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BIG Mother People in Hue or even in Vietnam, perhaps everyone knows the name of a pagoda "Duc Son", knows the name of a woman "Minh Tu". However, that doesn't mean there are lots of TV shows or newspaper articles talking noisily about those famous names as most of people think. The concept of "famousness" here is just staying in people's hearts.
The very first time I heard about Duc Son, about Minh Tu is when my granddad was still alive and still working last many years. At that time, going home, he often talked about the kids at Duc Son, and little by little, I heard more and more about the name Minh Tu, from my grandma, from my aunties, and from my mom, from people around me...
Until my cousin BIN passed away, I went to Duc Son for some family matters. That is the first time I met the Buddhist nun Minh Tu in person. She and everyone at Duc Son welcomed me warmly and proved to be very hospitable; I really had a liking as well as respected for her at my first meeting. She still looked optimistic and jolly even though what around her were a low location orphanage always flooded when it just rains hard, contriving daily rice and food for more than 100 kids and what she had had on her was a faded brown dress which was mended many times. She took me around the orphanage to visit the kids. Kids there, anyone is materially deprived and they are much more emotionally deprived. Any time they see a guest comes to visit, they would stream to the visitor, scramble for being carried or being hugged. Some pulled my arms, some grabbed my feet and I was a bit embarrassed.
My granddad passed away, I went back Duc Son with family. When my granddad was still alive, he loved the kids so much. Now, he already passed away, I brought the kids there his present. Time after that, I had come to the orphanage sometimes, also visited Minh Tu, also brought things and also came to play with the kids...
After more than 3 years, I had a chance to go back Duc Son only in these days. In recent days, I have been helping my friend to get formula and food and take all of those to the orphanage for the kids there. Passing the Lim bridge up on the hill, we arrived at Duc Son. Nowaday Duc Son looks really different, the pagoda is higher, cleaner and much nicer. The orphanage looks much better than it was last few years. It was enlarged, upgraded and built much higher to avoid the floods. I met Minh Tu again, she remembered me vaguely; she asked "You are Duc, aren't you?", "No, I am Tuan.", "I'm not sure if you still remember but I am the grandson of... my granddad. My grandma is...", "Ah ah, I remember. Formerly, your grandfather loved the kids here so much. If he didn't struggle for their interests then, it would have been very hard to have this nowaday orphanage for them to live...", "Your grandmother has a big heart too...", "Why I don't see your aunts and your mother come here to visit in recent times?"... Talking and listening to her for more than an hour and a half, I had not heard she complained about any difficulty to her or spun a long yarn about her services. She is always optimistic, has a gentle and righteous smile; she always thinks of the kids first in any situation...
She took us to visit the kids again. The number has gone up to 204 kids until now, at every age-group, including some babies who just were born not longer than 15 days and were thrown away. Seeing guests came to visit, as before, the kids came to say hello, some hugged our feet, some holded our hands, some hugged our hips; they didn't want to release us. Many but they are very orderly and polite. I just think human who were just born are the same, same like a blank paper; the paper will become nice or bad, that depends on people who write on them. If those kids were unlucky and could not meet Minh Tu, they would have been hardly alive or they would have become uneducated people with lots of social problems.
In the true sense of the word, she is a GREAT MOTHER. But, I have to speak in a low voice or she will "kill" me. She doesn't want to be praised even though that is absolutely meritorious.
We still have some blanket and stuffs left. Perhaps we will come again to see you and the kids for that probably this weekend...
Kids Statistics at the Orphanage:
Disabilities: 10 Newborns: 10 Preschool: 13
1st grade: 8 2nd grade: 11 3rd grade: 11
4th garde: 12 5th grade: 13 6th grade: 13
7th grade: 27 8th grade: 18 9th grade: 10
10th grade: 12 11th grade: 9 12th grade: 10
College/University: 17
Total: 204 (95 males & 109 females) Vietnam Teacher's dayHAPPY TEACHER'S DAY TO ALL WHO ARE TEACHING !!!
I had a ceremony at school this morning and a short meeting at my office with students and former students. This is my first year that I received flowers and nice wishes from my students. It's really an honour to me. I also had a hard party with my colleagues and some students; it was fun; drunk pretty much beer and my face then was a happy pink face. I was singing...
Thanks Tam for sending me the picture. Flooding Dad is in Japan...
 Mom is in Danang...
Classes have been cancelled...
