Alas, here I am – sitting in the Hong Kong airport, a little over an hour to go until I board the plane to Bangkok and embark on Part II of my Amasian Adventure – finally gittin’ her did. Some old habits die hard. And here are the cliff notes of the past 3 months of my life…
OCTOBER. (Or, From Island Paradise to a Case of the Mondays)
The month began with a wonderful trip to Phu Quoc, a tear-shaped island about 200 ks off the western coast of Vietnam, and probably the most earth-shatteringly beautiful place I have ever been. I cannot do this one justice, but this picture pretty much sums up all that I would want to say:
In addition to pristine sand beaches and clear blue waters, part of Phu Quoc’s charm lay in its remoteness. There is about a mile-long strip of little tourist bungalows, restaurants, and resorts, but beyond that, the island retains the feel of the Delta countryside – barefoot kids running around, lawn-chair coffee shops, and old men napping in the sun. We had the chance to rent motorbikes and drive all around the island (Alice was brave enough to drive one, I just rode on the back) and I couldn’t help but think how lucky I was to get to see this place NOW, before it is invaded by the SE Asia-bound hordes. Because I have a feeling that will happen in the very near future…
But hands down the best thing about Phu Quoc is how you get there – on a hydrofoil affectionately (and officially, I kid you not) known as the Superdong. Needless to say, the jokes abound. I’m so glad that all of the dirty humor I learned from those scallywags Jorge and Micol has really come in handy over here.
October went a bit downhill from there. I returned from Phu Quoc to a very busy few weeks of teaching – between illness and traveling, I had missed about a week of classes that I had to make up over the course of three Sundays. There is a reason why Sunday should be the day of rest.
Around this time I also ran into a bit of Stage Two-ism – a factor of culture shock that I never really got to experience during my time in RSA. They say – and I’ve heard this theory collaborated from other friends spending time abroad – that a few months in, the initial euphoria of the ex-pat life wears off, and cultural disillusionment begins to take its place. The adorable kids screaming hello at you in the street become less adorable and more screaming. The constant sweating and mosquito bites and clamminess of your skin becomes unbearable. You’re tired of being misunderstood, you tired of standing out, you can’t handle the constant demands of your students to practice English.
In short, the ins and outs of daily life begin to lose their luster a bit as they become your reality. This is no longer a funny little stint you’re pulling for a few weeks – this is the real McCoy, the whole shebang, the full monty, the works…you get the point.
In retrospect, I think I also naively believed that going to Viet Nam would purge me of any remaining sadness at leaving Princeton. I would be doing something so different and interesting that I just wouldn’t think of what I’d left behind. Part of my Stage Two-ism involved realizing that this was ERRONEOUS, so erroneous. Duh. Yes, I am not reminded of my former life as often on a daily basis as I might otherwise be. But still – not a day goes by when I am not moved to think of people and places at home – and I guess that’s ultimately fine by me. A life that I didn’t miss wouldn’t have been much of a life at all!
Anyways, no need to be alarmed – there were a few rougher weeks in there, but luckily October soon turned into…
NOVEMBER. (Or, Five Reasons Why November is Better Than October)
1. The Mothership Lands.
To kick November off, we received a lovely if rushed visit from not one, not two, but three of our bosses from Princeton in Asia – Anastasia, Leslie, and board member Margaret. In less than 24 hours, they managed to observe us teaching, visit one of the orphanages for a Game Night, keep up those good relationships with the University and scarf down as much Vietnamese food as humanly possible. All in all, a valiant effort. And also fun to have visitors – made me realize how much of a life I’d built for myself over the past few months.
2. Oh Boy, Oh-Bama!
I foolishly waited until a week before to send in my absentee ballot and ended up paying an arm and a leg to do send it via express mail. Upon asking if it were possible to be notified when it was received, I was told “maybe you call your friend” to see if he got it. Right.
At the risk of alienating some of the Virginia set, I’m going to go ahead and say that I was pleased with the results of our national election, although sad that the SNL Sarah Palin spoof phase came to an end.
But partisan politics aside, a few thoughts on Election Day – it was very bizarre to be in a part of Viet Nam where people frankly aren’t all that concerned with American politics. For example, I asked my freshman pronunciation class if they could tell me what important event had just happened in America. Most of them responded enthusiastically, “Halloween!” Fortunately, I did get to watch Obama’s acceptance speech (and McCain’s concession) on the BBC World News channel. And I wept. Of course, he’s a pretty great orator – but more moving than that were the expressions on peoples’ faces. Never in my life have I seen Americans that excited about politics, that hopeful about the future, that inspired – it was a sight to behold, for sure. I just hope that he lives up to everyone’s expectations.
3. My Own Personal Mecca.
What venue combines crazy Euro-dance moves, blasting techno, and the best of Asian enthusiasm? That’s right, our local Vietnamese dance club, Xe Loi. This was one of the more amazing experiences of my life, probably, and took the definition of DP (dance party) to a whole new level. We went one Friday night early in November for Sam’s birthday and enjoyed 3 straight hours of an intense dance floor. And by intense I mean that if (God forbid) you ever stop moving your hips or waving your arms or smiling maniacally, you are instantly surrounded by a mob of Vietnamese youth helping you along. Further proof that Vietnamese people can’t dance. But I’ll be damned if they don’t keep on trying.
