but he was born three months too late. Do you see the rock star pose? I love him. Love him. Nancy, you do good work. Yes, he's so cute I thought he deserved his own post.
The way we were....
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
The Gorgeous Boy That Could Have Married Layla...
but he was born three months too late. Do you see the rock star pose? I love him. Love him. Nancy, you do good work. Yes, he's so cute I thought he deserved his own post.
The way we were....
The End of the World As We Know It
Thank you to everyone who has followed along with my journey. For the emails, I didn’t respond to or in Carol’s case the shortest email she’s ever received and I’ve ever sent, but don’t worry I will get respond between now and Easter or the 4th, for the posts, for the prayers, for the words of encouragement, I truly appreciated them. They made me feel as if I was still at home, you know minus the billion motor bikes, the sidewalk restaurants, the lack of dairy and McD’s. How did people adopt pre-the internet? And thank you to those who weren’t interested and just deleted my emails or skipped my posts, thanks for not emailing me to say you were doing this. (Tracy, I think your Christmas letters are a work of genius and proudly show them off. Love ya and miss ya, sister!) So with that said, let’s begin the journey home.
You know what I’ll miss about Vietnam - - the fashion police. I was cited three times, the first time by the maid at the Lan Lan in Saigon. Speaking no English, she made it clear that Layla needed a hat on before we left the hotel. I kindly showed her the hood attached to the jacket that Aunt Angela gave us (Thanks Aunt Angela for Layla’s first gift.). The maid was happy with this and let us leave. In retrospect, it was like a conversation I would have had with my mom. She even cleaned the room like my mom, reorganizing things so I could find them better.
The second time, I was reprimanded by a woman in the Old Quarter in Hanoi for Layla not having pants on. I guess her dress was unacceptable. It was too cold for a dress. Did I mention the weather was somewhere between 65 – 69 degrees and people were selling snowsuits for babies?
And the third time by our Hanoi escort, as I paying the hotel bill he gently asked, if that was all Layla was wearing? She was in a romper. I told him, no, that I had her outfit in the bag and would have to change her in the car. How was he to know that I took a shower, dressed two people, fed two people, packed, and said my goodbyes in an hour and a half? So I felt like a rock star for the fact Layla and I were downstairs on time. As I changed Layla in the car, I saw Hong looking back at us, maybe to make sure I was really changing Layla into something warm and also because the chicky would not stop crying while I changed her.
That’s another thing I’ll miss, how concerned people are about the babies. I bet Layla could have been in a dress in Moorhead in -70 below and not one person would have come up to me and said, your daughter should be dressed warmer than that. I’ll miss total strangers coming up to Layla or rather Ben and playing with him and talking to him. The Vietnamese really love children, men and women. I don’t know if in the US, I’ve ever had a man come up to me and say one of my kids was cute or engage me in conversation about my children.
I’ll also miss seeing how much stuff you can put on a scooter. I’ve seen people carrying long building poles on their scooters; boxes stacked 5 boxes high, containers, and floral arrangements. I even saw a woman riding a scooter who had one of those old fashioned hat suitcases around her wrist, while her passenger in the back was holding a laundry basket full of stuff.
I’m amazed how the backseat riders don’t even hold on to the drivers of the motor bikes. I’ve seen some backseat riders even ride with their hands in their pockets. I’d be holding on for dear life. The traffic is INSANE. Everyone is beeping. Beeping for you to watch out, beeping for you to get out of the way, beeping for you to move to the side, beeping for you to let them in. I’m sure some people beep because they see someone they know, but I don’t think I ever saw one of those beeps.
I’m surprised there aren’t more accidents. We were involved in one. Our taxi cab was rear ended; the person who hit us kept driving. Our taxi cab driver pulled over, saw there was no damage, and kept driving us to our location. Walking back from the Water Puppet Show, we saw two scooters get into an accident. Thankfully everyone was okay, but there was a whole lot of yelling going on.
I’m telling you if we moved to Saigon and I opened a scooter repair shop and started a restaurant right in front of my shop, we’d be set for LIFE.
Also, I saw people talking on cell phones on motor bikes. How can you possibly hear anything the person on the other line is saying with all the noise? I decided that the scooter drivers only answered the phone when it was someone on the line that they didn’t want to talk to, that way they could pretend to listen, yet not hear one word the person said. And if the person said, “Are you listening?” You could use the traffic as an excuse. The best of both worlds.
I’ll miss the dong. Though I never really exchanged my dollars for dong, it’s always so cool to talk about money in the thousands and hundred thousand. Italy, why did you give up the lira? Why?
How much is that? 90,000 dong, okay I’ll take it. Maybe one day, I can say that in English about something. How much? 90K, give me two.
I made a realization in Da Nang that I’m a total LA mom. The guy working at the hotel said something to me and I replied, “Si.” Then I realized I wasn’t in LA, so I signed yes. And then I thought, I’m not talking to my kids. FYI – ASL and Spanish just as useless as English.
