Back on Track

September.  It's already September.  To many, this probably isn't even remotely unsettling; in fact, the largest effect it probably held was the monthly struggle to switch the calendar on time (how it always reaches the fifth before the flip, well, you're not alone).  It's already September.

I know I set this blog up to be a constant reflection upon my travels, encounters, foreign tastebuds and useful travel tips, but life kinda got in the way.  And by kinda, I mean that in the blink of an eye, I graduated college, accepted an amazing job offer (with amazing travel benefits!!), moved to the city ( outskirts... whatever, close enough), traveled approximately 20,000 miles, built my own furniture, and mastered the art of Zumba.  Sorry I'm not sorry, blog world.  But hey, we're back on track.

To catch you up on the travel bits, I travelled through Europe (France, Switzerland and good old Deutschland) in the months of May and June.  It was a family vacation - a sight not frequently seen for our family- and from what we recall, it occurred during the resurrection of the ice age.  Whatever happened to beautiful Parisian springtime was beyond me.  For heavens sake, it snowed twice.  For those of you who don't know this, Paris barely has snow in the winter, much less May 24th.  But what can you do?  Drink wine and eat macaroons.  Duh.

I wasn't kidding.  Many of these photos were actually taken in Bordeaux, a south-western port city, which is basically the wine capital of heaven.  I kid you not.  If you haven't heard of Bordeaux wine, well you haven't graduated from Boones farm, and are approximately 16 years old.  And you don't concern me.  However, even for me, a woman who enjoys frequent a glass of wine (and embarassingly cannot tell the difference between a $5 bottle and $50 bottle), it was like walking around in a five o'clock classy dream, minus the awkward Jimmy Buffet theme songs.  Fun fact, the university Science Po in Bordeaux has a wine tasting team who challenges other students from all over the world (and often wins!) on identifying the location, make, year, aging method and "fruits" of the wine.  I am still stunned by this.  I honestly believe they should add it to the list of new olympic sports; if pole dancing can be considered, can't wine tasting make the cut?  I'd imagine lovely burgundy uniforms.  Oh the possibilities.

Lyon, on the other hand, was a city bristling with gastronomic potential. Unfortunately due to only having a brief 24 hour stint in the city, I was unable to grasp this concept during this trip, nor the way out of the business center of their city.  Luckily my job will be sending me back in a week or two, in which I hopefully will gain a more well-rounded perspective. We did manage to see their infamous cathedral, a lovely botanical walkway, And eat delicious seafood.

From Lyon we carted off across Switzerland to lauterbrunnen, a small town filled with old ski chalets and Swiss cows. This was definitely a place for my father, who prefers the country side and a chance to stop and smell the roses (or in this case, Wiener schnitzel). We hiked the alps, bonded to our deepest deaths in unpredictable cable cars, and discussed the economics of postcards quite thoroughly. Lauterbrunnen: bringing families together under the shadows and quiet of the alps since god knows when. 

Outside the wine, schnitzel, cathedrals, cable cars and macaroons, Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Lauterbrunnen held tons of culture to offer; so much that I honestly have no hope of fitting it into one blog post.  However, here is a mini attempt in photos. (And a few from Marburg and hamburg, per usual).

Cu Chi Cu Chi

Well, it' been a bit of a delay posting about my final moments in Vietnam, but alas, here we are.  Our final day in Ho Chi Minh was naturally packed full of activities (it tended to be the trend if you haven't already noticed- fill all free time with as many possible opportunities available) but I wouldn't have missed a single minute of it.  We started with an early morning tour of an 8 am tour to the Cu Chi tunnels outside of Ho Chi Minh.  The Cu Chi tunnels are an entire district of tunnels which were built before and throughout the Vietnamese war against the Americans.  Personally, as lame as this, I had heard very little about these tunnels throughout my education of the Vietnamese war.  Now, wait, this doesn't mean I didn't know there were tunnels used as both defense and attack strategies.  I just hadn't heard of these specific tunnels.  And that honestly surprises me, due to their huge expanse of distance (approximately 200 Km I believe) and the impressiveness of these creations.  There were three levels of tunnels; the first for fighting, the second for protection from fighting and for cooking, living, etc., and the third for hiding from bombs and the security of documents and such.  These tunnels, as we were shown on our tour, were incredibly well hidden.  I was standing basically on top of one of the main entrances and had essentially no idea it even existed.  The thought put into the hiding tactics and military strategy behind this defense/attack system is absolutely awe-striking.  It honestly was no wonder Americans ended up pulling out; the Vietnamese defenses were seriously impossible to penetrate.  It was all incredibly mind-blowing, really.

