Nomad

"You droppin' that off?" he asks.

"Yes, sir," I respond.

He mocks me: "Okay, ma'am."

"Sorry, I'm from the South."

I said I was from the South today. Today when Philadelphia drivers made me so incredible angry (it's called a turn signal and NOT using the exit lane as your own personal fast lane, jerks!), I told the guy at the UPS store that I was from the South. And it's kind of a lie.

I hate the "Where are you from?" question. I'm not "from" anywhere. I mean, yes, technically, I'm from Puerto Rico. I was born there, it's the one place that I've gone back to over and over again. No matter where I've actually lived, Puerto Rico feels like going home. But it's not really where I'm from. Not in the sense of feeling that kind of intimate connection to a place and the people there. I look at my cousins, at the closeness they share, and I long for it. I get this nostalgia for what could have been if only my parents had stayed there - then I wouldn't've been the foreign cousin who came to visit every summer. Puerto Rico would've been mine. My place.

But it's not.

We left. We went to Virginia for six months, then moved to Montgomery, a suburb of Chicago in the dead of winter. Yes, y'all: in the dead of winter. I was nearly five. We lived there until I was 13, and I grew attached. We moved once while we were in Illinois, from Montgomery to Aurora, but it was the same general area. We could drive past the old house, visit our old friends, see the old haunts. I learned to ride a bike there, learned to speak English there, decided I wanted to be a writer, archeologist, fashion designer, doctor there. Lots of things happened to me in Illinois. I still have a soft spot in my heart for Aurora, for Chicago - my gosh, I love that city! - but I don't feel attached anymore. How could I? It's been fifteen years and I've only been back once for a conference in Chicago, far from the areas I used to visit as a child.

When we moved to Germany the day after my eighth grade graduation, I identified with Chicago. When people asked where I was from, I said, "Chicago," because none of us Army brats in Germany were really FROM Germany, you know? And then I spent three years in Heidelberg, picking up German, taking family road trips across Western Europe instead of across the US, snacking on döner kebab and Haribo and spezi. I shopped at H&M and Ikea before they came Stateside and listened to entirely too much Europop and techno.

We went back to Virginia after that stint in Germany, and I remember the culture shock all too well. Y'all, I was still wearing my Spice Girls inspired looks; I didn't realize the Americas had moved on. It took me a long time to get used to VA. I don't know if it was being back in the States, being about to graduate from high school, or living in the South, but everything felt foreign and restricting and I hated it for a long time. But then something happened: I kept going back to VA: after college, after Mission Year, briefly after grad school, and I fell in love. It was the proximity to DC, the incredible diversity, the good conversations about current events and politics that did it for me. Northern VA is an amazing place. Just Southern enough, I think, and very cosmopolitan as far as suburban sprawl goes.

And in the meantime, I've been in MD, Costa Rica, Atlanta, and Philly. I feel like each place has left an impression on me.

Puerto Rico is my center - the closest thing to home. Illinois gave me the easy, modulated English and taught me to pronounce Chicago "Shi-caaaaaaaah-go". Germany opened my eyes to the world, gave me the travel bug, peppered my speech with German phrases, and gave me space to roam and explore. NoVA reintroduced me to my love of all things political, put authentic international cuisine at my fingertips, and taught me to drive aggressively - uh, I mean defensively. Maryland taught me I hate winter and small towns. Atlanta nurtured my penchant for long, languid days, my ability to deal with humidity, and the ability to mimic a great Southern accent. Costa Rica made me more confident in my Spanish, let me swim in two oceans,and gave me space to take risks and face the consequences. Philly gave me my Masters, my husband, a chip on my shoulder, and a feeling of superiority because at least I can MERGE! (I'm [mostly] kidding about the last part.)

But here's what I'm missing: a real, strong connection to place. The safety of lifelong friendships with anyone who doesn't share my DNA. The security of knowing I belong to a place.

This morning I woke up to a facebook friend request from my eighth grade boyfriend. I look at his page and see he's still in touch with a lot of the kids from my class. They're mostly in IL, it seems, still friends - at least on facebook. And here I am, fifteen years later with no connection to that past. None. And I don't know if that's good or bad or what. I just know it made me miss something. Place. Home. An easy answer to "Where are you from?".

But then I think about what my life would've been like if I'd been in the same place all my life, if I hadn't gotten a three year European adventure paid for by the US government, if I hadn't learned to pack a house in a matter of days, if I hadn't learned a third language and found places that fostered my ethnic identity.... I wouldn't be this person, the person I am today.

So there's nostalgia, yes, but there's also the recognition that all this movement, the connections that I've made, the connections that have broken because of time and space, the nomadic nature of my life have all taught me so many things. I've lived, I've learned. So I'm still floating, still disconnected from place, but mostly okay with it.

Boston in the fall

Pics from the recent trip to Boston/Lynn, MA. Good times, good times....

There was fun with hats:










There were street performers:








There were historical sights, 294 steps, sweet views, and some stretching:










There were things couples do:

















Oh, and this:

Notes on a (vicariously taken) Latin American Journey

I finally got a copy of "The Motorcycle Diaries" last Thursday, which I have been meaning to read for ages. I finished it on Tuesday - it was better than I'd expected it to be. I mean, the movie was magnificent: the story and the breathtaking landscapes of Latin America are the kinds of things that stir my heart. That, and the brilliance of Gael García Bernal.
But the book! There's so much in it about that connection with the mestizo and indigenous heritage of Latin America that I fell in love with. I do feel a connetion and affinity for my Taíno heritage. I've always been interested in it, even as a kid. Anyway, there's this rediscovery on his part of the origins of Latin America - the part that so many have tried to erase over centuries of colonization and oppression. Now I'm sounding a bit radical - which I'm not, not really.

But there's this beauty in the connection of Latinos, and in the sophistication of the tribes that were originally found in México, el Caribe, Central and South America, that I love. And that's what spoke to me as I was following Che before he was Che from Argentina to Chile, through Perú, and onward to Colombia and Venezuela (with an accidental detour into the Brazilian Amazon).
This has always been my favorite part of the movie, and it's the thing that sums up the book for me: Ernesto's toast on his final night in the lepers' colony in Perú:

"Although our insignificance means we can't be spokespeople for such a noble cause, we believe, and after this journey more firmly than ever, that the division of America into unstable and illusory nations is completely fictionalal. We constitute a single mestizo race, which from Mexico to the Magellan Straits bears notable ethnographical similariteis. And so, in an attempt to rid myself of the weight of small-minded provincialism, I propose a toast to Peru and to a United Latin America."

Yes, there's staggering diversity in Latin America, but the truth is that our shared history and our common language and that commonality of mixed blood unites us as well. Not, of course, that I'm advocating some new "Bolivarian" revolution a là Huguito (Chávez of Venezuela), but that I do believe we should, as nations and as individuals, help one another. We are, in a sense, brothers and sisters.

Triple time

I've got to stop posting so often....
I had meant to blog about this earlier, but I got carried away with A. and El Che and Nikki Giovanni.

This is what I hate about commuting to DC, particularly in summer:
1. Tourists who get up noisily on the metro to peer at the map and shout out "Which stop are we looking for again?" during the morning rush hour. Hey, out of towners, NO ONE TALKS ON METRO IN THE MORNINGS! If you don't know where you're going, get a pocket map and keep it with you or sit across from the map on the wall or - and I know this is a novel idea - do a little research beforehand and figure that out at home. If you've got the map, the rest of us will still know to avoid you on the escalators, but at least you won't be so OBNOXIOUS.

2. Tourists who stand two and three across on the escalators. Stand right, walk left, folks. Some of us need to be somewhere working, not lollygagging on the Mall, so if y'all could just step to the right in a single file and let us pass by, we'd really appreciate it.

