After a slight miscommunication about what street we would meet on, Huong picked me up at 2:30 pm in the center of Hanoi, joined by one of her school friends whose name starts with a C and is unpronounceable for most westerners. She handed me a helmet (a quite unfashionable one for vietnamese standards, most of them wear helmets that look like plastic baseball hats) and we were on our way. Sidenote, everyone wears helmets on motorbikes here because it is illegal not to. Except they never put helmets on their kids when they drive with them on their bikes... guess thats not illegal.
Me and Huong with our helmets, ready to go. I'd like to take this time to point out that I have not gained an enormous amount of weight. Standing next to Huong adds twenty pounds.
Teeny tiny Huong. Note the facemask.
She decided to take me to the Temple of Literature first, which was great cause its one of the main attractions in Hanoi and I had yet to visit. She explained it was the oldest university in Hanoi, although now it is only visited by tourists and Vietnamese praying for something in their lives they want to go well or improve. She told me that during exam week she would go to the worship area and pray for good grades. I told her I would have liked one of those in college.
A picture we took when we first got into the temple.
The elbow pose was Huong's idea.
She wanted us to make a heart with our hands.
Huong and her friend had just come from an engagement party for their friend. They both gave me these little wrapped candies, which are traditional engagement party favors in Vietnam.
After going through the temple, we took a ride to West Lake, an area that is very popular with the ex-pat community. We made a quick stop and had an ice cream cone (my first in two months!!) and then took a motorbike ride around the entire lake, which is 12 kilometers. This was my favorite part of the day, because I got to see so many new streets, markets and parks that I had never been to before. I also really love riding on a motorbike, because you can just relax and look at everything around you. Plus its fun zooming through traffic. After circling the lake we stopped and sat down on a mat, and Huong ordered us a few snacks to have while we sat and took in the scenery.
Huong and her friend sitting on the mat.
Our snacks. Mango, guava, and barbecued fish. They dip their fruit in seasoned salt there, which is what the small bowl in the middle is. The bowl above it is a spicy sauce to dip the fish in.
While we sat around, Huong confessed that she hoped that in ten years I will live near West Lake with all of the foreigners because she wants me to have cute babies for her to play with. She thinks "white babies are so cute." Its also her goal to one day be able to afford a house in this area (its expensive for locals, and very cheap for us. I could get a nice place for $150 a month). Later, there was an Australian couple that walked by and she excitedly told me the guy was hot! Which lead to me asking about her past boyfriends, and it turns out she had one for two years! But they broke up because they were very different. So I taught her the phrase "it was mutual".
Then I had to head back to a friend's apartment for a dinner we had planned, so she dropped me back off. On the way back we were pulled over by a police officer who wanted to know how old I was. When she told him in Vietnamese that I was 23, he told her that he thought I was 15. I think that's the youngest age I've been pegged for in awhile.
It was a great day and I promised her I would take her around any city she wanted in the U.S.
The next day at work, the president of CSIP, named Oanh, and my supervisor, Lan, took me out to lunch at a restaurant in my building. At our meal, Oanh asked if I would spend a few days at high schools, explaining why I am interested in volunteering and helping others, with the hope that I would encourage a few of them to take similar action in their community. I of course agreed and i think I will be taking a few school trips later this month. They also told me that the next day Lan was going to visit a social entrepreneur who started a company called VIP Bikes, and they invited me to come along, which I was very excited for.
The next day Lan picked me up in the city center, where I staying in a hotel to keep my friend Lauren company. She was very sick over the weekend and decided to stay in the city center to be closer to a doctor and to have a nicer place to stay while she recovered. Now she is feeling much better, which were all very happy about.
While I was waiting for Lan to pick me up, a man came up to me and told me "Happy Women's Day", then returned shortly with a red rose and handed it to me. In Vietnam, they take International Women's Day very seriously, and almost every woman is presented with flowers, chocolate, or a combination of the two. Shortly after happily accepting my rose, I received a call from Lan. After having to repeat herself many times, I finally understood that she was asking me to ask someone if I could borrow their helmet, because she didn't have one for me. This of course seemed a little odd to me, and considering most people wouldn't know what I was asking, also very difficult. I went to the hotel desk and asked if they had spare ones.. they looked at me like I was crazy and said no.
