hey blog,
so more classes it was kinda tough to stay awake haha, in at 12:00 up at 6:00 is really starting to take a toll on me. but not gonna change a thing. so we had another business class by a business man here in Viet Nam it actually was interesting and i felt bad for being so tired. for the language class i had two red bulls to get me through.
after lunch we changed for a site visit at the foreign commercial service office here in Ho Chi Minh. it is his job to advocate for US companies to the government in Viet Nam. he was a very intimadating man who i would never actually want to work for or with, because whatever was on his mind came out with a pretty blunt tone.
after the visit we wandered around the city stopped at a street vnder where three of our more adventurous students tried some form of cooked meat. i didnt go near it. for dinner there was a guy who just graduated college and he owns a cafe here so we ate there. i had another wonderful burger.
and after dinner we went to a club called bounce. good music but we were the only ones there besides the staff who treated us really well, after that we went to lush again the headed back to the hotel
bye blog
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Monday, May 11, 2009
Day 8
Whats up blog,
so back to school, kinda sad about that. we had another vietnamese culture class that was a fight to stay up for. then we had some more vietnamese language class. i was told by our teacher "ok, but not right" then no other help, so im pretty sure that i suck at it. but thats ok i will just keep on practicing my sounds like ng (no clue how to make my mouth make that sound)
after lunch at the school we went on a site visit to CB Richard Ellis a real estate firm here in Ho Chi Minh. it was pretty cool to hear what they did there and also Patti really helped us with some new places to eat, and other things to do throughout the city.
once we got back to the hotel one o our kids realized he forgot his cell at the site visit so 4 of us went back to get it. patti came down ith him while me and another kid waited for James to show up cause his motorbike got lost. Patti told us about an American burger shop... It was amazing so i got my craving fixed for really cheap.
after dinner we went to the top of the rex again this time we had krysta and Dr. Berman came with us. krysta and Dr. Berman went back to the hotel and we left the rex to find apocalypse now a famous night club here in Ho Chi Minh. I had alot of fun we met some british people from cardiff so pretty good night.
over and out blog
so back to school, kinda sad about that. we had another vietnamese culture class that was a fight to stay up for. then we had some more vietnamese language class. i was told by our teacher "ok, but not right" then no other help, so im pretty sure that i suck at it. but thats ok i will just keep on practicing my sounds like ng (no clue how to make my mouth make that sound)
after lunch at the school we went on a site visit to CB Richard Ellis a real estate firm here in Ho Chi Minh. it was pretty cool to hear what they did there and also Patti really helped us with some new places to eat, and other things to do throughout the city.
once we got back to the hotel one o our kids realized he forgot his cell at the site visit so 4 of us went back to get it. patti came down ith him while me and another kid waited for James to show up cause his motorbike got lost. Patti told us about an American burger shop... It was amazing so i got my craving fixed for really cheap.
after dinner we went to the top of the rex again this time we had krysta and Dr. Berman came with us. krysta and Dr. Berman went back to the hotel and we left the rex to find apocalypse now a famous night club here in Ho Chi Minh. I had alot of fun we met some british people from cardiff so pretty good night.
over and out blog
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Day 5 and 6 and 7
Hey Blog,
sorry bout missing days... had a ver early morning saturday so i was not able to actually post one. but friday started out the same as always early morning and the same food as every other morning. we had another very very interesting business class on stuff we didnt know... then more vietnamese language we finally got a sheet with all the information on it so that really helped out. i still am terrible at everything though.
after school and lunch we went to an awesome company site visit, granted i know nothing about engineering, but the chairman was really intertesting. he had escaped Viet Nam after the war with his aunt and uncle, grew up in America and has now moved back to Viet Nam to start a company. after the site visit he took us and his employees down to the coffee shop in his building and bought everyone coffee.
then we almost got destroyed during rush hour traffic by the traffic cop with a stick and a hawaiian shirt on. once we arrived at the families house we were going to eat dinner we got a tour at got to see the saigon river at night. the dinner was alot of fish so kinda passed on it except for the one that looked like chicken. (mom because of that fish bumps/ hives appeared on my knees. so HA. love u still and happy mothers day i got u two things already so dont worry.) after dinner we had a nice shot of banana wine pretty strong stuff. when we got back to the hotel i was not feeling well so i had an early night.
