Nhớ Nguồn

And now, part 2 of the Seoul experience, courtesy of our Korean tour guides. Taking a picture at one of the old palaces still in Seoul with a palace "guard." It's impossible to see, but the impressive beard that man is sporting is actually fake. Up close, you can see all the glue he had to use to keep it on. Pour soul... This is my obligatory "Asian pose" at the Cheonggye Stream. The 5-mile long river was an incredible place to escape the bustling streets just above, and I can only imagine how great it would be for dates. Apparently, the stream occasionally becomes a river when it rains a lot. There were escape ladders every few hundred feet. A "helpful" ajumma singled us out to explain to us the significance of the statue (you can't see it, but it's the large stone structure on the left) and the large stone dais that you can see in this photo. The statue is of Sejong the Great, the fourth king of the Joseon Dynasty, and the ...

Just last week, I had the pleasure of flying to South Korea to visit friends and family. It was a bit of a last minute trip (and it cost me like one), but I had a fantastic time! Here are my photos, thoughts, and observations of my one-week experience. To note, because there are a lot of pictures, I've decided to do this entry as two parts: the first part are shots from m camera, the second are shots from my Korean tour guide's. So apparently in Seoul, the way people go about buying housing is to come to one of these impressive looking model homes. They would then look at examples of the rooms and then buy them on the spot. The crazy thing, according to my Korean source, is that these rooms aren't even the final product! In essence, people have to buy their houses without knowing whether or not it will turn out the way they want it to! If you made a bad choice or had back luck, you'd literally have to live with it. I think this picture is indicative of South...

Pictures, en masse, of my experience of the International Teacher's Day in Viet Nam. I had no idea that teachers were so well respected and that this holiday was so important in Viet Nam!  One of my ILA students who gave me a paper-craft card and shiny new pen.  Interestingly, this girl isn't actually my student. I gave her a level test back in September and she still remembered me for some reason. She gave me a cute hand-drawn card.  I got to sit in the VIP section for the Teacher's Day ceremony at the Phan Tay Ho middle school. This picture doesn't do justice to the size of the student audience. Note the kids sitting on the second floor. There is an additional floor above that with more students and even more students in the back of the school.  I stuck around to get pictures of the stage. I hadn't actually noticed the girls in front of me while I was doing this, but apparently they noticed me. They promptly ran over...  ...and i...

This isn't my normal kind of post, but it's still related to Viet Nam. If you've got the time,  this article  is extremely well done and shares an interesting viewpoint into the politics of the South China Sea. Enjoy!

In Vietnam, they don't have snow days, they have storm days. Classes this afternoon got canceled, but I can't say I'm sad about that. With an incredibly full day tomorrow, I couldn't be happier to have the extra time to lesson plan tonight.

I absolutely love this picture, not because of what you can see, but because of what you can't. What's missing are the hundreds of kids that go to this school on this completely normal Thursday afternoon. Where are they? In their classrooms taking a nap together, of course. As I walked through the strangely peaceful quad, I could imagine every one of those rooms with almost 50 kids inside, sleeping together on their chairs, on the tables, and on the floor. I couldn't stop the smile that grew on my face. 

1. Ho Chi Minh City will challenge your sense of adventure. Ho Chi Minh City is not a place you go to for an easy, safe life. This is the city where the population of people ranks barely above that of mosquitoes, and personal items disappear at 35km/h.  Today, modern day ninjas prefer plaid and surgical masks. And yet, despite these dangers, this city will surprise you every time you walk out your door if you’re willing to scratch beneath the surface. This is the city where you find three story outdoor cafés with a waterfall and wooden tables lit by tea lights at the end of alleys worthy of rape PSAs. This is the city where you can live out your teenage dream of riding a motorcycle without looking like you’re desperately trying to live out your teenage dream of riding a motorcycle. Speaking of motorcycles… 2. You finally have an excuse to get a motorcycle.  …they’re the only  way to get around this city. Taxis get expensive after a while and ...

...with beautiful people. 

