You traded your car for a subway and now a public bus in Viet Nam

So my decision to head over to Viet Nam was partially influenced

my frustration with management at my job in NYC (loved the work, management was a different story).

Talk about drastic huh? After a brief honeymoon period of traveling to Ha Noi with Dave and getting reacquainted with Viet Nam again, my 2nd week threw me back into real life. So I apologize for the lack of blogging but I've been on emotional ups and downs for quite awhile now. My mom still shakes her head about how I would trade in my car in Michigan for subways in NYC to now a public bus in Viet Nam as my mode of transportation.

The buses in Viet Nam don't really stop, they kind of come to a rolling stop and I'm expected to hop on or hop off. Coupled with the fact that I can't read Vietnamese very well, I'm constantly worried I'm going to miss my stop. On the bright side, I'm getting to know the streets of Saigon more, the layout of the city, and now the bus routes. Although people here think I'm kinda crazy for taking the bus here, I personally think for the extra time I'm spending riding the bus, I'm not breathing in the exhaust fumes from millions of motorbikes on the road. If anybody wants to look at the traffic in Saigon, it's absolutely crazy. I almost got clipped by a motorbike the other day but I just have to take it, literally, one stride at a time.

So for now, dirty roads, incessant honking, and the constant roar of traffic/noise from the city. I hate to say it but I'm kind of over big cities (who ever knew the NYC girl would ever say that)?

By the way, the picture I've posted was not taken by me but the bus in the background is the #18 bus (which is the bus I take from my Aunt's house to the Vinacapital office and back every day). Today's bus ride home was packed, standing room only and the air conditioning wasn't working. When I talked to Vinny on Skype as soon as I got home, he commented on how shiny my forehead was b/c it was glistened with sweat. It's 10 pm here right now but the outside temperature is 81 degrees. I'm going to freeze when I head back to Michigan for med school.

Travel Karma

Today as Dave and I waved goodbye to our Megan, Susie and Brock, we noticed an American perusing the Pho 24 menu on the street. To save the fellow stranger from eating touristy food that was overpriced and not very good, we politely poked him and suggested that he not eat at Pho 24. Turns out our fellow traveler was an American, 29 years old, his name was Mike and he planned on traveling for a year. He happily followed us to our neighborhood tofu and rice noodle stand and was such a good sport about eating on plastic stools, telling us about his adventures traveling and his reasons behind traveling.

That's one of the best things about traveling, no matter where you go, you find a kindred spirit and it's always so fascinating to share your life's adventures with one another. Meeting Mike really reaffirmed my decision to step into the unknown and take an extreme leap of faith that everything will turn out alright. So my last morning/afternoon was spent showing Mike "my Viet Nam" experience, sipping coffee and sharing traveling stories. Tomorrow I begin my internship and I'm a little apprehensive since this experience is something I've never done before. On my first day I supposedly already will be sitting in on a meeting with USAID's Mission Director and might have to make a trip to Central Viet Nam to assess a hospital in Da Nang. Will keep everyone posted...

New Beginnings

The few days prior to leaving for Viet Nam were quite interesting. Between packing up my apartment, seeing friends and saying goodbye to Vinny, it was quite a whirlwind. A big THANKS to Rachel and Sandy for being the best support ever and being such great packers.

I flew JFK to Anchorage, Anchorage to Taipei and then Taipei to Saigon. Upon arriving in Saigon, my cousin Ben La picked me up at the airport and we headed home. It was definitely hot in Saigon (about 95 F). What a change from NYC's storm storm a few days before I flew out.

Before starting my internship with Vinacapital Foundation on Tuesday, I headed up to Ha Noi to see my good friend Dave and just to decompress after the whirlwind known as February in the States. So that's where I currently am now. The past couple of days have just included wandering the city, eating good food, meeting new friends and just decompressing. I do miss the States, my friends and family but when I get lonely, I just eat good food and think, "I can't get this in the States" and my homesickness is cured for a bit. $5 pedicures definitely helps too. I've never been a spa snob but I think I could get used to this lifestyle for a bit :) Steve has adopted a Vietnamese boy and his name is Zach. He is the cutest little thing ever and everyday he hugs me, tells me I'm pretty and today even said he wants to marry me. He's only 3 years old but can speak Vietnamese, English and is learning Mandarin at his preschool. Just the cutest little boy ever and not to mention a great self-esteem booster.

For my foodies out there: Best meal so far especially for the foodies who are trying to follow Michael Pollan's "In Defense of Food" mantra: I had fried tofu with fresh rice noodles wrapped in fresh mint and basil and dipped with a shrimp/fish sauce from a small neighborhood street stand in a back alley. We sat on plastic little stools that were probably 5 inches by 6 inches. Yummy! Dessert was fresh cut tropical fruit mixed with crushed ice and drizzled with condensed milk.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me through this decision and I will keep updating you on my new adventures but for now, sitting on a private balcony (thank you Steve for hosting me in your beautiful home) overlooking Hoan Kiem lake, sipping a glass of red wine and watching the motorbikes zoom past, life is good.

Colosseum

This post is about 3 weeks late but I wanted to finish out my blogs about Rome...

On our last day in Rome, Doug and I made our way to the Colosseum. We had passed it our first day in Rome and were not very impressed (maybe it was just that I expected it to be so much bigger) but upon entering the entrance, it was actually really amazing. It just baffles me and puts me in awe that such a historic structure from the ANCIENT times is still remaining and somewhat intact. Doug and I walked around and it was quite an exciting thing imagine what gladiator events must have been like in the ancient Rome days.

Afterwards Doug and I went to a grocery store so I could pick up olive oil. It's so much cheaper than in the States and you get so much more. Then we packed up our stuff and since we were running low on euros, took the F1 train to the airport instead of the Leonardo Express. On the train we saw a German family traveling with a stroller, 2 young children, and 3 large suitcases. I really like kids but I think when you decide to have a family, you really need to give up the right to travel on public transportation with so much baggage (little people and physical luggage). It's just too much you know?

Overall, Rome was great, the food was amazing, but I didn't fall in love with it like I did Madrid or Barcelona. I would definitely go back for the food but it's not on my list of repeat again travel destinations unless an organization I was working decided to pay for my trip back, then I'd be back in a heartbeat.

Overall, artichokes, pasta and gelato, I love thee.