Woo, so this post today is a doozy. Was way too tired on Monday to write up the whole post, so I'm giving you this today.
We got a lot to cover, so might as well get going!
Saturday was September 1st, my 22nd birthday. Since in Vietnam people ask your age all the time, I am now telling everyone that I am "hai mười hai" (22) instead of "hai mười một." (21) As a result, I am feeling quite old after only a few days of being 22!
This also marks one week that I have been in Bến Tre and more than a month since I have been in Vietnam. I arrived in late July and it is now September, crazy how fast time has gone by.
Because the majority of students at Bến Tre College live in the surrounding province, the vast majority of them go home on the weekend. This was especially true for this weekend, because Vietnamese National Day, when Saigon was liberated/captured by North Vietnamese forces, was this weekend, on September 2nd. As a result, we had Monday off, and most people went home to visit their families. That meant that on Saturday morning, the campus was basically a ghost town.
No to worry, my friends would more than come through in the following weekend.
Saturday afternoon I first had lunch at Mr. Hoang's house, which I had visited before to talk to his English club. It was as always very nice to talk to Mr. Hoang, and we chatted some more about his family. Mr. Hoang lives on one of the three campuses of Bến Tre College, and it is actually somewhat unusual for teachers to live on campus (no different than at a U.S. institution). He said that he prefers to live on campus because he wants to have some distance from his extended family, and that is a slightly unusual statement from a Vietnamese perspective.
Lunch was amazing, as usual, with far too much delicious food for anybody to realistically consume.
Seriously, look at all this food. This is for two people. My god.
After lunch, I relaxed for a few hours before heading over to the office to meet with my supervisors about National Day. When I got there, it turned out that surprise! They were also there to celebrate my birthday!
Many nice Vietnamese speeches were given about the importance of both Vietnamese National Day and my birthday, and about the start of my relationship with Bến Tre College. I felt incredibly honored and welcomed by everyone here. For my presents, I received a beautiful basket of flowers and a very nice short-sleeve collared shirt. I was especially happy about the shirt, because it is basically impossible for me to find shirts my size here in Vietnam and this one fits me perfectly. I was humbled and flattered to receive these gifts and very happy
From left: Mr. Hung, Mr. Hoang, Mrs. Trang, Myself, Mrs. Thu, Ms. Y, Mr. Tiep with my presents!
After dinner we went to a very nice dinner at a restaurant I had been to before with Mr. Hoang. One of the waiters there recognized me, he was a boy about sixteen years old. Very friendly, and speaking Vietnamese very fast, we had had a fragment of a conversation the last time I was here. He wished me a very happy birthday and I have to say I felt quite touched. I hope my Vietnamese improves enough that I will be able to converse with him eventually, but given the incredible speed with which he talks and the slang he uses, that might be a high bar to set.
Dinner was a fantastic affair, and I was joined by most of the English faculty and many administrators from the Office of Scientific Research and International Relations. Considering I have only known them for a week, the people are all very enthusiastic and welcoming, and I love being around them.
A wonderful dinner
With Mr. Duy, Vice-Dean of the English Department
With Mr. Hoang, my ever-patient and constant companion
At a certain point before dinner, the Dean of the Humanities department asked a fateful and powerful question:
"Em uống bia hoặc rượu?"
"You want to drink beer or wine?"
I knew that everyone else would be following my lead, so I paused for a second, thinking about this crossroads. Beer would be a normal party, rice wine would be...something else.
I don't know why rượu is translated as "wine." It should be "hard alcohol."Or "moonshine."
Or "danger."
Well, it is my birthday, so why not. I went for rượu, and so did the rest of the party. No regrets.
Rượu, dangerous stuff
Enjoying the party
The next morning Mr. Vu met me at my room to take me to his family's house in the countryside.
Mr. Vu with his adorable son at Bến Tre College
Unfortunately my camera died on the trip, but thanks to Mr. Vu letting me borrow a camera and a flash drive, I still have pictures! So big shout out to Mr. Vu for letting me borrow his camera, and for taking many great photographs.
The ride to the countryside passed through well-paved roads that were wide and bustling, and twisting alleys that wound through green hillsides. Green is everywhere here, a sprawling encompassing green that presses up towards the road at all times. The cities of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi seem ages away, here concrete fights a constant war against encroaching ferns and trees. Towering coconut palms dwarf the houses surrounding them.