 I am staying home with... myself.
 Hue has been raining...
  Flood waters still keep reaching...
 Restaurants have been closed...
  ...
 Ahhh, still have some instant noodle left in the kitchen
  Missing warm sunlight...
  (Pictures were taken today, October 16, 2007 in Hue) The world environment day So I have done the 2 posters for the world environment day this year finally; for my college. I made them have a similar style with the official poster that UNEP posts on their website. "Melting Ice" is the topic this year. Here are the 2 posters; one in English and one in Vietnamese.
I'm curious to know how people think the posters are... Just give me an adjective that you think well comment my products.
And a message: SAVE OUR EARTH !!! Everyone. Just a little thing each of us do for our environment to protect it today, a huge and wonderful achievement we will have for sure tomorrow.
Respond to the World Environment Day, 5 June 2007 ! Youth Union day and a new photo album I remember last year, I did post some pictures on this day too and that is on the games we played. Woaa, 1 year is so fast, and now we celebrate the foundation day of the Vietnamese Youth Union again...
The Viet Youth Union is also known under a more popular name, The Hochiminh Communist Youth Union (please click on the link to read more details on this organization). It was established on March 26, 1933 so on the 26 of March every year, the Youth Unions all over Vietnam celebrate this event. And the month of March is called the Youth month here. The traditional activity we often have on this day is camping; but it depends, and sometimes, people organize other activities instead of camping. Like at my college, we have not gone camping these years because of some of the accidents that happened last few years. Camping means staying over night and there were some students of my college were drinking alcohol sneakily at the night staying at the camping place then and they picked a quarrel with some other guys and then... fighting. Since that year, we haven't gone camping again as the declaration of the rector.
The activity we had this year is a Fair where students from all classes of my college selling stuff that they made on their own. Walking around the school, I found out the students had many different kinds of stall and the most common stall are selling food, drink and souvenir. Actually, I didn't try any food or drink there because they are very "student". The "adjective" student often goes together with a stuff which has "student style" that is cheap, many/much and certainly "not really clean" will follow. So, that's why I didn't try, just afraid of stomachache. Most of the stall had some scattered customers, some were busy with lot of customers come and go. And you could guess almost customers are students (enjoying student food and drink). Some of the places were decorated pretty well. By the way, I have posted a new album "Student Fair 2007" and just click on the link or go to Photos to take a look if you wish.
We did not stay over night because we could not have the permission to do that even though that's very fun. Some of the students still complained to me that why they could not stay longer although they already knew the answer why. I feel poor for them that they had to spend lot of time and effort to prepare all stuff as well as to build their stall but they just could enjoy that for... actually few hours. But...
Luckily, my students looked like they enjoyed their day with lots of fun games. They all had to try to go to their classes in the next day even though they had a hard playing day and everyone was very tired. And to my dear students, you guys did a good job !!! Once again (picture from www.thethaovietnam.com.vn)
Once again, Vietnam met the oppositionist Thailand in a key and vital match; once again, all the attention of the whole Vietnam flocked into the name Thailand; once again, Viet people began hoping of the win as they had 9 years ago, in 1998; once again, the Vietnamese Press payed lot of paper and ink to write about this match; once again, the journal and magazine had an opportunity to publish the dreamy articles about the golden chance for a victory; once again, they gave many reasons to win and one of them is "level" (I'm ashamed of that); and once again, the groundless hope didn't happen and the disapointment came to knock at our door; and once again; the Press and the soccer fans became gloomy after 90 minutes of the competition. We need to know where we are! Don't praise to the skies what we love!
Being shot 2 goals by the Thai right in Hanoi, that's so sad. If a madman carried a bucket of water and poured on my favourite HP Pavillion, I would not be that sad; If a thief stole all of my money and I could not have a bowl of soup noodle in the next few months, I would not be that sad; if I was pushed into a smelly sluice and was forced to sing the happy birthday song 85 times, I would not be that sad. Only the soccer indulgence and the love for the Vietnam team could make me have that bad feeling when the home team was defeated. But why it's always the Thai. Vietnam is deprived of a half-back who could be the master of the middle of football ground; deprived of a killer attacker. As always, the Viet are hasty and immature in the penalty area of the competitor...
It couldn't be helped, hopefully, there will be some new factors from the younger generations. And then, hope to see you again Thailand.