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded." Few words have been spoken better. Thank you, Mr. Emerson. 

Given the current situation, I'm actually a little glad I'm halfway around the world right now.

They say that if you love something enough, you'll pour your heart and soul into it. As far as teaching in Viet Nam goes, I've given my heart, my soul, and everything else in between. How do I know that's the case? Because I've gotten to the point where I don't want more money, I want more sleep. 

One of my kids today tried to make himself look like a Dragonball Z character. So close, my friend.

And homes stretching as far as the eye can see. 

This is actually pretty typical of cafe drinks in Saigon. Makes so much sense out of Garden Grove.

It's always amazes me how close you can get to people in a short amount of time. Two months, that's all it took for this group.

You know it's gonna be "one of those days" when even the TAs are tired. 

My first holiday in Viet Nam, the Mid-Autumn Festival. Even though I had another long day, I ventured out to District 5 to get special chè (sweet soup) and this little fried treat. It was basically a Chinese doughnut filled with some sort of green bean paste that strongly resembled custard. At any rate, the most amusing part of it was that the food was wrapped up in what was essentially trash. I've been told that it's the Vietnamese way of "saving money and saving the environment" at the same time. I'm still deciding final thoughts on this... 

In honor of the Chinese influence on Vietnam, I'd like to share an interesting poem. Original: 《施氏食獅史》 石室詩士施氏，嗜獅，誓食十獅。 氏時時適市視獅。 十時，適十獅適市。 是時，適施氏適市。 氏視是十獅，恃矢勢，使是十獅逝世。 氏拾是十獅屍，適石室。 石室濕，氏使侍拭石室。 石室拭，氏始試食是十獅。 食時，始識是十獅屍，實十石獅屍。 試釋是事。 Transliteration : « Shī Shì shí shī shǐ » Shíshì shīshì Shī Shì, shì shī, shì shí shí shī. Shì shíshí shì shì shì shī. Shí shí, shì shí shī shì shì. Shì shí, shì Shī Shì shì shì. Shì shì shì shí shī, shì shǐ shì, shǐ shì shí shī shìshì. Shì shí shì shí shī shī, shì shíshì. Shíshì shī, Shì shǐ shì shì shíshì. Shíshì shì, Shì shǐ shì shí shì shí shī. Shí shí, shǐ shí shì shí shī shī, shí shí shí shī shī. Shì shì shì shì. Translation: « Lion-Eating Poet in the Stone Den » In a stone den was a poet called Shi, who was a lion addict, and had resolved to eat ten lions. He often went to the market to look for lions. At ten o'clock, ten lions had just arrived at ...

The international hospital across the street displays a few flags. Curiously, only one stands at "attention," but only because someone ripped a hole in the corner and hung it up on the adjacent pole. I can't decide if I feel proud they're displaying our colors, or a little sad because they defaced the flag to do that. 

A new (and much needed) pair of slippers, a special delivery of homemade cupcakes, and a surprise birthday cake at work. Overall, a pretty cool birthday in Viet Nam, despite the fact that I had to work from 6:45am to 8:30pm.

The motorbike: transporting families across Vietnam for 40 years.

There's no mistake. My throat is shot. I can hardly talk. I run through my shirts like crazy because of how much I sweat in them while working. My nose is constantly clogged because of the dusty air. I'm borderline sick because I keep going back and forth between hot and cold environments. And I'm loving every minute. I like to imagine the 12-year old versions of my aunts and uncles doing "exercises" during recess in their uniforms in this courtyard. It's hard for me to recall the last time my work made me feel so fulfilled. Maybe it's because I'm finally helping people that I feel actually need my help. Or maybe it's because my kids are sharp, funny, and enthusiastic. Or maybe it's just something about the atmosphere. Whatever it is, I'm glad I took the risk of teaching >50 student classes in a completely new environment. Despite its intimidating appearance, the experience has proven to be incredibly rewarding. I can honestly ...

I really hate that this cat is making me like cats in general. The dog, on the other hand, is making me not like dogs. What is happening?...