Catholic Mass and a Pedicure in Saigon

Friday night our group went to a restaurant called "Loving Hut." Turns out it's the same restaurant that's in downtown Palo Alto! Didn't realize there was a international chain of vegan restaurants!

A note about desserts in Asia; it's not like in the US or Europe. Dessert is mostly fruit or nothing at all which at times can be sweet and refreshing! But when you just want something chocolate...it's kind of a let down. Other volunteers felt the same way so we decided to try out a Vietnamese Donut shop! The donuts were much lighter and not as sweet in the US so it didn't really hit the spot but I'm glad I tried it!

Saturday Vi, a woman from the program, gave me a tour around Saigon. We first went to the Notre Dame Cathedral which was built by the French in the late 1880s when the French ruled over Vietnam. It's amazing how you can see the influences of the French throughout Saigon and the people of Vietnam - the architecture, religion, and cuisine just to name a few.

Following the Cathedral we looked inside the General Post Office, another building constructed by the French in the late 1800's (it was actually created by the same architect that made the Eiffel Tower!). The post office was mostly a tourist spot; selling souvenirs, stamps, and post cards.

We then ventured to the Reunification Palace (it's name doesn't fit the actual history of the palace...).  

The next museum, the War Remnants Muesum, was one of the most eye opening and depressing museums I've ever been to (thinking back to the concentration camps I visited in Europe). Seeing photograph after photograph of the effects of Agent Orange and seeing the effects of Americans in the Vietnam War through the eyes of Vietnamese made me quite upset. I don't remember much about the war from my US History class (probably because we didn't talk about it much) so I'm starting a book my dad suggested called "Fire in the Lake."

Sunday morning I went to Catholic mass (this time in English!) at Notre Dame Cathedral with 3 other volunteers and went to "the best pho place in Saigon." 

Side note to Americans: in Vietnam, they don't have pho as often as we would think! They have a lot of different types of noodle soups that differ from pho. 

After lunch we decided before we leave, we have to get a pedicure! It was quite an experience and it hurt! Also, no scrubbing or lotion - just cutting nails and polish. Not sure how long my polish will stay but it was only $4 (with tip) so how can I complain. 

We went to grab a smoothie ($1 and it was amazing!!) after our nails and we're caught in a downpour! It's definitely wet season here but it cools down the city which is so nice. 

The volunteers I was with headed back to the US Sunday night - I have to say I'm sad to see them go since they were great company! But now begins my own journey. 

Next blog post will be about my 2 days in Dalat...even though I was supposed to spend 5 weeks there!

Love

Whit

Bagan, Inle Lake (where I had one of the best days of my life), and Ho Chi Minh

Fore warning-this post will be long!! Sorry I haven't blogged in a couple days, I've been so busy and exhausted!

Wow is all I can say about these last couple of days in Burma. I had one of the best days of my life - but that will come later.

Bagan, known for having over 2,000 temples and pagodas, was quite amazing and made me speechless most of the time. Just biking around and seeing a temple with architecture I have never seen before made me realize how special of a place Burma really is. 

Our second day in Bagan started with the Lacquerware Museum. 

Burma is known for its lacquerware so it was interesting to understand the process behind making each piece. I couldn't believe how every piece was made of bamboo! The museum was connected to a college so we knew all of the pieces in the gift shop were legit and not knock offs.

During our tour we met a woman from Tennessee who was traveling on her own after visiting her daughter in Bangkok for a couple months. We decided to all grab lunch together at a restaurant called "Be Kind to the Animals and the Moon" (all of the restaurants in Burma have such interesting English names.) Her nomad life seemed so cool after hearing stories of her life.

After lunch, we headed back to the hotel to rest. Word for the wise - if you come to Burma in the hot season (summer months), be prepared and rent e-bikes not regular bicycles. Though we enjoyed the exercise, it's difficult to fully enjoy the sights when you're completely covered and dripping in sweat.  

We headed to the Shwe San Daw Pagoda to watch the sunset as it is one of the only temples in Bagan that you can climb up to the top. The summer months are "low season" here since it's so hot but there were so many tourists at the pagoda! I can't even imagine what high season would be like. Many tourists had massive cameras and tripods and didn't seem to notice or care that they kept bumping into people or getting in the way of someone's view! It was actually pretty hilarious. 

