of the rice paper tasted like plastic yet it was edible. I found myself eating the parts of the paper that had been moisten by the grease of the fish only because that seemed to soften it. It was very crispy but didn't really taste like much. Dorian couldn't eat most of what was there because she didn't like fish. A few other people were vegetarians, but we in general was wondering if we would have other options or if that was our lunch. Almost like our prayers were heard, more food came out. An eclectic and unknown plate of fried stuff/animal on a stick of lemongrass was delicious. There was rice, pho and some other stuff I can't remember. We finished and headed to the original ferry/boat to go to another surrounding island and watch how they made coconut candy. Upon our arrival we got to taste a fresh batch of warm coconut and caramel candy. It was amazing... there were samples of the flavors once cooled and wrapped. There was a ginger coconut, milk coconut, caramel coconut and a banana coconut. All in all a very packed trip as I said. Was exhausted when we finally got back but the night was hardly over.

I ended up going out with Jack, Courtney and Rebecca. We ended up at some Irish pub where I tried Larue Export. It was similar to a Heineken. We sat around and had some serious conversations about race, about the prostitution and high HIV rate in Viet Nam. We stopped at a corner store, grabbed some junk food. Then went to a club called Lavish which had some of the best club music I had heard in a while... honestly the DJ was awesome. A ton of folks commented about that as well. Funny tidbit, happy birthday came on. No really. It was a real song with real verses. It was great though. We danced to it =) There we ran into Taylor, Fan and Chris. It was and always is hilarious to be greeted by drunk people. There was this incredible enthusiasm and love that was just awesome to walk in. We totally felt like VIPs. I mean they were so beside themselves with liquor that they were giving us these dramatic hugs and introducing us to the all the new people they met... haha. But as I mentioned in older posts, its nothing like running into SAS folks when we are in the club. It's nothing but love. There is a certain level of relief that comes from recognizing each other even though we may be spread throughout the city. Another funny tidbit that will be forever a Viet Nam memory: There were security guards in the club. Lots of them. They were stiff, serious guys who took their jobs uber seriously. They ran to the rescue whenever they saw anyone out of "hand" or if you wanted to do something as simple as pass someone... no they had to put their arms out like they were directing traffic and clear the floor. It was one to every few tables. They kept the sides pretty divided and almost like an usher does at a church service, they had their backs to guard someone dancing a little out of their "spot." Forget about when people ordered drinks and it was brought to their table. It was like Moses parting the seas. If you had to use the bathroom, they escorted you too. WEIRDDDD. It was just foreign to us because they were so awkward and unnecessary it would have been difficult to dance or get into the groove if the music wasn't that great. Crazy fun night that ended pretty ironic too. That whole crew (Taylor, Chris etc) ended up going with the locals they met to some other club. Courtney and Becca were pretty upset because Jack and I didn't want to jump in the cab with them and go off. After watching a very drunk guy get on his motorcycle and zigzag away, and just being conscious drinkers, neither Jack or I was under the influence that much to be that foolish and run off with strangers. They grumbled a bit and we ended up in search of a cab to head back to the ship. Jack had mentioned a guy who had approached him about prostitutes and drugs. This very same guy happened to be around when we stopped briefly. He asked me a basic question then walked past me and asked Jack if he wanted cocaine or marijuana. Jack half pushed him away, telling him no. It was comical at the very worst. Lol. Then we spent the next couple of minutes trying to find a cab driver who understood where we were going and had reasonable prices. None of them really grasped so we just went with the lesser of the confused. Lol. It was against Jack's protocal and he was like a mother hen scolding us but we got back fine and didn't feel too ripped off. We got back to the ship and saw Jamie, Ian, JoJo and some other folks standing outside of Ocean Club. They talked about it and Jamie ended up going inside with us to check it out. It was like stepping into a music video scene. It was an elaborate fancy club with fog, flashing lights, a stage with 3 barely clothed dancers... it was awesome. The only other odd thing was the security guards and how they stood around but we were prepped on their behavior having left Lavish. At some point one of the guys begin to hound us and told Jack that we couldn't stay if we didn't order anything. This is of course rubbish and totally inappropriate seeing as a club is a club and no one should be coerced into buying a drink. We were dancing and we didn't want any (more) alcohol. We ignored the guys and more of them begin to flock around us like we were dangerous criminals. They told us we would have to go. Some of the nearby SAS'ers with a table waved us over and asked us what was happening. We told them and they said the same thing had happened with them. They'd ordered juice because their drink menu was too expensive and the guys got mad and told them if they didn't order any drinks they would have to leave. Shaking my head at the fact that they complied... ahh... people I tell ya. They let people push them around much too easily. We walked out laughing. Jack was talking to the owner/manager and telling him what was going on. Jack told him if they acted this way, we could easily tell the 600 other students on the ship and they would lose business. I mean after all, it was a bigggggg beautiful spot, but oh so empty other than us and the few random SAS kids. The manager was pretty apologetic and said that they shouldn't have done that and that next time it would be different. I decided to test his words and said how about we go back in. He said okay and we walked in. The guys swarmed us in again and tried to give us drink menus and we just looked at them and told them no and continued dancing. They let up when someone told them what the manager said but they didn't stop standing around us which was annoying. They were trying to intimidate us. We eventually left when we felt like it, and that was most important. Jamie was shaking his head at us. But eh, its not about anything but the principle. You can't do that and we wanted them to know that we knew that wasn't okay. I think we were successful =)

rabbed our laptops and sat outside good ole Sushiya. Some hours later we say Taylor running frantically towards the ship, she returned still running with a steward. She headed back to the gate. We finally saw Chris in a wheelchair with his head being held by Taylor and being rushed by with a trail of the SAS folks who had partied with them. They were intoxicated and crying. We couldn't make out what happened but we wondered if it had anything to do with the people they'd went with... was it drugs? Turns out he was just dehydrated. Pretty sure he got serious dock time though.

