Road Trip to Isan Day 4

The final day of our little adventure. Really yesterday was supposed to be the final day, but that changed on Sunday and we all agreed to 'play it by ear.' This morning I thought I was awake until a knocking sound on the door woke me up for real. Pastor got to see me not bright and smiley, but I still managed to say good morning after I said, "no thanks" when he told me it was time for us girls to wake up. To this I responded, 'yes Dad' and promptly crawled back in bed. Dee-Dee joined me not long after, but we still managed to leave around 8ish. Some of us got breakfast at the main house before we went to their family's home again. Again breakfast consisted of beer, sticky rice, BBQ pork, grilled fish, some steamed veggies, and some spicy dips. While we waited for breakfast, Dee-Dee and I hung out in the hammock to read a book and we were joined by his 2 year old cousin Bai Fern. She smiles and dances when prompted and is quite the star of the show. After breakfast it was off to see their rubber farm. Jiit and I took the bike. While she drove, I took pictures of us. Then she let me drive. My favorite instruction was that she forbid me to pull the accelerator hard. I got that down and we made it safely to the farm even though I didn't know how to lower gears. Every day they have people come and cut the rubber trees and then the sap flows into little cups which are collected and rolled into sheets of rubber and sent from there to be processed. It was a pretty cool thing to learn about. Back at the house it was time to say goodbye! I hugged Jiit and was happy I get to see her next year, aka next week! We loaded up this time in different places as Jiit didn't come back to BKK with us and P Thongtip wanted to sit in the back seat with Dee-Dee and I. I got a great chance to get to know her better and practice my Thai. Dee-Dee and I also got to be friends too. He bought a toy at Big C that we put together. Back in Sikui, we stopped at one of Pastor and Thongtip's neighbor's house and then climbed up the mountain (in their truck) to where they own a farm with rubber trees. The trees are really young, so we got to see how they work to prune them, to grow straight and tall. We also dug up a tapioca root to see what it looks like. I got a chance to get my hands dirty digging in the dirt and it was great! Our trip was quickly coming to an end though. We picked up Dee-Dee, said goodbye to the neighbors and got on the road to BKK after getting my cellphone. Traffic was incredibly busy on the road as everyone is headed home to Isan for New Year's. While we were in traffic, a guy bumped us from behind. Pastor got out to check, but there was no damage, so everyone continued on. Now it's back in BKK and back to work, for me at least. This was really a wonderful break! I am so glad I had a chance to travel with all these people. It was so relaxing and I'm glad I had a chance to just be a tag along like one of the kids of the family! We joked in Big C that they could tell people I was adopted and that Robin was Thongtip's sister!

Road Trip to Isan Day 3

It's 5 o'clock somewhere. That's what Robin and I concluded when we got to the golf course at 9:30am with Dee-Dee, P Thongtip, Jiit and Jiit's Dad and found Pastor and their other relatives pouring the beer and preparing our breakfast spread. My first reaction to anything different is to say, "awesome" and so after looking dumbfounded for a few seconds I grabbed my glass and said "cheers!" Somehow I knew that this day would indeed be awesome!