3. Tourists who don't move to the center of the car on Metro. If you get on the train and there are no available seats, don't balk at the door looking around like you're not sure whether or not you're supposed to be there. Keep it moving; there are rails you can hold on to. And don't all stand in front of the door and decide that's the best spot for your family of seven. File in and leave the space by the doors free so people can exit and enter the trains easily.

4. Commuters on the Franconia-Springfield bus who talk on their cell phones (loudly) in the mornings. Apply the rules of Metro to the bus and let people sleep on their way to the station, for the love!

5. Drivers who talk loudly on the phone or listen to music and loudly as possible while they've got slugs in their cars. Turn it down, turn it to one of those God-awful stations: soft rock or "smooth jazz" or WTOP or screw those and turn on something worth listening to: NPR; and call your friends back once you've dropped us off in the commuter lot.

*sigh* Glad to get that out.... Don't get me wrong, I love the diversity of public/near-public transport here: Metro, buses, slugging (organized hitch-hiking unique to the area), but we have rules for it. Follow them and we should have a smooth ride....

No good at good byes

So, boo, I had to cancel on the date. :(....

I was at work until FOREVER tonight - I JUST got home. Seriously. Who'd have known how much ish you accumulate over the years.... Plus I had a meeting with L. and F., my replacements. I gave them everything I'd made up over the years, all the work.... I guess I didn't realize that not all teachers put all their materials together themselves - I don't use books often, so I just put things together and make up practices, notes, projects, quizzes, exams.... Must be nice to have a book that does that all for you. Ha, ha.

It was definitely bittersweet. I said bye to all the folks in the department, shared my email address and phone number so we can all keep in touch, and made plans to meet up with folks over the summer for a little Spanish practice. Spanish practice and pool, or Spanish practice by the pool, whatever we decide works best. Ha, ha.

I honestly can't imagine working with a better group of people.

Besides that, I got mad help cleaning up my classroom, which was nice, and I was able to get rid of a lot of stuff. It was good. Good, good, good....

Oh, but I'll miss it. I'll miss it so much. I'll miss my beautiful kids and their beautiful stories; I'll miss the time with my coworkers, sharing information; I'll miss the satisfaction I get from teaching.

But this is the right decision.

Today, I was in the planning office and returned to my room. John Legend's "Coming Home" was playing on my ipod and it was so achingly beautiful that I looked around that nearly empty room and just started to cry again....



*sigh*

Time to pack.

For real.

I'm off to LA tomorrow - debating taking the laptop with me - we'll see....

Wish me luck!

Proud Mama

The GC dinner went incredibly well. The boys were so proud of themselves, but I think I was prouder than they. They came into a dirty kitchen and got right down to cleaning it and cooking up a storm. It was a success. :)

I leave for PR today - Saturday - at 5:25 PM. I can't sleep these days. Too much to do and I'm anticipating the trip. Can't wait to see BK. :)!

I'll be out for a week.

Peace!

Peter on the Plane

First, here's another shirt that I want:





Now, I've been thinking about Peter from the Plane a lot lately. He was the guy I sat next to from DC to NYC, and we talked the whole time. He's a grad student, majored in philosphy in undergrad, and had packed for three weeks in Perú without really thinking, and mostly in plastic shopping bags. Anyway, aside from coining the term retrosexual (love it!) for people who still think that sex requires some kind of real emotional connection and commitment, he read me pretty well. I've been thinking a lot about what he said, as I mentioned earlier.

First, he realized that I'm the nicest person in the world (ha, ha). This he said with a bit of sarcasm, but also impressed by my line of work and history of volunteerism.
Then he said that he'd judged me, thinking that I was just a pretty girl, but apparently I was also smart and interesting. I told him I was a homely kid, so I was forced to develop a bit of personality, and he told me about ugly duckling syndrome. He asked me if I thought guys didn't take me seriously because of my looks. My answer? Yes. Absolutely. I know, I know, poor little pretty girl. But it does suck, because I'm much smarter than I look. And I'm less shallow than you might think. Don't let the make-up and stilettos fool you: I'm a lover of third world travel and beauty in the broken places. I want to live among the poor and work to better the world. I told him about my dreams for a non-profit in the States and the sister NGO working abroad, and he said he knew I'd do it because he could see the passion in my eyes.
As we parted ways in NY, he told me, "Don't forget, Frances, you're worth a million." And he seemed so incredibly sincere, that I felt like he knew how much I needed to be reminded of that. Anyway, I think about this now, and am desperately trying to remember that I really am worth a million. More than that. I am a bit insecure these days, but Peter on the Plane's words have been coming to me randomly when I most need them.
Funny how a person can be in your life for so little time and give you exactly what you need, not only in that moment, but for days later.

Where's my passport?

I thought I was a real traveller, but I've only visited 10% of the world. I always knew there was a lot of world to see. Too bad I don't have equal funds to keep traveling.

The upside of global warming

Yes, SUVs make Jesus cry, but my goodness! It was so nice out today! I mean, outside. In my classroom, it's roughly sixty degrees. If I hadn't worn a skirt anticipating the mid-sixties, I would've taught in my coat, but if I'd done that, no one would've seen my outfit - a little inappropriate for the classroom.

Good day, though. GC makes me happy. I mean, the kids do. The lack of prior planning on the part of those officially in charge is frustrating, but the kids! We're getting a bunch of them. New kids every week. And they're clicking with each other, which just makes my little heart swell with pride. I'm a proud mama. ;)

Other than that, I spent the weekend in NYC. A little breaky-break from the everyday VA. Enjoy the pics.


Welcome to Brooklyn!



Frances and Sammy with big smiles - early in the weekend....



Dance party face.




Pass that on over here! I heart pizza. I don't care if it's not real NY pizza. I love broccoli.





With Sam after the comedy club and the pizza. PS - there's nowhere to play pool at 2:30 am in NYC.

