Cần Thơ

After returning from Đà Lạt, I went South to Cần Thơ in the Mekong Delta. Somehow, half of Michigan State is currently in Cần Thơ so I had a lot of people to visit! First, I went to visit one of my mom's student's family. Her student, Hiep, has a lot of family members in Cần Thơ and I stayed at their house for a night. They were extremely hospitable and made an amazing Vietnamese dinner for me. I can't remember the last time I ate so much! After that, Hiep's nephew, Triet, showed me around Cần Thơ. Though much smaller than Saigon, Cần Thơ still is a very lively town and there were a lot of people out at night. The next day, we went to visit Cần Thợ University, where Triet is a freshman. The campus was very large and beautiful. I had a great time looking around and got to meet many of Triet's friends.

Some students playing soccer on campus

Later that day, I went to meet with the second set of Michigan State people living in Cần Thơ who happen to live just four houses away from me in East Lansing, Michigan. Small world! Reade and David are a retired couple who are doing some work for Cần Thơ University teaching English and working on public health projects. We had lunch at their hotel where we, amazingly, met up with another Michigan State alumnus. We had fun reminiscing about Michigan and sharing the highlights and challenges of living in Vietnam. After that, Hien, another one of my mom's former students, came to pick me up and take me to his house where I would be staying and where Anna would later come to join us. Being the extremely friendly and kind person that he is, he invited everyone present on a sightseeing tour the next day. So much Michigan! We then went back to Hien's house where I met his wonderful family. I had a lot of fun playing with his daughters and talking to him and his wife.

Hien and his family, note the Spartan gear :)

The next day, we went on a sightseeing tour. In the morning, we went on a boat trip down the Mekong River. We got to see the amazing floating markets. They are truly an amazing sight. Basically, it's like a market but everyone is in a boat! The vendor boats all have a giant pole sticking up that has a pineapple, a cabbage, or whatever that person is selling on top of it to let the other boats know. If you want to buy something, you just pull up to the boat in your boat and buy what you want! I think this is mainly for wholesale buyers (not everyone just has a boat, probably) but they have some stuff for tourists or locals who just want to buy some produce. I had the opportunity to wittness one of these water sales up close too! David bought a bottle of water from a mother and her child in a small motorboat. It was really quite remarkable. The boat just went alongside it, the child grabbed onto our boat, and the transaction was made!

A boat on the Mekong River

Making a purchase at the floating market

After that, we walked around a park in the city and had dinner at a wonderful restaurant on the water. We got to meet some of Hien's students and see a bit more of the city. It was a fantastic trip and I'm so happy that I've been able to see some more of Vietnam!

Sau khi đi Đà Lạt, tôi về nhà và ngay chuẩn bị đi Cần Thơ. Nhiều người mà đi trường bang Michigan đang ở Cần Thơ nên tôi đi thăm nhiều người! Thứ năm, tôi đi thăm gia đình của cựu sinh viện của mẹ em. Cựu sinh viện của mẹ em tên là Hiệp. Tôi ở nhà của gia đình Hiệp một đem. Gia đình Hiệp thân thiện và hiếu khách. Chúng tôi ăn tối ngon quá! Sau đó, cháu trái Hiệp, tên là Triết, và tôi đi lòng vòng ở Cần Thơ. Tuy Cần Thơ nhỏ hơn Sài Gòn nhưng nhịp sống về đêm vẫn rất sôi đông. Ngày hôm sau, Triết và tôi đi trường Cần Thơ. Tôi có dịp gặp các bạn của Triết và đi lòng vòng trường.

Sau đó, tôi đi ăn trưa với hai hàng xóm ở East Lansing, Michigan! Chúng tôi ăn ở khách sạn của ông bà ấy và gặp một cựu sinh viên trường Michigan nửa! Hien, một cựu sinh viên khác của mẹ em đi khách sạn để đưa tôi đến nhà của Hien. Anh ấy mời ba người đi lòng vòng với chúng tôi. Sau đó, chúng tôi đi nhà của Hien và tôi gặp gia đình Hien. Hien có hai con gài dễ thương và vợ thân thiện.

Ngày hôm sau, chúng tôi đi sông Cửu Long và đi bằng tàu. Chúng tôi xem chợ (Tôi quên "floating markets" là gì bằng tiếng Việt!) và đi lòng vòng Cần Thơ. Tôi có một chuyến vui lắm.