Presenting: Mushroom and Logan aka Best Roomies Ever! (Plus Joey)

The Gang at our Work Site

Some of My Soccer Buddies

The last picture I took of the beach before my camera died

Yes, those are cows in the background!!!

Where to Begin....

Okay, so a LOT has happened since I lasted posted….sorry.  They just keep us sooo busy it’s hard to find time here to ride my bike over to the coffee shop to get on the Internet.

Anyways, our project is really coming along.  The other group (they are building a parking structure at the youth center) should actually finish their project this week (a week early!)  We have already built up four walls of cement bricks and pretty much finished the foundation of our restroom.  We will have to put the roof up soon and do the plumbing part.  Oh and by the way….we found out very quickly that toilets in Vietnam are VERY different from the ones in the States.  They have these things that we have been calling “Squatters.”  You literally squat over this hole thingy.  At one particular placce, it was just a flat, cement floor that you were suppose to go on and then wash away your stuff with the water bucket.  Let’s just say that held it that day!  Luckily, our hotel/guest house has the kind of toilets that we are use to.  I’m not sure what kind of toilets we will be putting in ours though.  When we finish all the construction, I am hoping that they will allow us to paint some sort of mural on the side.  It sounds like the people here don’t really care for that sort of stuff, so we will see…

This weekend was really interesting and fun.  We had a tour that started at 8 in the morning (late for us!) and took a bus to a bunch of different religious and war relics.  We actually got to see an old church that had been completely bombed but was still standing. 

We then went into a Vietnamese cemetery.  I know, it sounds kinda strange that we would be going into one, but they are actually very beautiful.  In the Vietnamese culture, people really worship their ancestors.  They all have these different shrines in their houses and spend TONS of money building the grave site that will hold most of their family members (think Mulan only a little different).  Our leader, Alice, told us that her parents use to fight over sending money to help build the grave or getting their son braces.  Each grave looks like its own mini Asian temple with intricate colors, dragons, and details.  

After that, we went to this bombed chapel where Mother Mary was said to have been seen (even the Vatican confirms it).  We also went to the DMZ (De-militarized zone).  This was the dividing barrier between the North and South of Vietnam and acted as the boundary and MAJOR war zone during the war.  Alice told us that the equivalent bomb power of 7 Hiroshima Atomic Bombs had been dropped here.

Then we were off to the tunnels.  This was SUPER cool!  In the war, about 400 people lived underground for 6 years!!!!!  They dug these MASSIVE tunnels that spanned miles and miles and housed hundreds of families.  They even had a school room, bathroom, baby nursery, and meeting area.  The tunnels protected these people from the bombs that constantly fell from the sky (America never even knew these people were living underground).  We got to walk around throughout some of the tunnels.  The tunnels weren’t super tall, but I couldn’t get over how deep in the ground they went!  We have now had 1^st-hand experience digging through the concrete-like soil, and I can NOT imagine digging tunnels more than twenty underground!

Finally, we ended up in my favorite part of all: the beach!  This was the most gorgeous beach I have even seen, and, of course, my camera decide to die just as we were pulling up (luckily others got some good shots).  There were VERY few people on the beach.  Lots of small, “Asian”-style boats had been pulled ashore.  Devyn and I and a few other boys got our bathing suits on and ran into the water.  It was the perfect temperature and not too salty either.  Dev and I went on a walk as the sun was setting, and then Max and I went on a run as the food cooked. SO fun!  Also, the place we were eating was RIGHT on the beach.  They literally pulled these bamboo mats up onto the beach and we all sat on the ground and ate fresh crab and shrimp! YUM

Of course, on the ride home, Mushroom and I HAD to start rapping!  It’s our thing now!  We sing everything….every time we talk, we rap or sing (aka: I’m going to the bathroom la la la)  J

Anyways, the next day we had a free day.  A bunch of us rode our bikes 45 minutes (VERY LONG and that’s only one-way!) to Tien’s house!  She lives in a small village and her family was SO excited to see us.  They have this cute, little house that has chickens and a small cement pond in the backyard.  We all got to catch the catfish in her pond.  Her dad would hit them on the head with a mallet (sorry Kayla) and then we would slide them onto skewers to roast over this cool oven/fire thing, and eat them with our lunch.  Her mom and sister made us the yummy meal and we all ate in the traditional fashion: all sitting cross-legged on the ground.  Her dad is an Oriental Medicine doctor and had all these viles and glass containers full of bizarre, dried up plants and fruits.  It was really funny when he should us this one leaf that he makes a tea with and is the natural “Viagra!”

