Nightlife

This weekend my Friday and Saturday nights differed greatly. On Friday, I had some beers with some teacher-friends and then we got some seafood and then called it a night. It was nice, low-key, and I was able to wake up early the next day and be productive! Hooray! Saturday night, in contrast, I went to some nightclubs. First, I spent the day shopping and finding vegetarian places to eat (I wanted a meat-break, they eat SO much meat here). I got some practice on motorbike (I think I'm doing pretty well!). Sometimes I think Vietnamese people are probably talking smack about me but hey, I don't understand what they're saying so whatever! It's kind of nice having no idea what they're saying. For dinner I went to the backpacker's area where I found a restaurant on trip advisor that was supposed to have good vegetarian food ... it was delicious!

After dinner I split a bottle of wine with a friend, Kelly, and then we went out "clubbin". In Vietnam, a club is pointless. Vietnamese people apparently don't like to dance. They just get dressed up, standing around tables and drink with SUPER loud dance music playing. So they can't talk to each other, they aren't dancing, what are they doing ... ? That was exactly what the first place was like and I was confused. We didn't want to order bottle-service (all they had) so we left. Then, we went to this other place a friend was at, which was an after-party for this fashion event (look how trendy I am!). There were a lot of expats there so there was some dancing, which was fun. No tables, a regular bar, and moderately-loud music with people dancing. Then, we headed back over to the first club although we found out there was a downstairs with live music - Vietnamese reggae - which was fun. Again, more expats and dancing.

A friend had told me that Vietnamese clubs are pretty lame so the first club was what I expected, though still found super weird. Apparently they feel stupid dancing? Or something? Well they look stupid standing around and not being able to even talk to each other.

Here are some pics!

 Cute little kitties running around the restaurant (normal)

 Seafood place

 Taking a break from meat and having some Western food ... mmm (it was pretty sub-par but edible) That fresh squeezed watermelon-strawberry-mint juice, however, was delicious.

 I still haven't wrapped my mind around this one. These people sell these everywhere - they are flattened, dried squid. Basically squid-jerky. Who buys these?! I've never seen anyone buy one.

 Vegetarian curry ... this was delicious.

 I know this is a picture you wouldn't really be able to tell if people were dancing anyway but don't you feel like they should be? With all of these theatrics?

 Just standing around ...

 This was the 2nd place we went to ... they love flashy lights here.

 Reggae

Some Perspective

Today I was thinking about how when I was in high school, some people would complain about how Hopewell lacked diversity. I'm not saying it was super diverse or anything but after being here for a while, I appreciate the diversity we have in the US a lot more. This occurred to me a week or so ago when I told someone I was part Italian. They said they thought I was American. Well, yes, I am American but everyone in the US has some other ethnic background. Few people simply say, I'm American. Most people say they are some combination of European countries or something like - which I guess accounts for the lack of diversity in Hopewell but at least we have interesting, unique backgrounds. Here, and especially where I am living now, everyone can only say, "I'm Vietnamese!" Nothing more. They have much, much, muchhhh less diversity than us.

So next time someone points out how not diverse Maine is, I will have to disagree. The whole US is wonderfully diverse even if there might be too many "white people" in your town for your liking. Aren't we supposed to look past race? Well how about looking past calling someone a "white person" and find out what their ethnic background is. Each person has their own customs and traditions whether their skin color is the same as their neighbor's or not.

Anyway, that was my ramblings for tonight. Feel free to disagree. I don't mean to sound like an uppity jackass but removing myself for the US has definitely changed my perspective. In a good way, I'd say! Just as moving out of New Jersey made me appreciate my hometown way more, leaving the country made me appreciate the US more! 'Merica!

Eating Out in Ho Chi Minh City

So since I do not have a kitchen, I eat out allll the time. I can make myself some ramen in my room but I don't do that too often, as there is only so much sodium I can consume (or is there?). I miss cooking a lot but I don't think I'd want to cook here anyway, it's SO cheap to go out and it's really casual and awesome. There are several reasons why I prefer eating out here to eating out in the US. And I guess I specifically mean the traditional, non-tourist places because of course there are restaurants that are for tourists that are just like eating out back home. However, eating out where I live, out in District 11, is way better.