Wait for that, the Thai !!! .......Try your best this time, Singapore !!! Confirm the churches Don't have to wait until Doug is here, he sent me an email today to confirm the churches I went to last year and this year that I mentioned in the previous post...
" Hi Tuan -
I can solve the great mystery!
Last year, you went with us to a Catholic church in Gia Hoi, but this year, you went to the Tin Lành church which is only one or two blocks away from the Catholic church. That is the church that Marc, Kami, Ken, and Heather usually go to.
This is the Catholic Church in Gia Hoi -
This is the Tin Lành church in Gia Hoi - -
But - - - we *still* must drink some coffee and I will explain the difference. Of course, Marc can explain it too.
I am glad you went to church again on Christmas Eve, Tuan. I'll be seeing you in about two weeks.
Doug Young "
Thank you, Doug for the email and the pictures. You're better than me at this point
 , even I've lived here for more than 23 years. But what's different between Catholic and Tin Lành? I thought they are the same? Christmas Eve So, finally we made an appointment to go out tonight for Christmas Eve. Marc and Kami took little Dani came by my house around 6.30 and we headed the Catholic church on the other side of the city. We passed the biggest hotel of the city on Hung Vuong street and got stuck for a while because there were so many people there watching a huge Christmas pine tree on the side of the street. The tree has three levels, huge and the special thing is that it is made by thousand empty bottles of Heineken beer. The hotel is decorated pretty good I think. Perhaps, that is the central place in the city that most people were carried away by the luxurious lights and beautiful decoration tonight. I saw polices were working pretty hard to clear away traffic jam.
And then we arrived at the church when it began raining a bit. I got to see Ken again and his wife and the kids. The church is a little familiar to me, May be I went there on Christmas Eve last year but I found out it looks different than the one I know when I got inside; different structure, different parish priest... But can't be the second one cause people say there is only one Catholic church in town. Okay, let ask Doug about that when he is here in few days.
The program at the church is almost like a music show. Lots of singing and they all sing very well, pretty professional I could say. I did not really understand all the songs they sang but they sound great and some of the songs are like hip-hop or dance music; very interesting. Following are some pictures on the song acts tonight.
Ken's wife, Heather (I don't know if I spell her name correctly) was in the singing team on the lower picture (Be sure click on the pictures to see larger versions). They also had a short drama about the history of Jesus' birth and showed some special stories related to the birth, but actually I did not really understand, just know they are special (cause they are showed on Christmas Eve).
Then, the priest gave talk, preached I think. He talked quite long about people should do like this, should do like that and certainly those things are related to faith upon God. I tried to put myself in the position of a Catholic person to listen to him and in fact, I did not agree with him at some points, especially, about the examples he picked. They does not really match with what he wanted to say about believing in God. And some of the things he said, I felt they are much more like a termless acceptance when people are at a dead end than a lucid selection...
I got home when the streets were still crowded. It was a good Christmas night for me this year. And thanks Marc&Kami for the fruits and the new year calendar. Good to spend time with you tonight. A new week is waiting...
How was your Christmas day? Cold & sunny Hue Hue on Christmas and new year time has a pretty perfect weather. Cold, yes, it is and windy but sunny, so feel warm standing under the sunlight. I enjoyed being outside today and took few pictures on busy people driving around and on the landscape. It seems like the Christmas atmosphere still hasn't been here clearly yet. Just some decoration on the doors or the windows of the cafes and hotels. The churches are almost still as normal, except some lights on the cold walls or the roofs. Some scattered places selling stuffs for Christmas and new year on the sides of the city streets but they doesn't look like real business and they are pretty deserted. Looking at people, I realized they aren't hurried and the life speed isn't as Tet holiday (lunar new year) is coming soon. That might be understandable that people here don't celebrate solar new year and the Catholic people just hold a ceremony on Christmas Eve and maybe the day before or after that (I'm not pretty sure). So, not as big as in the Western countries.
The pictures above were taken around the Phu Xuan bridge, on the way I was going to my aunty's house this morning. Good weather, isn't it? But I haven't heard anyone says "Merry Christmas" yet. Did Santa make it changes? "It must be raining and cold at this time of the year"; that is what I had repeated many times to complain how hot it was even it is November and December now. Like summer, I mean summer in Hue, in this severe weather area. The temperature changed very differently in one day; it was cool in the early morning and in the evening, just around 23-25C degrees but it could go up to 35 or 37C degrees at lunch time. Some people were happy with that cause they did not have to stand the hard and long lasting rain of Hue. Yes, me too but I don't like that heat either. The explanation for that strange weather might be this year is leap year, someone said that is the manifestation of global climate change...