This week has already gotten off to a great start.  After work last night, we all rode our bikes to Phong’s house after buying food from the market.  We had this WAY TOO SPICY noodle dish with pig ears and then this stuff called sticky rice (my new favorite-it’s just like the name sounds only it is a different plant than normal rice and that’s why it’s stickier).

Everyone is really excited for this weekend because we will be traveling to the city where they all go to college.  Mushroom is going to show me her dorm and take me around on her motorbike.  We are also supposed to go out “boozing” (what they call drinking).  Should be fun….

HERE ARE SOME OTHER RANDOM THINGS:

For the past week and a half, me, Bao and Juan Pablo (Duke kids), have been playing soccer with the local kids every night at 5.  This is totally the coolest place I have ever played soccer, and it is SO much fun!  We ride our bikes to the town square that has a really open area where lots of boys play soccer.  Lots of people come out to watch us play.  On one side of us is the river and on the other side is this huge Asian-looking temple!  It turns out, I’m actually pretty famous!  In our school teaching, I have had different boys come up to me and know my name and ask if I am playing soccer that night, and I’ve never even meet them!  It turns out that no girls here would ever play with the boys, so they all think it’s cool (I hope) that I play! 

On another note, I have started going on runs during the down times at our work site.  We are starting to get to more of the technical stuff while building the restroom and sometimes find that only two of the ten people are actually needed for some particular task.  So I have started running down the village roads, through the jungle, with anyone that wants to join.  They are such beautiful, long runs.  I run on this relatively flat, dirt road with the mountains in front of me, a river beside me, bare-foot farmers tending to their wet, green rice patties, and roaming chickens and cows chillin around me.  The village people usually stare or wave, and I really can’t blame them. 

Ummm…another thing that I thought was so interesting was when my roommate, Mushroom, was put in charge of bringing the first-aid kit to the work site each day.  That night, she read the entire first-aid manual/handbook and checked all the supplies inside of it to make sure they were there and to know what they look liked.  I guess I thought that this was so strange because no American would sit down and read that thing.  I mean, I would just assume that when the time comes, I would just open some things, rub em on, and put a band-aid on it.  I think this really points to the Vietnamese’s strong work ethic and desire to do their own assigned tasks correctly.

Also, something else that I find a little strange is that on the works sites, almost all of the Vietnamese kids and ALL of our on-site, Vietnamese construction workers wear flip-flops.  I mean, we are hammering away at things, mixing cement, carrying bricks, and all this stuff, and they all do it with practically bare feet! Pretty impressive, especially since no one seems to ever get hurt!

Off to play soccer now! More to come…..

xo

New Updates! Check Them Out!

2 new blog posts and a video (the market)

Funnies

So, are roommates are SUPER EXCITED and fun all the time.  Every meal we have with them turns into this shouting and laughing extravaganza!!!  They love to tell us funny stories and jokes.  Half of our laughs are just from having no idea what they are actually saying!  Here are some funny things that some of the roommates have said/done:

• Today, at lunch, one roommate told us that “Lots of times, people eat mushroom and then laugh all day”
• Last night, we were all in tears because the girls were showing us their inappropriate hand gestures….just imagine them trying to explain them!  It was great, especially when an American, Bao, on the other side of the table started making the signs without knowing what they meant.
• Today, at the work site, they kept asking us to help them pronounce “Cement.”  They kept saying “Semen” and we all had a good laugh trying to explain to them the difference between “Cement” and “Semen”

An update...finally!

