Week In Transition

After being in Vietnam for now almost two weeks, I've tried multiple times to take a step back, and try to come to terms with what I think about this place. There's never one feeling that comes to mind. It's a mixture of things, some of which I expected coming into this program, some of which continue to surprise me today. There have already been ups and downs, delicious food, bouts of homesickness, amazing new friends, layers of pollution, smiles of strangers, ridiculous traffic, and intriguing areas of study.

Let's start with the bad and try and end on a positive note. The bad has come within the last week. I never really could have guessed how hard it would be without internet in our rooms. It's not that I feel the desire to be connected at all times, nor do I have any logical need to be, but it's the realization that the link to home is cut. I could easily live without internet if there was some other way (that didn't cost me an arm and a leg) to contact home, just to alleviate their worries and mine. I'm sure my parents are tripping out right now after having little contact with me for the past week, even though back home we can go entire weeks without talking. And then there's my girlfriend. It was a rough week. Making the transition to something as new as this country seems to drag out to an amazingly taxing process. The hardest part is that we know we're going to make it through these four months just fine, but it's sometimes just too difficult to live in the future, and too easy to focus on the voids taking up the present. I wish I could be with her, but at the same time there is no way I was going to turn down this once in a lifetime experience. Things will work out in the end, despite any further struggles we may face.

(EDIT: We just had internet for a couple hours. Right now it feels like we're just getting fucked with. I finally got a few minutes to chat with my girlfriend, but the internet cut off right as I was doing so, making it less than satisfying. Evidently my parents are pissed that I haven't emailed them more, she says. That's not really my concern at this point, I've sent them a few emails in this short amount of time, they're going to need to deal with the fact that I'm not going to be updating them every day. I ended up spending another 12,000 dong to talk with my girlfriend for a couple minutes, tell her I love her. Before I know it, my phone is going to run dry.)

(EDIT II: After half a day with no internet/power/water, things seemed to have straightened out. I'm just going to hope that's the case...)

To a surprisingly great extent, I prepared myself mentally for the physical and cultural shock that I knew I would experience here. That being said, there are some things that I will just never be able to get used to. First and foremost is the pollution. I came in knowing that the air quality was not going to be as good as what I am used to. Let's face it, Bay Area weather can be some of the best weather you can find. Nothing is quite like standing at the top of Twin Peaks and looking across a clear night sky. Here, I have yet to see the sun. Granted, I'm no huge fan of the sun in the Bay Area, I will always prefer clouds. But here, it's hot regardless, so it would be a welcome change to see the cause. There are many parts of the city that are more bearable than others, but no matter where I am, I feel like I can almost eat the air. It's temping to walk around like a lot of the locals with face masks, but that would just make me hotter and sweatier than I already am. With all the sweating, and if I can limit my bia hoi consumption, I'm bound to lose some pounds here.

On to what good I have found here. Parts of this city I find absolutely beautiful. Our campus itself is a very welcome oasis from the noise and pollution. In many ways it reminds me of Berkeley. As a whole, I'm not a huge fan of Berkeley, but the campus, when you're not worrying about school, is a very calming place. I feel the same way about this campus, but I'm not yet ready to judge the city as a whole like I can judge Berkeley. The other place that I've taken a liking to is Ho Hoan Kiem. I do have some problems with the area around it, mainly it being too touristy, but the lake itself is a very relaxing place. I look forward to many days of catching the bus down there and sitting along the edge of the lake, taking a break from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the city.

Regardless of how the rest of my time here plays out, I know that I won't regret coming here. This program has allowed me to meet some truly amazing people that I would have never met before, and for that, I am eternally grateful. It's comforting to know that for these months I will have people that I can rely on, which for me, especially in this city, is essential. These will be interesting times. I'm apprehensively looking forward to the many experiences I will have.