Back in VA

Well, I've been about four days back in country, five days out of Vietnam (I think), and a little over a week out of Vinh. I've got "Uoc Gi" on YouTube so I can get some of my Vietpop fix and I went out for pho' last night (believe it). I'm glad to see my family, glad to speak Spanish, glad to eat beans and tortillas (even though I'm Puerto Rican and that's not really MY food, per se...) but I do miss Vietnam a bit. I miss fresh nuoc mia and the simple pleasures of frozen sua chua.
The train ride from Vinh back to Ha Noi was infinitely better than the ride from Ha Noi to Vinh. It was about three hours shorter, and we were in a sleeper car which meant that we each had a bunk. Andrea was in a different room, but Anna, Eleisa, Aimee, and I were together. We clambered into our bunks (which were stacked three high on each side of the car) and read Eragon aloud while enjoying the snacks we'd purchased earlier at the bakery and Intimex.
Anna, Eleisa, and I ventured out of our room at one point to take pictures of the passing scenery: stony mountains, lush green rice paddies, cows grazing, men and women in conical hats.... Iconic Vietnam. The beauty of the country is astounding at times.
Six hours later, we were in Ha Noi. It was late - about 9:00 pm - and dark. We piled into two taxis and headed to Sandy's house (ELIC headquarters in Vietnam, as it were). I left my backpack, with Sandy's address taped to the handle, with Andrea so she could get to the place, and I got in the other taxi. What a mistake.
We were unloading at the intersection just in front of Sandy's, one taxi started off; I asked, "Where's my backpack?" The look on Andrea's face was pure regret. She turned around, running after the taxi. I stood in shock, started after her, turned back.... Anna and I waited there for Andrea, praying silently and fervently. When Andrea returned, it felt like forever, she was empty handed. There was a moment when I felt like my world burst. My plane tickets. The pictures Sung Ho had made for me. Everyone's email addresses. $100 in cash. My cell phone. The cables for my ipod. We walked to Sandy's and by the time we'd walked the block there, I was feeling more composed. Andrea wasn't, and she dropped off her things and took off again. We prayed with Sandy and remembered that her address was taped to the handle of the bag. There was hope.
Sandy reassured me that reissuing the ticket wouldn't be a huge issue, and thus placated, I settled in, called home, got a little prayer back-up, and hung out, waiting for Andrea to get back and restocking on the hygiene essentials (my overnight bag was in the backpack).
When Andrea returned, we prepared to head out to Ha Long Bay the next morning. As we were coming down the stairs to head out to the hotel, Eleisa fell hard down the marble stairs. She worried about the state of her tailbone and, overcome by hunger and exhaustion, she decided to stay at Sandy's and skip out on Ha Long Bay. We left her there, and headed out.
That night, we slept in a hotel of dubious report - not quite a hotel, a "guest house" - make of that what you will. Anna, my roomie for the night, and I laughed because the bathroom was separated from the room by a wall of glass. Fortunately, there was a curtain you could pull over it, which we did, but not after we got pictures of Anna sitting on the toilet seat (fully clothed, of course) reading her Bible while I stood outside the window with her camera focusing on the toilet paper rolls. We slept hard that night, and woke up early the next morning to head out to the Bay. We walked back to Sandy's to check on Eleisa - still sore and not accompanying us - and then went off to pick up some sandwiches (döner kebab done Vietnamese style - SOO delicious) and got a taxi to the travel agency in Ha Noi's Old Quarter.
We'd put money down on the tour to Ha Long and were one woman down, but - and this is how good God is - we got Eleisa's money back. The bus ride to Ha Long was easy - three/four hours with one break in between on a bus full of Vietnamese and a sweet little Japanese man. When we stopped halfway at a little tourist trap where no one wanted to hear my hard-earned Vietnamese and the prices where in dollars, we were in absolute shock seeing the sheer number of Westerners flowing in. I realized it'd been nearly five weeks since the last time I'd seen fellow foreigners. I was OVERWHELMED! They were speaking ENGLISH! And FRENCH! And SPANISH! Foreigners like me! What was the world coming to?!
But all was well, and we got back on our bus of national tourists and went to the Bay. We were scheduled to spend the night on the boat, so once we were there, we got on board and waited for the rest of the people on the tour: A French Vietnamese family with the daughter's boyfriend in tow, a French couple, an Australian woman with her adopted daughter and her coworker, and our Japanese friend from the bus. The boat set off. We had lunch: seafood, pork, rice, rau muong... there was no end to the food. It was wonderful. The Japanese man with us was in heaven because we didn't eat all the fish, but he sure did.
Ha Long Bay is unlike any other place in the world. I wish I could accurately describe the surreal beauty of it: the jade green waters, the limestone monoliths jutting out from the sea, the caves... It's like a scene out of a sci-fi movie, except real and all around you. Vietnam's rich legends filled with stories of dragons make SENSE in that landscape.
I took entirely too many pictures in the cave, of the stones, of boats... I gazed from afar at the cute French Vietnamese man who was on our boat (to my credit, he also gazed from afar at me). I wished to speak French or more Vietnamese - one would think that with two and a half languages (English, Spanish, and German) it'd be easier to communicate with European travellers.
After viewing a couple of caves - breathtaking, both - we went to a little market on the sea. Andrea and I bought two big bottles of water and she got a sleeve of Oreos, then rented kayaks. We proceeded to run into the cute French Vietnamese guy and his younger brother, which we all laughed off, and then went our separate ways. We were the laziest kayakers on the Bay. Andrea would take two strokes and pause for an Oreo break. Twenty minutes and a sleeve of Oreos later, we turned in our kayaks and headed back to the boat. Dinner was wonderful and our Japanese friend made quick work of the fish.
After dinner, we headed up to the top deck to look out at the scenery and catch the last of the sun. We anchored the boat, and it was time to swim. The group of swimmers descended from the lower deck and Aimee and I watched them from the top as the played in the water. The next thing we knew, the French Vietnamese brothers were up on the top deck. The stepped over the low railing (really, only 8 inches high) and stood on the ledge, mustering up their courage. My heart hammered against my ribs - jumping from the third level of the boat?! - as I watched them ready themselves. They counted in French: one, two, three, and down in a tremendous splash. It must have been quite a rush, because before long, they were back up, the tall, cute one asking me in sweetly accented English: "You do not swim?" Dazzling smile, and I was half tongue-tied: "Not well" I laughed, he laughed, then jumped again, and this time, signalled for me to join once he was in the water. Not a chance. Really, I can't tread water that well, and the water was deep enough for diving.
He jumped a few more time, then came up and sat on a bench - the same bench I was sitting on, and made small talk with the cute French accent. None of the essentials (name? age?) just travel talk (how long in Vietnam? When do you return?). And that smile of his too cute for me to think enough to ask for a name...ha, ha...
We slept on the boat, Anna and I sharing a room again, but only after spending a good long time laying on the benches on the top deck staring at the stars and listening to the strains of drunken Vietnamese karaoke from a neighboring boat. If it hadn't been sprinkling intermittently, Andrea, Anna, and I would've slept up there. As it was, I woke at about 5:30 the next morning to a spectacular view of the Bay. I showered quickly, pulled on my swimsuit, shorts, a tank top, and headed to the top deck with my sarong and my ipod. Our tour guide was up there, staring out at the ocean, and I wondered if he'd spent the night there. But we didn't talk. I took pictures as people drifted up. The cute guy came up and we looked at eachother furtively, under lowered lashes, each of us trying to work up the courage to start conversation and coming up short.
We had breakfast at 7:00, then Anna, Andrea, Aimee, and I headed back up to the top deck to catch some sun. We stripped down to our swimsuits and lay out... Nothing like lying in the sun while on a boat in the most beautiful place on earth. The boat docked at Cat Ba island and everyone left except the four of us and our Japanese friend. We only had time for the one night tour. I kicked myself mentally for not asking the cute guy's name. Oh well... Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda, right?
We picked up some more people and headed back. The next batch of tourist was heavily English speaking: a few Australians, a Brit, a couple Americans, a Canadian, an adorable Danish couple, and a cute little Japanese man who did some magic tricks. There was plenty of conversation as we sailed back to Ha Long City for lunch, and we chatted over lunch. The amount of food was staggering...
The bus ride back, I sat next to Ollie, the Brit we'd picked up at Cat Ba and Anna and I talked to him the whole way back. He's a teacher in London, and it was cool to hear about his experiences back home. Can you believe British kids might be worse than American kids? It made me grateful for my students. :)
That night, we did the last of the souvenir shopping in the Old Quarter after picking Eleisa up and settling in at Cua Giay Hotel. It felt good to end the trip with a proper touristy experience after all the work and the battles we fought in Vinh. Of course, I was also grateful that I had experienced much more than the average traveller. I'd made friends - Vietnamese friends that I care about and hope to see again. Friends that I will pray for now that I am back home.
We left Vietnam the next day. Our flight was delayed and we were stuck in Taiwan for a night due to weather. We did get put up in a luxurious hotel in Taiwan and got free breakfast and lunch there. The Western style buffet made me a little sick (where's the pho'?) but God was good to us. Vietnam Airlines even covered the last connections for the four girls who missed their flights out of LA.
I spent a glorious day with my sister in LA and am now back in VA, readjusting to the time difference, to Western food, to the pedestrian bilingualism of my life... But it's good. Vietnam was good.
I hope I can return. Not to travel, but to see Vinh; to see the people I came to know and love and talk to them again. I hope to sit on a plastic chair with my knees to my chest sipping a cold nuoc mia and laughing with my students. I hope to see God's hand moving as mightily as it did while we were in Vietnam. I know He's not done in Vinh - it feels good to say that now without fear of government spies - and I pray for that city, that bastion of Communism in a dark land... God is working there. He's been working, and He'll continue to work. And I know - I know - He will do great things in Vietnam. Believe it.

Making the most of the time that's left...