HIIIIII

Right now, Devyn and I just found the coffee shop with wifi that is about a five minute walk from our guest house…We had to go in a couple of different ones while everyone looked at us like we were crazy.  We had to buy a coffee to use it but it is SO worth it! Also, their coffee here is really cool-it sits in this metal container above your cup and drips down sort of like a mini coffee maker, filtering itself---totally tastes like chocolate.

Time for the update!

On Saturday we took a 1 hour 30 min flight (who knew Vietnam was so big?) to the central region.  We are now in city called Quang Tre.  It is very different from Ho Chi Minh.  Unlike the huge city before, this is a pretty small town next to a river and it is UBER, UBER hot and dry!!!  We are staying in a guest house similar to the one before.  I have learned now that a guest house is sort of like a hotel but the government owns them.

At the airport, we got in a bus and went to pick up our new roommates at their school.  I was super nervous but my roommate is AWESOME! Her name is Nhung…but she tells everyone to call her Mushroom HAHAHAHA (She is SUPER tiny and very cute).  So far, we have gotten along very, very well!  She loves the picture book that I got her and keeps saying how “beautiful” my family is (I haven’t told her how crazy we actually are yet).  She takes me around the markets and helps me to bargain with all of the ladies.  She even gave me this really cool wooden book mark that her dad gave her and a necklace.  Today, after she saw me picking at my nail polish to try to take it off, she went out and got me some remover!

It’s a pretty big deal that she gave me things because most FAMILIES make only about $1,000 a year, and even though all the prices are much cheaper here for Americans, it’s still expensive for them.  Her dad is a police man and her mom works on their farm where they grow peanuts, rice, corn, and some other stuff that I didn’t really catch lol. 

The market here is SOOOO crazy and neat.  There are SOOO many things to see and buy.  It is set up right along the river and there is some pretty gross and strange looking things in the food market part---tons of raw meat, fish heads and parts, baskets of dried sardine heads and maggots, strange looking fruit, HUGE piles of salt on these open baskets, and lots of NASTY smells haha. 

But it is really cool and everyone LOVES us.  They want us to take pictures with us; they follow us around; and they tell our roommates that we are “so pretty and beautiful” Well duhhhhh J

Last night we had our opening ceremony with all of our roommates and local officials at this really cool restaurant in the jungle that was directly over a lilly pond.  They even had these 2 monkeys just chillin in a cage!  We at this huge 10 dish meal (family style) and people would get up on stage to perform.  It was sooo funny because ALL of the Vietnamese officials stood up to sing songs and give speeches.  It was like our own Karaoke bar….we kept saying how this would NEVER happen in America.  People were pretty much fighting for the mike.  All the Americans got up to sing a Vietnamese number song we learned in class and then started shouting the YMCA.  Then we had a huge dance party…super fun!

Our full schedule starts this week. We have to wake up at 4:30 in the morning, work till 11, eat lunch, then from 2-5 we teach English to middle schoolers, dinner at 6, and then we are supposed to plan with our group the next day’s teaching lesson.  WHEEEEEWWWW! It’s a LOT!

There are two separate projects: one at the local youth center in the middle of town to build a parking structure and one in the rural village to build a restroom at an elementary school.  Devyn and I are working on the restroom.  It is an AMAZING ride into the village.  We ride down the small town’s main road and then get off on this dirt path and ride along a river, through rice patties with mountains in the distance, and cows just chillin in the fields.  The elementary school for the village is actually pretty nice.  It is very, very open.  There are no doors and a few windows to let the breeze in. 

So this morning, we had to wake up at 4:30!!! To get to breakfast by 5 (I had my favorites noodles: Beef Pho) and then we rode our bikes about 25 minutes to the site. I couldn’t believe it was actually hot and the sun hadn’t even come out yet.

