Day Twenty-one – Sunday, 10/19/08

With church not starting until 10:30, Kathy and I had some time to go shopping early this morn-ing. After walking a few blocks, it seemed like we didn’t know what we were doing, but we drudged forward instead of back. After looking at various tailor shops, we finally came across one that had what Kathy was looking for. As she looked for just the right material to have a jacket made, I looked over some ties.

I might have gotten ripped off, but it doesn’t really seem like it. I bought 4, all silk, for a total of $20. I like all 4, so I’ll let dad pick out the one he likes and be happy with the other 3. Mean-while, Kathy found the style and material she liked, and got sized. It’s going to be real pretty. We pick it up on Thursday.

Then it was off to church – real nice, on the sixth floor of a hotel banquet room. There might have been about 50 there, and the room was filled with the Spirit. Very Lutheran, even though it’s a non-denominational church – the Lutheran’s take their turn. We were asked to introduce ourselves, told our simple stories, and took part in worship.

Then we headed off to lunch with a group from church. Large group, but what I thought was best was that a young lade, who was at church for the first time, was invited to join us. She did and seemed to fit right in. THE CHURCH must always be about making people feel they are part of a family, God’s sons and daughter.

After that, we had a real treat. Five of us had a massage. It was at a place where those giving the massages are vision impaired – this affords them some income. It was wonderful. Lasted for an hour and cost us only $8 a piece. We were so happy with it, we had to tip the girls, even though tipping is not a practice in Vietnam. We even hope to go back.

Then we went to the water puppets – a little odd, but entertaining. It’s a long standing part of the Hanoi and Vietnamese culture. They are puppets not on strings above them, but on sticks below them. And it all takes place in a pool, about 25’ x 25’. They dance and play and fish and court and have all kinds of settings with people, birds, dragons, fish and others. All in all, it really was a nice way to spend an hour and connect more with these people.

We weren’t really hungry yet, so we broke up and went shopping. Chinatown NYC revisited. Found brand name stuff real cheap, yet we haggled. That’s part of the fun / getting them to knock off at least half the price or walking away, and have them call you back. We really enjoyed this time, the “game” we played with the merchants.

We ended up getting Rebekah some silk pajamas ($8) and a Coach purse ($8). Add that to the necklace we got her yesterday, and she gets 3 things. We got Jacob a Rolex ($15) and Oakley sunglasses ($10). Add that to the hat we got him yesterday and he ends up with three things as well. I got a Rolex ($20).

Won’t go into details about the dinner run around. Suffice it to say Kathy and I had a nice private supper of beer and spring rolls. Finished it off with ice cream then back to the hotel. It was a wonderful day. kdl

Day Twenty-two – Monday, 10/20/08

In all honesty, felt like a wasted day today. I guess that’s not too bad, given it’s the first one in Vietnam and our 7th day here. Got up and had breakfast and devos with the group which was good. Then it was off to the Hanoi University – very much like the one on Phu Tho. Met with some of the deans, and then it was off to the classrooms. The kids were great! So eager to meet us and visit with us. We had a great time. Clearly the highlight of the day, which was too bad, given we left the campus at about 11:00.

Then lunch / was fine. Food really really getting familiar. After that we hung out at JP’s home / fell asleep. From there to a Confucius museum. From there to a little more shopping. From there to supper / Italian, not bad. From there to an 8 hour train ride to Sa Pa, which left Hanoi at 9:15.

The train was okay, roomed with Kathy, Mrs. Ngu, and her daughter Mai. Slept most of the way. A truly uneventful day, as witnessed by the length of this entry. kdl

Day Twenty-three – Tuesday, 10/21/08

Got into Lao Cai at about 5:30 a.m. From the train station it was an hour long van ride to the city of Sa Pa. These Vietnamese drivers are unreal! They pass on mountain roads with no guardrails and no visibility, honking their horns every 3.5 seconds, as if that’s supposed to really move cars coming around a curve.

Sa Pa was really something. Clearly a tourist trap, reminded me of a Vietnamese Gatlinburg, TN. We began with just walking around, coming upon a very beautiful, ornate, yet small Catholic church. Had the impression (before we came) that Christianity wasn’t present here. Learned throughout the day that’s just not the case. Not saying many Christians, but there is clearly a Christian presence here.

Then on to shopping / bickering / bargaining. It’s not that we needed a whole lot more (which is why we really didn’t buy that much) but it’s fun to haggle with the locals - kind of a competition. Got something for everyone in our family as well as Kathy’s school kids. It really was fun.

Then we saw the most breathtaking scenery since we got here. We rode up into the mountains (again an exciting adventure) and came to the most beautiful waterfall I’ve ever seen. So tall, so thin, so pretty. It wasn’t a single broad fall like Niagara, but along cliffs and ledges with many different drops. Spectacular! Besides being the most beautiful waterfall I’d ever seen, it may be one of the most beautiful landscapes I’d ever seen. There is no way words can describe it, and I’m afraid even our pictures will not do it justice. We climbed up a very long stairway beside it, yet that didn’t even get us close to halfway to the top.

But there was more to the trip. We got back in the van to look at the different peaks and valleys. What was great was that we were in the middle of it all. We could see down a long ways into the different gorges and up at the different ascents. What made it even prettier was that the sun was peaking through at different places with streaming light. If Monday was one of the lowlights, that two hour excursion on this trip was one of the highlights. God really done good when he created this part of Vietnam.