saturday we woke up an hour earlier. that sucked. we got in the bus and went down to the mekong delta for the day. on the way we stopped at a vietnamese soldiers memorial site. it was a very odd feeling being there because of past events between our countries. then we stopped at caodi which is a combiation of basically every religion ever.
at the delta we travelled around on the boat and made stops at different places along the shore. we stopped for fresh fruit, homemade candy, where we got stuck in a monsoon and watched parts of the roof blow off. after the rains slowed we got back on the boat and went off for lunch. after lunch we headed bak to ho chi minh city so we could meet up with some vietnamese students and go to a vietnamese club.
on sunday (love ya mom) we had a vietnamese cooking class for the morning till lunch. we were given money and were told what and how much to buy and then head back tothe man's shop to prepare the food. we spent the morning cooking and eating food.
after cooking we went to a water park and were literally dragged around by kids from a vietnamese orphanage. the water park was awesome and i had a great time. i would not have minded if the kids had a little less energy then they did but still it was very fun.
after the water park we went to a vietnamese cafe for, terrible idea, seeing as how we waited for our food for a good hour and a half. after dinner we went to an ice cream shop for dessert. then a couple of us took a walk around the city. after our walk we stayed in and hung out at the hotel.
sorry bout missing days... had a ver early morning saturday so i was not able to actually post one. but friday started out the same as always early morning and the same food as every other morning. we had another very very interesting business class on stuff we didnt know... then more vietnamese language we finally got a sheet with all the information on it so that really helped out. i still am terrible at everything though.
after school and lunch we went to an awesome company site visit, granted i know nothing about engineering, but the chairman was really intertesting. he had escaped Viet Nam after the war with his aunt and uncle, grew up in America and has now moved back to Viet Nam to start a company. after the site visit he took us and his employees down to the coffee shop in his building and bought everyone coffee.
then we almost got destroyed during rush hour traffic by the traffic cop with a stick and a hawaiian shirt on. once we arrived at the families house we were going to eat dinner we got a tour at got to see the saigon river at night. the dinner was alot of fish so kinda passed on it except for the one that looked like chicken. (mom because of that fish bumps/ hives appeared on my knees. so HA. love u still and happy mothers day i got u two things already so dont worry.) after dinner we had a nice shot of banana wine pretty strong stuff. when we got back to the hotel i was not feeling well so i had an early night.
saturday we woke up an hour earlier. that sucked. we got in the bus and went down to the mekong delta for the day. on the way we stopped at a vietnamese soldiers memorial site. it was a very odd feeling being there because of past events between our countries. then we stopped at caodi which is a combiation of basically every religion ever.
at the delta we travelled around on the boat and made stops at different places along the shore. we stopped for fresh fruit, homemade candy, where we got stuck in a monsoon and watched parts of the roof blow off. after the rains slowed we got back on the boat and went off for lunch. after lunch we headed bak to ho chi minh city so we could meet up with some vietnamese students and go to a vietnamese club.
on sunday (love ya mom) we had a vietnamese cooking class for the morning till lunch. we were given money and were told what and how much to buy and then head back tothe man's shop to prepare the food. we spent the morning cooking and eating food.
after cooking we went to a water park and were literally dragged around by kids from a vietnamese orphanage. the water park was awesome and i had a great time. i would not have minded if the kids had a little less energy then they did but still it was very fun.
after the water park we went to a vietnamese cafe for, terrible idea, seeing as how we waited for our food for a good hour and a half. after dinner we went to an ice cream shop for dessert. then a couple of us took a walk around the city. after our walk we stayed in and hung out at the hotel.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Day 4
Dear Blog,
so we got to sleep in an extra 15 minutes, that really made all the difference... but after a nice breakfast we wẹnt to a high school for the gifted. the amount of straight work those students had to do was crazy. there was an entrance exam for all the students and the graduation rate and students who go to college was 100 %. while the national average for Viet Nam was only 15%.
after the school we went to lunch at a local fast food shop called lotteria, it was actually really good and very inexpensive. then we walked around for a little before returning to the hotel to prepare for the next site visit we had. this site visit was to a lawyer firm where the guy we visited helped give his legal advise on financial decisions that should be made. he gave us an in depth look on how Viet Nam was affected by the credit crisis. also he told us how hard it is to deal with the government hear due to all the coruption that exists in southeast asia and Viet Nam.
