Day 10

Today was a very chill day. Everyone was so exhausted from the heat and lack of sleep. It was a very slow and lazy kind of day. In the morning we had a culture class where we learned some of the history of the Vietnam War. It was very sad to listen too. The part of the lesson that got to me the most was probably the part when the teacher talked about Agent Orange, when the US sprayed chemicals all over Vietnamese fields to kill off any vegetation.  The chemicals left a severe consequence on the people exposed even causing mutations in their children many years after exposure.  It was especially humbling when the teacher told us his niece is affected from the Agent Orange, but when someone asked if he was mad at the US because of this he said, "Not at all, If I was to feel hatred towards every country we have been in war with, I would have a lot of enemies."

Then in language class we just went over stuff we already knew but we were starting to put it in conversations and I thought it was really cool to hear how far everyone has come in the past two weeks. I can't even imagine how much we would know if we could stay a month. We would probably be practically fluent! Its really nice learning Vietnamese because at every company visit we've had, when the person we are meeting with is not Vietnamese, they have all told us they do not speak Vietnamese. Even people who have been here for many years, never bothered to learn. Its very easy to leave here and not know any Vietnamese language because most people here do speak some type of English. But to me its just respectful to try and learn their language and their culture as guests of the country.

In the afternoon we met with this Realtor, Pat, who has been living in Vietnam for a long time, has a family here and sells houses.  It is interesting how property ownership works in Vietnam, because it doesn't actually belong to you.  You can by the land and build on it but that doesn't make it your property. The land is owned by the government. All of it. So if the government really wanted to it could kick you out of your own house and use the land for something else. So pretty much you can't buy a house. Only lease it. She was really nice, and after the meeting she told us all about places in Vietnam we need to check out. I really enjoyed talking with her.

We went out to dinner with the UEF students again tonight. It was a lot of fun as usual. And as usual we take over the whole joint with the huge group we arrive with. This time they even had to rearrange the restaurant! Its always a lot of fun hanging out with them. All of us are just goofy people that like to joke around with each other and have a good time. After dinner though I was so tired I immediately fell asleep. A good sleep was much needed.