Time's running out here in Vinh. I had a 7:30 am appointment with some of the students in Ms. Mai's class. We've gone out quite a bit, and I really enjoy them, especially Linh and the Professor whom I've spent the most time with. Linh couldn't go today, and neither could Ninh, but we still had a good time. We went out for mien (clear noodles), searched for a Vietnam soccer jersey (no luck), and then stopped at a cafe.
Good times all around, and it made me realize how much I will miss these people when I leave. Ms. Mai told me that they were looking for a souvenir for me, but they didn't know what to buy. I told them they'd already given me so much, I didn't need anything else.
I don't think she's going for that.
Thanh left last night and Steven leaves at four today. Our group is dwindling. There will only be five of us on the train back to Ha Noi, and it's still hard for me to believe. I already miss Marsha, miss Thanh, and I know I'll miss Steven.
The rest of the group (Aimee, Andrea, Anna, Eleisa, and me) will have a few more days in Ha Noi and Ha Long to spend together, but this still feels like the end.

Goodbyes are bittersweet.

SOS Village and a day on the town

So it's been a few days. We still only have three computers, but there are now eight people, which means that computer time is at a premium. I had a couple of lovely, lovely days, and the time is going by so fast. I can't believe I only have one more week of teaching and then we're heading back to Ha Noi. Time has really flown. Granted, last night when we went to dinner I thought to myself, "How many more nights do I have to eat noodle soup of some kind?" Those of you who know me know I'm not a huge fan of soup in general and noodle soups in particular. Pho' is the exception to the rule, but I can even get tired of pho'. Last night we had bun, which is pho' with a different kind of noodle, but don't let the Vietnamese hear me say that.... Anyway, food and homesickness things aside, I can't believe that the time has gone by so fast, and I wish I had more time here.

Day before yesterday - that'd be Tuesday - we went to the SOS Village, which is the orphanage in town. It's a series of group homes, and we visited before, but this Tuesday, we were able to spend more time with the kids. We played cards and soccer for a bit while they warmed up. Eleisa, Aimee, and I even did the hokey pokey to much laughter. We played the game where you hold hands and get all tangled up and then have to untangle each other from the knot that our hands have formed. We weren't very good at that game, but it was fun anyway, and the girls just laughed and laughed.
The two girls in my class were hanging out in the group with me and Eleisa. Once they warmed up, the girls were so adorable. Those two girls, a pair of twins, and two other girls gathered around me and the girls in my class served as my main interpreters. We all kind of separated out into different groups with different kids, and I was with those girls. We took pictures, then I let one of the twins have my camera and she took tons of pictures for me. Her sister stuck by me and held my hand, which is what people do in Vietnam when they're friends. One of the girls wants to be an interpreter, and she speaks English very well, so she'd be great at it, in my opinion. The girls were fourteen and thirteen and their lives have been too hard for them to be anything but sweet and appreciative. I felt so - full - spending time with them. We talked, they laughed at my Vietnamese, and we hung out.
It was really great and reminded me how much I want to work with underprivileged children. I could totally imagine myself living and working in a group home like the SOS Village. The kids really are well taken care of. They are bright and beautiful and bubbly. The girls invited us to come back, and I think I will go on Saturday so I can have at least one more day there.
Classes that night went well, and I enjoyed them greatly, especially my Starter class. My students and I decided we would meet for breakfast the next day and then I'd have lunch at Linh's house. I was floating on cloud nine after that.
After that, we went out for pho' (Night 2 of pho') and then hit a kem shop for some sua chua. (Don't you love my Vinglish?) I had a deck of Uno cards, and there were six of us. We had six flavors of frozen yogurt, so we decided to play yogurt Uno. You draw a two, take two bites of your yogurt, switch yogurt, draw an eight, eat eight bites, draw a reverse, switch yogurt in the opposite direction... If you're being stared at, you might as well give people some entertainment, right? ;) Anyway, we sampled all the yogurt and it was a good time.
Yesterday, I met my students at the school at 7 am. I took Anna, one of the teachers on the Ha Noi team, with me.
Three of my students were there, and one brought a friend. We rode motorbikes to the restaurant where we had some great food: rice cake type things with herbs and fried onions which you dip in nuoc mam (fish sauce). There were two types of meat involved, one of which was delicious, the other was just okay. I don't know what kind of meat it was, but the rule of thumb in Vietnam is "DON'T ASK". They ordered coffee for Anna and me; it arrived in a glass in three perfect layers: condensed milk; thick, black coffee; and a layer of creamy froth served over ice. I prayed so much that the caffeine wouldn't make me jittery, and so did Anna. Fortunately, there were no jitters and the condensed milk sure made the coffee go down without any trouble.
After that, we went to the market. I got some souvenirs because Linh is a master bargainer, and I even got a pilón for my mom. We bought food at the market, and Anna and I were so excited to see bins of spices and baskets of fish and whole chickens sitting out on tables... It was almost sensory overload, but we loved it and got pictures of some of the saleswomen; they were so excited to see their faces on the camera screen.
We headed back to Linh's house where she and Ninh prepared the most delicious lunch I've had in Vietnam while Anna and I chatted with the professor (one my students) and Ninh's friend (who speaks excellent English). The professor left early, but we stayed and ate crosslegged on a wooden bed that also serves as a table. Seriously: delicious.
After lunch, we watched tv and talked, then headed back out because Linh wanted to buy us bracelets. She's sixteen and the only daughter - one of three children - in a family that is very well off, but she's not spoiled at all. I was astounded by her generosity. She's a sweet, sweet girl, as is Ninh (she's 23). Oh! They also made us fresh passion fruit juice, which was as good as my grandma's. :)
We made plans for che and karaoke on Saturday, so I'm excited. We had good conversation and they're great people to hang out with. Besides, who doesn't like karaoke?!

Anna and I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting in Ho Chi Minh Square talking and taking pictures of Uncle Ho's statue - it's pretty awe inspiring, that giant statue in the square...

My classes went well, not wonderfully, but well enough. I had to give one class a mid term exam, and that kinda sucked, but it's over, so that's good.

I'm planning to head to the market again today to finish up my souvenir shopping. I can't believe I'll be back in the States so soon... I almost don't want to go, because things are falling into place; I'm settling in, I'm understanding more of the language and the culture and the food... But man, I would love some rice and beans PR style and a nice pizza... ;)

Karaoke, bicycles, the beach, and songs

So I think it's been three days since the last post. I didn't want to post on Friday because I'd just finished teaching the worst class of my life. Seriously. Worse than any class I have EVER taught in any teaching situation ANYWHERE. They couldn't say "My name is...", but they were supposed to be on lesson 5, talking about the things that they liked. Go figure... And they were totally checked out because they couldn't understand me. Or they were pretending that they couldn't understand.
So I taught them "i'm a Little Teapot" with the motions and if they were on their cellphones or sleeping, or talking while we were practicing, they had to stand up and sing the song with the motions, which is absolutely mortifiying for them.

At least it's only once a week...

Other than that, my last two classes on Friday went really well. I LOVE that Listening and Conversation class so much. They're a ton of fun and they work their little butts off trying to communicate in English.
Friday morning, San left with his dad. He's not back yet, and I'm kind of heartbroken that I haven't been able to see him, especially since I wasn't able to get any pics of him. :(. I hope he'll be back before we leave.

Saturday, we ventured out on our bikes. Thanh sat on the back of Andrea's bike, while Eleisa and I got our own bikes. We went out for brunch - Bun which is kind of like pho' but with thinner noodles - and then rode off to the market where we bought fabric for dresses. I got this gorgeous green silk, and a turquoise one with this crazy print which I'm hoping to make a sundress out of (forgive my bad sentence structure). I also got a super cute pair of shoes for Cristina, which I bargained down from 160000 Dong to 80000 Dong. I can't even TELL you how proud of myself I am for that. As foreigners, we pay higher prices , but bargaining is an essential skill, and while I can hold my own in Spanish, with my limited Vietnamese, it's a little bit more intimidating. Body language is a good thing. And you should also start at at least half the starting price; if you know you're being ripped off (like the shoes), start even lower.
I also bought some passion fruit and an avocado (I'm thinking I'll make a little guac) to remind me of home. That parcha was delicious.
OH! And we found sandwiches! REAL sandwiches! HERE! In Vietnam! We've missed them so much, and Thanh had told us that they only sell them for breakfast, but those are lies. Hideous lies that kept us seperated from sandwiches for entirely too long. They were wonderful and we savored them at home while extoling the virtues of fresh pickles and the nice rolls... Ah, sandwiches...