We had to pull out and rake up TONS of weeds and lots of creepy bugs, frogs, and lizards in them!  Then some of the group set off to bend and cut the steel for the frame of the building.  I went to start digging the holes and it was THE HARDEST WORKOUT EVER!  For 4 hours we swung, hit, and tried to dig holes in the driest, hardest land ever.  It took us the whole time to just make 4 separate, square holes that were each a foot deep.  It was really, really tiring but everyone had a good time too!  Afterwards, it was off to lunch where everyone CHOWED DOWN!! We were all starving from all the exercise and ate EVERYTHING in silence hehe.  Our bodies were so sore, all we could do was eat (I was too hungry to even bother using the chopsticks) 

In the rural areas, all of the meals are served family style.  However, unlike the US where there are big spoons in each dish to serve yourself, everyone just sticks their chop sticks in whatever they want and sometimes puts it in their own bowl.  UGGGHHHH….this is a little difficult for me seeing that I am a GERMAPHOBE, but so far, I’ve been too hungry and had to get over it (don’t expect me to stay this way once I get home though!!!!)

Now Dev and I are in the coffee shop just chillin.  We have a 3 hour break to eat lunch and rest before we have to ride our bikes 20 min to the youth center to teach the kids….over 120 kids from all over the local villages signed up for the class but we have no idea how much English they already know.  Should be interesting…..

The local market!  So neat!

Street Food Video!

Video of the restaurant that we ate at.  Anthony Bourdain (Travel Channel Food Guy) featured this place on his show.  They serve these HUGE crepes filled with shrimp and veggies and who knows what else! Super good!

Some Pictures!

The ally where our "guest house" is!

One of my favorites, Beef Pho!

Me and Devyn

A typical street

New Experiences

So it's only been 2 full days here in Ho Chi Minh City, and already we have had some very interesting experiences:

• I have eaten some good/bad/strange things including:
• Fish meatballs and fish patties (not my thing!)
• Octopus
• Crazy mushroom things
• TONS of rice noodles (YUMMY!)
• ummmm very interesting looking pork,chicken, and beef (strange, often fatty cuts-you don't really know what you are eating and don't really want to know)
• An awesome "Hot Pot" lunch (it's like fondue at the Melting Pot, but instead of cheese, you cook all these different meats, veggies, and noodles in a spicy broth right at your table)
• fruits that look like eyeballs, tye-dyed sea urchins, and red garlic cloves 
• Fish sauce (actually DELICIOUS and doesn't taste like fish at all--you use it like soy sauce on rice, meats, and noodles, and it actually tastes better than soy sauce)
• Spring rolls (famous Vietnamese rolls filled with veggies and shrimp-kinda like eggrolls but not fried)
• One kid ate a fermented egg (An egg with an actual DUCK EMBRYO-a crunchy duck skeleton-inside......uhhh ewww, could barely watch!)
• Animal Encounters:
• Rats 
• Cockroaches
• Ants (all over my purse!)
• Dogs
• Our lizard friend, Kim, and MANY of his buddies

Although some of this sounds pretty gross, it has actually been an AWESOME adventure thus far!  I have pretty much LOVED all of the food thus far, but I have really struggled with the whole chopstick thing.  I even carry around a silver fork in my bag from home, but I haven't pulled it out yet because I'm afraid that it would be rude.  So, every meal I try some new technique-prodding, poking, twisting....it takes a lot of effort but I guess it's good in that it forces me to eat slow.  Another strange thing about going to restaurants is that there are no napkins.  They do have these wet wipes on the table, but you have to pay if you use them...we learned this the hard way!

Yesterday we had a lot of free time.  We went to this awesome palace, ate our Hot Pot meal, did lots of looking around, and ended up walking in the SCORCHING heat for well over 4 hours!  

Today we started taking our intense Vietnamese language and culture classes.  For 6 hours each day for the next five days, we will be trying to learn as much as they can force into our brains!  This language is CRAZY DIFFICULT!  There are all of these weird symbols and squiggles above every number.  It's been hard, but fun and interesting at the same time.

We are also learning a lot about the Vietnamese culture as well.  I was a little scared coming here because I was worried about how these people perceive Americans after the war.  We did kill hundreds of thousands of their people and, being Confucius, the Vietnamese worship and greatly respect their ancestors.  I was pleasantly surprised to see them all look at us with smiles, especially as we completely butcher their language (one kid was trying to say he was volunteering here and was actually saying that he was making love while in Vietnam!)  They have a saying that they truly seem to live by: "Let bygones be bygones" (MOM-They must be watching Aly Mcbeal! HA!)