First of all, I like how the service works here. Depending on where you go, they may or may not have a menu. Last night, for example, Scott and I went to this curry restaurant and they did have a menu (with English! hurray!). One weird thing is, they put your menu down and then expect that you'd be ready in a matter of seconds, they just wait there. Which, I guess is okay most of the time, especially when you're hungry, as they get your order in pronto. Then, after your order is in they only bother you to refill your drink. This is what I like about the service. They don't come over all the time, or ask you how your food is (no need, it's delicious, and I wouldn't understand them anyway). But if your drink is empty, they are ON top of it. Like, almost too much. Sometimes, you have a new beer before you even had a chance to say you didn't want it (I don't really mind!). When it gets to the point where you really don't want another, you just have to be on top of it after you've finished so when they come over you can say no aggressively.

Usually, and last night especially, our food comes out SUPER fast. Things like our goat curry we had last night are obviously prepared in advance because the meat is braised. So, I can only assume they have it all ready back there. Either way, it's great. Then, when you are finished eating, they don't come around and see if you're done or ask if you want your check, or even drop off your check at all unless you request it. I know from my way too many years of waitressing that people in the US expect their server to come and see if you want your check and whatnot BUT I'd rather just be able to call my server over and get my check exactly when I want. There is always someone standing nearby so all you have to do is put your hand up and signal for the check and bam, there it is. And up until that point, you don't feel like you are being rushed out of the restaurant. You can stay and nurse your drinks for hours!

And then, aside from service, Vietnamese restaurants are loud and energetic. Vietnamese people are so social and vibrant. It reminded me of the many times working at Massimo's in Bangor when people would complain that the restaurant was too loud. Oh, I'm sorry, all of these other people eating and enjoying themselves are ruining your dinner? I didn't realize you were so much more important than everybody else, my mistake. In Vietnam, that's the norm. People are out to dinner to enjoy themselves. And they just talk loud, all the time, everywhere. At any point in the day but especially at night there are always groups of people enjoying coffee or tea with friends at a cafe. They socialize and hang out ALL the time and its awesome. They also aren't afraid to just start talking to you - they love us expats - but sometimes they don't speak English so we just nod and smile. Scott usually gets free liquor because he's a guy (so unfair).

My point here is, America, you need to loosen up when you go out to eat. You're supposed to be enjoying yourself and having fun. If you're going to get all huffy about noise or having to call your server over yourself, then please just stay home and you won't have to get all worked up about it!

 Nuoc Mia, or Sugarcane Juice - they are juicing my sugarcane!

 Finished product (so delicious) ... and I like the little pokemon on my bag

Scott totally didn't know I took this picture but this is us eating seafood in the street!

Midweek Musings

It's Tuesday and admittedly I'm at work but not to worry, students are in class so I don't have anyone flocking to see me (not that I usually do anyway). I have been making my rounds today in classes with juniors and seniors, introducing myself and informing them that they should come see me ASAP if they want to go to college in the US in the fall. So, hopefully they'll be breaking down my door soon enough!

Anyway, since I was taking a break from work to daydream, I realized that it's mid-September and fall is approaching. Though there is no fall here. But on the east coast in the US, fall would be approaching. Though I've heard the weather has been crazy with random heat waves and then temperatures plummeting down to more fall-like weather, I am still jealous! I was on Pinterest recently (another excellent use of my time) and saw people posting fall outfits, fall scenes, and fall food (my favorite). I admit, one thing I do not like about southern Vietnam is the lack of seasons. Even in my new Vietnamese pronunciation book under "Seasons" it says "Rainy Season" "Dry Season" and "Cold Season" (which is only up north, we have no cold season here in Ho Chi Minh City). It made me laugh and then it made me wish I could go apple picking! My other favorite fall activity. I literally have to wait a full other year to enjoy these fall activities! And fall is short as it is in Maine. I imagine when next fall comes (hopefully I'll be starting a new job as a Guidance Counselor! Fingers crossed.) I will be especially excited for it.

