These past few weeks have been quite a whirlwind—but what else did you expect? Some of the highlights have been being asked forced to sit in between a woman’s legs on a bus, seeing my dance students perfect their dance to Waka Waka (video coming soon!) and teaching them a new one to I Just Can't Wait to Be King, seeing the mythical giant turtle in the downtown lake, visiting my Hanoi buddy’s (Trang) home, interviewing a American expat psychologist, and enjoying a Very Vietnamese Thanksgiving! I am learning to love the simplicity of meals with friends, walking alone, sunny afternoons, and fresh iced lemon tea (tra chanh!). Even though my independence occasionally lends to slightly dicey situations, (frisked by the police and creepy men), I’ve never felt such a freedom before. As a female, I think it has been an invaluable lesson to learn how to fend for myself, let alone in a foreign, non-English-speaking country.
Well, it’s the final countdown. Although in the real world a month is long enough to accomplish great tasks and age a 1/12 of a year, this upcoming month just seems to inspire anxiety. Throughout my time here I have met so many wonderful people, seen so many incredible places, and learned so many interesting things, but have I done enough?
As I planned my final trip with Josh for the end of the term I realized just how torn I am about leaving. Many other students say, “Oh, I’ll come back in a few years and explore more”, but what if you don’t? What if life gets in the way and you never come back to Vietnam? On one hand, I miss home, family, friends and Union considerably, but Vietnam has become some kind of wild play land of exploration, with my senses running on overload, and discoveries every which way. In many ways, I feel just the way I did back when I was younger and my mom picked me up from a friend’s house—always arriving too soon. “Yes, I want to come home to dinner with you, but can’t I just play a little longer?”
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