We also were shown a variety of traps which were placed throughout the forest for American soldiers (and dogs...).  Again, the severity and gruesomeness of what I encountered in these demonstrations was nothing I had ever been taught in any history book or lecture before.  It just made me sick to my stomach to try and imagine putting myself in the shoes of an American soldier, out in the woods in a foreign culture (in a war which the large majority of them did not want to participate in anyways) with ruthless death traps waiting for me at any instant.  Dear god, what a gut wrenching thought.  There were many land mines laid by American soldiers as well as the Vietcong, which are still being discovered (unfortunately mostly in the hard way) today.  What a terrible, terrible war.

Perhaps this is not a place for my opinion to be given, but the entire tour through the Cu Chi tunnels and through the war remembrance museum, I couldn't help thinking to myself that the entire Vietnamese war was just an entire mess of a situation.  Both the United States and the Vietnamese were ruthless in their fighting tactics, and crossed severe lines when it comes to torture, methods of warfare, sick and twisted death methods, etc.  The war was just flat out ugly and one large nightmare for both sides.  However, this being said, I feel that both sides need to be recognized for their service, because the large majority of both sides were young men who found themselves in the middle of a war which was not their own, nor their own wish to participate.  I am not joking people; the things that those veterans witnessed, took part in, and will mentally (or in many cases, physically) suffer from eternally are beyond the imaginations of many of our worst nightmares.  The entire bus ride back from the tunnels and walk away from the War Remembrance museum, I found myself deep in thought and emotionally moved to a point of which I rarely find myself.  I thought back to how many years of my life I (now quite ashamedly) did not think too much of thanking a Vietnam veteran for their service, and how terrible these men's re-entry to our culture must have been after serving in such a situation.  To give you a brief idea, a large number of Americans were largely against the war, so upon many of our veterans' returns, they were scorned, tormented, and dishonored by the their public.  They were not welcomed back into society with a bit of sympathy and sincerity as many had seen in previous wars; they not only had reverse culture shock, but their own culture had turned against them.  After all of the nightmares they lived for a war which they most likely resented but partook in on the "behalf of the American people and the defeat of communism," their own culture, their own people, friends, family, society, etc., had nothing but negative resentment towards them.  It was a sick war, people did sick things.  But dear god, it was a sick, sick, sick war.  In the end, people are people, and while war should not (in my opinion) necessarily be glorified, they should be thanked for their service.  Those who partook (whether voluntarily or against their will) lived through things you would never 1. want to, nor 2. wish to imagine in your darkest days, and to understand that and educate others would be an incredible step forward.  This war would break anyone's heart, and it broke mine to realize that many don't understand the war, and that not many were there to help put our veteran's back together.  

Our veterans were not the only ones to suffer, mind you.  I know that last rant seemed like a pledge of allegiance to America, but I do recognize that there was another side to this war.  My heart is large and wide enough to hold everyone's sorrows, and the Vietnamese people fit within as well.  Americans came in, and many civilians felt the burdens of war directly.  An order to kill, no matter what, was often policy, and many suffered terrible losses which could not be replaced.  Many innocent citizens didn't even stand a chance, and despite pleading their cases, were given the worst and most ruthless penalties.  After meeting this culture, I assure you, this is not their nature; to be ruthless war guerrillas.  It really was quite close to impossible to imagine, but naturally, people can alter in times of such needs or situations.  Agent Orange gases were dropped on villages, not only killing people immediately but also leaving birth defects through the gene pools through today.  Napalm bombs were dropped, schools were main targets for bombing raids, and villages were burnt to the ground with many residents still within their homes.  To infer that American soldiers were in need of respect and sympathy alone would be a terribly narrow mindset.  No, the Vietnamese lived through the same unimaginable.  Neither side here is innocent nor completely to blame.  There was a war before the Americans arrived, there was a war when the Americans were there.  Both sides were ruthless; war crimes were committed, the war was a sick, terrible war.  In the end, I felt my heart go heavy to realize this situation was escalated to such a point, and that humans were so capable of creating such a mess of a conflict and acting so animalistic against one another.  I walked away from the remembrance museum, hoping to see a change in the world as we progress, and thankful for the re-opened communications with such a beautiful nation and people since 1995.  To all those American Vietnam veterans out there: thank you for your service, whether it be volunteer or drafted, and I'm sorry that you were subject to such a mess during a push of resentment by your own people under a false pretext that this was your idea, or that you were totally in the wrong.  For the families of those Americans lost, I'm also sorry.  To those Vietnamese veterans, I'm sorry for the mess which your people became subject to, the devastation inflicted upon your country and lives, and the numerous nightmares and losses which were brought into your life due to the ruthlessness of war.  To those reading this who have no clue what the war was about, the terrible occurrences during this war, or the conditions of it all, go do the world a favor and educate yourself.  Educate yourself, your friends, family, and anyone else who is uninformed.  To learn history is to improve, and the negativity of the relationship between our nation and Vietnam during this period is something which should be taught, understood, and never again repeated with any other nation.  Alright.  This post is way too political.  Let's just have peace, ok?  Peace, love, and happiness.  If only, right?