The sunset was truly amazing. Looking over Bagan and seeing stupa after stupa after stupa was quite beautiful.

That night we went to a traditional Indian restaurant (we knew it was traditional because Indians owned the restaurant!) it was one of the best meals of the trip! 

Tuesday we flew to Inle Lake which was the most relaxing part of our trip. I credit one of the best days of my life to Inle Lake! 

We arrived and took a boat to Nyuang Shwe, the main town in Inle Lake. During lunch we were able to watch a storm roll through which was such an amazing sight! 

After the rain stopped, we walked around the markets and grabbed a taxi (well a tut-tut which was such a fun experience!) to go to the Red Mountain Winery - who knew Burma made wines! It was so enjoyable and relaxing to just sit, talk and drink while watching the sunset over the Inle Valley. 

We ordered a "Hawaiian pizza" and I put quotes around it because it was nothing like the Hawaiian pizza back in the states! As I tried to cut it, some of the pizza ended up on my pants -_-

After the winery we went to Win Thyuat Family Traditional Massage to get a Burmese/Thai massage. The place is actually their home and they weren't expecting clients because it's the low season so they were so excited we arrived! We received massages from a woman and her mother which made it really special. They fed us lots of cookies and tea after - so sweet.

After such a relaxing day, we walked around town and had dinner at a place with a San Diego couple we met. It was fun to hear their stories as they had been traveling for over 3 months!

The next day we took a day long tour on a boat around floating villages and markets. It was so amazing to see "the lake life" and how each family specializes in some craft or skill that provides for the town. They all work together to support each other! 

After a long day on the boat we went to our hotel's hot spring baths to relax and I think the workers were shocked to see American women in bikinis...made us feel quite uncomfortable...

We had an enjoyable dinner at our hotel (though quite expensive) and spent the evening relaxing on our deck. It was such a lovely way to end our time in Burma and our time together! 

The next morning we flew to Yangon and waited for our respective flights (me to Ho Chi Minh and Eliza to Hong Kong). It was sad to say goodbye to my travel buddy! 

Once I arrived in Saigon (also called Ho Chi Minh), a woman, Vi, from my program met me at the airport to take me to my guesthouse. I'm staying in the backpacking district...quite loud and a lot of foreigners...and SO MANY MOTORBIKES!! People were not kidding when they warned me about the motorbikes! Luckily Dalat is a quiet town so I won't be scared for my life to cross the street. 

I got dinner with Vi and another woman Tran who also works for my program. We had pho - how fitting! After dinner I met a couple of American volunteers from St. John's University in New York that are working in Saigon. 

Today (Friday) I went with the other volunteers to their placements. The first stop was a Catholic shelter for women who have babies or are pregnant that are not married. The shelter is meant to help them reconnect with the father of the baby or their family. It was special to see the women and their babies and how touched they were by the volunteer work! 

I experienced my first Catholic mass - all in Vietnamese...hahahha. They provided us lunch, spring rolls and soup with rice noodles! It was so delicious! 

We then went to a shelter for girls and they performed a dance for us, it was so sweet! 

Tonight I'll be going to dinner with the other volunteers (3 girls and 2 professors), it's so nice to have people to hang out with! 

Tomorrow I'll be touring the city with Vi and then having dinner and doing karaoke with the group! Can't wait for karaoke!! But actually. 

Sunday night at 11pm I'll be heading to DaLat with Vi via a sleeper bus. She will be staying with me for about a week in DaLat to help me adjust! I didn't know someone would be going with me so that makes me feel a lot better! 

Thanks for reading all that! I'll make sure to not wait this many days to write! 

Also, if anyone has a suggestion for a book to read about Vietnam (maybe an interesting war narrative) - please let me know!

Love and miss you all! Shout out to Tucker on his 3rd birthday! Wish I was there to celebrate! 

-Whit

Burma!

For our last morning in Hong Kong (Saturday morning) we had a nice brunch at an old colonial hotel. I had some mix ups with my order due to mis-translation but that is normal for Asia! Of course our last day in HK was so beautiful and clear...I feel like that always happens on trips.