What ever! But it's good to know that it's cool now. It was drizzly last two days and it becomes dry today, it is windy and very cool; I feel cold sometimes. Huh, just few days ago, I did not feel like Christmas is coming but at the moment, I can see the smell of Christmas and New Year. Yesterday, at weekend, when it was raining and cold, I stayed at home, watching movie and enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate. That is so good, better than whatever.
I don't know how Christmas and New Year will look like if the weather is hot and the sun is burning then; or how a summer break with lot of travelling and swimming at the beaches... normally will look like if the weather is cold or even snowing then? Sounds very strange huh? But, the weather could make an event or a holiday becomes more meaningful; for sure!
Merry Christmas!!! I wish it will snow on Christmas time here some day. So Santa can come here with his sled easily  . Global climate change, who know what will happen!Peaceful !!! Yesterday, I went back the lagoon area to work again on my research after the typhoon time. I made the shape of the coastal line so I had to hold the GPS receiver and walk alone a very long way. I was very tired but I enjoyed the quiet scenery there. I walked for almost 5 hours in the morning. I brought a small bottle of water and I needed more water than I thought so I ran out of water finally. And I was hungry too cause walking wears out more energy than I guessed. I took a break when I saw a big shade of tree. The gentle breeze, quiet scenery, sometimes, I heard the sound of the birds from somewhere, dragonflies and butterflies were flying around, all of those made me feel comfortable and relaxed strangley. And suddenly, I was in the mood for taking picture. I wanted to take picture of the quietness and the peacefulness of things there...
I don't know if I did it well but they are two pictures that I took from the foot of a tree when I was relaxing. One is on a kid playing with the sea snails near her house which is an old boat and one is on a dragonfly taking a halt during its travel stage maybe. So, a peaceful place far away from crowded city. Vietnam, the 150th WTO member Congratulations, VIETNAM. Proud to be part of you !!!
You did a great job but not only opportunities ahead, there will be lot of challenges. I believe you will be successful in this huge game. Keep the Vietnamese characteristics, that would be the key of your success. Try your best! Pictures on Xangsane in Hue I have driven around the city and that is what I saw this morning. Please take a look on the new photo album "Xangsane in Hue". And yes, I and my whole family are safe finally. But lot of people are crying because of the huge damage. The whole city are trying their best to bring back the normal life... Xangsane, it's here I'm back. I was so busy with the workshop at my project and I did not have time to post a thing. Thanks God that we had good weather during the workshop here. It was raining so hard and a typhoon came last weekend and we had a 2 days field trip in the next Monday. We were thinking of cancelling or changing our plan but luckily and surprisingly, it did not rain that morning anymore even though some places on the way to the community, where we studied, were still flooded. Then, the workshop was over finely; and people here heard a new very bad news that another typhoon was coming. My guests from University of the Philippines left Vietnam to go back home just 1 day before all the trains and flights here have been cancelled because of the typhoon. And, it's comming...
Its name is Xangsane. Yes, the strongest typhoon in the past 10 years in Vietnam. People were right to say it's at the level 15. In Vietnam, the typhoon scale has 12 level and certainly, the strongest is level 12. This time, Xangsane is 15, yes 15. On the way coming to the centre of Vietnam, its centre would stop in the boundary area between Hue and Danang and in fact, the wind speed in Danang is level 13 and in Hue is level 11. You can not imagine how teribble it was this morning. From this early morning, around 3.00 or 4.00 AM until 4.00 PM today, the wind was very strong. Most of the trees on my street were uprooted and corrugated irons were flying like papers. All the advertising panels were broken. And then, heavy rain. These 2 pictures are the view from my house. I was so scared going out today; maybe tomorrow when it's getting better.
I and my parents have moved things in the first floor to the second one cause we are afraid of flooding. Water is coming in our house to visit us... Luckily that we have electricity and internet again tonight, so I can write these things on my blog. Let see what will happen; pray for us, for the centre of Vietnam... Blue Dragon Children's Foundation(Click on the picture to read the newspaper online)
The newspaper said that he was born and grew up in a poor Australian family. He had to face the deprived meals, the old clothes that his father bequesthed and had no dream. Until the day an English teacher, Shirley McCoombe told him that his life would be much better if he tried to study hard. And he passed the exam and studied at a University. He began teaching English for the kids and he recognized he wants to do another job better: helping his kids live better. He came to Vietnam for traveling and the first time in his life, he found his happiness when he teached English for the kids at the foot of Sam mountain, in Chau Doc - An Giang (a province at the Delta area of Vietnam). The smile and eager look of the kids at that time brought him to a big decision: staying and doing something for the poor kids in Vietnam.
