TOP FIVE

This past year was much more difficult than the first. I finally experienced this culture shock that I've heard so much about. I don't think I felt it my first year at all, but this year it hit me like a brick, nothing subtle about it. Despite my complaining and not enjoying everything quite as much as I did before, Vietnam still holds a giant place in my heart. Here are some of my favorite things:

Top 5 in Vietnam

1. Friends

If you've ever read my blog before, you'd know that I have made some amazing friends. People who have nothing to give and still give. People who just met me and would do anything for me. And on and on.

When I was having some pretty bad culture shock, I felt like people just wanted to be my friend to learn English. It seemed that even the friends I had just wanted that from me. I was forgetting that I was trying to learn Vietnamese too and we could help each other...

These girls are some very special friends of mine who are trying to make a difference in Vietnam. Amazing women.

This is "Sarah" (on the far right of the picture above). She is a big fan of Chelsea, so on my last night in Vietnam, we traded shirts (like at the end of a world cup game). She is a special friend of mine, a lone follower in her family, ostracized, living alone in HCMC. She also designed my wedding dress, but that's another story... Please remember her.

2. Food

I probably should have entitled this one: convenience. Food is cheap and ubiquitous and so delicious. I don't like everything, but I don't like everything in America either.

Food here really brings people together. It provides livelihoods, keeps traditions, and brings out the culture in a special way. I don't understand a lot of it, like the meticulous wrapping of particular things, and the numerous uses of rice and other staples. It's really amazing. With many of the popular soups and meals, I was told that traditionally Vietnamese food is flavored with something sweet, something spicy, something bitter and something salty. Sort of a combination of everything. Something for everyone

These are fried bananas on a street cart near our apartment.Vietnamese coffee in their own "French" presses, with sweetened condensed milk at the bottom.

I love buying s coconut and drinking the milk after class at night. I miss them already!
This is one of my favorite meals, sticky rice and all the trimmings. There's some pork, fresh spices and cucumbers, pickled carrots and green mango, dried shrimp, boiled quail egg, and of course, chili. So good. And I could get it to go and eat it before class.

3. Transportation

From bicycles to cyclos, motorbikes to buses, trains to planes, transportation is available. I can get anywhere in Ho Chi Minh City from my apartment. Amazing.

I think everytime I got in a car, it broke down. And the bus to Bien Hoa usually stops for the driver to get off and eat and pee while they load bags and boxes of whatever on. Though, people also get on and sell fresh bread at that stop. Sometimes while riding on a rented bus, a random person would hail them down for a ride. Even when they break down, there are so many other options. I miss that.

We gotta get those passenger trains running through Griffin

4. Soccer

I can't say that I've ever played soccer outside of the US and not enjoyed it. Whenever people have a passion for the game, it's can be so much fun, in my experience. And in Vietnam, it's never cold and there is no one who is scary huge to break my ankles. In fact, the only strawberry I got this year was from getting knocked down by Jenni onto the rubber field!

This picture is from the last game Jenni and I played in Bien Hoa. I'm in the back row in blue.

That night was a lot of fun. It had rained, so we had to shoo the frogs off the field before playing and it wasn't too hot. These guys are all really good. They take cigerette and red bull breaks and laugh off any fouls or me yelling in Vietnamese. They took us to someone's house for beer and snacks afterwards.

5. Flowers and fabric

I should probably just label this one shopping, or getting things tailored. I love looking at all of the beautiful things that are produced in Vietnam, and I'd be lying if I didn't say that I enjoyed bargaining every now and then. And I love the friendships that i make with sellers when I buy from the same person over and over. Not because of the price, but for the relationship.

Especially towards the end of my time there, I bought more fabric and flowers. Accessible, inexpensive, and so beautiful, I could spend all my time and money on these 2 things.

These 2 ladies sell fabrics in district 6. They loved to seel me fabric and then see me wearing it a month later.

This woman sells flowers down he street from out apartment. She was pregnant when I first met her. Her son is getting so big now and I would go see her and tell her all about Tori.