Anyway, on another note. I noticed something else interesting about Vietnamese culture. I'm sure I've mentioned the crazy traffic which would probably drive a New Yorker insane but also in places where we Americans would normally form a line, Vietnamese people just cluster. People cut in "line" but since there isn't a line it doesn't really matter, you just have to be aggressive (similar to driving). The crazy part of this is, no one gets mad about it! In the US, this would lead to crazy road rage and fist fights in grocery stores! In Vietnam, people freely allow others in front of them and accept that they are all pushing for the same goal. It's kind of cool, actually, and since I'm bigger than half of the Vietnamese people, it isn't hard for me hold my ground in a cluster.

Oh! And I almost forgot the best news EVER. APU hired a new teacher who is now teaching my English classes. I "helped him transition" by staying in class with him last week. But since I had no idea what I was doing in the first place, he ended up taking over immediately. Watching someone who is actually qualified and experienced in teaching English just confirmed how terrible I was. He kept the class in line, improvised lesson ideas and got them engaged and participating. All things I failed to do in a few weeks. So, I'd say this change in my schedule was good for me AND the students. I confirmed what I always figured about myself: I am not a good teacher. I remember when I used to show my parents something on the computer or try to show a friend how to do a math problem, I was not patient. If someone doesn't understand in a matter of minutes I basically give up. Not good qualities for a teacher. I had already decided that my kids in my English classes were hopeless so really, having me teach those classes was a terrible idea.

Maybe some of you are thinking, "wow Amy, how can you possibly be a guidance counselor?" Well, let me tell you something, guidance counselor's main job is not to teach (I say that because some teach a class in guidance things). And while my job here versus what a counselor does in the US is VASTLY different, in both scenarios, I am rarely dealing with more than a few kids at a time, usually just one. I am MUCH better at dealing with kids one-on-one believe it or not! And besides, I'm not teaching, just advising! And I love advising because I have a tendency to think I am always right (no one comment on this...). So thus, giving advice is something I thoroughly enjoy. That, and I genuinely want kids to succeed and do well and education is very important! So there.

Another exciting development in my Vietnamese experience is I rented a motorbike. After trying it out I am now worried that perhaps I wasted $150 (2 months of renting) because as of now, I am so terrible I don't envision myself actually going anywhere on it. However, I'm hoping after circling the block many many times, I'll get the hang out of it. And all of the Vietnamese people watching this white girl going 15mph around their block will be grateful that I improved enough to stop driving by them. Pictures to come!

Also, I am disappointed there are no breaks at this school because I REALLY want to travel. Since I am limited to weekends I am keeping my traveling relatively local. I bought plane tickets to Thailand and Hue, Vietnam thus far. When my parents come I intend to head way up north and check out Hanoi, Ninh Binh, and Halong Bay. Ideally, I'd like to go one more place (Angkor Wat would be high on my list!) but we'll see... I'm hoping the school takes a field trip to Angkor Wat so I can just tag along ...I'm told they took one last year! But all in all I realized I MUST come back to this side of the world again strictly for travel. Having time restrictions because of work is mega-lame.

Ok...enough ramblings for today, I should probably get back to work! I haven't done anything too exciting lately so no pictures (also, I unloaded all of my pictures the other day). I did, however, discover nuoc mia or, sugarcane juice! It's super delicious and surprisingly not sweet. I also googled it and found out its crazy healthy. Thus, if you happen upon it in the US, I bet it's like $6/cup. Here, it's a mere 25cents. And I may have gotten overcharged for being white, who knows! I am going to be appalled at prices when I return to the US. I have grown so cheap I think spending $3 on lunch is outrageous.

Busy weekend, too tired to write but here's some pictures!

 I ended up working later than I meant to because I did not want to walk home in this rain ...

 Some teacher friends' apartment building ... they have a pool on the 5th floor. I'll be inviting myself over more.

 So you can get drinks with Baileys from roadside stands, to-go...

 And rum? 12,000VND is about 50cents

 Sunday breakfast of champions ... strawberry smoothie (no rum) and a meaty pastry!

