Vietnam

I’ve spent the past few days trying to think of what to write in this thing. I know I promised to keep an online journal but for some reason, when I sit down to type up my entries, most of the time the words just won’t flow.

We left Vietnam last night and well, I think it’s a good time to start writing. I have so much to say about Vietnam and I don’t really know where to begin.

I feel like I have been living in a bubble for the past 20 years of my life. I never really concerned myself with the world. As a matter of fact, I think I thought America WAS the world. Of course I knew that there were other places and that people were different, but did I really, honestly care?

Last night as we got back to the port gates, the same men who had been waiting there on the day we arrived smiled at us, waved at us and told us goodbye. They told us good luck, they said they would miss us. These men, these poor men who tried to get us to ride their motorcycles and rickshaws for $1 us dollar were now telling us goodbye in the most sincere way I’ve ever witnessed. It was very emotional for me. I wanted to turn back and promise them that I would come back some day, that I’d see them again. I don’t want to go back to America and become the same person I was… so wrapped up in my busy life, not having enough time to even stop and realize what I have, how lucky I am, what‘s going on everywhere else in the world. I do want to come back to Vietnam. Out of the 8 countries I’ve been to in my life, Vietnam is by far my favorite.

The people are poor. They are so poor. I took a 3 day trip to the Mekong Delta. We witnessed poverty like you wouldn’t believe. But one thing was certain: many of the people, despite their living conditions, were happy. They smile and wave at us Americans… the children jump up and down with joy, they want to touch our hands, they want to stand next to us. The Vietnamese seem to be very family oriented. They weren’t like the Chinese, who are forced to only have one child. The Vietnamese families had many children… boys, girls, pets!

I can’t really explain everything I saw and how poor they were and how sad their living conditions were. But what I can say is that despite everything I witnessed, I was impressed. I was impressed with their sincerity, their respect, their helpfulness. These are the nicest people I have ever come into contact with and I know I’ll never forget them.

On our second day on the Mekong Delta we headed to an orphanage. It was an overwhelming, emotional experience for me. The children ranged from ages newborn - 18 years old. There were 3 newborns. They all had birth defects. The oldest girl was 18 years old and was preparing for a test. If she passes, she’ll have the opportunity to go to college! About 98% of the children we interacted with were young boys. It was so, so heartbreaking. Many of them were dropped off at the orphanage because their families could not afford to take care of mentally and/or physically disabled children. The boys who did not have any birth defects seemed to really love us. We played with them, gave them candy, blew bubbles, took pictures of them and then showed them the pictures (they really liked that!). After our visit I learned that our visiting was very important in the development of the children because visitors very rarely come to this specific orphanage. When I first walked into the orphanage their were disabled children lying on the floors. They were very handicapped… At first I wanted to cry but then I went through a series of emotions: sadness, anger, curiosity… I wanted to help, I wanted to know why people give up their children, how they can give up a child, I wanted to know what was wrong with the children, how old they were. A lot of my questions went unanswered but that was okay. For a couple of hours, I got to brighten up the life of a child who barely has anything in the world.

Besides the orphanage, I witnessed a lot of other things. We took a bike ride around the Delta for 2 hours. We rode through a lot of mud, trees, villages, past a school, over bridges, etc. We were in what our tour guide called the “Amazon” minus the animals. According to our guide, the tigers, elephants and monkeys migrated to Northern Vietnam when the people came to live on/near the Delta. Anyways, the bike ride was so much fun. We got to see what real village life is really about. Most of the people live in small shacks. About 80% of the houses we saw were very small shacks with either tin or straw and wood roofs. Most of the houses had a dog out front and almost every single house had pet chickens or roosters. There were dogs running everywhere -- some even chased us on the bikes. Most just looked at us because they are so used to people on bikes… the Vietnamese usually don’t drive cars, but mainly motorcycles and bicycles. The hens and roosters seem to be very popular among the village people. It was so interesting to see all of these people living as they do. It really was like another world.