Saturday night, we went to karaoke with some of the teachers - it was girls' night out. I somehow got roped into singing "Isla Bonita" by Madonna with Nhuong, and someone misguidedly told me I could sing. Eleisa and I also sang "Macarena" - did you know that song had words in English? - and we had a flashback to 1996 as everyone danced in the front. We also sang "Amazing Grace" and one of the teachers sang along. Turns out one of her foreign friends had taught her the song. She's really nice, and we've talked whenever she's around because she really likes to spend time with foreigners.

The Hanoi team came in around 2 am from Sat. to Sun. We were so glad to see them. Yesterday, we all hung out - we had pho' for breakfast with Ms. Yen and Mr. Quy and then went to a cafe for our favorite fruit drinks. After that, we napped and hung out while Steven played the guitar and we sang along. It was great to just sit around and sing and laugh. Then Andrea, Steven, and I decided it would be a good idea if we went out to Cua Lo beach on our bikes. It's 30 km - about 13 miles - and we were feeling adventurous, so off we went with a pair of water bottles, a map, and a cell phone. The scenery was breathtaking, the ride was easy. It was the Vietnam I'd dreamed of: shops lining a narrow dusty streets, people standing outside shouting, "Hello! Hello!", cows lazing on the side of the road. The motorbikes zipped past us and the trucks forced us off the road, but it was a really nice ride. I felt happy and alive; I was just glad for the movement... We stopped for nuoc mia once, then rode on to a different beach where we walked and saw women clamming with the strangest equipment we'd ever seen. Andrea and I left Steven and struck up a conversation with one of the women in our limited Vietnamese. We didn't learn too much about the clamming, but it was nice to talk.

After that, we rode the remaining 6 km to Cua Lo and stopped for nuoc mia again before parking our bikes and joining Thanh, Eleisa, and Anna. They'd come by taxi. It was good to be on the beach with a group of foreigners. Andrea and I got drawn into a beach soccer game and played a bit before heading back to where Eleisa and Anna were lounging. We actually got to swim in our suits, and not suits covered up by an extra layer of clothing. It was nice, so nice... I got a sweet tan, and a bit of burn on my shoulders, but it was totally worth it. (I promised I covered myself with sunscreen before heading out... SPF 45!)
We thought it'd be a good idea for us to all ride back Vietnamese style: two people per bike, but one bike didn't have an extra seat, so Andrea went off on a xe om (motorbike taxi), and the rest of us set off. Eleisa rode with me on the back seat nursing a nasty bruise on my right knee. She made it a few kilometers before she switched for a seat behind Steven. I got a bike that was much too high for me, and we rode about 5 km before we stopped for a flat tire on Steven's bike. Then Eleisa got my bike, and I sat behind Steven. Again, another 5 km, and a flat tire.... By now, we'd run into one of Thanh's students who was riding with a friend. The friend said she knew of a place where we could get the bike fixed and we tried to find a xe om for Thanh and I. No luck with the xe om, so the girl's mother came. The girls let Steven borrow their bike (which was very pink and had a pink bell) and took our bike to get it fixed. The mother took Thanh and I back to the hotel. There are no coincidences, right? How amazing is that that just when the tire gave out, we ran into someone we knew?! That's the kind of thing that amazes me while I'm here. I've never been good at faith, but it's been so clear to me lately that if we just take our own hands off the situation, God steps in and provides just what we need.

We went out for dinner and dessert (more fruit juice, fried bananas, and some spicy green papaya salad that was what I actually wanted for dinner) and then came back to the hotel for some worship.

It was kind of surreal to be in that room, our voices filling the room, Steven's guitar leading, some lovely harmonies, and the other four people there with the same passion. Man, that room felt good. It was nothing deep: no long winded prayers, no one speaking, just some songs, most of which came out in jumbled pieces before they were fluid and lovely, but that room felt GOOD. God is faithful. He is good and just and FAITHFUL... I am so thankful for the grace He's poured out on us, for protection and provision, for family when I'm so far from mine...

And now another week. We're halfway through this adventure; more than halfway... Time flies, right? Maybe? LOL There have been days when it's dragged, but looking back, I can't believe it's almost over. But so much can happen in two weeks. So much...

Better days, American food, and more nuoc mia

Well, the swelling is down in my nose; of course, I have two nice shiners now. I took pictures today, and I have the cable for my camera, but no camera. Way to go, Franny. Oh well. LOL. Yesterday was a "blah" day. We were all tired, I was sore, and we had two classes to teach. Two classes that seemed to take forever. LOL
Here's the good news: Yesterday, Andrea, Eleisa, and I made the most delicious lunch ever! Egg noodles with cheese sauce. Real cheese sauce: cream cheese, cheddar cheese, gouda melted together with a bit of milk over some nice noodles.... Trust me, after weeks of rice and fish sauce and various strange things, cheesy noodles become the epitome of fine dining. We made one big plateful, grabbed forks (FORKS! Not chopsticks, FORKS!) and dug in from the same plate. We cleaned it out between the three of us. :) And for dessert, we had watermelon. Oh, we were some happy American girls last night... We still have a jar of spaghetti sauce that we have to use, and believe me, we'll be happy to use it.
My first class yesterday invited me out for nuoc mia. There is one Korean student in that class, and three Vietnamese, so we have to speak English, and they're really curious about one another, which is good. We went to a different nuoc mia stand and sat down to enjoy our drinks and chat. We were late after the break, but we were totally practicing our English, so I'm okay with that. :)
My second class was a bit rougher. There are way too many high school boys in there - this is the class where I had to give the hitting talk. Today there was no hitting, but seven of the boys in the back totally did not do their work. So I stood by them and watched while they worked to make sure that they actually did the partner work. I hate grading, but when kids don't learn for the sake of learning, it's the only real incentive they have to actually DO the work. Blech.... My students can be lazy, but 80% of the time they at least START their work. These boys did not even do that...
After class, we walked back to the hotel and sat around in my room eating bits of food - crackers, yogurt, cookies - until Thanh broke out the icecream. Then we ate icecream and talked about sandwiches... Mmmm... Delicious sandwiches.... We hooked up my ipod to Eleisa's speakers and listened to music and clowned around. It was fun and we needed that time to unwind and refresh.
This morning we had a Vietnamese lesson, and we learned a children's song. Fun stuff, huh? That's totally the way to learn a language: singing songs. LOL It's a song about kids going to school and not crying while their mothers tend to the fruit trees and their fathers work at the factory and the grandfather plows the field. I love that I can pick out the family words and put things together :).
Speaking of families, my dad called this morning. I was so happy to talk to my Stinky (which is what I affectionately call my dad) because I haven't spoken to him since I left California. I was missing my mother tongue so much... Speaking of the mother tongue, I get to teach the teachers Spanish today. I am beyond excited, but also nervous, because I've never taught a language from scratch. I don't know if that makes sense: they have NO knowledge of Spanish beyond "te amo", so I'm starting from the ground up. But I'm just excited to speak my language, so I'm looking forward to it.
Finally, this is our last weekend as a foursome. This weekend, the Hanoi team is coming down to Vinh to teach here with us at ASEM School. I'm looking forward to seeing them, but I'm sure that the transition will be a bit difficult. Now there will be eight foreign teachers at this school; that's a whole lot for a small city like Vinh, but it will make our Sunday meetings a bit more like home, especially since Steven will be bringing a guitar.
Well, we've got lunch with one of Andrea's classes today at twelve, and after that, we're going to MaxiMark to do more grocery shopping (that yogurt goes quickly) and see my supermarket boyfriend. Also, we will be picking up our Ao Dai, after which I hope to post a picture that I will call "Ao dais and black eyes". I thought of that this morning while talking ao dais with Eleisa and we were highly amused, first because it rhymes and second because it's true.
I'm serious, these are some nasty black eyes I've got going on. The good news is that my nose looks MUCH better. It's back down to a normal size, though it's still bruised and scratched. At least I don't have as much blood in there anymore. (gross)

