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Arrived in Saigon after Steven terrified a little boy on the plane, you know how scary that beard is. But he gave the little guy a spider ring and all was well. Quick cab ride to our hotel Red Sun and another warm greeting by the girls. Our alley looked the same and it felt like coming back home. This is by far the least luxurious place we stay but we it is all about the people. En and Hien, our girls that run the hotel, treat me yes, like their mother. And their English is almost fluent now. Three years ago it was a struggle to understand them-now they even know the slang.
Hugs and kisses all around (En got me on the lips), we dropped the backpacks off and down the street to eat. Walking down the street we hear "Hello!". We look down, because that is where the sound came from, and there was our little 4'5" grandma-she remembered Steven. We laughed and shook hands. She is so cute and so sweet but do not let her appearance and demeanor fool you. She runs the program-and it is a very well run restaurant. The best Vietnamese coffee ever, more like jet fuel in the morning. We eat breakfast every morning and get a warm hello and a handshake as well.
My friend Bien, who teaches with me at Florin HS, is in Saigon with his family. I emailed him when we arrived and we planned on him meeting us at the hotel. I was sitting on the steps of the hotel waiting, and a motor scooter came zipping around the corner and headed straight for me. The motorbike braked, the driver pulled down his mask, and it was Bien laughing (I had hoped it was him). He took us out to a very nice lunch and we sat and ate and talked and ate and visited and ate! He has invited us to his mother's home on Friday for dinner-we are pretty excited about that.
Saigon is not Hanoi. Hanoi is just crazy and makes me feel on edge constantly. Our place in Saigon, in District 1, is a collection of bars, restaurants, travel shops, and beauty shops. Steven and I took advantage of the beauty shop and he had an hour foot massage, with hot stones, and I had an hour facial-twelve dollars. HA! I am going back. The little kids selling trinkets are fun to play with-very low pressure sales pitches. I feel perfectly at ease sitting in a little bar on the side of the road in a lawn chair with a Red Saigon watching the world go by. Word is out I am an American English teacher-I am getting recruited by every waiter here. And I am going to try to teach summer school here in a couple of years (Siy-you in?).
We had iced Vietnamese coffee, spring rolls, and beef stew (bo kho) for breakfast this morning; mango shake for Steven and lemon ice for me (we call it key lime) and sandwiches (banh mi) sitting on little plastic stools on the sidewalk for $2.85 for lunch; time for dinner. I saw a mexican restaurant-that should prove interesting.
I am missing a few things at home, mostly my dog. But we have another fifteen days of travel to go-we can't believe some of the things we have done this time. Oh- and I now know 10 Vietnamese words!
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