Delayed News

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One of the biggest challenges with this travel expedition has been the delay in news - family/friends related and of course US news. I have also been reading the news more. Not sure if that is because I feel like I'm always behind OR because so much is going on right now.

I'll say this - this will be my only politically laced blog post. Not because I don't believe in the things, but because I think so much is being said right now. A lot of it is important and we should all be well informed on what is going on but you don't need to hear it from me.

As all of you know, I am a child of immigrants. They were not refugees, but immigrants none the less. I don't have strong views on this because my parents did the hard work. They left their family to come to a country where they didn't understand the customs, where the primary language was not their primary language, and where they were told it's a place where hard work is all that you have to do. They did the work, so my sister and I could do whatever it was we wanted to do - land of opportunity and all.

I've been in countries where they are in awe of this opportunity and would be willing to work twice as hard to have all the things that I have that I, very often, forgot are so hard to attain. Vietnam has definitely driven this home to me the most of the places I have visited thus far.

In Halong Bay, there are areas where all they believe they will ever achieve is being a fisherman or a pearl oyster "farmer." Because of a pickup in tourism to this area, many are now getting income by rowing tourists around in rowboats to show them how they live (as well as some sights). They don't speak English, or have any way of learning anything outside of following: swimming, fishing and rowing. Some of them live in their boats. The pearl oyster farmers can be more lucrative but it is a long process. It takes years for the pearl to become a pearl in the oyster before it can be removed. And only about 10% of said pearls are perfect circles that can be used in jewelry. Oh yeah and each oyster only produces ONE pearl. Makes you rethink that strand of pearls you have doesn't it!

In Haion (where I reach late yesterday), the driver who took me from the airport to my hotel was practicing his English with me. While it was broken it was surprisingly good. When I told him I was from the US, he told me of his wish to be able to come their some day. When I asked why that was, he told me that he knows that is where you go if to really make something of yourself. He said he knows it will take some time but that was his wish - to move to the US so he could have the opportunities that I take for guaranteed.

If nothing else I will take that away from this trip - to be grateful for all my parents did so I could get the education, that got me the job, that afforded me the opportunity to take a break between jobs to take this trip 😊

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Comments

[pcakes777]

This view
is amazing