4. Teacher Appreciation.
On November 20, I came into my office only to be welcomed by a barrage of flowers, cards, and gifts to wish me a happy Vietnamese Teacher’s Day. The outpouring of generosity that surrounds this national holiday is just another example of one of my favorite things about Vietnamese culture – unbelievable thoughtfulness. Gifts so carefully wrapped, cards so neatly penned – one of my students even hand-made me a beaded cell phone case (quite Asia-fab, if I do say so myself). My freshman class threw me a Teacher’s Day party in which they had a flower-arranging competition and then explained how each arrangement conveyed the student’s appreciation of the teacher’s wisdom and guidance. This kind of consideration is just humbling, and makes me think about all the ways in which I could be a more considerate person myself!
5. Finals and Travel Time.
After the few weeks in October when I spent so much time teaching I never wanted to see the inside of a classroom again, things eased up when finals came. Writing and grading a final exam turned into quite an adventure in which I learned that just because you graduate doesn’t mean you can’t procrastinate! But I got through it by the skin of my teeth, as per usual, just in time to head off on what I thought was going to be three weeks of traveling through Laos and Thailand, ten days in each country. More on that below.
It’s ironic how it sometimes takes saying goodbye to a place for you to realize how much it means to you…but I kept having a lot of these moments over the last few weeks in Can Tho. The night of my last exam I went on a little excursion with some students – we played games and ate a fondue-type thing at a crazy Japanese coffee shop with Animé characters all over the walls, we rode the world’s shortest rollercoaster while screaming at the top of our lungs, and then we sang karaoke for almost two hours straight (our repetoire that included Tina Turner, Michael Jackson, SClub7, Celine Dion, U2 and Britney Spears)(again screaming at the top of our lungs, it was exhausting!). The evening was ridiculous and bizarre, completely unlike anything I’ve ever done with friends in America, and I felt about 5 years old. But I also had more fun than I’ve had all fall. Maybe that’s a sad statement on my social life, maybe that a salute to my students’ unbridled enthusiasm, I don’t know. But for a while I actually forgot that I was giant blonde white girl living in Viet Nam, and just felt like one of them. It was pretty cool.
On November 22, Alice, Frank and I headed up to Saigon for a night of backpacker district fun and then flew out the next day to Vientiane, Laos, which brings us to…
DECEMBER. (Or, Laotian Adventures)
Stop 1: Vientiane
Here we visited two other PiA fellows – Julie McWilliams, who teaches at Vientiane College, and Elena Olivi, who has worked for Population Services International in Laos for the past 18 months or so. They were wonderful hosts, taking so much time away from their daily lives to show us the good sites and take us to all of their favorite restaurants. I also have decided that I much prefer to visit people – that way you’re not just doing the normal tourist gig but you actually get a bit more of the local flavah.
We had five or so days of stuffing our faces with French pastries, curry, and sticky rice, biking around town to various beautiful wats and monuments, and ending each evening with sunset Beer Laos overlooking the Mekong River. It was a sweet, sweet life in Vientiane.
Stop 2: Vang Vieng
This is a town about 3-4 hours north of Vientiane by bus that exists purely for Euro-backpackers to come and get wasted amid gorgeous scenery. After hearing a lot about it, we wanted to see what all the rage was about but unfortunately were left a bit disappointed. The main event involves renting intertubes for the day and drifting from riverfront bar to riverfront bar down the Mekong. Sort of like Cancun, but in SE Asia. Or maybe Woodstock. While Alice and Frank and I enjoyed a few cocktails, we found the whole scene a bit seedy. Some people stay there for weeks and do the same thing every day. It’s definitely a fun one-time experience, and the town is beautiful, but…come on. Plus I don’t think the local population finds the debauchery all that amusing. I haven’t been around that many people who were just absolutely bombed out of their mind in awhile.
On a lighter note, I made it my mission to document the most ridiculous people I saw, which has made for some entertaining footage as you can see below:
Stop 3: Luang Prabang
After a harrowing nine-hour bus ride through the mountains, we arrived in beautiful Luang Prabang on Sunday the 30th. The town itself is situated in a V formed by two rivers – the Mekong and another which I do not remember right now – surrounded by mountains and it is absolutely beautiful. You can see all of this from the vantage point of Phu Si hill in the middle of the city, which is cool to climb at sunset. There are also all sorts of opportunities for exploring the area around the city – visits to waterfalls, caving, elephant riding and trekking around the hill-tribe villages. In the city itself, there are dozens of interesting restaurants and a quite impressive night market.
My only regret with Luang Prabang was that by the time we arrived I was a bit travel-weary and disillusioned with the whole tourism industry after Vang Vieng, not to mention stressed out about the Bangkok airport closings because of which we ended up having to reroute our flights home. I feel like I would have enjoyed it more otherwise…
On the whole, Laos was a wonderful place to visit – very different from Viet Nam but also very cool in its own right. I could have more to say on this but I just had a sixteen-hour flight from New York to Hong Kong and I am a bit fatigued.
Though I was supremely disappointed that our Thailand adventure plans were foiled by the damn protests, the silver lining in the cloud was that I inadvertently got more time at home with the family. When we couln’t go into Thailand, Alice and I both decided that it would probably be a better idea to just move up our flights home instead of bumming around Viet Nam and spending more money. So we flew out to Hanoi from Luang Prabang on the 3rd of December and were both home by Friday the 5th. I managed to pack a lot of visiting with family and friends into those three weeks, and fortunately a lot of people were in town, so I’m very grateful for that.
And now it’s back to Asia to make the most of the next 5-6 months. In a few hours I’ll be meeting up with people for New Years in Bangkok, and then Alice and I will be back in Can Tho next Sunday to start teaching next Monday. Whew – what a whirlwind. Happy New Year everyone!
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