 Soo nice out today after all the rain yesterday!

 Park next to where I live

 I saw this at the grocery store and made the probable poor decision to purchase it ... ramen spaghetti?

 Banh Xeo! One of my favorite Vietnamese foods ...

 This woman is making it at her little cart on the sidewalk ... they are crepes with shrimp and bean sprouts that you cut up and wrap in lettuce and dip in this delicious sauce... Vietnamese people like to tell me how fattening it is ... whateverrrr

 They had an absurd amount of English books at the bookstore ... this one made me laugh.

 I forget what this was called but it was like a dessert soup!

 With beans in it .. (so weird!)

Phuong Anh and I found this at the bookstore... lets see if I can say anything by the time I leave here!

Seasons

It is almost 7:00pm on Friday evening and I should be headed to town to have dinner with a friend but its storming. The funny thing here is, when it is storming, it ruins all plans that aren't absolutely necessary. Everything is so open and everyone rides motorbikes so when there is rain, it is rather unpleasant to eat outside and drive a motorbike. People still drive around but like I said, only if they have to get somewhere. I don't haaaave to go out to dinner but it's Friday and I don't want to be stuck inside! Such a drag.

You would think a place where there are only two seasons - the rainy season and the dry season - would be more prepared for the rainy season. In reality, they just work around it. If it's raining, street food closes down. If it isn't raining, it'll be open. Simple as that. People have ponchos to attempt to stay dry while on their motorbikes (but they only work so well). I have had plans cancel because of rain more than once since I've been here, it's kind of strange.

I have seen on my facebook that the weather has started to cool off in Maine ... perhaps just today? Either way it makes me laugh that everyone noted that it is getting cool and here I can't escape the heat. I kind of like it but then again fall is my second favorite season in Maine so I can't believe I have to wait a whole other year to go apple picking and carve pumpkins ... hmph! Everyone reading this, pick double the apples and carve me a pumpkin! I will sweat extra for everyone! Not a problem ... all I have to do is walk outside. Even at night.

This week was only four days but it felt rather long to me. It was nice though because I am actually, gradually, getting to do school counselor-type duties. First up, look over student's college applications. For the most part they do them correctly but there are a few things I find strange. First of all, they all print them out rather than do them online. It is way easier to do online and mailing applications from Vietnam to the US seems like such a hassle! Second, they don't understand deadlines or rules in general. Now that I am starting to understand the culture more, I can see why this is confusing to them. There are few rules here that you can't get around in some way. And the deadlines confuse them because they find it absurd that we apply to college so far in advance. And when I think about it, it is pretty crazy. Some deadlines are in November to go to college the following fall, that's nearly a year in advance. The guy in the office who sought my assistance was very surprised to hear that applications to start college in January 2014 were due by August 31st. To me, that seems perfectly reasonable. So, a challenge has been making people here understand that the US has rules and deadlines and I don't make them. So when a website says "we are closed for enrollment for Spring 2014" that literally means what it says and I can't do anything about it. Someone translate that for me in Vietnamese!

Well, it looks like the rain ruined my dinner plans. So I went to what is becoming my "regular" place around the corner and had some rice ... surprise! Then I went over to the bakery to get this pastry that they make that is amazing and then hit the grocery store. I did buy wine but by the time I got home I didn't even want it. I did, however, buy an electric kettle. It was my big purchase of the week and I think it was worth it. This way, on those nights when I reeeally don't want to go out and buy dinner, I can make my own instant noodles right here! Not to mention I can make tea and other hot drinks, with my AC on, of course! It feels like freedom ... and it was just a $9 electric kettle.