If only.

Anyway, after all of this, we ended up back in the city to do some last minute shopping, bargaining, and packing.  Naturally, I bought my heart's desire worth (seriously, I had to buy an entirely new travelers huge backpack thing to fit it all... good thing I got that for a bargain, per usual, at the market).  Vietnam really is the place for shopping.  I'm pretty bummed that due to my upcoming finances, a return shopping trip really doesn't seem to be in the cards.. bums.... I mean seriously guys,  I got a Louis Vuitton knock off for like $5.  Major win.  Don't forget the RayBans, Chanel wallet, Longchamp bags... the list goes on.  Yeah, I filled my suitcase.  Our final meal was at the Hard Rock Cafe in Ho Chi Minh.  As much as we loved the Vietnamese food, we had somehow reached our saturation point.  Seriously, at that point, I believe if someone had put a pile of noodles in front of me, I might have cried.  Perhaps just on the inside.  But still.  Holy noodles, man.  Anyway.  We ate dinner, recapped, and then trekked back to the hotel where we gathered our bags and began the trip to our final destination of home.  

The flight to Korea went smoothly enough... anyone seen the perks of being a Wallflower?  Loved it.  Once we reached South Korea, we discovered there was a mini one-hour tour where we could leave the airport to tour a Buddhist temple.  You better bet your bottom Dong (Vietnamese dollar) that we jumped right on that tour.  $5 later, I had my South Korean tourist visa stamp in my passport, and we went off to the mountains for our tour.  No one knew at the time that North Korea has declared war on South Korea, but from the looks of things, seems like it's a pretty peaceful war.  I guess we'll just have to wait and see.  The Buddhist temple was beautiful; I felt like it was something right out of an Asian photo guide book.  Loved, loved, loved the colors and the calm, yet powerful essence of it all.  The view of mountains in the distance and the calm serenity of the scenery really made me fall in love with South Korea, and I now have a wish to return.  Our tour was indeed mini, and after the hour, we re-entered international airspace and went on our way back to the U.S. of A (but not without first stopping at the Korean craft booth area, naturally).

30 ish hours later, we arrived in Waukesha and now today, April 1st, we've gone back to classes.  At this point, the intensity of the impact and memories this trip has left on my life and outlook on the world will most likely never fade.  The people I met on this fantastic journey, the new situations and lifestyles I was placed in, the moments were I found myself completely bombarded by an entirely foreign culture than my own and found myself automatically adjusting adequately; they all come together into this amazing harmony which I still feel resinating through me.  True, it is only day one of the "after-trip-detox," but still.  The world is a beautiful, mysterious, wonderful place, and Vietnam has been one of the main key factors in helping me realize this.  To those readers out there who find themselves clinging to their box of a life which is their comfort zone: get out.  Move.  Get on Kyak.com or whatever, buy a ticket, and get on a plane.  This is your life, and if I can provide you one bit of advice, it will never get any more brilliant than where you allow your comfort level to lie without trying to push its boundaries.  Go educate yourself, make yourself well-rounded, and touch, feel, embrace, and experience another culture entirely foreign to your own.  It will absolutely amaze you the amount of knowledge one can grasp from even a few brief moments of such an interaction or push outside your former limits.  Stand behind the push of the forward movement towards a well educated, more peaceful, and communicative world.  It all begins with you, me, us, and the generation of now.  

Until the next travels my friends.

Swindled

Ho Chi Minh city. A city filled with about two times as many people as Hanoi (which i believe is like 7 or 8 million people) which means twice the mopeds, twice the excitement, and twice the food selection. The two cities truly are two very different worlds; while Hanoi is the capitol and epitome of the Vietnamese communist state, Ho Chi Minh is far more capitalist and westernized. Here, buildings are new, streets are cleaned, there are a large variety of international restaurants, and westerners don't feel quite as smacked in the face with culture shock. I immediately loved the city due to the deep influence of French architecture (and shopping- giggity gee!) and was anxious to explore. We checked into our hotel, which was the stand true life version of "don't judge a book by its cover" situation. The hotel appeared to be the fanciest thing alive, but then after checking in and in fact weaving to the back side of the hotel, we discovered mediocre rooms without windows. Could be worse, but you really don't realize how much you love a good window until you no longer have one. Anyway.

