Miss Saigon

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If you've got any sense you will miss Saigon! Only joking - I really like it though I realise that dodging the traffing in Han Oi was just a warm up for the real thing in Saigon! The traffic here is incredible - considering there's only around 4 million people here (77 million in Vietnam in total) I think they're all out on the streets at the same time! It's so bad in some places that there are policeman to escort us poor tourists across the road!

As you will have guessed, I've moved on from Hoi An. I can't begin to tell you how emotional it was leaving the kids and the good friends I've made - suffice to say I've used a lot of tissues over the past few days. To mark my leaving I took the younger kids out to karaoke - its very popular in Vietnam - just to give you an idea, there were 7 karaoke places in my street alone - and the older kids out to dinner the night before I left. Despite the fact that these kids have very little money (any money they earn goes straight into the family pot) - they bought me gifts which was so lovely and made going even harder.

The hardest goodbye was to Ngoc - which I left to my last day - last Friday. I hadn't seen her for a little while and sadly, she wasn't showing any signs of improving. I managed to get through the visit ok until it was time to say goodbye and it hit me that it was probably the last time I would see her. The last time I went to visit, I gave her a stuffed toy and she immediately looked to see if she could remove it's clothes - which she couldn't. I'd been looking for a doll in Hoi An that she could undress but couldn't find one anywhere. On this last visit with her, I noticed a teddy bear which she'd dressed in a pyjama jacket. I've managed to find a doll here in Saigon which is fully dressed, coat, dress, shoes, socks and everything which I've sent to her (along with a few other little bits and pieces that I'll think she'll enjoy). I've asked a friend to deliver the parcel to her and I can't wait to find out what she thinks of the doll!

Vietnam - and Hoi An in particular, has been an amazing, life changing experience for me and I'm very sad that it's come to an end. The people here are some of the friendliest I've met on my travels, despite, in so many cases, severe poverty, unbelievable living conditions and the extreme challenges of providing for their families.

Tomorrow I leave it all behind and head off to Cambodia - where I'm told the poverty levels are even worse...........

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