day 5

Friday, May 11th

It's hard to believe we've been here five days! It feels like we've been here for forever.... but it also seems like we're leaving so soon, even though we have about another week. Though there are some things I miss about home, I don't want to leave :(

Today we started with Vietnamese history and culture again. We learned more about the Mekong Delta and the philosophy of dualism (yin and yang). The yin and the yang work together to create harmony. Everything comes in pairs, such as earth and sky, and mother and father. The even numbers correspond to yin, and the odd numbers correspond to yang. Usually the odd numbers are preferred, and 1 rose is good because it means exclusivity, and 9 is good because it means forever. We also had language class again! We learned how to ask people how they're doing (Bạn có khỏe không?) and some adjectives, such as hot (nóng), tired (mệt), happy (vui), and good (tốt). Tot means dead in German, so I thought it was interesting that a similar word in Vietnamese carries such a different meaning.

In the afternoon, we visited Ascenx Technologies. The company was founded in 2004 by Tuan Bach, a Vietnamese American who was born here in Vietnam but escaped as a young child and went to school in the United States. I thought it was cool that we got to meet with a CEO! He gave us a presentation about his company - they offer contract manufacturing, contract repair service, engineering services, and field service engineering. He also shared his personal story, which was very interesting. After the meeting, he very generously treated us to Highlands Coffee, which was delicious!

Tonight we ate at Domino's! It was kind of different from the Domino's they have at home - the crust didn't have garlic on it, and the sauce and pepperoni were not quite the same. I can tell that I'm not used to American food anymore because I ate much less than usual.

After dinner, we went by the Crescent Mall to see the Starlight Bridge. Young Vietnamese couples often go there for dates! We just took a bunch of silly pictures though, so they must have though we were so loud and weird. After that, we went back to the hotel. I'm looking forward to touring the city tomorrow! (and getting to sleep in!)