Oh! My mission for today is to find more things to be thankful for, so here are a few things that I appreciate:
-My tan. Who cares if they don't think brown skin is beautiful? I love my brown skin!
-Spanish lessons. Es que me hace falta mi propio idioma...
-My teammates: Andrea because she is funny, Thanh because she speaks Vietnamese, Eleisa because she is a nursing student and can fix us up. I am eternally grateful for these three women here with me, and that's not even a stretch.
-Nuoc mia. I am thankful because it is delicious and sweet, but mostly because it is COLD.
-Bottled water. It's refreshing and cold.
-Yogurt (Sua Chua). It settles my stomach, it fills me up, and it's cold. (Are we noticing a trend yet?)
-Phone calls from my dad. Nuff said.
-Maximark. Because they sell peanut butter and spaghetti sauce and bread and all other foods that remind me of home.
-God's protection. Seriously, because even though I complain, this could be much worse. And He's been so good....
-

Everyday is an Adventure: A blog in two parts

PART 1: The foreign teachers interact with the locals

Yesterday was a really good day. I start with this because it's the truth, even if you walk away from this blog thinking, "Man, that SUCKS!", it was a really good day. It was.



We woke up feeling crappy (I promise, this gets better), sick to our stomachs, suffering from sinuses, covered with bugbites, and tired. But devotions were really good. We talked about Jesus' load for us being light and that we are called to help each other to carry our burdens, and it was just what we needed. It was good.

Vietnamese lessons went well. We learned what I like to call "taxi words": go straight, turn left, turn right, right here. We also learned a few other essentials (Toi muon mua chai nuoc - I would like to buy bottled water). Afterwards, I blogged - remember that confusing mess? - and then I played with the kids here at the school. We didn't have a ball, but they wanted to teach me Vietnamese. Apparently, this is entertaining enough that the nuoc mia woman's 24-year-old son and his buddy came over and sat down to laugh and ask questions. It was actually a lot of fun. The kids get such a kick out of knowing more than me, and they quizzed me hard. I had to pull out my notebook (otherwise known as my lifeline) a few times. I seriously carry that thing around with me EVERYWHERE. I don't always remember the words that I need, so I'm frantically flipping through pages trying to put sentences together. The good thing about Vietnamese is that once you learn a verb, you're set. You don't have to conjugate them, so it's easier to put sentences together. Of course, the bad thing about Vietnamese is that they have roughly 4000 pronouns (it seems like it to me) to denote pretty much any human relationship possible. I mean, there are different four different words for "aunt" that I know. Four. That is just ridiculous.



So after an hour of playing with the kids, I walked back to the hotel for lunch. Thanh's sister made lunch and it was a salty, spicy concotion over rice noodles. When I say salty, I mean it was like drinking straight soy sauce. Eleisa and I poured copious amounts of water over it, trying to take the edge off, but to no avail. This, added to my poor stomach, made me retreat to my room after drinking plenty of Pepto.



I took a short nap, then pulled it together and went to the orphanage to visit the kids. The SOS Village is a village of group homes with dorm parents. There are about 300 kids there, and we visited each house and handed out the Vietnamese equivelent of Little Debbie snacks. The kids were adorable. I met one girl who would be in my class later that evening. A few kids there get scholarships to ASEM school, which is pretty cool. Anyway, we'll be going back next week to teach English. The place should be heartbreaking, and in someways it is, but in other ways, they live like families and it's nice. I mean, the place is REALLY nice: the kids are well cared for, they take care of each other and there are no blank stares or vacant eyes. They are lively, bright children, and I can't wait to go back.

My classes yesterday went wonderfully, thank God. My first was a Listening and Conversation class, level 2, which means that they speak English. Let me tell you, after a week and a half of speaking. At. This. Speed. It was. Quite. A change. Yes? Yes. Okay.
One of the girls even told me I could talk faster, so I explained that they spoke more English than any other class that I taught, and we were able to have some conversations. It was fun. There are at least two girls in that class who live at the orphanage, and they stayed after to ask if we were going to come teach them at the SOS Village. They were so excited when I said yes. :)

My next class was a Starter class, mostly adults. They did not speak very much English, but the class went really well. I can't even tell you how intimidating starter classes are: you walk in, "Hello. My name is Frances.", you write it on the board, wait for recognition to wash over their faces. Then they introduce themselves: "My name is Phuong. I am twenty year old. I am student. I like listen to music." I repeat. Yes, that is what they said. We move on.
I had one guy in the class tell me that he was also 25. He likes football and badmitton (the Vietnamese LOVE them some badmitton!). He likes to listen to music. And he is alone. Everyone laughed. That, my friends, was his way of saying that he is single and available. The only way that he could say, "Hey, want to ride on my motorbike?" (totally a date here) with his limited English.
Like I said, the class went well. We studied the present continuous and I gave them postcards from Hawai'i and told them to tell me what they were doing in Hawai'i. I got answers ranging from the basic "I am swimming at the beach" to the more complex "I am picking coconuts". I was so impressed by their efforts and their overwhelming friendliness.

Oh! And on the subject of flirting, between the SOS Village and teacing, we stopped at Maximark, the local supermarket, to do our weekly grocery run. We go there quite often, and the workers there know Eleisa and me quite well by now, since we do most of the grocery shopping. There's this guy who works there who speaks English, and he's a real cutie, but a bit short. Anyway, we always take a shopping list and he takes it and tells us where to find things. So he was helping us yesterday and then he wandered over to the cash register when I was paying. He stood behind me as I paid and the cashier said to me, "He love you" in her limited English. I pretended not to understand. He smiled. She said it again, and then went on in Vietnamese. He translated: "She says you are very beautiful". I said, "Oh, thank you. Cam o'n (thanks in Vietnamese)." She said again, "He love you." I played dumb; he smiled. I ran out of Maximark with my two heavy bags of yogurt and icecream once I'd paid. Everyday it's something...

After our classes, one of Thanh's students took us out to eat. We went to this super cute restaurant about half a mile away. She took three of us on her motorbike, and I sat in the front because I had a skirt on. Four people on a motorbike is a common thing here in Vietnam, but it is by no means safe. However, the Vietnamese do not let you walk more than a couple blocks. Eleisa, Andrea, and I are content to walk miles and miles around town, but no one wants us to do so. So we gave in and let them drive us to the restaurant.
We had good food: fried rice cakes with shrimp inside, green papaya salad, fried bananas (amarillitos!), and this drink of mixed fruit and crushed ice in sweetened milk. It was wonderful. The place was cleaner than any restaurant we've visited in Vietnam until now.

We had a good time talking to Huong, the student, and eating, and then it was time to go home.