Just like yesterday, we ate waaay too much and then headed out for 9 rounds of golf. It was a group effort. Really there were only 2 people (Robin and Jiit's dad) of the 10 present actually playing golf, but again everyone participated in some way. Pastor had never golfed before in his life, but he still tried his hand at it. Dee-Dee and Jiit also tried their hand at it a few times. My fun was driving the golf cart. In the first 30 seconds we hit a bump that sent P Thongtip almost flying through the front windshield. Eventually I got the hang of it! Oops! Here's Jiit and I escorting the special beverages and clubs and occasional different people and drivers on and off. It felt like a clown show in some ways, because we had people all over the place; going in all different directions, chasing Pastor's golf balls in the woods, trying to determine who's ball was who's. Some members of our group scrounged around on the fringes trying to find herbs other food items in the woods and trees to collect for cooking. This included having Pastor climb a tree with a golf club to knock a bunch of sour fruits down for us to collect.Needless to say, our morning and early afternoon was quite eventful and entertaining. I don't think they kept score, and by the time we were done with 9 holes everyone was ready to...you guessed it, eat! Here's the Ying Saows which is Thai for young ladies. That's how Jiit and I were referred to collectively during the trip.Jiit, her dad, their neighbor, Dee-Dee and I went to get som-tom to add to the food leftover from breakfast. When the lady mashed up 2 handfuls of peppers with the mortar and pestle, I knew there was no way I could eat it so they made another that only had 4 peppers! Our next stop was to go to a wildlife reserve nearby. I sat in the back with Jiit, her parents and I think her sister maybe. Anyway, when we got to the gate they wanted to charge us foreigners a high price, but I think Pastor got a discount. Jiit and I joked with the guards that I was a Thai person already because I can speak Thai and eat som-tom and sticky rice like a Thai person. They just laughed at us and we passed on. It was several kilometers, but the drive was gorgeous. By then it was close to evening, so the weather was cool and the trees were falling because it is the dry season. Everyone kept an eye out for the wild elephants, but alas we didn't see any. We did see lots of deer though, and unlike America where visitors are discouraged from feeding the wild animals, here it is common practice. Deer also like bananas. I never knew, and I made him work for his food! We toured the little museum they have of all the animals that live in the preserve and saw the animal fossils they have on display also. We stopped on the road back to take some pictures on this scenic bridge. Dee-Dee sat in my lap, content and happy. When we reached the gate, Jiit and I jumped out to get her Dad's motorcycle. We were going to take it back to the house. At first we followed Pastor's truck, but he waved us past (let the younguns have fun) and then Jiit let the engine run! We raced down the mountain until we got to the point where she switched places and decided to teach me how to drive!!! I was pretty much terrified and thrilled at the same time. We had to use Thai for me to learn in all of about 15 seconds and then we were off. Not very far, but enough for me to get an idea! lol, it was incredible! That short drive took us to the local zoo which was closed. By then the others had shown up, and we got permission to walk around. All the animals were really active of course and we got to feed some monkeys. I also had a staring contest with a bear that was about 3 feet from my face in a pit below me. Unfortunately my camera battery died and I have to get pictures from others. The sun was set by the time we finished, but the evening was far from over. The ladies got dropped off at the night market while the guys and myself went to get gas in the truck. Really I just wanted to rest, so I just laid in the back seat instead of shopping with the rest of the girls. We went back, collected the ladies, and went to Jiit's parents house for dinner. The evening was really relaxing, as is usual for country life at home. I know that the appearance is different, but it felt like home in many ways. Mostly just the opportunity to lounge, chat with neighbors, snack, casually eat, play with the kids, etc. After dinner our posse headed back to the bungalows and showered up before another night of karaoke. This time Jiit and I were joined by Robin and Pastor. It was way fun again, and our guests left long before Jiit and I actually went to sleep. Again I feel asleep in no time at all and slept like a rock! Tomorrow would prove to be a full day again.

Road Trip to Isan Day 2

It's 6:17! Time to wake up!! I thought a lot was packed into yesterday afternoon! Well, today wasn't much different, and it was also incredibly fun. Our group cleaned up our sleeping area and took throw showers before heading out on the road again. Road trips are always fun and this one included the usual road trippy things like singing with the radio, chatting, getting turned around, stopping for food and the bathroom, etc. I also realized early on that I was missing my cell phone which turned up at Deacon Chan's house. His wife found it in the parking lot and said other people saw it but thought it was a children's toy! This of course brought out another round of teasing me about the boys stealing my phone and getting my number! We stopped first at another relatives house to say hello and Robin and I went for a short walk. Short because we only stayed a short while before heading to Jiit's parent's house which is in Ubon Ratchathani. By the time we reached Jiit's house it was already afternoon and I felt that Jiit, Dee-Dee and I were getting to be friends. It's always nice to have new friends!