The lush greens of the trees and the ferns contrast sharply with the muddy waters of the Mekong river. Branches of the river criss-cross the province, and many canals and aqueducts have been dug on people's private property, so the brown water of the Mekong can be seen all throughout the province. It's a peaceful river, and you could sit all day watching the river flow by.
A cool breeze rustles through your hair as you fly by on the back of a motorbike. Here the rule is orchards, not rice paddies, so every house is surrounded by coconut palms or other fruit trees. You feel like a child, wanting to reach out and touch every single plant that you pass by. Every single spot you pass feels like the perfect place to take a picture, and every sight you see makes you catch your breath a little.
The Mekong
On the bridge
Mr. Vu on the bridge
On a boat on the Mekong
At the same time, although many of the houses are small, one-room thatched houses, there are many that are larger, made of concrete and steel, with gleaming fronts like a new action figure just taken out of its package. There are more of these houses being built every day, construction is rampant along the main road.
Bến Tre Province is an island, surrounded on all sides by the Mekong river. In the past, to get to Bến Tre, you had to take a ferry across the Mekong, a half an hour ride. Once you got to Bến Tre, the streets were narrow dirt roads, because no one bothered investing in a province that was a boat ride away from Ho Chi Minh City. Tiền Giang is the province right across the river from Bến Tre. Despite being a mere half an hour by boat away, Tiền Giang developed at a pace dwarfing Bến Tre.
However, in 2009 a bridge was built linking Bến Tre to Tiền Giang. Suddenly Bến Tre, formerly isolated and extremely rural, was an island of relatively undeveloped land only two hours away from the metropolis of Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnamese and foreigners rushed to buy land in Bến Tre for summer retreats, or to invest in local businesses. New, wider roads were built, larger restaurants popped up and a huge supermarket was built in the center of town, moves that would have been financially insane before the bridge was built.
There is a second bridge currently under construction that will link Bến Tre to Tra Vinh in the south, it should be completed in 2014. Then Bến Tre, formerly completely isolated, will become a crossroads for all travelers--both Vietnamese and foreigners--driving from Ho Chi Minh City to the tourist hub of Cần Thơ in the south. Change is coming to Bến Tre.
A large, wide concrete bridge being built in the background, while we crossed on a rickety dangerous narrow one
Eating lunch at Mr. Vu's house
After lunch we explored around the countryside, following dirt roads through the houses and exploring more of the beautiful scenery. Everywhere I looked, towering palm trees, fish farms dug in backyards and chickens roaming freely across the roads. It was beautiful chaos. There were also some very pretty houses being built seemingly in the middle of this completely rural area. I am very interested to see what it looks like in five years.
At the local pagoda
Lounging "like a villager" according to Mr. Vu
Mr. Vu also owns an orchard where he grows pomelos and coconuts. I got to explore the orchard, and I have to say it took me back. My grandfather owns a ranch in Kentucky and we used to visit his small farm in Florida very regularly, so even though I'm a city boy I have a soft spot in my heart for rural places. Being in Mr. Vu's orchard definitely awoke some of those sentiments.
Pomelos hanging on the tree
Mr. Vu in his orchard
Picking a pomelo
Eating said pomelo. Delicious.
I got delicious fruit from Mr. Vu's orchard to add to my ever-expanding supply back home
I thought my fridge was full before. Nope. Now it's full.
After lunch, I headed into Ho Chi Minh City to meet up with Amanda and Kate, who were staying there for a few days before heading off to their provinces. I was super excited to see them, and really excited about actually exploring Ho Chi Minh City this time.
I took a bus from Bến Tre to Ho Chi Minh City. As previously mentioned, the buses in Vietnam show zero regard for petty concerns like human safety and casualties. My seat was at the very front of the bus, and I will tell you now that there is no more powerful feeling than sitting in the front seat of a bus in Vietnam, watching as you barrel forward and everyone on the road scrambles to get out of your way.
I'M A BUS, GET OUT OF MY WAY!!!
I'm also fairly certain it was much more dangerous for me to be sitting in the front seat of the bus. More vulnerability in case of crashes, etc etc.