We flew out of the HK airport through Hanoi to Yangon, Burma. The flights were  easy and our bags were waiting for us at baggage claim by the time we got through immigration which was a relief! We then had to exchange US dollars for Mynamar Khats. This was quite the process as they need very crisp and new US dollars. 

Our arranged airport pick up was waiting for us and we headed off to Central Yangon (not without being haggled for money by a man who tried to help us with our bags). Yangon used to be the capital of Burma until a couple years ago so it is actually quite developed. 

We walked over to the Schwegagon Pagoda which was absolutely stunning. There is a diamond at the top of the pagoda and with the aid of a few helpful locals, we were able to stand in different places throughout the grounds and see a different color in the diamond as we moved around. One thing weird about the temples was there were neonlights radiating from Buddhas' heads. 

Some locals asked if we were from California (luckily we are because they don't really know another state!) and took a picture of us...kinda blurry hahah

Side note: Every time you eat new food, your stomach has to adjust...and mine has been adjusting for the past couple of days. The combo of new food and my malaria pills has manifested as stabbing pains in my stomach which has been really exhausting. 

We were "rocked" to sleep by the sound of howling stray dogs. I don't think either of us got more than an hour of sleep with the dogs and my stomach and a flickering fluorescent light above us. 

Sunday morning (today) we woke up at 4:15am to catch our flight from Yangon to Bagan which is in central Burma. Airports operate much differently here but that's expected!

We arrived at our hotel at 8:30am after a beautiful drive through Bagan. Bagan has over 4,000 temples with such a rich history. Our hotel is situated on a river so we hope to take a sunset cruise!

It is around 100+ degrees...very hot and dehydrating, especially for someone who is experiencing stomach cramps! I hope my stomach pains will subside soon so I can try some Burmese food. 

We rented bikes from our hotel and biked around the temples. I'm in disbelief at the amount of temples here!! It's truly amazing. 

With the heat, I got exhausted quickly (especially since I hadn't eaten since back in Hong Kong) so I headed back to the hotel to rest by the pool while Eliza went on to explore some markets.

We decided to go for a sunset river cruise and unfortunately it was cloudy. The river was very calming though and it was a cool way to see all the spires of the temples in Bagan.

After our cruise we went to Nuang U, a town close by that has the airport we flew into and had dinner at the Black Bamboo. The restaurant was literally all foreigners it was hilarious. Once Lonely Planet approves a place, all the foreigners flock.

I'm hoping my stomach cramps will subside by tomorrow! We have a full day of temples and biking (and hopefully a massage.) 

Also side note, Burma isn't as cheap as I thought it would be...

Love,

Whit

Hong Kong! 14 years later...

I have arrived! That 14 hour flight was especially rough...but I made it and so did my bag so I can't complain! 14 years later is referring to my trip to Hong Kong with my mom and sister when I was 7 to visit my cousins who lived here for a bit. I remember some parts of the trip, mostly random snid bits so I'm excited to experience it again!

Eliza was already at the hotel by the time I got there so I freshened up and then we went to get Peking Duck as my first meal! It was "interesting" to see the full duck (head included). 

We took the littol pancakes with veggies and plum sauce with the duck and it was quite delicious! 

A thing about ordering in China, you just raise your hand when you're ready to order or if you need anything. Where in the US it would be seen as obnoxious, here it is the only way to get your meal. I really like it actually since you don't have to wait years to get your check.

Afterwards we walked along the harbor, taking in the lights and sights and selfies (SO many people taking selfies with no shame.) We then hit the hay (with some help of a sleeping pill) though I didn't get much sleep. A 15 hour time difference is no joke. 

Thursday morning (I skipped Wednesday morning in the plane) we slowly got out of bed and walked around trying to find a photo booth that I could get passport photos from for my Burmese visa (whoops I forgot to bring some - if you're traveling, make sure to get these photos at home). After walking all over since some photo stores didn't open till 11, we went to the subway station (subway is called the MTR) and found a booth and I also got an "octopus card." The octopus card is for traveling on the subway but also can be used at random stores such as 7-11 which is literally on every street corner. 

We traveled over (or under the harbor in the subway) to the Burmese consulate to turn in our visas for the trip. Easiest process ever...we'll be picking our passports up later today. 