Walking the city was the first on the todo list, along with finding lunch. Walking through this city requires the general same set of standards from Hanoi; motorcycles move around you, cars and buses don't (so don't jump out in front of them) and some mopeds take the sidewalk as another version of a road. Any-who. We wandered, saw the Palace of Independence (ever seen the famous photo of the tank crashing through the gates of the palace at the end of the Vietnam war? Yeah, that), some shopping districts, city hall (old french architecture- loved it, couldn't get enough of it) and a few other sites. Tomorrow will be our big sight seeing day with the cu chi tunnels, war museum, and more wandering. One large difference between here and Hanoi is the open spaces and trees. I never realized how much I missed trees as well. The gardens and city floral landscaping here is amazing. Most of the floral landscaping is actually bonsai tree type things, which I'm in love with. I also am dying to buy some of their orchids (which apparently grow like grass here) but alas, tomorrow we depart for home. I really could imagine living in this city, were it not for the heat. Hmm.

We ate at a more westernized restaurant, which, after a week of Pho, rice, spring rolls, and noodle dishes, was amazing. Never before have I enjoyed a Caesar salad so thoroughly. And bread. Oh how I've missed bread. Most of the Vietnamese food is made from fresh food consisting largely of meats, seafood, or vegetables. Carbs outside of rice and noodles are lacking, and often the food gives you the effect which is famous for Chinese food: stuffed one minute, searching for left overs in the fridge 2 hours later. It felt good to have a hearty western meal, as bad as that is for having such a small amount of time to experience the food here. Oh well.

After lunch we cruised over to the Vietnam National University of Social Services and Humanities where we were greeted by a group of approximately 15 of their students who are active in a type of international experiences club. Apparently, Carroll University is in the process of making a connection with this university for future study abroads, and we helped strengthen that connection by making a presence on their campus. They hosted a presentation about their country, taught us a bit of Vietnamese, and chatted with us about our country, school, hobbies, etc. It was a brief meeting; only about an hour, but it was enjoyable. I regret not making further contact attempts with some of them, seeing as they were truly great people and would be great contacts for the future.

After all of this bouncing around we decided to take on the biggest task of the day: attending the market. There is a huuuuuge market located right near our hotel which sells literally everything and anything from food, to flowers, to knock off brand purses and wallets, souvenirs, clothing, and whatever else you could dream of. It was enjoyable due to the bargaining and great deals we were getting, but I soon found myself annoyed and frustrated with the pushiness of the sales clerks. If you even glanced at something, they honed in on you as though you had already began throwing money at them. Additionally, they do not take no for an answer, which actually landed me in a sticky situation. I was looking at a purse for myself for quite some time, and decided it was not a good deal, and the woman grabbed my arm and would not let me go, screaming I was crazy for not buying the purse and blah blah. That annoyed me and caused me to seek shops outside the market shortly thereafter. I found myself some lovely knock off brand purses and such, and an amazing travelers backpack (hello future adventures!). I'm truly going to miss the steals and deals of Vietnam; it is insane how cheap things are here and how much you can barter. I'm not the best at it due to my guilt factor and lack of a backbone in such situations, but a few people in our group are beasts. It's awesome.

After we returned from shopping we went to visit a Vietnamese Carroll student's parents at their home where they invited us for dinner with them. It was a great meal of the most amazing, mouth-watering spring rolls, Pho, and sweet soup (which really isn't my thing.. sorry Vietnamese friends). Sweet soup is a soup which is sweet (wow, right?)) and has lotus seeds in it. The flavor just really isn't my favorite, but oh well. The family, like everyone else I've encountered thus far' was insanely nice and extremely hospitable. They even gave us good bye gifts even though they barely knew us, or for some of us, not at all. I love, love, love the hospitality and open hearts of the Vietnamese. I cannot stress to you all enough how amazing of a culture this is. Relationships mean the world to them, and I love it. We could all learn so much from them, truly.

I am now beyond exhausted and about to crash. Only 24 hours until take off back to the homeland. It's so disturbing how fast this week flew, but I also can't wait to return and tell everyone about the trip and show them the vibrant colors, stories and memories of the trip. Good night from Ho Chi Minh.