On another note, all of us Dukies keep talking about the Vietnamese culture.  These people are so relaxed, and it's a really nice change of pace from our typical lifestyle. Everyone seems to have some sort of shop on one of the busy roads.  There are no doors--it's like those garage doors that they just lift up in the morning.  The families live upstairs.  Throughout the whole day, everyone just sits outside their stores on the streets, just chillin.  They oftentimes sit around tables that look like our "kiddy tables," playing cards, sleeping, people watching, or eating a pile of rice.   

It's been so exciting and super exhausting, and so far...no complaints or food sicknesses! 

xo

Finally Here!

Wow! Can't believe I am finally here!

We first flew 13 hours to Seoul, Korea from Los Angeles!  I was actually pretty scared about flying into Korea, but the airports are EXTREMELY nice and have a bunch of fancy stores in them- Louis Vuitton, Gucci!

Then it was another 6 hours to Vietnam!

It ended up being a total of 21 hours of flying time alone! It was pretty painful, but the Asian airliner was really fancy and GINORMOUS!

We got to our "guest house" pretty late at night.  Not exactly sure what a guest house really is....we do have a receptionist but the actual building it only one, open hallway with a few rooms inside.

We had some funny encounters in our new room.  Devyn and I's bathroom is kinda strange.  There is just a shower head on the wall, no curtain, and it drains out the floor.  There's also large, plastic buckets for doing laundry.  Also, we had our first power outage last night while we were unpacking.  Someone was even taking a shower when it turned pitch black...guess it's going to happen a lot.  We also have a new friend...."Kim" the lizard.  He likes to hang out on the window right net to my bed......YES!

Anyways, woke up early today for orientation.  The streets here are super busy with tons of small shops and people everywhere.  It is super, super hot; yet, all the locals wear long clothing and sometimes face-masks to cover themselves.  Many of them cannot afford sunscreen (the avg. Vietnamese person makes around  a 1,000 US dollars a year) and also, being "whiter" is viewed as being prettier, so they really try to cover up.  There are TONS of people on little mopeds and the streets are absolutely chaotic.  We actually had to have a lesson on how to cross the street.  It's all about aggressive J-walking.  You just gotta keep walking and don't look back (extremely scary when hundreds of motorcycles are zipping past you, yelling, and honking their horns!)

We ate in this really cool restaurant where the ladies were making noodles outside.  We ate a traditional Vietnamese breakfast called Pho ("faah").  Noodles for breakfast....these people are on to something! :)  It was DELICIOUS!

Then it was on to our walking tour!  It was all we could do just to keep up with our little, speed-walking adviser Alice.  Of course, I managed to get myself COMPLETELY lost from the group in the first hour!  We were in this super busy market and I was too in awe of all the super STINKY smells, piles of candy and clothing, raw meat, dried fish heads, and strange noodle dishes to really watch what was going on. As soon as I looked up, the group had magically, yes magically, disappeared.  It was really scary.  I had no map, no phone, and couldn't speak the language.  Luckily, I found another girl in my group (panic attack averted), and we, of course, assumed that we had been in the front of the group and everyone else had gotten lost too; but really, it was just us. We ended up having to walk for over an hour, trying to find our way back.

But all is good now!  We finally found our way, although it was definitely an adventure!  Tonight, a local student is taking us to his favorite restaurant and is then he is going to help us buy cell phones (a much needed device now that we know I can get a little distracted haha!)

Really, I didn't know what to expect of Vietnam, but is definitely a very busy and exciting city that is actually pretty modernized.  We get starred at a lot, but I guess we do look like a lot of confused giants.  This whole week we will have Vietnamese language training as well as Vietnamese culture and history teachings!

More to come!

Miss and love you all
xo

Getting Ready

So my mom will tell you, I like to wait till the last minute when it comes to packing.  I decided it might be a good idea to start getting my stuff in order and figure out everything that I will need!  It still hasn't settled in that I will be on the other side of the world in less than 4 days!

I don't know how much internet service I will have, but I will try to keep you all updated! Can't wait!!!

XO