2015

My Driver Dung

Dung's family. Niece, sister, niece, and son.

Bridge leading across the river adjacent his home.

My driver insisted that I visit his stomping grounds and therefore took me out to his childhood village.

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Enjoying a little dinner with my Driver Dung and long term volunteer John.

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I was asked to participate in a two hour English class Workshop with the English Teachers.

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After a solid day of presentations with the group from the Hotel and Tourism Management and the Leadership group in the afternoon, I played some volleyball with staff members and then headed off for a great dinner with the teachers and Dean from the Hotel and Tourism Management. I later enjoyed a little karaoke with some staff and friends. Saturday brought a relaxing day and a great dinner and motor bike ride along the beach before enjoying some frozen yogurt. A well deserved sleep started off my Sunday. Did some work and tried to work out this blog system on my phone. Had a little swim and caught up on some emails. Will be having dinner with my driver and his family this evening as this is the only available night before I leave this Friday. Know for inserting photos.

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New syllabus workshop on safety and security at hotels and resorts for hotel and tourism delivered to all the teachers today. New ideas and exercises to also be implemented for students in th classroom. Well received and engaging. Will post interaction video o photos later today.

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Yet another great day with the students at College. Last night, they invited m to their ESL opening ceremony where there was some singing, dancing, English speaking, and a entire fun evening. These two students dance a beautiful to a beautiful song and made it th highlight of the evening. Before leaving, I also took part in son singing in thanks to my welcome. Also today, I received a beautiful t-shirt from a class for helping them learn some extra English. My t-shirt had a class photo of the entire class on its front. What a memorable gift. Thanks to everyone. I will wear it at he next class and will post it.

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My first day and introductory meeting with Leadership at Kien Giang Technology and Economics College (KGTEC) in Rach Gia. I was also invited to attend an English class with Teacher Tho and Long term Volunteer John.

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My fist weekend led to a little touring o the town and a visit to Mr. Dang family in a nearby town. Oh, an I can't forget an evening out with our fellow teammate. Take note, Mr. Dang and his son are supporting UofG. An everlasting partnership through WUSC.

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Just to add a little classroom time aside from my assigned mandate.

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Can't go without saying that I had a great visit with Kim Chi in Ho Chi Minh at the start of my mandate. She arrange a city tour with local students where they got to practice their English. Two great students. They even gave me an opportunity to take a few photos. Also thanks to Trevor (another volunteer) for the great afternoon.

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What a great week at Kien Giang College in Rach Cia. I've been treated so well and have been working with the group in setting up their syllabus in preparation to expanded their Tourism program. After work this evening, I had th privilege of celebrating Mr. Dung's (driver and head of site security) birthday with his family. They have invited me into their home and lives. Awesome family.

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My first day and introductory meeting with Leadership at Kien Giang Technology and Economics College (KGTEC) in Rach Gia. I was also invited to attend an English class with Teacher Tho and Long term Volunteer John.

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After a flight from Toronto to Hong and then to Ho Chi Minh city, I finally with some sleep. The plane ride wa great and I was able to get a half decent sleep believe it or not. After getting through customs and security, I exited the airport to find my taxi driver. He turned around and made me wait as we were also picking two other volunteers from Canada. Trevor and Kelly soon arrived and we were off to the airport. We had time to relax for a bit before meeting up with Kim Chi for the start of my mandate. We had dinner and then we planned for our initial mandate training. She arrange a city tour with local students where they got to practice their English. Two great students. They even gave me an opportunity to take a few photos. Also thanks to Trevor (another volunteer) for the great afternoon.

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Well everyone, I'm off to Vietnam once again. I made my flight with Cathay Pacific from Toronto to Hong Kong. It is now 5:30am and what a flight it was. 15h40m. I still have a 3 hour wait before boarding my next leg to Ho Chi Minh city. Once I get there, I will have a few hours to unwind before meeting with other local volunteers and my coordinator. Keep checking for by the minute postings.

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Well, my weekend ended and I had to get back to work. I arrived in Hanoi around dinner on Sunday and got my things organized for the next day. I worked on setting up a presentation for all the teachers and staff and also some activities with the students.