Cu Chi Tunnels & Cao Dao Temple:

I don't know what this experience was like because I was so darn tired that I overslept and missed it. Ain't that some shiz! This was one of the trips I was most excited about of my Viet Nam trips. I had spent the night and early morning out on the curb of Sushiya with a ton of other SAS'ers using their wifi long after they closed. I am not sure who found out that the password was “sushi” haha, but they shared it and suddenly we all knew it. The possibility of chatting and skyping with friends back home was too alluring for me to go to sleep at decent hours. After all, 2 am our time was just about 3 in the afternoon back on the east coast. I was lucky and caught some people. That only fueled that insanity in thinking I could stay out a lot longer with the other crazy folks until 4-6 am. Anyways, those who did go said it was the longest trip of their lives haha. It was scheduled from 8 am to 7 pm. Apparently the temple and tunnels were at least 4 hours or so away from each other. The only thing I cared about was the tunnels. I can't really picture what that must have been like. The stories my friends told me was that they were extremely narrow, catered to thinner and shorter people, and there were bats inside. They expressed feelings of claustrophobia since it was dark, it was hot, and there was no end to the tunnel in sight. They also could not really see who was in front of or behind them. A couple of people were crying and or wailing to get out. Sounds like my kinda fun. Sad I missed it. I woke up at 8:15 am. I looked outside and had false hope that I could make it. Unfortunately by the time I got out there it was at least 8:20/30 maybe. I also realized that the three big buses I saw parked were in fact the usual parked shuttle buses. Instead I talked to the crew steward for a good 30 minutes. Then about faced and took my butt back to bed to properly finish what I interrupted =)


Service Visit: (I forget the official name of the school) but it is a School for the Deaf and a Zoo Visit
      So... for this trip I packed my camera but to my disbelief and disappointment, my battery was in my room plugged in the outlet fully charged. I had picked this particular service trip with the inclusion of the zoo because I wanted to see the Vietnamese zoo. The first half of the service trip was brief. We went to the school which was bright, colorful and everything even the stairs we walked up were labeled in Vietnamese. A few kids did a dance and another did a poem for us. Then we were split into groups and the kids drew pictures and got stickers. Then we were told to grab a kid and head to the bus for our trip to the zoo. Welps, some of the kids were doing their own choosing because next thing you knew there was none left. I was pretty indifferent so I was fine childless haha. Anyhow, we got on the bus and it was mayhem as we tried to figure out how we would all fit. People were stuffing kids on their laps and with the traffic in Viet Nam it wasn't the safest idea. When we brought the kids from the Disabled Home in India to the ship, they traveled on their own bus for liability purposes. It was interesting to see the different dynamics. It was so freaking awesome and I had no camera to record or capture it. The zoo had everything! Everyone but 5 SAS'ers (I was in that 5) had a kid that they were responsible for. I ended up helping out with folks kids. They were a handful and people were grateful for the extra eyes and hands.  The first thing we saw when we got off the bus was the elephants. We distributed the boxed lunches to the kids and they were tickled by the elephants. We spent like a good 15 minutes just watching them. What they do with their trunks can become quite weird after watching for some time. Lol. Okay, so then we moved forward to the monkeys. Some woman appeared with carrots which some people took thinking it was free. Turns it wasn't and she expected money. She followed us for some time around the zoo. She was not a happy camper. Lol. There were lions, tigers (white siberian ones and bengal ones), orangutans, other monkeys, crocodiles, peacocks, random birds, black bears, hippos, and a ton of other things. Again, sad that I didn't bring my camera =(


Service Visit: Nguyen Dinh Chieu- School for the Blind
         Let me just tell you. I was surprised I even made it to this trip. It was from 7:30 am to noon. I can barely get up for my Global Studies class at 9:50 am. I make it to breakfast on occasion and by that I mean when we arrive in port. But after a week in Viet Nam where I was out all types of the night and my sleep pattern out of wack, I missed breakfast all but one day. Breakfast in Viet Nam is super crucial as compared to some places because of the overall heat and I am not a heat kinda gal. I would much rather be cold than hot (to answer that age old question). Moving on, I was one of 7 other SAS students who was that committed to wake up and turn up for this trip. Dean Al was once again our trip leader.
        The first thought I had when we walked into the premises of the School for the Blind was how clean things looked. It was pretty pristine compared to the facilities in India. I also begin to wonder how many facilities back in the states were dedicated to the blind. I hadn't recalled any within my immediate location. It was run by very dedicated teachers thats for sure. The children were delightful and it was a learning experience for sure. If you want anymore details, ask me. Lol. We basically did a lot of talking to the teachers there. We played with the children the best we could. Our toys we brought were useless because majority required vision. I don't know who packed that stuff for this trip... shaking my head. The kids were also in school and had a routine that we observed and tried not to interrupt. I also found it kind of amusing and interesting to see how they navigated throughout the buildings and the playground without sight. There were many lines of kids holding onto each other as they walked. The minute they got to their destination they would drop arms and get to wrestling as kids do. I also got bumped into a number of times and that was pretty funny. I looked over and a bunch of us was having that same moment where you are surrounded by children in uniform who are in a rush with a sense of urgency and we happened to be but isolated dots in their immediate way.
       We got to check out a map in Braille which was given to each of us a souvenir. We learned about the levels of learning for each of the students. We learned of how they were selected and where they came from. Of the students about 75 lived in the dormitories because they lived far away from the Ho Chi Minh City.... got more details if you want them!

ps, we arrive in Shanghai by 8 am and it is 3:22 am. I am thoroughly exhausted!  I will update about Hong Kong maybe tomorrow =)