What do you think we did when we got to her house? We ate and didn't stop eating or drinking for 2 days!!!! I'm sure I've gained like ten pounds already just in time for the New Year! It was absolutely wonderful spending the afternoon with them. There wasn't anything special going on really. We just sat and chatted. They did the usual family visit and talk about the farm and what's going on in the community, ate, played with the nieces and nephews, ate, unloaded a truck engine, ate, sent the kids on a walk up a mountain for a panoramic view of the valley, made dinner, de-feathered the chicken, lounged, ate some more, danced around trying to get the two year old to dance, chased Dee-Dee with his medicine, planned tomorrow's adventures, ate and then sent us on our way with more food. We stayed in a bungalow situated on the lake created by the Princess Sirindhorn Dam. Once we all got in our rooms, we were due for a nap so we agreed to rest and meet again later. It was before the sun set so we took a ride in the truck to see where the princess stays when she comes to visit. It was so peaceful and quite there on the lake, so serene. I could have stayed there for hours! But hunger wouldn't allow it. Dee-Dee and I sat in the back of the truck on our way up to the golf course, so they could practice putting. During our planning, they decided that we were going to go golfing! Yes, golfing of all things, in Thailand. Robin was thrilled having never had the chance since she came to Thailand. So everyone was pumped for the next day! We headed back to the restaurant in the park to eat some more and even got a show with it.

That night, Jiit and I got some bonding time as we stayed up late singing karaoke. The boys joined us for an hour or so but called it a night early, leaving us to sing our hearts out! When we finally went to bed I was out when my head hit the pillow!

Road Trip to Isan Day 1

Unlike, most road trips where people get up at an ungodly early hour to drive for hours on end, this trip starts in the late afternoon. First we went to church. There weren't very many people there because, it's between 2 holidays and most people travel home to the countryside. Before church started I got to hold baby Grace who was dressed in an adorable ladybug outfit! She is so cute! After church Robin and I got lunch and picked out a new camera for Robin. It was really cool and does all sorts of neat things. It was perfect just before a road trip. We met our traveling companions at 2 and after a quick prayer we headed for our first destination- Sikiu which is in Isan or Northeast Thailand. In front- our driver Pastor Sompong and his wife P Thongtip who was holding their grandson Dee-Dee. In back- the ladies, Robin, Jiit, and myself. Dee-Dee and I became friends as we walked around Tesco-Lotus. We stopped there for food and other things to bring to the Christmas party. Around 6pm we arrived in the village as they were getting things together. This is the same house church I went to when I first arrived in Thailand. This experience however, was MUCH different!
Where do I start. Ok, so at first just some family members and a few kids were there, so we hung out talked with Pastor Chan and his wife and helped them get ready as well as spent a bit of time taking pictures with my new fried Jiit. They had a big BBQ planned for the community complete with music, a gift exchange and a Christmas message from Pastor Sompong. The BBQ was delicious. I sat down with some ladies and introduced myself. Later on I found out I was sitting with the village leader's wife and we were soon joined by him also. It was just a blur of activity after that. People were coming and going, eating food, kids were playing, people were singing and then we were joined by a group of rowdy guys. The first thing the village leader tells me is that they are drunk! LOL. Which made the rest of the evening quite interesting, especially with foreigners there. They all hung out in a group shooting glances at me. Some where dancing to the music and every time a song finished they would present the singer with a piece of food. Quite funny to watch. They eventually got brave and one guy brought me sticky rice! Pastor Sompong gave a Christmas message and then invited Robin and I to sing Christmas songs. That was great. We both really enjoyed it and we got an applause afterwards. I was presented with more sticky rice and what I thought was water. After tasting the water, I thought it tasted strange, so Pastor Sompong and Robin tested it and confirmed my suspicions that it was spiked!!!! Ridiculous!! I joked with Pastor that he needed to be my bodyguard, and a poor one he turned out to be. Eventually a group of ladies got up to dance and I was pulled into dance with them and Robin and I was presented with flowers from one of the guys. Before we left the guys wanted my picture and my phone number and they presented me with more flowers. Instead of rescuing me Pastor and Robin helped the situation and made sure I posed for lots of pictures! Oh my! It was so much fun though. I got to hang out with a bunch of kids who took the camera to take pictures of the surroundings, I got to chat with the village leader's wife who made sure to tell everyone that I spoke Thai which encouraged the boys, and I had an all around good time!