When Lan showed up, she asked if I had found a helmet and I sadly had to report that I had not. Then she started yelling to a random guy on the street, and about thirty seconds later I had a black helmet and we were driving off. Lan is very talkative and always has something funny to say. Unfortunately she decided to talk during the entire motorbike trip, and I could not understand a word of what she was saying. Between the honking on the streets, the sound of her motorbike's engine, and the face mask that she had on, I could not understand one word of her heavily accented English. Luckily she didn't seem to mind my answers, which clearly did not relate to what she was asking in the slightest.
In about twenty minutes we arrived at VIP Bikes and I was surprised to learn that the social entrepreneur that started the organization was Australian, not Vietnamese. He had come over five years ago and saw an opportunity to create the company. Basically, he takes in around 7 or 8 disadvantaged teens in the area, trains them to repair motorbikes at a motorbike rental and repair shop that he started, and in turn gives them a good salary so that they can have a better life. The org is not-for-profit, and he has a lot of really great plans for the next three years. Within that time he hopes to build a house for the children to permanently live in, create a classroom where they will be taught not only mechanics, but English, Vietnamese, and important life skills as well. He hopes to provide all of their meals, and be able to raise their wages. CSIP will hopefully help him obtain these goals. He said his goal is for all of the kids to eventually become self-sufficient and be able to secure a permanent job. It was great to hear about what he was doing, and also amazing to see the difference just one person can make. Because of him dozens of kids are off the streets, providing for themselves and their families.
Huong also came along on the visit, and I think she was a little nervous, because she would not let go of me the entire time. This was particularly funny when we had to climb stairs that were less than two feet wide, and she clung to my hand and walked squished up beside me.
After a few hours of learning about VIP Bikes, we headed back to the office. Because of International Women's Day, the office had been given bouquets of flowers and chocolate. Around 2 p.m. we sat around a table and had the chocolates and some other desserts to celebrate the occasion. It was at this time that I learned that Vietnam celebrates two women's days. The international women's day mandated by the UN, and their own Vietnamese women's day. I told them that we did not celebrate this day at all, and when they asked what we do to appreciate women, I told them we have Mother's day and Valentines day, but that you either need a child or a boyfriend to be included in them. I definitely think the U.S. should pick up on the women's day tradition.
While we were sitting around they all said how excited they were for the chocolate. When they finally opened the box I was shocked to see that the chocolate was green. Apparently green tea chocolates are popular here, and don't worry I tried enough of them to give my approval. Huong refused to eat them because she thought they were too pretty. Lan also refused to eat them because she is sure that she gained weight last week. She thinks it is either because she was in Saigon and ate too much without realizing, or because she was with her mother this past weekend, and her mother makes her happy and when she's happy she eats a lot.
And finally, I conclude with my FwH section. I think my next post with either be on the language or the food. Or maybe travel stories... keep putting that off.
Fun with Huong:
- I recently found out that she keeps a numbered list of every word that I teach her. She writes the English word and then the Vietnamese word right next to it. I think its at number 70 or so.
- This morning she just realized that after I leave “we will never meet again” and became very sad. Which of course made me very sad too. I promised I would make it back here someday.
- At lunch I taught her the different names for different kinds of voices. This was very fun because I would use the type of voice while I told her the word so she could remember it more easily. For example, I would say “this is a squeaky voice” while making my voice squeaky. This provided a solid twenty minutes of entertainment. I also was able to explain to her that she was soft-spoken.
- We were talking and a strand of my hair fell onto her journal. Before I had time to swat it away she grabbed it and folded it in between the pages of her notebook so she could “remember me always.”
- Five minutes ago she drew a portrait of me. Picture Japanese anime with those sparklely twinkle eyes.
- We just arm wrestled. Surprise surprise the girl with the forty pound advantage took the win.
Also, I found out I was accepted to Columbia and The Graduate Institute (international school based in Geneva, Switzerland), so I am having a very hard deciding what to choose right now! I think it will be between Georgetown and Columbia.
Wow, what a great narrative, and terrific photos! Wish you could post some on the group blog as well.
ReplyDeleteAnd congrats on all the acceptances! Isn't it nice to have choices? We are very proud of you!
Love,
Mama Barb