Let's review November. Can't believe it's over

There's still lots of traffic. Always. There's still lots of pollution. It seems more evident though now because I believe we've entered the dry season, so there's less rain to clear the air and keep away the dust. It is SMOGGY. Well, actually this picture was just taken at dusk... Erica and I took motorbike taxis to a soccer game, got lost, and missed the game completely. We did go to the after-parties though, and we learned some more about the cultural responses to being toasted. Though I still have questions.

Phuong, a friend who has been my TA a couple of times, invited us to the soccer game. We might not be friends anymore though because I've been telling her for a week that I would bring these pictures to her and I still haven't done it.

Jannene and Janell, friends from fellowship, came out to district six to hang out with us before Jannene headed out to America. Then to Australia, or South Africa, or wherever the wind blows.

I don't have a good caption for this picture. It's not even a very good picture.

We took them for fruit juice at our fruit juice place. I finally learned how to order the drink that I ordered on accident one time and was never able to duplicate. It's delicious.

They sell all kinds of snacks at the bus station. This one is supposed to be sweet, though it's not as tasty as it looks. Makes for a pretty picture though.

I think the Vietnamese actually have a word for sitting on the street talking and drinking. I don't know what the word is. Sometimes they yell hello and this time, I took a picture of them while we were walking by. They liked it.

Early in November, the Christmas decorations went up. They are ridiculous. I thought it was going to be hard to find them and now I feel silly for packing dollar store candy cane socks and barely making weight at the airport. I could have bought an entire Santa outfit here!

There is nothing that can't be carried on a motorbike. I have seen miraculous things being stacked and carried: eggs, glass bottles, large glass windows, huge bags of rice, buckets of slop, hundereds of plastic chairs, and in this case, a dozen metal stools.

We had a Thanksgiving meal at Fellowship last week. It was....soooo... gooood....

There a lot of families there. I really want my family to be like some of theirs. A lot of them have adopted children, work with orphanages and schools, and just seem to live exciting lives.

I discovered the black and white button on Erica's camera by accident.

Our friend Andrea Hamilton is in HCMC singing at the Park Hyatt in District One. I had no idea that it was so nice (and so expensive)! It was fun listening to her sing, and I felt so cool when she talked to us after (and during) singing.

November 20th is Teachers' Day in Vietnam. That night there was a celebration, which we didn't udnerstnad because it was all in Vietnamese. There was singing and awards, I think. Our school VATC broke some record having to do with a large greeting card. Here it is, decorated with thousands of tiny paper lotus flowers, and I even helped make a bunch!

No one really explained what it was to us, so we had no idea that there would be hundreds of teachers there. Fortunately we arrived in time and I made the decision not to wear jeans, and we were pinned with a lotus flower and ushered to nice seats. It also cost me 2,000vnd to use the bathroom. The things they assume we know...

This woman was cutting up the meat in a shop next to our apartment. She has a huge cleaver that I covet. They thought it was funny that I wanted to take their picture.

This man is sometimes at the shop where we have coffee. We think he is the great grandfather of that boy. The boy will play games with me from a distance, but when I hold out my arms, he shrinks away. Doesn't want to come to me.

Erica and I borrowed a card to the local Metro (The Sam's club of Vietnam). We then purchased a lot of toilet paper and some soap. We couldn't take out bags into the little shop in the way home, so Erica held everything when I went inside to buy milk.

In the last week or so, they've been cleaning out the sewer system, or at least that's what I observed. They actually sent a man down there to fill up buckets and send them up. He came up later and he was just wearing a pair of shorts. Nasty.

They sell a lot of balloons, especially in the really touristy areas of District one. And I don't know why because I never see foreigners carrying balloons.

This is just a picture of corn. I thought it was a cool picture. Cool picture? Yes. Good corn? Nooo.

Well that was kind of a low note to end on. So I would like to announce the start of my December. Tonight I used a public toilet for the first time! I walked up and started to go in and the man stopped me, motioning for me to take my shoes off. Then I went. And it was only 1,000vnd, which is NOTHING. However, I feel like they should take your money before you go, because after you've gone, it's done. But I guess they know what they're doing. Either way, it was a very pleasant experience, and I would do it again.