Day 36: September 25, 2014

Vietnamese was at 8am this morning, where we had another student led lesson. We basically asked him different phrases we wanted/needed to know and then practiced with the assistants. After class, I was hungry so I went to a nearby bakery to get a filled donut. The donut was good, nice and sugary, but the filling was not as sweet as I would have liked it. Cate, Alex, Summer, and I met up with some of the partners because they were going to take us to Saigon Square. While we were waiting, I talked with a Vietnamese student who works around Open University. His major is tourism (didn't realize that was an actual major) so he had a lot of questions about what I thought of Vietnam.

When the partners arrived, we started our walk towards Saigon Square. I didn't buy anything, but just looked around. I decided that I need to go back sometime by myself when I can take as long as I need to look, decide to buy, and barter with the shop owners. After we decided we were done shopping, we got on a bus and headed to lunch. While we were waiting for the bus it started to downpour, and everybody ended up wet. Thankfully, I always keep my rain coat in my book bag so I put it on to protect myself and my belongings.

After getting off the bus we had to walk a little ways to the restaurant, which was located in District 1. It featured food from central Vietnam so the flavoring was slightly different than what I have gotten used to. I ordered com hue, which was a rice dish. I received a large bowl of fresh herbs, topped with a lot of rice, which was all topped with these little sea animals. I asked the partners what they were and they described them as "little shell creatures that live on rocks in the ocean." They weren't bad, but the flavoring of the herbs was very strong. It was kind of citrusy but also a little spicy. Finished with lunch, I got back on the bus to head to the dormitory. As usual, walking back to the dormitory got me a lot of stares and a lot of questions on if I needed a motorbike.

We had service learning tonight which was pretty fun and then Alex, Cate, Brian, and I went to a café for supper afterwards. When we went to the café, the water was past my ankles. I had macaroni and cheese with sliced beef. The café was very nice and the prices were much cheaper than I thought they would be. When we left the café, though, there was no water to be seen! Turns out it all drains pretty quickly into the sewer system.

Here is a fact about the part that sucks living in Ho Chi Minh City. After supper, we went out to the backpacker district, which is where most of the foreigners hang out. As we were leaving a place, I was standing near the street with my purse across my shoulder, just like you are supposed to do. I took my hands off of it for a second, and all of a sudden I hear a ripping noise and realize that my purse is being taken away by two guys on a motorbike. Yes, I was mugged/robbed tonight. Yes, it sucks. Yes, I was upset. But it only took a few minutes for me to realize that it could have been so much worse. I was carrying more money than I usually do, but I did not have my debit card on me. I took my camera out before we left. So I lost some money, all of the addresses I had, business cards, a copy of my insurance, my wallet, my Loyola ID, my Bach Khoa ID, my room key, and a copy of my passport. But I am safe. I am not injured. Shocked, yes, but no physical damage done. Everything I lost is replaceable and while it absolutely sucks that I lost what I did I will now have to put stuff in my pockets. That means that the chances of it happening to me again are slim. It means that I will be more aware of my surroundings. It means that I will be smarter about what I am carrying with me. I was not robbed with a weapon but was rather robbed by two guys on a motorbike. The experience absolutely sucks, and it is very upsetting, but I will now be smarter about how and what I carry.