PART 2: "Toi bi tai nan xe may", or The Dangers of Motorbikes

Andrea and I decided we would walk back to the hotel. It was only half a mile back, and the night before, we had walked about a mile and a half. We like walking, we needed the exercise, especially after eating all those fried bananas and shrimp. So off we went. Walking back to the hotel, enjoying the cool air and the breeze and talking about our classes.
Suddenly Huong pulled up, she signalled her motorbike. Turn out Thanh had sent her back to pick us up. What do you saywhen someone comes back to pick you up? You shrug and nod, and get on the bike. So we headed toward the bike. Huong asked me to sit in the front, and I climbed on. As I was sitting in front of her, not quite seated, but in the process, the bike moved. We were all in shock, I think, and all of a sudden, we were careening towards the sidewalk. We bounced up on the sidewalk, under a tree. I thought, "Oh, we didn't hit it, we'll steer back to the street, it will be okay." And then there was another tree. We were heading straight at it, and I was in the front part of the seat. We were going to run into it, and I could see it, see it happening, and then we were there, and my face hit the tree, my forehead, my nose, my teeth rattled. I thought, "I broke my nose; I'm going to stain my yellow shirt!", and then my head rolled to the side, and I thought, "My nose isn't bleeding, maybe it's not broken." We got off the bike, and Huong was freaking out: "Are you okay?" I told her I was fine, even though I was dizzy, because I didn't want to worry her. We told her we'd help pay for the bike (it's mostly fine, she was able to drive it home) and people poured out of their homes to help us. They delivered some ice for the knot on my forehead and my swollen nose. We called Thanh and she came back. She ended up going to Huong's house with her to explain what had happened to Huong's mother. Meanwhile, Andrea and I walked back to the hotel; we really weren't very far. We did NOT want to get on another xe may (motorbike) in our skirts and with my swollen face. We didn't call a tazi, didn't go to the doctor, didn't call Ms. Yen and Mr. Quy - all I wanted to do was go home and get some ice on my boxer's face.

So off we went. Eleisa, who is a nursing student, hooked me up with some meds, more ice, and checked me out for a concussion. The girls prayed over me, which was good. And I'm looking a bit better today. Still swollen, still looking like a boxer, but not quite as bad. My lip is fat and swollen, and I've been calling it my Angelina Jolie lip. I suppose things could be worse.

Eleisa said, "You know, it's funny how Satan works." The stomach ache wasn't enough to keep me down, so he tried the tree instead. But we're here and we're fighting, and I'm nursing my beat up face and trying not to be as vain about my nose. (Dear GOD, please let me keep my nice nose... ;).) But like I said, it was a good day with a crappy ending.

Today in my Vietnamese lesson I learned to say I had a motorbike accident (Toi di thai nan xe may), which I already tried out with my little buddy, San. He was very concerned. Seriously, the kid is adorable!

I hope that my students today aren't too put off by the state of my face. We were joking that maybe now, Abbey, the Ghanaian soccer player in town won't be so in love with me if he could see me. Of course, I am still NOT planning to meet him anywhere. LOL...

Keep us in prayer though, because our health has been hit hard since we've been here. Allergic reactions to bug bites, ear infections, sinus infections, stomach woes, and now the motor bike accident... But we're fighting the good fight.

Rambling on the foreign and familiar

Well, it's Tuesday here, and we just finished our Vietnamese lesson. I was going to blog yesterday, but we had a series of power outages that lasted quite a while. Imagine 93 degrees, high humidity, and no fans; sounds like fun, right? ;) I guess it wasn't too bad, but it made us all pretty lazy. We didn't want to go out or explore much.

Yesterday we celebrated Thanh's nephew's birthday. We had entirely too much food. It's amazing how a table full of food can totally ruin your appetite; I was completely overwhelmed. We invited the hotel staff and Ms. Yen and Mr. Quy, so there were about eight of us. We ate rice noodles, shrimp, beef stir fry, some kind of broth, a salad (which I helped prepare), rambutan (like lychee, but spiky), and cake. And I'm sure there was more food on the table somewhere... It was all really good. I feel like I never stop eating here.... Amazingly enough, however, all of my clothes are too big on me.

We played soccer with some kids outside the school yesterday morning, which was a lot of fun. Andrea is in agreement about soccer being the universal language. We walked from school to the hotel with the ball, and had about three conversations across a block and a half. Everyone wants to be your friend when you have a soccer ball. It's such a great conversation starter.

Last night, after class, we had some nuoc mia. This is becoming a habit for us, and not a particularly healthy one, but the nuoc mia is so sweet and cold and refreshing, that we are craving it by the end of the night when we've exhausted our cold water supply. It's nice to sit at the little plastic table, balancing on little plastic chairs on the edge of the sidewalk and sipping cold sugar cane juice. It's a well deserved treat, I think. Plus, the opportunities for conversation over nuoc mia abound. There is no such thing as personal space in Vietnam, so the tables are pushed close to one another and everyone wants to practice their English or see how well we speak Vietnamese (the answer is not very), so we always talk to people. Yesterday, we talked to a couple of older men who laughed at our Vietnamese notebooks with our careful notes on pronunciation.

After that, Eleisa, Andrea, and I split a plate of chicken fried rice (co'm is rice, ga is chicken - that's what we want) and some pickled green papaya (I love that stuff) for 20,000 dong, just a little over a dollar for three people. We decided we should not let Thanh order anymore because we are infinitely more frugal. ;). Andrea and I walked around the city after that, in search of Kem and sua chua (ice cream and yogurt) and some cold bottled nuoc (water). We were unable to find the latter, but managed to find a little shop where we bought some frozen yogurt in little glass cups. One pink, one white, and like good Vietnamese, we ate from eachothers cups.

At dinner we were making a list: "You know you've been in Vietnam too long when..." Among my favorites, "someone gives you a fork and you look at them funny", "you share one water bottle among four people", "you think nothing of double dipping"....

This is a different world here. I can feel the difference, see it, smell it, taste it. Most of my food reminds me of my seventh grade bio class where we did a lot of dissections (shrimp, crab, even chickens with their heads on - I have managed to avoid the latter). But there's something so universal in this heat, the poverty. Something universal in dusty streets and bright smiles and sad eyes. It's amazing to draw these parallels in a place that is so deeply foreign to me. I have my moments. My days of wishing for a nice, fat sandwich; some music in Spanish, maybe a car with AC... But I guess no place is really home. I'm an army brat, I should know that much at least.

Somedays I feel like I'm at the ends of the earth. I felt that yesterday, as I washed veggies while squatting on a pair of bricks on the patio. Yeah, there's no sink in the kitchen.... But at the same time, there's that common thread of food and water, the sky above, and the dust in my sandals... I am amazed at every turn. Sometimes amazed and resentful, sometimes amazed and gracious... You could all pray for my attitude; it wouldn't hurt. ;)

I guess I'm babbling. And maybe I'm repeating myself a lot, but I can't view my blog, only write in it, so I don't know what's old news.

I think we've decided to go to Ha Long Bay for the weekend so we can meet up with the Ha Noi team before they come down to Vinh. I think I need it; need some beach, some natural wonders to shock me into appreciation. The classes can tire me out. It's hard when you aren't always understood, when you get a lot of blank stares and nervouse gazes.... But it gets better, yes? It always gets better...

I'm optimistic, really I am. Just tired, a little sick, and definitely sweaty. Ha, ha... Guess it's time for lunch and a nap. Now THAT I could get used to.

Lazy Sunday...

We have been beyond lazy today. It is hot, ridiculously hot, possibly hotter than it was yesterday, and I have not been too eager to head outside.

Last night we went out with Ms. Yen and Mr. Quy. It wasn't quite what we expected, but it ended up being a good time. Ms. Yen is a lot of fun, and I really like spending time with her. I think she had a good time with us. Oh, we met a Ghanaian soccer player last night, too. He plays for the team here in Vinh City, and he has a bit of a crush on me, which made me feel a little uncomfortable. Mr. Quy was teasing me about that this morning.... I guess this is my brush with celebrity while I'm here in Vietnam. The guy is pretty famous here in Vinh.

Yesterday we went shoe shopping and to the market nearby. We are usually teaching in the evenings and were quite surprised to see that the city comes alive at around 5:30. There were people walking in the square, the markets are bustling, and everyone is out. I bought a pommelo at the market, and it's sitting on my desk, waiting for me to eat it. The best thing is that it was a quarter of the price that I pay for it back home. :) Don't worry, Maggie, I'll think of you as I eat it. Andrea and I also bought a soccer ball so we can take the boys to the park and play (or set up a game in the school lobby). So far, Thanh's nephew has had a ball with it in the hotel lobby. He's quite a handful, and a real cutie. He has been wandering in and out of our rooms looking for things to play with, and so far, he likes the ball most.

