From the airplane window, rural forests of rice and scattered homes quickly transitioned into colorful city buildings cramped on top of and next to each other. We are welcomed by cloudy skies, heat and humidity when we leave the airport. The patterns of purples, reds and oranges on the seats and window curtains in out bus give the vehicle an inviting and lively vibe. Immediately, we drive one hour out of Ho Chi Minh City for lunch. It did not take long to get out of the city and into a rural region. Buses and cars were very clearly the minority on the streets. Motorbikes packed with up to four riders, puppies and even a refrigerator, rode around us the whole time. Street vendors were everywhere. The streets were paved in some parts and just muddy in others. Most of the pavement was crumbling and broken. Once out of the city, rice fields, cows with beautiful burnt siena coats, chickens, geese and ducks were dispersed amongst several rivers full of light brown water and small boats. Homes, colorful coffins and electric towers reach out of the swamp land surrounding the highway.
The restaurant has an open feel as there is a roof but no walls in a series of gazebos with gardens and ponds flowing in between the eating spaces. We learned quickly that food served in Vietnam is typically faily style and each person uses chop sticks or a fork and spoon and a tiny bowl. The meals take much longer as the "family-sized" plates are rather small as well. Everyone receives a sample-sized portion and then waits five to ten minutes for the plate to be replenished. (I've found that I eat less this way as the process is much slower and my stomach has the time to tell me if I'm full or not. You also don't want to scarf your plate down because then you'll be waiting too long the next one.) Rice, chicken, duck, tiny shrimp, fried tofu, morning glory, shallots and bok choy are common dishes. As someone who is sensitive to dairy, it has been great that there hasn't been any except for the cheese we had with breakfast on the first day. Dessert, my favorite part, is generally fresh fruit-watermelon, mango, papaya, unripe guava-not the best, star fruit, and rambutan-sweet, jelly, good. All of the fruits are much more flavorful and delicious than what we have in the states.
The Can Tho University College of Rural Development is located 40 km outside of Can Tho-one of the largest cities in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. Our dormitory is directly on top of a swamp full of catfish and other creatures. The small campus has the highway and a river on one side and the rainforest on the other side. The earthy smells, sounds of birds chirping and critters talking constantly remind us where we are. Other than the ferns and eucalyptus, the plant life was completely unfamiliar on the forest walk. The slippery trail was wide enough for two people to walk side by side on. Our exploration was interrupted by the relentless leeches that yearned to feed on our blood. I found two on my ankles and at least 12 more climbing up my shoes ni the short 30 minutes we spent in the forest. I think I had the most although I may not have been getting rid of them properly. I may have had some repeat offenders. Thankfully none of them were on me long enough to latch on. I did find one on my sock about 8 hours after our hike though. Gross. Some of my classmates were not so blessed. There were plenty of engorged leeches and spurts of blood on the ground where we emerged from the forest.
We are all helplessly terrible at speaking the language. I can say hello, thank you very much, cheers, and the number two with confidence. However gesturing has come somewhat in handy. I was walking around with some friends to the new impressive campus the school is building on the other side of the forest. We said hello to a man standing outside the school. He pointed at something up above and down the path while making a circular shape with his hands. He then pointed to his ankle and made the number three with his fingers. Although the signals were undecipherable to us and he had a huge grin the entire time, we seemed to know that it was a warning. Sure enough, a few minutes later, one of my friends pointed out a giant hornets nest in one of the taller trees. We promptly turned around and walked back, passing a ripped up skull of some animal along the way.
There are eight of us in each dorm. The mosquito net on my bunk bed creates a comforting, canopy-like effect that makes me feel safe and juvenile in a good way, especially with the Mickey Mouse sheets on my mattress. The bathrooms are nothing to write home about. The small stalls have a shower head right next to the toilet which makes for an awkward space negotiation come bathing time. Also, all the bugs that keep trying to get into our dorm settle for hanging out in the bathroom. And yes I do have mosquito bites all over my butt as a result -_-
Four walls per building/room is really not a thing here. Indoor versus outdoor is entirely deconstructed. Most spaces have an open feel, letting in cool air whenever it is present. For instance, the canteen has one wall, shielding us from the kitchen, the rest is open space. We were served bread, cheese and jam for breakfast on our first morning. All of the Vietnamese patrons (and the gluten-intolerant student in our group) were served noodles with bean sprouts, vegetables and meat or tofu. Upon our request, we have been served noodles in the morning as well and they are delicious.
We have wifi here and will have it everywhere in Vietnam. However, I am keeping my connection at a minimum. I left my computer at home and will be hand writing all of my papers. I have my iphone but wifi does not seem to connect to it very well.
I realized that I know almost nothing about Vietnam. My only preexisting knowledge was of the war (referred to as the American War here). It is all too clear how terrible of a time an American soldier would have had fighting in the forests here. They are slippery, damp, and unlike anything we have in the states. This thought struck me when our group realized simultaneously that the leeches of the forest were out to get us. There are also pythons. I am eager to ask my homestay family what they think of the war. I am meeting them on Friday.
Pounding rain, amplified by the ceiling material, woke me up at 5 am. I went immediately back to sleep but the rain didn't stop for hours I was told. It comes back on and off throughout the day, everyday. It is always cloudy. I haven't seen the sun in 5 days. Back in Providence, lack of sunshine usually makes me sad but out here not so much. I guess I'm too busy having a great time.
I haven't talked much about academics. It's crazy to think of what we are doing as college. We mostly have field trips and there are only two actual class meetings each week. We all are passionate about we are learning and engaged in what we are doing. We are using climate change as a lens to view and address social issues around the world as they relate to environmental problems. I am pleased with how the courses have opened up my mind to the scope of issue. It is so helpful to be able to see and do the things we learned about in lecture the previous day. It is going to be hard returning to Brown. I think school should be like this all the time. The teacher/student relationship is incredibly blurred. Here in Hoa An, the teachers are rooming with us in the dorms and hanging out with us at night. Also the smallest age gap in between the students and teachers in only 2 years. Strange. I often forget that they are our teachers and not our contemporaries.
I've been eating a lot of tofu. Even when given a meat option. Most of the reasoning is the fact that the tofu is so exceptionally good here. It is always seasoned and fried and sometimes stuffed as well. Also, since starting the program, I've felt myself wanting to downsize the amount of meat I consume. There's the health benefits and what not but on top of that we have been learning about what it takes to raise an animal for food production and the American system is exceedingly wasteful and disgusting. Also, from a conservation standpoint the amount of water saved from producing vegetables rather than meat is huge. I'm not a vegetarian, at least not yet.
Yesterday I met a student named Phuonj (pronounced foon). It made my day.
 |
| credit: Forest Jarvis |
No comments:
Post a Comment