Long Weekend Adventures

So this weekend was, as expected, very fun and action-packed. Eva got in Thursday evening and was scheduled to leave Sunday morning. After a day here, however, she moved her flight back a day. Vietnam was that cool that she decided after only being here about 8 hours that she needed to stay longer. It was nice because we had more time to plan activities, and man we packed a lot of activities into a few days. Thursday night we went out to dinner and drinks on a rooftop restaurant of the Rex Hotel in District 1. It was nice but I have decided I don't like that place. First of all, the drinks cost just as much as a meal. The meals were small and then I got sick after (first time!). I was especially annoyed because after all of this time I had eaten at sketchy looking street-side restaurants and carts and had zero problems. Then, after eating at an expensive touristy restaurant, I felt horrible. Luckily, it was very mild and though I felt kind of sick the next day I was able to suck it up and go explore with Eva. We just walked around and went to the Reunification Palace. After a bit it looked like it was going to rain and rain it did. So, we ended up heading back to my place to re-group. We tried to wait out the rain but it ended up being the first night since I'd been here that it rained more than just an hour or so. It ended up being rainy all of the rest of the night so we didn't do too much. We got Pho in my neighborhood, got a whole lot of dessert and then went home. This worked out for me because I was super tired and we had to wake up early.

The next morning we went on a tour of the Mekong Delta. I am usually pretty weary of organized tours but this one was actually really cool. We took a bus to the delta, stopped at the prettiest rest stop ever, and then got on a boat. We took the boat to an island where we looked at some local's house, sampled some fruit, and listened to some traditional music. Then, we got back on boats, headed further into the delta and went to some canals. In the canals, we had to get on smaller, canoe-like boats. We paddled (well, we didn't paddle) through the canals to this spot where we had lunch. These ladies made us fresh spring rolls to start and then continued to bring out food. It was all very good. Then, we got on tuk-tuks (officially my new favorite word) and drove around the jungle-like area on a narrow path to a rice field. We learned a bit about growing rice and then headed to a coconut-candy factory. The women there make all of these candies by hand and gave us some to try. Needless to say, I had to buy some. I also feel rather nerdy for getting excited about buying coconut oil. It was so completely unprocessed that it came in an old, plastic water bottle and had a yellow tint to it. It also only cost me about $3.80 versus the minimum $12 it costs in the US. I happen to be on a coconut oil kick so it was pretty cool to find some recently bottled coconut oil here. On our way out we also got to see this giant cobra they had. They let us hold him (or her?) and the little Vietnamese guy who was assisting was pretty hilarious. At one point he put the whole head of the snake in his mouth. I tried to get a picture but was too slow, as you'll see in my pictures below. Either way, pretty sweet. Then we headed back on a boat, back to the boat station to get back on the bus and go home. It was so nice to get out of the city for a day and drive through some countryside. I hadn't been out of Ho Chi Minh City yet so it was pretty exciting for me. So exciting, in fact, that Eva and I booked another tour to the Cu Chi tunnels the next day (also, we loved our tour guide).

The Cu Chi tunnels were very interesting. They are a series of about 250km of tunnel just outside of Ho Chi Minh City. During the Vietnam war, the Viet Cong dug these tunnels and used them to basically be invisible. The tunnels had three levels but apparently opposing forces were usually only aware of the first level. They were very small and I would say my size would be the max that someone could comfortably maneuver the tunnels. This area was very touristy but still interesting. We were only allowed to try going through 100m of tunnel. Along the way there were exits at 20m, 60m, and 80m (or something like that) and it got a little smaller as you went. Out of our tour group of about 10 people, Eva and I were the only ones who went the whole 100m. Vietnamese people are small so it probably worked to their advantage (I'm not much of a history buff...so I'm sure some of you know the details better than I). Anyway, it was pretty cool. On the way, we stopped at a "typical" family's house in the area. We walked up and a woman was busy make rice paper. She had a system down, she apparently starts at something like 1:00am and makes 2,000 sheets of rice paper a day. They get 15,000dong per 45 sheets or so (I kind of forget). 15,000dong is less than $1.00. We were able to try to make a rice paper. Just one. It was way harder than she made it look. Mine ripped and was all weird shaped. Hers were perfect and round. The family also raised pigs so we got to feed them...they were so freakin' cute. In addition, they had rubber-trees where they collected and sold rubber. I'm sure most people think, yea, I'm sure people work hard there. Actually, nay, it seems like most people here are pretty lazy. This family worked hard. The dad also worked as a security guard in the city (an hour commute) and they had 2 or 3 kids. The mom was 48, I believe, but she could have been 35. I don't know how she does it but I'd like to hear her secret.