At least I had a seat belt!
Haha. Of course I didn't have a seat belt. Welcome to Vietnam!
When I got to Ho Chi Minh City, I checked into Amanda and Kate's hostel for the night, and then set off to explore the city with them. It was amazing to see Amanda and Kate again, and I really enjoyed talking with Kate about Sapa and with Amanda about her explorations in Hanoi.
We set off to hit up Ho Chi Minh City's nightlife, stopping at several bia hoi places and eating dinner at a nice Italian restaurant (there are no Italian places in Bến Tre, and I had a craving). It was really strange to overhear tourists talking, and to realize how unusual our adventure is. We've been mostly talking to each other and our friends/family about our plans in Vietnam, who have all had some time to get used to the idea that we are spending a year abroad. But all you have to do is tell one backpacker that you will be living in Vietnam for another nine months, then watch his/her eyes get wide, to understand that what we are doing is slightly unusual.
Ho Chi Minh City is a fascinating place to absorb, a vibrant culture that is in some ways so similar (traffic, noise, general crowdedness) to Hanoi and in other ways so different (food, language, amount of commercialism). Kate and Amanda kept expressing a preference for Hanoi, but I found myself wishing I had a month to stay in Ho Chi Minh City and experience this city as much as possible. We closed out the night by settling in at one of the best places I have ever been--an Aussie expat bar with swings outside.
My lovely companions Kate and Amanda
Swings at a bar, swings! Genius, I say!
The next day we set out for a tour of the Cao Dai Holy See and the Cu Chi tunnels.
Cao Dai is a Vietnamese religion founded in 1926, the religion is a composite religion that borrows elements from Hinduism, Buddhism and Catholicism along with several others. There are approximately 1 million Cao Dai worshippers in Vietnam, mostly concentrated in South Vietnam and especially around the Holy See in Tây Ninh. Although Cao Dai used to be a politically active force in the middle of the century, fighting both North and South Vietnamese forces in an effort to achieve autonomy, Cao Dai worshippers were disarmed and the church is now merely a religious presence.
Cao Dai worshippers are pacifist, and follow a strict vegetarian diet for ten days a month. They also believe in ancestor worship, and they believe the ultimate goal of life is to break the cycle of reincarnation and to rejoin God the Father.
Probably the most interesting aspect of Cao Dai is the extent to which it borrows from other religions. For instance, Cao Dai worshippers believe that God sent prophets at various points to enlighten the world. Buddha was one of those prophets. As was Confucius. As was Jesus.
Saints that the Cao Dai worship include Thomas Jefferson, Mohammed, Renee Descartes, William Shakespeare and Leo Tolstoy, among others. I am not an expert on Cao Dai theology, but my understanding is that saints are men who are supposed to have lived admirable lives, or men that had admirable qualities. That's how they can worship people as different as Joan of Arc and Vladimir Lenin.
The Holy See itself is a marvelously colored building that looks like a child's imagination of a pagoda crossed with a cathedral crossed with a fantasy castle all colored in with bright pastels. Somehow, the magnificent gaudiness works.
The front of the Cao Dai Holy See
Outside the Holy See
Three saints of Cao Dai signing a covenant between God and Man. from left to right:
1. Sun Yat-Sen, leader of the Chinese Revolution in 1912
2. Victor Hugo, French poet, novelist and dramatist who dramatized the plight of the ordinary man
3. Nguyễn Binh Kiêm, 16th century Vietnamese poet who, according to legend, could predict the future
The inside of the Holy See is even more brightly colored in ways that you would never have thought possible in a private home, let alone a place of worship. The room is held up by dozens of pastel pink columns with green dragons twirled around them. Again, the gaudiness should make the Holy See seem cheap or gimmicky. But it doesn't. It just makes it more powerful.
Inside the Holy See
Tourists are allowed inside the Holy See, and are permitted to climb a balcony to observe the religious ceremony. They are also allowed, and I would even say encouraged, to take pictures, even with flash. Despite all the tourists crowding in and despite my own fevered desire to take as many beautiful pictures as possible, I still couldn't help but feel calmed and relaxed by the constant chants and prayers of the Cao Dai worshippers. There is a strangely soothing feel to being in this place, a feeling that no matter how ridiculous the Holy See looks, the Cao Dai worshippers don't care. There is a self-assurance in their faith here that is very reassuring to observe.