On the first night of our 3 day trip we all (22 of us) got to sleep in a cottage on stilts on the river. We slept on cots (8 cots to a room) with mosquito nets hanging over them. The locals performed a show for us - they sang traditional Vietnamese songs and played instruments. Our host family cooked an amazing meal and we all lounged around in hammocks afterward. Our cots weren’t uncomfortable at all. I was a little nervous about sleeping outdoors (there were no real doors) because of the mosquitoes and bugs but I drenched myself in deet and slept under a blanket even though it was hot out. The next morning we took cold showers (hot water isn’t available) and our host family made us all breakfast!

Our second night was spent in a hotel in downtown Cain Tho, the largest city on the Mekong River. That night we all went out to a nice dinner and the next morning after breakfast we headed to the floating markets. The floating markets are basically a bunch of locals in boats. The boats are loaded down with fruits and vegetables… if you need carrots, you pull up along side of a boat selling carrots and you and the seller exchange money and goods. It’s really an amazing site to see. Our boat driver pulled our boat alongside a family selling pineapples and the family ended up slicing fresh pineapples for all of us. It was one of the greatest experiences.
Usually before the markets, families back up for 3-4 days and they live on their small boats for the time it takes them to get to/from the market and while they do their selling. We saw a lot of boats (remember, these are not big boats.. They are about 15-40 feet long, 6 feet wide) with 3 or 4 family members (including children) dogs and hens/roosters. I guess they pack up their whole family for these market selling outings. It’s really bizarre but so amazing to witness.

Once our trip ended, we headed back to the ship in Ho Chi Minh. Of course since it was our last night in Vietnam, a bunch of us went out. We went to a Karaoke bar where we all sang Karaoke together… the locals let us pick a few American songs to sing. They loved us! After, we headed to a few other bars. The Semester at sea people seemed to have gotten along great with all of the locals. On our last night, I rode a motorcycle. We needed to get to a place about a 15 minute walk away and everyone was hopping on the back of motorcycles. Usually, you pay 1-2 US dollars a person and the motorcycle men will take you were you want to go. Well, my friend Sam and I got onto the back of one. I was so scared! I screamed at first and the driver screamed, too. Mostly he was just laughing at me! Later that night I took another motorcycle back to the ship. This time, we all had to get on one by ourselves… so it was only me and the driver. He told me that he would remember me and love me forever and that me and all of my friends were very beautiful. I laughed and he laughed. I told him to drive slow because I was scared and he did! He was very nice! As much as I loved being transported for so cheap, I still feel bad that these people hardly make any money. Most of them wait on the corners of streets all day, just to transport other people.

Leaving Vietnam was sad not only because I loved the country and the people and the city but because I know that once we leave, these men and women will make even less money. At one point, Ho Chi Minh locals depended on Semester At Sea for income. They knew that twice a year students would arrive for 5 days and that during those 5 days, their businesses would flourish. Since then, Ho Chi Minh has become a tourist spot for many besides us and it has also become the home to a lot more people. The locals still love us, but they don’t necessarily depend on only us.

For an example, for 5 days straight, many of the semester at sea people (students, staff, crew, faculty) shopped. We all bought clothing, dvds, crafts, dresses. Me and my 6 friends bought 2-3 dresses each! I had two custom dresses made and bought one that was already made. My friend James spent well over $600 USD on gifts for people. My friend Whitney bought $350 worth of dresses and suits from the tailor. So, you can kind of see what I mean. ….. At the pottery place we visited, the average daily pay was only $8 and that was one of the nicer places to work.

I seem to be all over the place with my thoughts. Overall, Vietnam was amazing. It was my favorite port so far, I loved the people, the city, everything. Despite the communism, despite the poverty, despite the culture shock I experienced, I loved everything and I will definitely make an effort to plan another trip back to Vietnam later in life.