As I was saying, it seems like a lot of people here don't work thaaaat hard. To be honest, I feel like most women work much harder than men. My new favorite thing about Vietnam is how everyone has hammocks EVERYWHERE. In the country, there were cafes with hammocks next to every table. Generally, I see guys sleeping in hammocks all over the place everyday. I see very few women ... not cool. Even cruising around the Mekong Delta, there were fisherman and other guys just sleeping in hammocks! I would be pretty satisfied taking a midday hammock nap everyday. Where do I sign up?

Anyway, after the Cu Chi tunnel tour we hung out for a bit before going to have dinner at Phuong Anh's house. Phuong Anh is a Vietnamese girl I met here and she invited me over for dinner Sunday night. I told her I had a friend visiting and she invited us both. Her family was so nice and welcoming even though they didn't even speak English! Her dad knew enough to ask us our names and if we liked Vietnam. Her little sister knew a bit of English but was shy to speak it, same with her cousin. Her cousin clearly understood what we were saying but didn't talk too much. Her other little nephew had a Psy shirt on and I tried to get him to do the Gagnum Style dance for us but he didn't ... lame. His whole family took pictures with us and fed us a huuuge meal. It was so good, I think it was the first time I ate a little too much the whole time I've been here. Then we hung out and chatted and watched some videos on her computer. It was really cool to be able to spend time with an actual Vietnamese family. Her little 10 year-old sister drew pictures of Eva and I and gave them to us when we left - best souvenir ever.

And then, after dinner we went to the backpackers area and had a drink and people watched for a few hours. We played a game called, "Guess where that foreigner is from". We don't know how we did though because we didn't ask anyone. The backpackers area, however, is absolutely ridiculous so people watching was really interesting. There were SO many people in the street. It was loud and crazy and hilarious. We were pretty low key and just watched and went home at a reasonable hour. Then Eva left today ... so I did nothing for a while. It was nice to chill out. Then had dinner with Scott and his friend Kelly. I got to try some new food - we had crab, clams, and water spinach with snail. I have decided snail is not my thing. It tastes fine but it is SO chewy it doesn't seem worth it. The crab and the clams, however, were amazing. Then Scott and I had a couple of drinks to celebrate the Vietnamese Independence Day. Overall I really great weekend! Needless to say, an insane amount of pictures were taken so enjoy!

 

My point and hope for the best tactic worked well here ... this was delicious! A sort of beef stew (with noodles, of course)

 

Teryaki balls? I think? It was "Japanese food" which I bought from a street vendor ... they were actually quite good but definitely not healthy.

 Rex Hotel Rooftop Restaurant/Bar - Pretty but WAY overpriced.

 Enjoying our drinks :)

 Since Eva has also been in an Asian country for a while, we both were excited to have some Western food ... what a treat!

 The place was cute

 But obviously Eva had to try some Vietnamese cuisine ... like Pho Bo! So good.

 Literally the nicest rest stop I've ever seen

 Mekong Delta!

 Our amazing tour guide, Tham

 Some pretty flowers

 Dragon Fruit!

 A traditional Vietnamese home in the Delta

 Their yard

 Bed

 My favorite thing about Vietnam - hammocks.

 Trying some fruit

 Yes, some of it was familiar but all local and so delicious!

 Some traditional music

 A sink in a tree, obviously.

 The Delta

 Cruising along the river

 Floating houses... most people were sleeping, when do they work?!

 Rice field

 This guy was NUTS! I missed the photo-op but he had that snake's whole head in his mouth for a minute there.

 This was our lunch! (Part of it) They made spring rolls out of this Elephant Ear Fish caught in the Mekong Delta

 Cruising along in a small boat through a canal

Yes I held the sweet snake ... she was cute!

Eva and I were invited to dinner by my new Vietnamese friend Phuong Anh. Her whole family was pretty excited ... this is us with her, her nephew, and her sister. 

I have more pictures but I figured this was enough for now! I'll add more later.