From the balcony
Inside the temple
Another view from inside
The all-seeing eye of Cao Dai is all over the church walls
After lunch, we headed off to the Cu Chi tunnels. The Cu Chi tunnels were first dug during the French-Indochina War in 1949, and the villagers kept digging them until the end of the war. The tunnels were used to hide from American and South Vietnamese troops, and to protect against American bombing runs. Viet Cong would hide in the tunnels, pop out and ambush American soldiers and then drop back into the tunnels to escape. The vast maze of tunnels covered almost the entire Cu Chi province, with an escape route in the Saigon river and dozens of places for guerillas to re-emerge.
Here, our guide demonstrates how well the tunnel entrances could be concealed.
Nothing to see
Surprise! It's a guerrilla!
The Cu Chi tunnels are also used to showcase the traps used by Viet Cong against American and South Vietnamese forces. These traps were not just used in Cu Chi but were used all over Vietnam.
The tiger trap. Looks simple at first...
...but stand on it and you fall into a pit of bamboo spikes.
Our guide demonstrating various other traps, all of them horrible
The souvenir trap. Step on this trap, and there is no way they can get the spikes out of you in the field. You have to be extracted to a hospital, and once they remove the trap from your leg you have a nice souvenir of your time in Vietnam.
The door trap. Prop it up on a door, then when someone opens the door the trap swings down. They might be quick enough to block the first section of the trap, but the second section swings freely and will hit them right around the waist area.
As horrid as the traps were, I found it more unnerving just to stare at the jungle around Cu Chi. Most of it has been thoroughly cut to make way for tourists and guides, but there are some spots that are still very overgrown. Just staring at spots like these makes me wonder what it would be like to fight when you are constantly surrounded by this:
Just jungle. Can't see anything...
...and anything you step on could be a trap.
And furthermore, fighting an enemy that could hide like this:
A ventilation shaft disguised as a termite mound
I mean, Jesus, it's not really that surprising some soldiers went crazy over here. Trying to fight an invisible enemy that left traps everywhere, that would take a mental toll on anyone.
Now, of course, the killing grounds of Cu Chi are mainly inhabited by tourists
Cu Chi also serves as a sort of monument to the North Vietnamese war effort. As such, it is possible to pose on a destroyed American tank.
Finally fulfilling my dream to sit on a tank. Next step: get a working one
And, most definitely a highlight, the firing range where you can fire weapons from the Vietnam War. AK-47, M16, M1 Garand, M50s. You can fire them all at the Cu Chi firing range. The last time I was here, my parents basically forbid me from firing the weapons. But this time, I had to try. Sorry Mom!
The view from the firing range
Kate takes a shot
As did Amanda
As did I
Even with the gun braced, the recoil is significant, and the gun was unbelievably loud. Combine hearing frequent gunshots with the psychological stress of jungle warfare that I mentioned earlier and I'm starting to get the barest, barest, tiniest glimpse of what it might have been like during the War. It doesn't seem real pretty.
Not going to lie, though, firing an AK-47 was awesome. Another item off the bucket list!
Finally, it was time for us to head into the tunnels. These tunnels were constructed for tourists, so keep that in mind. As small as these tunnels are, they are double the size of the original Cu Chi tunnels.
Amanda heads into the tunnel
In the tunnel
The tunnel went on for about 100 meters, and I bear-crawled the whole way through. By the time I got out I was dirty, sweaty and exhilarated. Time to recover with some taro and tea!
My fellow Cu Chi explorers, post-tunnel.
After exploring the tunnels I headed back to Bến Tre College, thoroughly exhausted after an amazing weekend. As I stumbled into my room, I noticed a cockroach coming out to greet me.
Kill count:
12 cockroaches
4 miscellaneous
1 giant spider
Anyways, it's been an amazing weekend and I had a great time. I couldn't imagine a better birthday weekend. My friends from the Fulbright program and my new friends at Bến Tre College were all so awesome and I had a fantastic weekend.
This week I start teaching, I'll let you know all about that on Friday!
Thanks for reading!
Signing off,
Jefferson
No comments:
Post a Comment