God has been so good to me on this trip. I had great traveling companions who were willing and offered to help me out, the single traveler, any way they could. I’m so grateful to them for that. And at the airport, who do I run into in the Eva Airline line (fly Eva, it totally rocks!) but a mom who I met briefly in our hotel in Saigon. After being in Vietnam for three weeks, she and her hubby, their seven-year-old son, and their new baby boy were heading home to Wisconsin. She remembered me and she too offered to help me. And Eva sat all three newly formed families right behind each other on the plane. This had the potential of being a complete nightmare, but Layla, Nicholas, and the other baby boy stepped up to the plate and were angels. Okay, Layla cried for about five minutes en route to Taipei, but for a two hour plane ride I didn’t think that was so bad.
When we got off the plane in Taipei, I was mentally prepared for our 6 hour layover. I figured Layla and I got hang out and be fine, but as I walking down the terminal I saw my name on a board being held by an Eva representative. I panicked for a moment, but quickly put fear aside and walked to the ticket counter. I never did find out what they wanted, but I did get myself on the flight leaving in an hour and a half. SCORE! I said goodbye the Wisconsin family that had a 9 hour layover in San Fran and another 36 hours left of traveling before getting home. Once again, I’m so glad “The city I live in, the city of angels.” Sing it, Anthony!
The time flew by quickly though Uncle Steve, when this Dell Inspiron dies, the next laptop needs to be smaller and lighter. At times, I thought my back would break. I’m pretty sure that when my I arrived at my row, the guy to my right was calling the flight attendant so he could move to a baby free area. I’m sure he was thinking 13 hours with a baby, I don’t think so. But the plane was full, so he had to sit next to us. In my own unbiased opinion, I think Layla did very well on the plane ride. And the guy that wanted to move, even tried to entertain her when she faced his way. And the guy to our left, even alerted me when she started spitting up and tried to help me clean up. Once again, I was so blessed to be sitting next to two great people.
Layla’s biggest difficulty with the ride was sleeping in the bassinette that was hooked into the wall in front of us. The bassinette reminded me of the Moses basket, minus the hood part and the handles on the side. Layla has proven to be a light sleeper so whenever she would fall asleep and I would lift her into the bassinette, her eyes would pop open and she would start crying. The times I did convince her to go back to sleep while in it, she would wake up 30 minutes later and I would take her out in fear she would wake another passenger. Then I would try to put her back to sleep…Well you get the cycle. I’m pretty sure she was doing this so I wouldn’t get too much sleep. After going through this five or six times, she finally went to sleep, with the safety belt around her stomach. The downside is that during turbulence you have to take the baby out of the bassinette. Uh flight attendant, don’t you think it would maybe help the baby stay sleep, like a car ride? That was a no go.
I have to say the Taipei airport maybe my favorite new airport. It’s so informative. Case in point, this was on the wall as we waited for our flight home.
Picking chrysanthemums
The chrysanthemums can be brewed into tea & are a valued Chinese herb that clears away heat, removes toxins, improves the liver function, and protects eyesight. These make it a good drink for modern people with their often greasy diets.
Did you know this about chrysanthemums? And this was complete with a picture of women picking them.
Also as we were landing they showed a new version of the “If you have a cough wear a mask” cartoon. It was as cute and as interesting as ever. A country that wants you to be as healthy as possible. How do you beat that?
Then a new cartoon appeared which reminded me of the Concordia Safety videos, we had to watch each year. The first scenario featured a sort of thug looking man asking a stranger to put some fireworks into his suitcase for him. Suddenly a McGruff, the crime dog, reincarnation appeared, except this dog wasn’t wearing a trench coat and hat and didn’t look as fierce, and told you this was wrong. The second scenario was of a man being approached by a woman, in a red strapless dress, asking the man to check her box in as his own. Once again the McGruff wanna be said, just say no. And the last one was of a man being handed a package from a random stranger inside the airport. The dog said this wrong also. Why don’t all countries show such videos before you land in their country? These videos were clever and smart and much better than the crap LA showed.
Angie Dickinson getting a star is supposed to attract people to LA? Does anyone know who she even is who wasn’t born before Jesus? Really?! Showing the opening of the Coliseum and the Olympics is really LA’s claim to fame. Uh, weren’t the Olympics here when I was just a gleam in my parents’ eyes? They gave their standard shots of Rodeo Dr, the Hollywood sign, etc….but the video screamed “Dynasty” which was fitting since they showed a shot of Joan Collins at her Bob Mackie best. Adam and Alex should submit a video to the powers that be at LAX so Los Angelinos don’t have to hold their heads down in shame once this travesty starts airing.
Sadly, the movie selection had changed and not for the better. I started off with Lakeview Terrace starring Samuel “The Man” L. Jackson. Uh, yeah. I’ve head Sam say when he was a kid all the adults in his house went to work every day so he has that same work ethic. I know some actors go on and on about the right project, yada, yada. So I admire Sam’s stance, but sometimes it’s okay to say “No.” This was a time, he could have used that two letter word. I watched the first twenty-five minutes and just had to bounce.
