my daughter, Cecily, and I had been talking about her coming to see me in Saigon
and it was finally going to happen,
I had done my best to plan a trip that she would enjoy
making her visit full of fun, education, and shared activities
she left for Vietnam from New York on February 11
and arrived the next night in Saigon,
with the treat of flying in Business Class for the first time,
spoiling her forever
Sunday, February 12, 2017
after giving each other hugs at the airport,
we went to my apartment at Vinhomes,
complete with a small kitchen, her bedroom, and Dad sleeping on the couch
our plan was to leave for Vung Tau the next morning,
taking the shuttle bus that dropped us off at our resort
to relax in luxurious comfort by the sea
Monday and Tuesday
staying at Binh An, which means “peace” in Vietnamese,
we checked in and had to make big decisions,
like swimming in the freshwater pool overlooking the ocean
or swimming in the salt water pool built into the ocean?
in the afternoon we visited a Buddhist temple,
giving thanks for my family and friends and
a healthy body, an open heart, and a curious mind
Wednesday Evening Back To Saigon
we caught our shuttle back to Saigon and
in the evening we went to see a dance performance
at the Saigon Opera House called “The Mist”
after the show we walked down the Pedestrian Mall,
admiring the lights from the Tet Festival,
celebrating the New Year in Saigon
Thursday
the next day we took a tour of Saigon on motor bikes
to absorb the sights and sounds of Saigon
with our own guide, security, and paparazzi
we visited the Lady Thien Hau Temple
built to worship the Goddess of the Sea,
at an ancient temple in Chinatown and
one of the most beautiful temples in Saigon
in the evening we had our food tour,
seeing new sights in less traveled parts of Saigon,
and had the best Pho in Saigon from a local vendor,
who was a neighbor of our guide
Friday
in next morning we began our day trip to the Mekong Delta,
meeting new friends from Australia and Thailand
while cruising down the Mekong River
our trip was a glimpse into the the life of the Southern Delta region,
stopping at Coconut Island to learn about local coconut handicraft
before visiting the bee farm and Cecily making friends with a huge snake
Saturday Morning
Cecily wanted to boldly go where she had not gone before,
doing her laundry and learning how to use
the washing machine with directions only in Vietnamese
in the afternoon we visited my friends who opened their home to us,
showing Cecily how to cook traditional Vietnamese dishes,
and enjoyed laughs and food together in a different culture
in the evening a taxi picked us up at our apartment,
taking us to the Water Puppet Show,
a ride in a Saigon rick shaw to the cruise ship,
and dinner on the Saigon River with traditional Vietnamese music
Sunday
we went to Hanayuki for our sushi dinner in a tatami room,
complete with a “compai toast” of sake
to another wonderful adventure together
Monday
early the next morning we went to the airport
and said our goodbyes,
feeling a sadness because I will miss my travel buddy
and always looking forward to our next adventure together.
I later asked Cecily what parts of the trip were most memorable,
and here are her thoughts and reflection
“One of my favorite memories from visiting you was when we figured out how to do the laundry. I know it sounds weird, but it was an adventure and I felt like I really helped you. There was a sense of accomplishment when I figured out how the laundry machine worked, despite not being able to read anything
Another memory that I have then I’m glad I experienced, is the sense of being “Other.” Not only was I a woman out and about the middle of the day, but I was white and my skin wasn’t covered up. I had a tattoo and I was blonde. I didn’t understand anything that was going around me, and then needed to rely on other people to translate
I remember very clearly walking into a coffee shop at the end of one of our tours and feeling very out of place. It gave me a much greater understanding of what people go through when they come to the US”
Cecily