Our travelling group headed to the house of a Christian friend who owns a house here but lives in Phuket. We had to do a bit of cleaning since no one lives there. This included cleaning the bathroom where we met a spider the size of my hand!!!Yikes!! After that we rolled out mats and spent a little time chatting on the floor of this huge room and called it a night. We had 3 more days to go and needed all the rest we could get.

I am glad we got to go to Sikiu. It is different being in Isan from other areas. People are really friendly and open here and it's exciting to see this new Christian community that is growing and such a positive part of their larger community as well. Over 60 people got to hear about Christmas and God's gift of Christ. Another aspect I loved was the chance to get to know my travelling friends and feel like I was part of the family. I didn't have to be on at all, I could just be myself and enjoy a chance to relax and be with friends. The Hapradit's are a tremendous blessing to me, and I can't thank God enough for bringing them and Birdie into my life here. So this day was absolutely wonderful, and I went to bed thinking that it had been one of the best days I've ever had.

Christmas Eve and Day

What can I say. At Christmas, people surround themselves with things that are familiar like family and traditions. Living in Thailand for Christmas the last two years, I have attempted to do that, but with a few additions and changes. For example, this year on Christmas Eve, Sarah and I went to the IMPACT center for the OTOP festival. It has nothing to do with Christmas whatsoever, but it only happens 4 times per year. It is a big convention where vendors from all over Thailand come and sell Thai gifts, housewares, clothing, jewelry, accessories, and food. I think we walked around there for nearly 4 hours or until we were exhausted! Then we went out for dinner to the Pizza Company! On Christmas morning we plugged in the Christmas tree my Grandma gave me, cranked up the AC so we could wear our sweaters while I worked on a Thomas Kinkade puzzle and we watched It's A Wonderful Life. It was so nice to relax. That afternoon, we ventured out into the heat and went to a volunteer's house for Christmas dinner, complete with ham, potatoes, fresh baked bread, greens, apple crisp and vanilla ice cream!! It was so good, and our company was even better. The volunteer comes to the daycare where Sarah works and knowing that we might want to have a Christmas like at home, they invited us to their house for dinner with their two daughters! The day wasn't over, as we went back to the daycare in Bang Na and joined some of the older students, P Maew, P Wow, and P Gorb Christmas caroling in the slum. They visited several of the older people who are shut-ins and gave them food, robes and music. The people were so happy to see these kids and I got to enjoy spending more time in the community!

So, not a typical American Christmas experience, but a good one!

Christmas Day

I know it is not yet December 25th, but here in Thailand, Christmas is whenever we say it is and just like in America, you celebrate Christmas whenever you can get together with your family. Today, just happened to be the day all of my Thailand family decided to call Christmas and celebrate with parties. From 8am this morning until...now it's 11:30pm, I have been from one party to another.

I started out the morning meeting P Dang and the Kayes. We carpooled to Bang Na for the Concordia Daycare Christmas celebration. Sarah, and the teachers at the daycare have been planning this and practicing with the kids for at least 2 months already. When we got there the house was packed for this big event. One of the dad's who is an artist came in and draped the tent really nice with Christmas colors and decorations so everything was complete green and red. The kids performed several Christmas songs and dances in both Thai and English. In between performances volunteers and staff were introduced.

The big event was the children's performance of the Christmas nativity. Almost all of the kids performed in the show. Behind stage, it seemed like utter chaos, but it went off without a hitch! The final surprise came when the big man in red showed up to give the kids their presents which were all donated by one of the volunteers Rochelle Allan. Everyone was sad that she couldn't come because she passed away two weeks ago. The children adored her and apparently they had the same effect on her. Her husband came instead and helped pass out gifts to the kids. It was nice that he came. I'm sure Rochelle would have been happy, but the whole time I just wanted to hug him because I knew the whole time he was there it was very hard for him.

