Hi Mrs. Stein and Kids - We went to a birthday Party

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Hi Kids,

Sorry we haven’t written, but Uncle Arlyn and I have been really busy with work, but we did take some time out to go to a birthday party! It was a lot of fun. The birthday Party was for a little boy named Bach. He turned 1 year old and his Mom and Dad are good friends of Uncle Arlyn, so we were invited. It was a lot of fun.

We had a different kind of dinner. First, everyone was given a bowl and a small plate and chop sticks. Have you ever eaten with chopsticks? It’s very hard if you’re not used to it, but after a while you learn how to do it. Next they placed a gas burner on the table and put a big pot of water on it. Then they brought out plates with raw beef, chicken, shrimp and vegetables. When the water boils that put all the ingredients in the pot, and then when you want something to heat you grab it with your chop sticks and place it in your bowls. It was really good- and good for you. In addition, they served rice and fried tofu, which is very good.

There wasn’t a birthday cake, but for desert there was lots of good fruit- watermelon, cantaloupe, papaya and sliced apples. It was all very good. We also had fun going home. Uncle Arlyn has friend named Mr Hai and we rode back to the hotel on his motorcycle. We never went fast, and Mr. Hai was a very safe driver.

Guess what? We are going on a trip! We will be going to Ho Chi Minh City for a couple of days. We are leaving on Wednesday and traveling back to Hanoi on Friday. I will send you more pictures and news from there. We will get there on an airliner. Ho Chi Minh City used to be called Saigon, and it is about 800 miles south of here. I will send you some pictures and news of what we find there.

I have some more news. Next month, on November 17th, a special visitor is coming to Hanoi, and if all goes well Uncle Arlyn and I be in a meeting with him. Perhaps ( but not for certain) we can get our picture taken with him. Take some guesses about who the visitor is and we’ll tell you his name next time we write.

If you have any questions about Vietnam, have Mrs. Stein send them to us and we’ll try to get answers to you.

Chau (which means both “hello” and “goodbye”)

Flat Stanley

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Photos

Bach - 1 Year old
Bach and his Mom and Dad

Party Kids
There were lots of kids and adults at the party

Bach and Ms. Tra
Ms. Tra works with Bach's Mom at the Hilton. She is 23 and studying English.

Comments

[Angie]

Hello
Hi Arlyn, Thanks again, this is very cool. The teacher is still working on getting this to the kids on their big tv screen so they can share it as a class, but I know for a fact she is very excited about it. Maybe when your travels are through, and you are settled back in, you can make a visit to the class. I know the kids would be very excited. I have to go for now. Please travel safely and I hope to hear from you soon. I really am enjoying both blogs. Angie