We hope everyone had a great holiday season with family and friends. It came and went in a flash for us, partly due to the fact that it is 95 degrees everyday and partly due to getting very limited time off around Christmas. Regardless, we've kept ourselves very busy over the last month, including a trip to the beach and welcoming our first visitors, Madelyn's parents, to Saigon!
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| Cocktails poolside in December? Only in SE Asia! |
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| During a holiday PUB crawl, we won a couples game that required us to wrap a present with one hand each. The prize was a free shot! |
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| On Christmas Eve, work hosted a beautiful buffet lunch for all of the staff. |
We've realized the importance of taking advantage of weekend time to explore different parts of Saigon. We explored around District 5, also known as China town.
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| Fake flower shops are very popular in Saigon |
One of the most memorable parts of the last month was getting to be a part of the craziness as the Vietnam soccer team won against Malaysia in the AFF Suzuki Cup. We went down into the city, after getting some gear on the side of the road, and cheered on Vietnam amongst hundred of thousands of fans. All the streets were closed down, and the game was projected onto big screens every few blocks. We'll never forget the excitement of the evening, or how long it took us to get home.
We've made a goal to travel to one new place for a weekend each month, and December's destination was the coast of Vietnam to a little beach resort called Coco Beach. Six of us loaded into a car and spent the weekend on the beach, sipping cocktails out of coconuts and swimming in the South China Sea. The highlight of our beach trip? Finding out we BOTH PASSED OUR BOARDS!! We now officially represent 2/3 of Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBA's) in Vietnam.
Just after Christmas, Madelyn's parents arrived in HCMC. We loved being able to show people we love our new home and kept ourselves busy exploring this beautifully chaotic city. We're so thankful they made the trip out to see us, even if that meant saying the dreaded "see you later" again.
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| At a pit stop we thought was just to use the restroom, we got a full tour of a chocolate factory. This sweet woman was explaining the process of identifying the best cocoa beans. |
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| Cu Chi Tunnels. Not Pictured: The four of us crawling through 100 meters of Vietnam war era tunnels on our hands and knees. A somber, yet somewhat thrilling experience. |
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| Mekong Delta, the countryside of Vietnam. |
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| We winded through the narrow roads of the Mekong Delta on bicycles and stopped at various homes to see different local businesses, such as a mushroom farmer and a naturopathic medication provider. |
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| Mr. Hai, a fruit farmer (and war veteran) in the Mekong Delta, quickly found the one to pick on in the group and these two shared a bond in no time! We still smile thinking of how much Mr. Hai made us all laugh. |
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| We spent most afternoons exploring the craft beer scene in Thao Dien. |
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| Top of the Rex Hotel, the historic hotel in District 1 that was made famous during the Vietnam War for hosting the American military daily press conferences. The rooftop bar was a well-known spot for military officials and journalists. |
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| One night was spent riding around on the back of retro Vespa scooters and eating local food from a variety of restaurants. We quickly learned Kevin was the most adventurous eater of us all: he ate a quail embryo while the rest of us were brave enough to try several types of snails. Yum! |
Happy new year from Vietnam! 2018 was a big year for both of us. We finished graduate school, moved to a different country and passed our board exams. We can't wait to see what 2019 brings!
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| Distant New Years fireworks from the banks of the Saigon River. |