We grabbed lunch at this hip restaurant and then walked around central Hong Kong in the SoHo area. We stumbled upon a botanical garden with crazy monkeys which was awesome! 

We got back to our hotel to hit the roof top pool (had to wait cause of a thunderstorm warning) and then further planned our trip to Burma. 

We took the Star Ferry across the harbor, something everyone has to do when in Hong Kong. 

We grabbed dinner at Brickhouse, a cool Mexican restaurant (shocker I got Mexican food!!) and walked around LKF, the bar/club area of Central. 

I was exhauuuusted beyond belief so we headed home and I immediately konked out. 

Excited for a new day after a restful sleep! Tomorrow: Burma. 

Love,

Whit

And so it begins...

I'm off to Hong Kong tomorrow! It's insane to think of how momentous the month of May has been and will be for me. I graduated from Michigan on May 2nd with a BS in Cellular and Molecular Biology and a minor in Gender and Health.  I haphazardly packed up my room in Ann Arbor, shipping some boxes and loading up my cousin's car that my parents drove back to California (they wanted to do it!). I unpacked my belongings at home then left for a weekend trip to visit my sister Stacey just outside of Yosemite. This past week has been a whirlwind of birthdays, celebrations, doctor appointments and packing! I don't think it will officially hit me that I will be in Asia 2.5 months till I arrive to my guesthouse in Vietnam next weekend. 

Itinerary (Subject to change!)
-Leave the US for Hong Kong Tuesday afternoon (May 20th) 
-Arrive in Hong Kong Wednesday evening (May 21st) where I will be meeting my friend Eliza Bara! She will be a senior at Michigan in the fall, is from Palo Alto, and has been studying abroad in Hong Kong since January.
-Hong Kong Wednesday May 21st - Saturday May 24th
-Leave Hong Kong for Yangon, Mynmar (Burma) with Eliza Saturday afternoon (May 24th)
-Arrive in Yangon Saturday evening (May 24th)
-Mynmar Saturday May 24th - Thursday May 29th (Yangon, Bagan, and Inle Lake)
-Parting ways with Eliza (she heads back to the US) - Leave Yangon for Ho Chi Minh Thursday afternoon (May 29th)
-Arrive in Ho Chi Minh Thursday evening (May 29th) - stay a night or two 
-Bus to DaLat!
-Vietnam Thursday May 29th - July 11ish
-My sister Stacey is flying to Ho Chi Minh on July 9th
-Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Hong Kong with Stacey July 11th - July 31st
-Leave Hong Kong for US July 31st!

Why will I be in Vietnam for 6 weeks?? And where will I be?
I have an internship at the Pasteur Institute and Polyclinic in Dalat. This clinic receives over a hundred patients a day that come in for consultations, examinations, and testing. Additionally, this clinic provides vaccines for the hospitals in Southern Vietnam. I'm not completely sure on what my daily tasks will entail but I will be assisting the doctors any way I can. I will be staying in a "guesthouse" in Dalat. Guesthouses are basically an upscale hostel for long term visitors. I will have my own room (I believe!) which will be nice! 

I chose to intern in Vietnam because of all the wonderful things I have heard about the country and its people. I know I will in for a bit of a culture shock but I remember how it took some time to adjust when I first arrived in Prague two summers ago for study abroad.

Dalat is about 6 hours Northeast of Ho Chi Minh in Southern Vietnam. It is considered the "highlands" and it is a bit cooler than the rest of the country - this will be quite lovely since I am going during monsoon season! From what I've read, it seems like the city is resort area for people throughout the country. 

Feelings? Thoughts?
I'm excited, anxious, eager to explore, and a bit nervous but this luggage tag my Aunt Suzanne (thanks so much) had made for me says it all! I am ready!

I am excited to get to know myself better and discover what I am truly passionate about. I went to Hong Kong and China when I was 8 years old so I am thrilled I have the opportunity to explore Asia again. I can't wait to share all of my adventures with you all! 

I'm so thankful I have such supportive family and friends and am especially thankful for my amazing parents that are excited for me even if they are nervous about me being on my own!

If you know of anyone who will be in Southeast Asia, please let me know! I'd love to chat with as many people as I can to figure out travel plans.

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Keep me in your prayers!

-Whit