Outside from work, I live in the huuuuge city of Saigon, in the South of Vietnam. I’m the only volunteer in Ho Chi Minh, and I think this makes it a more unique experience… Actually, there’s two ways of seeing it: one is being, well, alone, and having almost only have “Occidental” contact only with families and friends. But on the other side, I discover Vietnamese at its best (or worse?), anyway, I discover A LOT! And I love it! The friends I’ve made are really helpful in understanding the vietnamese culture, to get around and help with food, buses, or anything I need. They even helped me in registering to a Vietnamese cooking class in a women’s center. The class is only in Vietnamese, so understanding is a great challenge, but I manage to do fine!

Another great thing is the fact that my boss is so flexible and allows me to get off work to travel and discover Vietnam. She even took me and people I work with to a trip to the center of Vietnam, so that was a pretty interesting experience, and the beaches are great!! And I’m actually going tomorrow to Nha Trang to go scuba diving, and to Dalat, which is supposed to be one of the most beautiful cities in Vietnam!

Until next time!
Gabrielle