Viet Nam First Impressions

Having mentally prepared to be thrown in the middle of nowhere Vietnam with few amenities or ways to entertain myself, I was pleasantly surprised when Hannah and I first stepped foot into Khe Sanh. Though definitely not yet a city, it is far from the sparse highway town I had in my mind. The town is growing quickly, with construction projects on every block, an endless supply of coffee shops, and multiple karaoke options. Believe it or not, Hannah and I even got to witness the opening of the town’s first ever night club (to which we mistakenly wore our teaching clothes, thinking we were simply in for a night of sticky rice and goat meat…). We also help teach in a new private kindergarten, a rainbow building nicer than any early education facility I’ve ever seen in the States – and we even have access to (overpriced, defrosted) pizza! Keeping in mind that Khe Sanh is not just a rural town in one of the poorest districts of a developing country, it was also the site of the longest and bloodiest battle of the Vietnam War, this progress is especially impressive. However, while the local economy seems to be budding, the town is still relatively small, and just outside its borders are mountain villages of struggling ethnic minorities.

To continue, I’ve been fortunate to have traveled to more of the world than most, and I’ve never met people I wouldn’t characterize as friendly – but every place has its unique quirks. One of the first things I noticed here is that while the Vietnamese, too, are friendly and welcoming, in some ways they are simultaneously aggressive! In this corner of the globe, the concept of personal space does not exist, and being a Westerner, people tend to be quite tactile with you; so here, women are constantly touching me in an affectionate, yet forceful way. I will be two steps away from the front door, and a neighbor will suddenly grab me and quite literally drag me into their house for tea. I see students slap each other all the time – playfully, yet painfully. And in general it seems people don’t really know how to accept being told ‘no’. They will keep pushing and pushing until you listen to their advice or finish your glass of Saigon. Sometimes they will sneakily plop another piece of pork fat into your rice bowl or shove a slice of mango into your hand, and throw their head back and cackle. While sometimes seemingly meek and calm, they’re also pretty feisty, and I love it. Another aspect of Vietnamese culture that immediately grabbed my attention was simply its resemblance to China. The Chinese influence is much stronger here than in any other part of Southeast Asia since they were ruled on and off by them for much of their history. Hannah and I took a day trip into the nearby city of Hue, the capital of Vietnam for 150 years where a number of emperors were entombed, to see this on a grand scale, but it can be seen just outside of most Vietnamese homes. Like in Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos, “spirit houses” are a must for many people’s yards; however, here in central Vietnam, and maybe other parts of the country too, many of them have the Chinese character for ‘good luck’ on them. Chinese ancestor worship mixed with a little Buddhism and sprinkled with Vietnamese folklore is the closest thing most Vietnamese have to a religion. China and Vietnam have an incredibly long and complex relationship though, so despite the many ways parts of Chinese language and culture are still used in Vietnam – and the two countries’ identical political systems – it has been made very clear to me that most Vietnamese “hate” the Chinese. Because of South China Sea territorial disputes, tensions are currently very high. Though only our host has brought up the issue with us so far, it seems adults must be discussing it a lot, as one middle school student once randomly blurted out “I hate China” with no prompting.

And lastly, the reason we are here: my first impressions with teaching have been extremely mixed. Tweens are pretty much the worst – but I can’t help but love them. One would think that teaching for a year in Indonesia would have prepared me for how painfully awkward these mid-pubescent, self-conscious kids are, but little did I know that was a walk in the park compared to what awaited me. At the middle school summer program, sometimes I will ask students to answer a question or participate in some other way, and they will flat out ignore me. When I ask students to really shout their answers, they seem to interpret that as whispering just loud enough for me to hear. And games most American students would consider recess, they play with the fear of god in their eyes. Yet, every now and then we’ll have a really awesome moment together, and it will make up for everything else. All I can say is that it has been baffling, but I am ready to keep trying. As for private evening classes with our host’s students and afternoon classes at the private kindergarten, it is an absolute joy to teach them and the only issue is that they may actually be having too much fun. The toddlers say “imfinethankyou” as one word and look like tiny adults because of all the jewelry they’re dressed up in – it’s adorable.

With so much to take in, it is surprising how easy it was for life here to begin to feel normal. Fresh dragon fruit from the market around the corner from us has now become a staple in my diet. We know where all the children live on the main road because they yell ‘hello’ to us every time we pass. We know the banh mi (Vietnamese sandwich) lady’s selling schedule and which cafés make coffee the way we like. The stench of durian being sold on the street doesn’t make me gag nearly as much as when I first came to Asia, and taking my shoes off before entering any indoor space is second nature now. Unfortunately, we are only here for a short while, but already the experience has been such a gift. With our remaining few weeks, we hope to continue to absorb as much as we can – and finally make my 8th graders loosen up a bit.