We're getting to be regulars on the motorbike front, and it's actually not as nervewracking when you're on the bike as when you're walking and watching them dodge in and out of traffic. They're quite practical here, I think. The wide sidewalks are a perfect parking lot for bikes, and they stir up a nice breeze in the humid Vietnamese summers. I would love to get one back home and use my car only in the winter or on rainy days. How sweet would I look on a Vespa? ;) Not to mention the gas I'd be saving.... How much IS gas these days, anyway?

Well, we've got a karaoke appointment at five, and it's just about time, so I'll be off. I'll have to share my stories of Ho Chi Minh's homeland tomorrow. I'm sure you're all dying to know. ;)

Soccer is the universal language

Well, it's the end of our first week at ASEM School. We've made it through unscathed, though we did meet with some rough patches. I was going to blog yesterday, but I got distracted by an impromptu game of soccer.

But I guess I should start at the beginning. Yesterday morning, Eleisa and I went with one of the teachers to do aerobics. We were out of the house by five, and put in a little over an hour at the gym. We rolled up to the gym in workout gear: bermudas, t-shirt, tank, sports bra, sneakers and find ourselves in a roomfull of skinny little Vietnamese women in bathing suits. A few women were in leotards a la Jane Fonda circa 1986. They were doing step aerobics on little wooden steps and then we moved into some regular aerobics. Then Nhuong took us through the routine one more time so that we could learn the moves. It was fun and I worked up a good sweat. I do miss my usual workouts, so I hope to go more regularly. Oh! I took a xe om to the gym - a motorbike taxi, and we rode three to a bike on the way back with Nhuong's aunt. She told us we could get workout clothes like hers at the market: bikini top and a little swim skirt. We told her we'd keep it in mind. ;)

After that, we had breakfast at the hotel, all four of us together: Eleisa, Andrea, Thanh, and me, and then we came to the school to check our email, minus Thanh.

The three little boys who live here at the school were here hanging on us and being generally adorable, so we invented a game of soccer with a bottle cap. They ran off and searched out a small ball, and we turned into a full scale game in the school lobby (it was nap time, so we were the only ones here). We kicked the ball around until it broke in half, and then we kicked the half-ball around for a while until the oldest boy, San, came back triumphantly with a Christmas ornament he'd found somewhere. We tucked the ornament into the broken ball and played teams: Andrea and San vs. his two younger brothers and me. They won by one goal. It was a lot of fun, and I got the feeling that those boys hadn't had so much fun in a long time. They don't generally have a lot to time to act like kids because they are always fetching things and generally helping out around the school. But my gosh, they are beautiful kids, and they have so captured our hearts. We brought them jelly candies yesterday and a couple bags of nuoc mia to drink. They are so adorable.

We each taught two classes last night. I have a listening and conversation class which is a ton of fun. There are only five students, and one of them is Korean, so they are forced to speak in English. They are in level one, but they really want to learn, so teaching them is a pleasure. We did a lot of speaking yesterday which was good for all of us. There is one girl in the class. Her name is Anh, and she's adorable. She's also twenty-five, so we've been able to talk a bit. I hope we can hang out some time after class. I really do enjoy spending time with the whole group.

My other class was a General English class of twenty students, 11 guys, 9 girls, most between the ages of 13 and 15. Fifteen year old boys are fifteen year old boys everywhere. LOL... I had to give my talk about hitting: "You can. Hit (mime punching). Outside (point to door). In here (point to floor). No more (signal no with hands). Yes?" "Yes." There was no more hitting after that.

After class, my teammates and I went for karaoke. One blissful session of all-English karaoke where we made fools of ourselves and laughed until midnight. We got ripped off, but it was still a good time. Tonight we're going out with Ms. Yen and tomorrow, we're visiting Ho Chi Minh's homeland. I'm excited about both events.

Oh, and this morning, we were reading Psalm 62:1-2 about waiting in silence for God. How appropriate, I think, for this. He's been faithful when I've been worried about teaching certain classes, about keeping me safe on a motorbike, about giving us time on plastic stools with our students. And I am glad for that. While we are here, we are waiting silently for Him. This is a beautiful country, a place unlike any I've ever visited. Muggy, hot, dusty, and slightly schizophrenic. But there is beauty. So much beauty in people's smiles, in their resilience, in the broken sidewalks and plastic tables laden with rice and beef and pho'.... I miss home food: beans and cheese and bread, but I'm glad to experience all this love and loveliness. I can't wait to show pictures and share more stories.

Oh! Finally, the team from Hanoi is coming next weekend. They'll be teaching here at ASEM with us, and staying at the hotel with us. So keep that in mind, because it might be a rough transition for them.

Ten beautiful places

So I was on BBC Mundo today when I stumbled across this forum. Basically they are asking people what their 10 favorite places are - either in actuality or in their dreams. And it got me thinking, although I didn't have time to respond to the question this morning. Besides, blogging is the extent of my Internet exhibitionism. So as I've been considering this idea, here's the list I've come up with.

1. San Juan, Puerto Rico - especially el Viejo San Juan. It's a dream: Spanish colonial architecture, forts, and plazas in the old section; skyscrapers, hotels, and stores in the new section; and all around it, beautiful stretches of beach with the clearest water you can imagine. It makes me feel like home. :)
2. Cayey, Puerto Rico - I love the cool air, the green mountains, and the small town feel of it. It's my dad's hometown, so I'm partial to the town, but it really is pretty. The plaza is classic Latin America and I have great memories of walking downtown with my grandma.
3. Heidelberg, Germany - I was blessed enough to live here for three years. So much history, so much beauty. My Junior prom was held in that castle in the mountains, and I spent so many days walking along the main street shopping and hanging out. It was the best place to be a teenager, because I had the freedom to hang out and explore.
4. Antigua, Guatemala - I hate how cheesy it sounds, but being there was breathtaking; the history gets me everytime.
5. Panajachel, Guatemala - Imagine driving for hours along a pot-holed mountain road. You're winding your way up through the Guatemalan countryside, certain that you will be run off the road - and right down the mountain - by a speeding chicken bus. All of a sudden you crest the mountain and you see this sparkling blue surrounded by volcanos. And when you get there, it's even more beautiful: sun glinting on the water, that perfect volcano, and little towns dotting the shore. They told me it was the most beautiful lake in the world, and I think they might be right.
6. Prague, Czech Republic - When I was here, the city was covered with a layer of snow and ice; I hate winter, and I did not care. I was so distracted by the beauty that the bitter cold didn't faze me. Seriously beautiful.
7. Venice, Italy - Cliché. I don't care. We couldn't get enough of Italy when we were living in Europe, and Venice was the top of the list.
8. New York - 'Nuff said.
9. Granada, Nicaragua - Maybe it was because it was what followed the craziest ferry ride ever, maybe it was because we had some good times there, maybe it was the magic of Spring Break, but there is something about Granada that I still can't shake. The architecture is breathtaking, the food was amazing, and the people are beautiful.
10. Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica - Pristine beaches, hiking trails, amazing views, and monkeys. What more could you possibly ask for? Seriously: MONKEYS!


And for five of the places I dream of visiting:

1. Belem, Brazil
2. Porto Alegre, Brazil
3. Cartagena, Colombia
4. Cape Town, South Africa
5. Mumbai, India

As I started my list, I kept thinking of more and more places that I wanted to mention. Between my Daddy's Army career and my own wanderlust, I've seen more places than most people my age. But my love is definitely for Latin America. Hands down. Give me dust and sprawl and mountains and beaches. I like that laid back feeling and the unlikely beauty of the developing world. And I know not everyone can see that beauty, but it's what I love. And someday I'll have the time and money to see the world, put my feet on every continent (Africa, Asia, and Australia, here I come!), eat food I've never tried, dance to songs I've never heard, and discover beauty in every corner of the world.