After gifts it was time to eat, and eat we did. I was starving, but didn't pay attention to pace myself for the afternoon's activities. A bunch of us said our goodbyes and loaded up into Dang's car to head to the other side of town. We had an hour to burn, so Sarah, Pastor Carl and I went to Villa for groceries, and then took a brief break at Starbucks!!! After we refueled there we headed to Concordia Daycare in Prachachuen where Goi is the director. They had so many wonderful events planned, that everyone had just a wonderful time. We got to make cute Christmas tree ornaments and also play games. In fact our corner which consisted of Pastor Carl, Sarah, Seth and I agreed that we had the best time playing Bingo together. We all raced to see who could fill their card first. In between crafts and games I sat out on the lawn with Pastor Carl and Pastor Sompong who were sharing jokes back and forth. I joked that I sleep through Pastor Carl's sermon, which he mock scolded me and I told him not to worry because I sleep through Pastor Sompong's sermons too. This led off to him telling a joke that stuck with us the rest of the evening. It goes like this:

A bus driver who is a Christian dies and goes to heaven. Not long after that a pastor also dies and goes to heaven. When he gets there he sees that there are different levels to heaven and so he looks up and notices that the bus driver is all the way up on the top level which is really nice and has a great view. He looks around where he is and thinks to himself that it's really not that nice and kind of dingy, so he complains to God about it. He says that he doesn't understand why he is down on this low level and why the bus driver is so high because he was a shepherd for God's people, taught the faith and preached the Word and served God always, but the bus driver; all he did was drive a bus every day. God's reply is this, "when you were working preaching everyone slept through your sermons every Sunday, but whenever the bus driver was working, every person on the bus was praying the whole time!" LOL

Okay, so everyone came from church to sing Christmas carols. When they were done, Sarah, Pastor Carl, and I hitched a ride with Pastor Sompong. We did not have problems getting to our next destination because it was his house. We sang and then were invited inside to eat som-tom, wings, and sticky rice. After that I was full but we still had more stops to go! We sat around for awhile and then loaded up for our next destination. Well on the way we got a little lost so we teased Pastor Sompong that we were praying the whole time to get to Dennis and Boom's house, but not to worry because we were setting him up for a better position in heaven! We finally made it and after songs were graciously welcomed by our kind hosts. It was neat seeing Boom's collection of manger scenes sprinkled all over her house. I assured them that even though we were full from Pastor Sompong's we would help eat their food. I am satisfied to say I was able to fulfill the American custom of overeating on the holidays this year. Robin, my dear friend, was wound up, and circled a rumour that they spiked the punch, which in turn gave everyone else an excuse to be wound up too! She even taught Pastor Sompong (skinniest man alive, even skinnier than Jeff Leininger) how to be the Pillsbury dough boy! Yep, I know, exactly! Hi-larious! Man our group was just a riot! I absolutely loved it. The fun didn't stop there either. They decide that the next place we were going to was Joe and Ar's house. We got lost againish on the way over there, and our carpool prayed...again! LOL! Ahhh, Joe and Ar had the desert table and I sprawled on the couch holding my stomach from all the food while everyone bantered back and forth. We didn't stay too long as everyone agreed we still had a long night ahead of us before yet another party tomorrow. That will be Christmas Day #2. More on that tomorrow. Also, my camera died after the Bang Na daycare so when get pictures from my friends of the other venues I will put them up along with these from the daycare!

Christmas Shopping?

This is not what you might think. There were no malls, crowds, or sold out action figures in this story. No, today Dang, La, Khun Oi and I drove to the Cambodia Market near the Thai-Cambodia border and our purpose was to buy 150 winter coats for people living in Northern Thailand. Even though we don't have snow or negative degrees like North America, it still gets pretty cold for hill tribe people living in the mountains and in houses made out of bamboo, on stilts, with no indoor heating. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was surprised when we showed up in this market the size of a small town and arrived at a store that sold coats by the mountain! Literally, the place we went to had a pile of coats as big as a huge haystack on which Dang and I climbed looking for nice coats to buy for the children. Here's me sitting on top of one pile checking out a coat. Even though it was hot in there, we still had lots of fun and boat over 150 second-hand coats for adults and children for only about $130ish. One pack of clothes we shipped straight from the market. The rest we will deliver in January when we go to Pakham Mai for children's day celebration.