we were very hungry after the site visit so five us went looking for a place to eat. we found a cafe where the service was terrible but the 2 hour wait was made up when they brought out those chicken sandwiches with fried egg and sweet mayo. also the entire dinner only cost me tree dollars.
after dinner we went to the ben than market and went shopping with two of the vietnamese students who help us with the language, they showed us around the market and helped us haggle with the locals for the stuff (family your expensive so your welcome). then we went to a coffee shop had a couple of drinks then went back to the hotel to sleep. another good day for me in Viet Nam.
love ya blog
Greg
so we got to sleep in an extra 15 minutes, that really made all the difference... but after a nice breakfast we wẹnt to a high school for the gifted. the amount of straight work those students had to do was crazy. there was an entrance exam for all the students and the graduation rate and students who go to college was 100 %. while the national average for Viet Nam was only 15%.
after the school we went to lunch at a local fast food shop called lotteria, it was actually really good and very inexpensive. then we walked around for a little before returning to the hotel to prepare for the next site visit we had. this site visit was to a lawyer firm where the guy we visited helped give his legal advise on financial decisions that should be made. he gave us an in depth look on how Viet Nam was affected by the credit crisis. also he told us how hard it is to deal with the government hear due to all the coruption that exists in southeast asia and Viet Nam.
we were very hungry after the site visit so five us went looking for a place to eat. we found a cafe where the service was terrible but the 2 hour wait was made up when they brought out those chicken sandwiches with fried egg and sweet mayo. also the entire dinner only cost me tree dollars.
after dinner we went to the ben than market and went shopping with two of the vietnamese students who help us with the language, they showed us around the market and helped us haggle with the locals for the stuff (family your expensive so your welcome). then we went to a coffee shop had a couple of drinks then went back to the hotel to sleep. another good day for me in Viet Nam.
love ya blog
Greg
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Day 3
Dear Blog
Another early morning after a late night so the entire group was pretty tired. However, we did discover thatthe hotel does serve eggs which really beats the rolls every single morning. We had classes like normal in the morning. the cultural class was very interesting and the teacher was animated to say the least, also we learned the vietnamese are not big fans of the chinese to say the least. another horrible day of trying to speak vietnamese ended with me getting about nothing right in the hour of me trying.
after lunch at the school we went back to the hotel to get ready for our site visit to the company in charge of creating all of district 7. the project is called south saigon and for the first time since we have been in Ho Chi Minh it felt like we were actually in america. the streets looked like we were in florida and the new buildings were very modern. the amount of construction that was occuring was crazy cause every direction we looke we could see at least 10 cranes set up working on buildings.
after the site visit i took a nap for way to long then was abruptly awoken my a fellow student telling me we had to go out. so we went out to the caravel quickly realized the beer list was outside our price range at 8 dollars a beer. so we went back to the Rex. at 1130 three of realized we were way to tired to do anything else so we went back to the hotel. I was out cold the second my head hit the pillow.
bye blog
p.s.
mom sorry i diidnt get in touch everything is fine love ya
Greg
Another early morning after a late night so the entire group was pretty tired. However, we did discover thatthe hotel does serve eggs which really beats the rolls every single morning. We had classes like normal in the morning. the cultural class was very interesting and the teacher was animated to say the least, also we learned the vietnamese are not big fans of the chinese to say the least. another horrible day of trying to speak vietnamese ended with me getting about nothing right in the hour of me trying.
after lunch at the school we went back to the hotel to get ready for our site visit to the company in charge of creating all of district 7. the project is called south saigon and for the first time since we have been in Ho Chi Minh it felt like we were actually in america. the streets looked like we were in florida and the new buildings were very modern. the amount of construction that was occuring was crazy cause every direction we looke we could see at least 10 cranes set up working on buildings.
after the site visit i took a nap for way to long then was abruptly awoken my a fellow student telling me we had to go out. so we went out to the caravel quickly realized the beer list was outside our price range at 8 dollars a beer. so we went back to the Rex. at 1130 three of realized we were way to tired to do anything else so we went back to the hotel. I was out cold the second my head hit the pillow.
bye blog
p.s.
mom sorry i diidnt get in touch everything is fine love ya
Greg
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Day 2
Dear Blog,
Today we woke up again early and ate another wonderful breakfast at our hotel. at UEF today we had a business class on Vietnamese tax law, that was about half as interesting as our own American tax laws. after our business class i failed at learning Vietnamese. basically its impossible.