In September, 2002, he met a Vietnamese friend, Pham Sy Chung, and a Spanish friend, Gonzalo Serrano in Hanoi. They gathered shoeshine kids on Hanoi streets and teached them English, maths, art and yoga. And like a logic, they established a social organization and working to help the kids. He confides: "The biggest thing I have learned from the activities of Blue Dragon in the recent years is that how to help the kids have their own dream. The daily difficulties and petty things in their life have made them losing their dreaming ability. With no dream, how could they escape the cycle of the poverty?"
His name is Michael Brosowski, head of Blue Dragon project, the man has brought the Vietnamese poor kids dream.
Visit his blog at http://vietnamstreets.blogspot.com/
and the organization's website at http://www.bdcf.org/welcome.html
for more information and know better about the wonderful job he is doing. So glad that I've already linked to his blog. Clean up the world Our weekend activity - Clean up the world weekend...
Be sure click on the pictures to see a larger version! They need education People of the communities in the lagoon area in Hue, most of them were living on small boat for the whole life previous to the encouraging policy of the government that is moving to the land for a better life. But in fact, until now, there still are lot of families who still staying on their boats in the dry season and moving to their house on the land in the rain season. They were given some money by the government to build a house, actually, it's just a poor house by bamboo and if any families have some more money, they could build their house by cement.
Okay, the story I want to show you is not their houses, it is the kids there. Talking to a couple when I stayed at their house for lunch last month (I came there for a research), I found out they still owe the government for some money but with them, that's a lot of money that they don't know when they can finish paying back. They said, after the huge flood in 1999 in the centre of Vietnam, they lost everything. And to earn their daily bread after that, they decided to borrow the government some money to buy a new boat, get some materials to make the tools for fishing. And they did rent the land from the local government for shrimp hatching but they got more debt when their shrimps died because of a disease. And today, they have to work very hard but money that they save every year just enough to pay the bank for the interest. And in that situation, certainly, how could their kids have opportunity to go to school? They all quitted their class after finish their primary education to go to the lagoon, fishing to get some money to help their parents. Even some kids, they don't go to school cause their parents don't have money and according to them, their kids don't need to go to school because they will have to quit the school soon. We can't blame them for what they did because how could they think of studying or anything more expensive when their daily bread haven't been ensured yet.
Another story about a family who are living on the water of the lagoon in Hue, the father has a better thought on education. They have 9 kids and the father said, his kids have to go to school to study. He and his wife tried to work so hard to earn money for their kids' study but 9 kids is too many. The kids finished their primary education and they told their parents that they don't want to go to school anymore, they want to work, want to fishing like their parents. They said studying is wasting money of parents but with fishing, they can earn money. And the father had to say yes when both of them, the husband and the wife felt tired earning enough money for their 9 kids. So they stopped studying.
There are a lot, lot of stories similar like what I have showed you there and the local government hasn't found any answer yet. I am wondering if the environment of the lagoon, especially the water quality is improved, people there can catch more fishes and shirmps and they will earn more money than they do now, will that be a solution for a better life? and then, with education, they will say yes, their kids really need it. Working under protection no no, it's not a farm for chickens keeping; it's a campus; actually, that's what my college looks like at the moment. In fact, people are grading papers at my University now and those are the papers from one of the most important exams in Vietnam that I might mention to you in the previous posts. So they want to have a secure place to avoid the negative during the time they are doing their job. And they decided to make a fence by plastic canvas to circle the area where people are marking exam papers. This fence divides the college in two isolated precincts. One includes the main hall and the classrooms that they are using for grading papers and the other includes the offices and departments of the college (including my department).
The problem now is that the college doesn't has a good look as normal and to go from the offices at this side of the college to the offices at the other side, you have to take a roundabout route. Vietnamese people have a terms that could describe this situation, "close houses but far gates".
I am not going to comment a lot about what people are doing there but ... is having some security men being around the marking papers area better than what you see on the pictures? I bet the college would be much more aesthetic than it is now. |
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