Thai's Say The Darndest Things ;)

This morning La and I are walking to work, when our neighbor putters by on his little 3-wheel motorbike. He says to La, "dek(child) dun(walk) gahp(with) phoo-yai(adult). Which basically meant that he called her short because it looked like she was a child walking next to me since I'm like 9 inches taller than her. She laughed at him and then said to me, "he is always joking." It made me laugh too. Later on I had one of those moments where I reflected how different my culture is from the Thai culture and how I have grown accustomed to things that would raise eyebrows at home.
This is just one example, but in general it is not impolite to talk about a person's appearance to their face here. Almost all people use a nickname that usually reflects personality or appearance. These nicknames include pig, fatty, chicken, good heart, little, egg, cat, pinkie, red, etc. Talking about a person's weight, fat, height, age, ethnicity, or skin color can be inserted into a conversation with as much ease as a comment on the weather. When I first came here, I was in a bit of shock the first several times I saw or experienced this, and I wondered how people could be so mean openly ridiculing others. Eventually one of my teachers explained to me that these things aren't factors in determining a person's value or worth in the eyes of Thai like it so often is in western culture, so they can talk about it and it doesn't make a difference. They're going to like you the way you come, so why worry about it.

The Messiah

Wow! So I still have the Hallelujah Chorus reverberating in my mind as I write this. The Ministry of Culture, the German Embassy, and the Church of Christ in Thailand hosted the performance of Handel's Messiah, and Haydn's The Creation under the direction of Charunee Hongcharu and performed by the Bangkok Combined Choir and Bangkok International Community Orchestra at the Thailand Cultural Center. (Talk about a mouthful!)It was amazing. I went with Pastor Carl, P Dang, Sarah, P La, P Maew, P Waew, and P Gorb. My favorite part is during the Hallelujah Chorus when everyone in the auditorium stands in honour of the King of Kings. Tradition has it that King George II rose because it was customary to stand in the presence of royalty, and by him standing he recognized that he too was subject to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This is something that Thais understand well and can take to heart since they too have a King and give him a great deal of honour and respect. The whole auditorium rose at the beginning of the performance to hear the Thai anthem which is in honour of the king of Thailand. I couldn't help but thinking during the Hallelujah chorus that this whole auditorium (which statistically is a majority Buddhist) stood in honour as the King of Kings was being praised. The whole performance was straight from scripture and translated into Thai. So most people may have been there for a "cultural experience", but they got the message of the Creator and Saviour of the world!

HALLELUJAH! For the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign forever and ever.

King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, HALLELUJAH!

Visa trip to Vietnam!

It is that time AGAIN! Every three months I leave Thailand to renew my visa to stay here as an intern. This gives fellow intern Sarah Longmire and myself an opportunity to see a new country and visit with friends we know in different fields like Vietnam. My friend Amanda is an English teacher at a school in Hanoi and was kind enough to be our host while we took care of business. She is a fabulous tour guide and arranged lots of things for us to do while we visited.

The first order of business was the Thai embassy, so we got that out of the way right away. Unfortunately we had to have American dollars to pay for the visa, so we called Uncle Ted up and he came right over! It was so great to see him. No matter who you are, when you meet Ted, you will get a huge bear hug at least and probably a kiss on the cheek (his wife is from Belgium and he speaks fluent French, so I think that explains it). But we didn't come to spend our whole time at the embassy, so almost as soon as we got there, we were on our way again. I got to hop on the back of Ted's motorbike and experience firsthand how insane traffic is in Hanoi. The traffic in Chicago is like a drive in the country compared to Thailand, and Thailand is a drive in the country compared to Vietnam! If you wait for all the traffic to clear before you cross the street, you will wait all day and all night and never make it to the other side of the road. It was pretty much great and makes me want to have a motorcycle! But that wasn't all the fun. Ted took me (with the taxi following) to J.P. and Aimee's house where we were deposited for awhile. Aimee is so nice and hospitable. We got to meet their new baby Isabella and Celeste a very independent but fun almost-3-year old. We had a GREAT Pho and beef lunch! Pho is a type of Vietnamese noodle and is often in soup or in our case for lunch just plain noodles.

