Allambie Orphanage and the Vietnam War Memorial

Today was unexpectedly full of emotions for me and understandably for Kim. Suzanne had a whole day planned for us... from lunch to dropping us at the Vietnam War Memorial to finally visiting the orphanage we've waited months to see with this woman who Kim has so many connections to. 

Lunch: 

Suzanne and two of her children, Shar, and Nhi came to pick us up on their motorbikes and drove us to a delicious lunch in a non-tourist area of Ho Chi Minh City. We ate Bun Cha (see picture below) which this restaurant was known for. We laughed hard at conversations about how "woof woof" is a delicacy and eaten in the countryside of Vietnam on holidays such as Christmas and Tet (vietnmese new year). We laughed at how the Vietnamese drop things on the floor and don't pick it up, it is customary to leave it to have the staff sweep up at the end of the day! Crazy! 

 

 

Vietnam War Memorial:

This part was unexpected. Suzanne strongly recommended we go here so we could understand more about the circumstances surrounding Kim's birth. Bottom line: Kim is lucky to be alive.... she is lucky that her life turned out the way that it did. So many children died in the Vietnam war. Just because they were children didn't mean that their lives were spared. This made it that much harder to realize that Kim could be a child of war. Who knows what could have happened to her. So much happened during the Vietnam war and I don't think Kim nor I had a handle on what the American relationship with Vietnam was during the war. 

We also went to the Notre Dame church and post office which were both French and not bombed by the war. It was an amazing site to see things that survived because so much of the city was destroyed. 

Allambie:

The end of the night was the best. We got an opportunity to spend the night with the children of the orphanage. There is nothing that would too this night off. Kim and I got to use rice paper to make our own spring rolls, sit with a family that shows more love that we have ever seen, and play a new card game that Americans wouldn't understand. Immediately we felt a part of this home... we wished we could stay longer when we left. The children embraced us. The night was full of laughter and games and culture. 

    

The orphanage is a home we couldn't imagine experiencing. Suzanne, the founder, is an amazing influence in the lives of these children. As teachers, one can only hope a child loves them this much outside of their biological parents. Kim cried leaving. The kids told her this was a "see you later," not a "goodbye."  They are one of the biggest reasons we are here and cannot wait to share with our students.