Then back down the mountain for a simple and relaxed evening: dinner and devos, followed by a card game with JP, Haia, Bill, and Kenton. A nice way to round out the day. It was a very good day. kdl

Day Twenty-four – Wednesday, 10/22/08

Much like Ha Long Bay, just a sight seeing kind of day. We headed out of town and made our way to a “tourist taste of the local villages.” Upon parking, we walked down a very winding, steep, and fun-to-journey-on rock/mud road. We stopped to take many pictures along the way. We were making our way down to a picturesque river bottom in the midst some magnificent mountains/peaks. There were little shops along the way, the locals try very hard to get our American dollar.

We saw two little villages, an Amish-type house raising, school children who sang for us and we for them, ducks, chickens, pigs and piglets, water buffalo, horses, cattle and whatever else makes up a farm community. The only difference is here they raise rice, and the patties are all over the place.

We ate lunch there and it was pretty good. But then the fun began. We had to make our way down a very narrow, steep, wet, muddy, with rocks interspersed path. The footing was so bad one from our group had his foot slip and he slid down the side of the hill about five feet. The local girls wanted to help us down, but in all honesty, they just kind of got in the way. Most of us refused their assistance.

Upon reaching the bottom we made our way back to the van and eventually headed off to another village. The girls/women in this town were so aggressive to sell us their hand made goods that they swarmed the van even before we started to get out. They were very friendly, and we all commented on how pretty they were. But after spending only about an hour there (that’s all it took to see and walk their whole village) off we went.

We made our way down the mountain back to Lao Cai – in all honesty, I just wasn’t too impressed with this city. Was quite dirty and the air was so heavily polluted, much worse than Hanoi. It didn’t help that we were encourage to walk an indoor market and the smell was overpowering. Kathy, Bill, and I chose to walk around the city instead and came across a river walk along the Red River.

We didn’t realize it (we found out later), but we were actually walking toward and very close to China. As we got back into the van we went toward the border, just a little further past our walk. So all in all, we’ve seen 3 countries on this trip: (only the airport in) Taiwan, Vietnam, and (looking across the Red River) China.

Headed to dinner, got on the train, played more cards and slept. Got back into Hanoi at 5:15 a.m. It was a very long day, we’re all getting tired, home comes up in conversation a little more than it has for all of us, and we all know we only have one more full day here. Yet it has to go down as a very good day, glad I lived it. kdl

Day Twenty-five – Thursday, 10/23/08

We began our last full day in Vietnam waking up on the train. Caught the shuttle to a new hotel; very nice. Kathy slept and I putzed around and watched some of the World Series. We were given the morning to be free, so when she got up we went to pick up her jacket and have some breakfast. I may not love all the food here, but their coffee sure is good.

Then it was lunch – a new experience. We went to a place called Pepperoni’s and had pizza. Not too bad. The west, as well as their French history, really has had a lot of influence on this place.

From there it was a tour to see things of Vietnam we had not seen. It began at the Hanoi Hilton – took lots of pictures. That place has some real significance to US because of the war, but the history of that place goes back to the 19th century. It really was kind of eery, rather somber, and we learned a lot about that place. Then more sites – Ho Chi Minh’s tomb, some political buildings, a very large Catholic cathedral, and we were done.

More free time allowed Kathy and me to go for a cyclon (bike powered carriage) ride and a massage. Then it was off to dinner – the most enjoyable meal we had since we had been here. Good food, lots of folks, and a last time to show our appreciation to the missionaries and everybody involved, as well as their chance to show their kindness to us. There was a lot of toasting, but tonight it made sense.

Then we went to a young kind of party spot – very different. It was an intersection where the bars on the corners were all serving very cheap beer while we sat outside, even in the street, and walked from corner to corner. It was different, but we all had a very good time, knowing it would probably be the last night we would all ever be together. Then off to bed. A very good day. kdl

Day Twenty-six – Friday, 10/24/08

Time to pack up. Time to put some final things in place. Time to say good-bye to our hosts. Time to bring it all to an end. Had one more lunch with some of the missionaries, then back to the hotel to say our good-byes. It was good to get to know Dr. Ngu and his wife Dan, Ted and Jacqueline, JP and Amy, Hai, and everyone else along the way. They have been very kind to us and we all appreciate it.

The rest of the day was just spent in airports. Left Hanoi around 5:00, and flew into Taipei. Left Taipei around midnight and got into LA at about 9:00 P.M., still Friday. It was a very long day, well more than 24 hours on our bodies, and the bed was a welcome sight.

The eight of us said our good-byes right there in LAX. We may see all or some of these people in time, we may not. In all honesty, it will probably be difficult to all get together at the same time, given our schedules, and I think, in all honesty, we’re kind of glad the commitment of PLI is over. The people have been great – everyone we’ve met. And we love our collegial group. But to cross this off our calendars may be a welcome thing. It was sad, but at the same time, we’re all glad we had the chance to do it.

Checked into the hotel, had a light supper and off to bed. Tomorrow we go home (can’t wait) and see the kids! It will be so great to see them. Not our most exciting day, but we’re one day closer and making our way to Austin. That made for it to be a good day. kdl

Day Twenty-seven – Saturday, 10/25/08

Got up, got dressed, got to the airport, got in the air and got home – no glitches. Touched down around 2:00. Couldn’t wait to get off the plane and see Jacob. We wouldn’t see Rebekah for a few hours – Confirmation retreat. It was great to see him. I think he’s grown 2 inches in the 2 weeks. Passed out gifts, visited, relaxed, then it was off to get Rebekah.

Great to see her too. We were able to visit all the way home, an hour 15. By the time we got here, it was time for supper. Ate some pizza, watched some college football and the World Series, and off to bed. May not have been the most eventful day, may not have changed the world, but it was a fantastic day for Kathy and me. We got to be back with our children – what’s better? kdl