The highlight of the afternoon/day was a trip out into the country where we attended the wedding of Hai and Mai, two people that work with LCMS in Vietnam. It was at the groom's family's house, so when we got there we were welcomed like one of the family. It was totally bizarre but equally amazing. I had so much fun there. They had already been celebrating for two days already and they had gas tanks filled with rice wine (apparently a necessity for these sorts of events). I can't believe how many toasts they had, but I sure am glad the glasses were only shot glasses! Ted was definitely a favorite being their boss and all, so he had to sit at the important men's table! Hoo-boy! Every single one of the men had to go to each table and offer a toast to the couple. After the toast he would shake hands with everyone and move on to the next round. In a way, I felt like I was at home; it was loud, people were laughing, eating, drinking, joking, and celebrating. Our menu included, beef, chicken, and half incubated duck eggs-yum!! I ended up in several family pictures (as did everyone else), and we left happy and in need of a nap, but that didn't happen! That evening we went to English club with Amanda and hung out with the most ridiculous college students I have ever met. Mostly it was the boys showing off, which Amanda says happens all the time. They were hilarious and even were nice enough to give us a ride back to Amanda's apartment. We stayed up watching Dane Cook before we called it a night. There was much to do the next few days.

The morning started out with a breakfast of Pho Ca and then we met Ted for coffee and a drive by tour of Hanoi. We saw Ho Chi Minh's tomb and ended our tour at the Temple of Literature. Next up, Amanda took us to lunch and then to her school where we got to see her office and sit in on some classes. That was pretty fun. For snack in between classes we got eggs on french bread! Pretty darn amazing. That evening we went out to dinner with Lee, one of Amanda's students at a nice restaurant and the food as usual was delicious!

Saturday's plan was to have fun with 40 students from Amanda's school! We went out to Bat Trang, which is a pottery village. This is the group I was assigned to since we couldn't fit all 40 of us on a bus. I had a great time chatting with the girls! They were awesome. When we got to Bat Trang the first group had already taken a hand at trying to create pottery on a wheel. There I was introduced to Joel, who is also a teacher in Vietnam. When everyone was done molding, we went shopping and I got some really neat gifts. I think if I would have spent more time there I would have been in trouble with my luggage! Lunch included lots of singing performances, including Amanda and I rapping out the Fresh Prince of Bel-Aire. We were pretty incredible. So much so that we did the same thing for Ted and his family on Sunday at lunch! LOL. That was the best, by far.

Back in Hanoi we got ripped off by the guys that bicycle you around in Hanoi, but oh well, we got our pictures and then walked to the market we were looking for. I think we were all pretty tired, so we went to J.P. and Aimee's house early where we met their Swedish neighbors and ate pizza!

Pretty soon, we were on to our last day in Hanoi. It started out with church at the International church everyone goes to and then lunch with Ted and the fam. There was totally a goat in the kitchen and way to much food for us to eat. It was great to spend time with them and get to know our supervisor a little more. We said goodbye and went out in search of a taxi to take us to the hotel Hilton. We toured around there, heard a "story" of how things "really" went down and moved on to other things like walking through the park and finding cinnamon for Sarah's parents in the back-back of this huge indoor market. I felt like we were back in Cambodia at the Russian market. It was insane, but this time I got pictures. We found the cinnamon and were off to the water puppet theatre. That is something that is too hard to explain so you can you tube it and see what we did. We ended our last night in Vietnam at dinner with Joel, J.P., Aimee, the girls and Amanda. It was really nice to spend time with them, and Joel promised to connect with us when he comes to visit after Christmas. And that's my trip to Vietnam. For more pictures, please click here!