7/7 Family Ritual

The family that owns our house lives next door in a smaller home joined to ours.   They have a very large beautiful garden that we can see from our living room and kitchen windows.  The grandmother is up around 6a ringing bells and praying to her families ancestors.  Large pictures of men in their prime line the wall where she sits.  Late at night outside in the garden she bows to the directions with incense in her hands;). 

7/6 Bring and Buy

Sacha organized a bring and buy fundraiser for the shelter today.  Ended up making 7m Dong.  Go Sach!!! 

7/5 Social Life

I think I lost my social life;). 

7/4 Vacuum Facial and Salty Popcorn!

After working 7 days a week for over a month, I treated my self to a $5 facial.   It lasted about an hour and a half and they used a gentle little vacuum on my face!  I couldn't help but laugh.  The day ended with a movie and salty, not sweet, popcorn.   I had been searching for non-sweet popcorn for months.  Turns out its at the movie theater next to my house;).

7/3 Take a Number

Had to take a number at the bank today.  Because of the way it was set up, I kind of felt like I was at a deli;). Strange.

7/2 Butterfly Trees

Across from one of the schools that I teach in is a wonderfully manicured park. Massive trees with little red flowers line the perimeter.  The best part is that they're filled with large yellow butterflies;).  Just lovely.

7/1 Family Sick

All I can say about today is that I miss my family.  Each and everyone of them.  Feel very disconnected.  Haven't gotten to Skype much as I'm working 7 days a week up to 60 hours. While I'm grateful, of course, I really need to find a way to Skype at least once a week.

6/30 Last day of class

I asked everyone to bring their favorite food to our last day of class ... they had corn and chili pizza and watermelon delivered.  It was delicious and very spicy. As with the lychees, the students also had a story to accompany the melon - seems fruit stories are common;).  

6/29 The Mechanics

As you turn into our tiny crooked street, there is a tiny crooked mechanics stall.  Two men work there from before dawn till way after dusk.  They fix motorbikes, of course, as that's all that can fit into or next to their 4'x2' stall.  Neither of them have legs.  They both push themselves around on flat wheeled pieces of wood and at night load up their tools in a wagon powered by a push wheel common in Asia.  I just noticed them today ... and I've been here for almost two weeks. 

6/28 Vietnamese vocabulary

My Vietnamese vocabulary:
Mot hai ba yo: 1,2,3 cheers
Xin Chao: Hello
Chao Em: Hello little brother
Cam on em: Thank you little brother
Xin Loi: sorry
almost all the number up to 999,999 (chin tram chin mu'oi chin ngan chin tram chin mu'oi chin;)

and Hen gap lait: See you later

Yeah I know doesn't seem like much, but just being able to say the numbers, and properly, feels like a huge accomplishment;)!

6/27 Unofficial House Warming

Had a few friends over for an unofficial house warming get together ... we'll have the official "party" when we actually have a day off.  Watched England vs. Germany with a bunch of very upset Brits;).  Listened to music and talked late into the night around our beautiful kitchen bar.

6/26 Business Class

Teaching a huge class of very demanding pre MBA students.  Excited for the new format.  Even more excited to teach big words ... one of which is microproprogation!

6/25 Home Sweet Home

Did laundry in a small but very efficient washing machine.  Hung everything up to dry and hoped for the best.  Wandered around our lovely house, moving things, organizing, admiring all the beautiful windows and trees.  Our kitchen has no oven which is common.  Only a two gas burner unit on the granite counter and a toaster oven.  Still trying to figure out what and how to cook;).

6/24 AAA in Saigon

Had a flat today and a little panic as how to deal with it.  Thank god Sacha hadn't started riding her bike yet.  I took hers to work and called the owner of my bike. She picked it up at 3 and had it back by 3:30.  No charge, no hassle.  AAA in Saigon;)

6/23 Cooking

I have absolutely no idea how to cook here;).  Have been to a few grocery stores and I'm basically limited to cereal, tea and eggs. There are rows and rows of fish sauce, aisles and aisles of chewing gum, cases and cases of strange meat parts and an even stranger frozen foods section. However, with all the fruit I'm eating  I will be on a fabulous diet ... until I can learn to cook Vietnamese or find a western/Indian grocer. Wish me luck!