One of the English teachers Uyen asked me to join her English class to have dialogues with the students. They wanted to learn how to pronounce different fruits, some vegetables, and we just asked each other questions about our daily lives. It was very exiting to see the smiles on their faces and the laughter within each of the classes.

I continued to work on the presentations for my mandate. Fire Prevention, Health and Safety, First Aid, CPR and I added a little on Hygiene. Proper hand washing is critical for them as they are doing a lot of cooking and baking. A little extra was hygiene for proper brushing and flossing. This was an added extra as a dear friend of mine was able to convince two companies to donate 16 dozen tooth brushes and dental floss. When I told them here, they though it was a great idea. I will add more about the presentation on this when I actually involve the teachers and students.

Every morning and night as I arrived and left the office, I made it my mission to go and say hello to the students in the embroidery and sewing classes. These students made me feel so welcome when I first got here. They are deaf and mute or have been exposed through the second generation to the effect of agent orange which was used back in the war. They have physical deformities however have developed excellent skills in embroidery. Every time they see me, they have these awesome smiles from ear to ear and they wave at me by putting their hands next to their faces. It just warms my heart to see them every day. They were even more excited when I asked them if they would be willing to make me some clothes. I ordered two pairs of pants and two shirts. I have yet to see them but when I do, I'll make sure to do a fashion show.

Oh yes, I can't forget that on the 14th, we celebrated M. Ha's birthday. Have a look. We had black rice in yogurt and ice cubes to keep it cold.....and cake of course.

Happy Birthday

On Thursday I flew to Danang in Central Vietnam and was picked up by my driver who drove me to a bed and breakfast in Hoi An. Village Riverview is a quaint B&B where a young couple run the place. Ms. Gna and her husband share the chores and run a great ship. They have two children. They are the sweetest people and would do anything for you. When I arrived on my first night, it was around 11pm and they were waiting up for me. Bed time is usually around 9:30. I had asked if there was a restaurant nearby and he said I'd have to take the bike in for 1.5 kilometers. He then said wait and came back with a great bowl of Pha or in my world (chicken noodle soup).

The next morning, I was met by long time guest Tanya who is volunteering with a group that aids children how to swim. Tanya was our go to person for tour advice as she knew everyone in town now. Soon after breakfast, I was off to the old town where I did a little sight seeing and visited some museums.

Hoi An beach

Hoi An

Assembly Hall of the Fujian Chinese Congregation

Museum

Hoi An - a view from the restaurant

On one of my afternoons, I also decided to put my feet up and hit the beach. As I approached, I happen to see beautiful palms trees, white sand, and a gorgeous mountain range far into the sea. Most of the people were under the trees and in the water. No one was on the sand. I tried to figure out why and soon found out. I could not walk across the beach as it was way too hot. I sat with new found friends from England who had just graduated from University. Great conversations were had as well as a great dip in the sea. The water was so warm. Just around 5, we decided to have a beer before we would ride the 4 kilometers back into town.

Cua Dai Beach

Cua Dai Beach

Cua Dai Beach

As I started riding the bike back, I crossed a bridge and found a couple fisherman in the bay as the sun was just settling in.

Cua Dai Beach bridge

While in Hoi An, I decided to visit an orphanage to play with the children. I spent some quality time with several children but two in particular touched my heart. One little one was laying on the floor next to her bed when I saw a taller boy stomping on her chest. She started to cry but neither of the three staff came to her aid. I stepped in and move the child off her and I stuck my arms out to her. She reached out and cuddled herself to sleep in my arms. I eventually put her down and went to play soccer with a boy who played alone in the back yard. He didn't say anything but he surely enjoyed me playing with him because he had the biggest smile on. I'm sure he was pretty happy but he brought joy to my heart.

Hoi An Orphanage

Just as I started to leave, I said my goodbyes and started off for the door. I had maybe 100 meters to walk before hitting the gate and I had a little hand reach up and grabbed mine. It was my new little girlfriend. She heard my voice I suspect and saw me leave and I guess decided to walk me all the way. Once at the gate, she hid behind a tree, looked around and had a little tear in her eye. I gave her a hug and waved. She waved back with a smile on her face. What a sweetie.