It's been an inexcusably long time since I've updated my blog, but it's funny how quickly time gets away from you. Exactly two months ago today I had touched down in Hanoi, tired, dirty and questioning my sanity. And now, it seems like I merely blinked and suddenly my volunteer placement is over, and I'm on the road to see the rest of Southeast Asia.
I finished my placement at VietHealth on Wednesday, and although I was excited to get going on my trip, it was sad to leave after what felt like such a short period of time. I remember saying to my mom back in August that if I was going to travel on my year off I wanted to get valuable professional skills for when I finally finish school. As much as I wanted to have fun travelling and see the world, that was the most important thing to me. Because development can be a difficult field to break into, and no matter where life takes me in the next few years, working in development is my ultimate goal. In picking Vietnam, I decided I wanted to throw myself directly into the world of local NGOs rather than head to a place like Colombia and further develop my Spanish skills. Even though I didn't become fluent in Spanish during my stay (that would be impressive considering they don't speak it here) I'm understanding Vietnamese more and more each day, so hopefully when I return some day I'll be able to fully learn it. But for now, it's pretty cool that I can have basic conversations and count to 100 in four languages now.
I really feel as though I accomplished my goal in volunteering in Vietnam as I learned so much at Viethealth, and I view the experience as invaluable. People always say travel is not cheap, and you have to give up a lot to do it. And while they're right, I don't view that as a negative thing because your experience is worth every penny and every moment away from home that it takes to do it. So I left Hanoi on Friday night with a plethora of new skills, ready to see what the rest of Vietnam and Southeast Asia has to offer me before I return home in the middle of December. And I'm sure I won't regret a moment of it.
My last night in Hanoi was an eventful one. I spent the day finishing up gift shopping for family and friends, and then did up a package to send home which of course cost me an arm, a leg, and part of my head. But I'm relieved that everyone's gifts are on the way home (via airmail, so I'm not worried), and I don't have to lug all of it around in my backpack for the next five weeks. I also had lunch at my favorite Wetsern style restaurant in Hanoi, Provecho. Their mexican food is fantastic, and it's probably the first place I'd recommend to anyone travelling there. In the evening I met up with some of my roommates where we ate at Luna D'Artunno, the place proclaimed to have the best pizza in Hanoi. Believe it or not, they did not disappoint, and the pizza was excellent and only slightly overpriced.
To paint an overall picture of Hanoi for any of you folks who may travel there someday, I would say that it is a very good jumping off point to see the Northern Highlands and Halong Bay, but that the city itself really isn't worth more than a couple of days. Hanoi has some beautiful places, but really you could see everything in two days and be satisfied with your experience. The major downsides to Hanoi are the traffic and pollution, and for many people I can imagine it would be difficult to handle for more than a few days. I thought about writing recommendations of all of my favorite places in Hanoi, but I figured there are thousands of guidebooks out there that list awesome places to visit and it's unlikely someone will come back to my blog just to go to restaurant I recommended if they go to Vietnam in six years. However, I will say that if anyone is planning a trip to Vietnam, I am always available for counsel and happy to make recommendations.
So I left Hanoi Friday night, on a bus ride to Hoi An that took nearly 20 freaking hours. It wasn't so bad because it was a sleeper bus, so I had a bed, but it was still hardly the most comfortable thing I ever slept on. About 90% of the travellers on the bus were Westerners, with only a single Vietnamese family and like six of the drivers random friends. The trip included two sketchy stops for bathroom breaks (since there wasn't one on the bus), including one at 3am to a completely deserted and pitch black truck stop. I wisely decided not to get off at that point, considering I didn't have to go that bad and the squat toilets leave a lot of be desired.
I met numerous other travellers on the bus during break stops, and it occurred to me once I had arrived in my hotel that I did not know any of their names. I knew where they were from, how long they were travelling, and what they did for a living, but I did not know one name. I suppose travelling can be a bit like the movie Zombieland in that way, where they say names don't matter because your time of interaction will be too short for it to matter.
Funny story about the bus. In Southeast Asia, well all of Asia really, people are very funny about feet. In Canada, it is considered rude in most places to enter with your shoes on, but the Vietnamese take it to a whole other level. For example, at work, I would take off my outdoor shoes at the door, then put on a pair of sandals to walk through the lobby, then at the door to the main office take off those shoes and enter barefoot. Then, there was a further pair of shoes used for the bathroom! It was odd to be at first, but I got used to it. Hence, I was not surprised when I entered the bus on Friday and the driver requested that I remove my shoes and place them in a plastic bag. When I got to my bed, I saw that all of the other travellers were tying their shoes onto the railing on their beds, so I did the same. And what happened? I woke up in the middle of the night to find that my shoes were stolen. I'm about 99% sure it was the random Vietnamese guy who was friends with the driver and on the bus for no apparent reason who lay down in the aisle next to my bed that took them. But what could I really do? I didn't see him wearing them, and I'm hardly the type to get into confrontations with random people. So I just accepted my loss, and thanked the universe that he didn't decide to steal my guitar or iPod.
So in replacement, I'm getting some funky shoes made here in Hoi An that I'm going to pick up later today! I'm in Hoi An, chilling out before I head out to have some breakfest and pick up my shoes. I'm not going to write about what I've done in Hoi An in this blog, and instead I will write about Nha Trang and Hoi An in my next one since I'm staying such a short time in each area. Although I will say that Hoi An is an amazingly beautiful city, and I'm excited to write about it.
I suppose that is about it for me, but I would also like to say that today and for the foreseeable future, my thoughts are with my friend Skylar. In the Thanh Xuan dorm, Skylar was a my roommate. On Friday November 11th, her birthday no less, Skylar received word from home that her father had passed away. I'm hoping she has arrived home in Arizona to be with her family and friends by now, since she left to fly on Friday night, but I still ask for all of my family and friends to have her in their thoughts and prayers.
Until next time, remember how quickly things can change, so always make sure everyone you love knows just how much you care about them.
Sarah
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