after our classes we had lunch at the university then decided to fit 11 people in an elevator designed for 9 vietnamese people needless to say that was an epic fail. after a 15 foot freefall in the elevator we waited for 10 minutes until someone pryed open the basement door to let us out.
once we were freed we went to Glass Egg Digital Media where they do artwork for video games. we learned alot about the industry and how they operate within the industry. the business owners suggested a club which they are investors in so after my nap at the hotel we wentthere for the night.
peace out blog
Today we woke up again early and ate another wonderful breakfast at our hotel. at UEF today we had a business class on Vietnamese tax law, that was about half as interesting as our own American tax laws. after our business class i failed at learning Vietnamese. basically its impossible.
after our classes we had lunch at the university then decided to fit 11 people in an elevator designed for 9 vietnamese people needless to say that was an epic fail. after a 15 foot freefall in the elevator we waited for 10 minutes until someone pryed open the basement door to let us out.
once we were freed we went to Glass Egg Digital Media where they do artwork for video games. we learned alot about the industry and how they operate within the industry. the business owners suggested a club which they are investors in so after my nap at the hotel we wentthere for the night.
peace out blog
Monday, May 4, 2009
Day 1
Our first day in Viet Nam started early at 630 in order to go to UEF. we left the victory hotel at 815 in the morning and arrived for our reception at 9. After the reception we began our first vietnamese language class. Vietnamese turned out to be much harder than Spanish but after learning the alphebet we started to learn a couple of words and phrases.
Once our classes were over we ate lunchn at the university and then went back to the hotel for a little before we headed back out to visit some sites in Viet Nam and the American consulate. First we went to see the presidential palace and the bunkers below it. the palace is now a museum but used to house the presidents of South Viet Nam. then we went to see the Cathedral and the giant post office. outside the two buildings we were hounded by people trying to sell things however no was not in their knowledge of english.
at the consulate we learned what things the foreign service does and learned how the consulate operates here in Viet Nam. they also showed us the grounds were a memorial was that commerated 6 Amjerican soldiers as they died defending the consulate during the tet offensive.
after we went back to the hotel and went shopping for a few needed supplies then came back to the hotel to swim a little in the pool. when it was time for dinner we loaded back into the bus and went to a small place that just kept bringing out more courses. i am not sure what exactly i ate but it was very good.
after dinner we went to the rex with a student we met at UEF and had some beverages. the small tab of 2000000 dong was well spread oout over the 3 hours we were there. and we returned to the hotel by 12 so we could start over again at 630
Once our classes were over we ate lunchn at the university and then went back to the hotel for a little before we headed back out to visit some sites in Viet Nam and the American consulate. First we went to see the presidential palace and the bunkers below it. the palace is now a museum but used to house the presidents of South Viet Nam. then we went to see the Cathedral and the giant post office. outside the two buildings we were hounded by people trying to sell things however no was not in their knowledge of english.
at the consulate we learned what things the foreign service does and learned how the consulate operates here in Viet Nam. they also showed us the grounds were a memorial was that commerated 6 Amjerican soldiers as they died defending the consulate during the tet offensive.
after we went back to the hotel and went shopping for a few needed supplies then came back to the hotel to swim a little in the pool. when it was time for dinner we loaded back into the bus and went to a small place that just kept bringing out more courses. i am not sure what exactly i ate but it was very good.
after dinner we went to the rex with a student we met at UEF and had some beverages. the small tab of 2000000 dong was well spread oout over the 3 hours we were there. and we returned to the hotel by 12 so we could start over again at 630
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Arrival
Hi everybody.
Got to Viet Nam safely after the longest flight EVER! but we got a nice free upgrade to business class from Hong Kong to Ho Chi Minh. After we got here we went on a quick adventure throughout the city with a map so we wouldn't get lost. my shower was a little interesting though due to the fact the water was brown and the following flood was interesting. getting ready to start our first day talk you tomorrow blog.
Got to Viet Nam safely after the longest flight EVER! but we got a nice free upgrade to business class from Hong Kong to Ho Chi Minh. After we got here we went on a quick adventure throughout the city with a map so we wouldn't get lost. my shower was a little interesting though due to the fact the water was brown and the following flood was interesting. getting ready to start our first day talk you tomorrow blog.
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