nice to be able to visit others. I realized the day after I got back
that I had been in this exact same place 3 weeks earlier, but after
traveling thousands of miles. Weird to think about.
After two weeks of weddings, seeing family and friends, and yes,
travelling, I found myself in Hanoi, Vietnam. Hanoi is a city so more
massive than anything Laos has, it's almost incomparable. In fact,
Hanoi's population is roughly the same as the total population of
Laos. I felt a bit overwhelmed. But I made my connections and even got
to see the embalmed Ho Chi Minh before heading down to Da Nang,
another good-sized city on the ocean. We had our area MCC retreat
there and it was great to meet many MCC staff from area countries and
relax on the beach. I also got to meet the 5 new service workers who
just arrived in Laos! Unfortuantely, I also had to say goodbye to
Ariel, a wonderful fellow service worker who went back home. After
almost a week in Vietnam, I was ready to come home to Laos. I helped
make sure everyone was settled and called my host family. My host
sister answered the phone and after talking for a little asked, "You
aren't coming to play with me tonight?" It was already late that
night, but I promised to come the next day.
I've settled down in a house rented by MCC but will soon move to the
MCC guesthouse close to the office. I spent my first week back helping
orient the five new service workers which was a blast. They're a great
group of people and it's been fun to share what I've learned in the
past year. I also saw off the group of IVEPers. It was a relief and
reward to help them have this opportunity to experience the US and
Canada for a year, much like I'm experiencing their country and
culture.
The rain has certainly increased. It sounds like it more or less
rained every day while I was gone and has continued to do so. I went
out into the countryside with my host family this past weekend and saw
many people fishing in their fields and playing in ponds created by
the water. At a relative's house, we had to wade through a little
water to get inside. Then I looked the back window and was surprised
to see a nearby river came all the way against the house and the
backyard was under two feet of water! But I was later told this
happens every year so it's hard for me to know what is "too much"
water. I later waded through fields with my host father and aunt to
cut young bamboo stalks for soup.
Even after a year, I'm still coming across surprises. The other day, I
drove by my neighbor's house and saw an ostrich. An ostrich! I
promptly grilled a co-worker about it. Even though I'm pretty sure
ostriches are not native to Laos, he said you can raise them just like
ducks- which means you can eat them too!
For me, it's more orientation next week for the two SALTers for this
year. I hope all is well with you!
Justin