This time I reluctantly chose Eagle Eye. What a shocker that one was. Shia LeBouf is a good actor. He’s totally believable. It had a great supporting cast, including Billy Bob Thornton and Michelle Monahan. I truly enjoyed this film.
Then in support of womanhood or because I was sleep deprived I decided to watch The Women. Diane English, of the wonderful My Sister Sam and Murphy Brown fame, is the really the best you could do? On Murphy’s worst episode was a gazillion times better than this hot mess! And FYI - if being betrayed by your female best friend hurts more than your husband (spoiler alert) cheating on you, then you shouldn’t be MARRIED! But on the positive side, the film did “star” the second smartest woman in Hollywood, Jada Pinkett Smith. The first of course being, Kate Capshaw. If these two women gave a lecture at Learning Annex, Whit, Mel, and I would be there with bells on. Ah, the genius.
After being bored to sleep and then for some unknown reason waking up and rewinding to watch the end of The Women, I moved on to Death Race. Senseless violence is not really my cup of tea, but Jason Statham was great. But really Joan Allen has our career sunk so low that we have to star in a picture with the “actor” Tyrese Gibson? Really?! Tyrese should go back to singing in Coke commercials. I really liked him then. Sweet lady won’t you be mine…
Then I decided to leave the horrible world of the Hollywood selections behind when I found myself seriously considering watching Open Arms 2 and found a gem in the international section. The Italian film, La Sconociuta or The Unknown Woman, was released in 2006 and directed by Giuseppe Tornatore. Great! Riveting! And it went off, due to plane descent or something stupid like that, with about 20 minutes left. If anyone has seen this film can you please tell me how act three ends. I knew I should have watched this film first. Darn you, Samuel L. for sucking me in.
So there’s my movie review. In these two flights to and from Taipei, I’ve seen more movies than I have since becoming a mother 4 years ago.
Two hours just as I predicted after our flight landed, Layla and I were greeted at the door by Jory.
“Mommy, you have Sasha?”
“Jory, this isn’t Sasha.”
“Oma, Mommy’s here with Sasha.”
I guess every baby girl will be named Sasha in his world. And every baby that my mom isn’t prepared for will always be a baby doll at first.
“Is that a baby doll, Yash?”
“Uh, no. This is Katarzyna.”
Layla is such a trooper and I have truly been blessed. At the doctor's, I discovered I’m suffering from insomnia and Layla has a double ear infection. My baby flew across an ocean with both ears hurting. She’s my own personal rock star. This on top of all the new sights and smells, she was dealing with. Dec 28th, she had only seen probably down the alley in front of her orphanage and Jan 9th she’s taken 4 airplane rides and is being driven all across the greatest city in the world running errands with her Oma, big brother, and big sister. Though on the upside, her illness meant her doctor refused to start her immunization or do blood tests. I love our ped! She had Layla’s height checked twice because she couldn’t believe an almost-one-year-old was only 25 inches. She gave us some high caloric formula, so we’ll see what that does. If Layla is too short she can’t wear my wedding dress. Darn it, one of these girls is wearing this dress. I’m not saving it for my health.
And on that note, we are done. This has been an experience of a lifetime and as I look at the sleeping Layla and Rowan beside me, I know that every heartache, every pain, it was all worth it to be here. To be here with my new baby girl, who doesn’t know the meaning of the word nap or schedule (ha! ha! Let’s see if daycare changes that.); and her big sissy, who is still adjusting to not being picked up every time she asks. And to be with the greatest boy in the world, who now calls Rowan the baby or the other baby and Layla, the baby, the little baby or the other baby, and who takes to being a big brother like a fish to water, which I’m taking as a total sign from God that he is so going to be the Tiger Woods of swimming. Lessons start back up next Saturday.
“Mommy, the baby is crying because she loves you!” Did I mention Jory is also a sensitive, genius? Must some evil woman ruin him? The words of great philosophers run through my mind, “Girls of the world ain’t nothing but trouble….Never trust a big butt and a smile that girl is poison.”
But I digress, I’ve truly been blessed with my three great kids. And I have such peace to know we’re at the end of our adoption journey or at least for many, many years. There’s no thoughts of working on the next adoption or bringing home Jack (that’s the next kid’s name). We’re just going to be. Be a family. Be a group of people madly in love.
How lovely on the mountains are the feet of Him
Who brings good news
Good news;
Announcing peace, proclaiming news of happiness:
Our God reigns, our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
This is the airplane bed. That's Ben in the bed, I didn't get one of Layla in hers.
Sleeping in our hotel room in Hanoi.
You know what I’ll miss about Vietnam - - the fashion police. I was cited three times, the first time by the maid at the Lan Lan in Saigon. Speaking no English, she made it clear that Layla needed a hat on before we left the hotel. I kindly showed her the hood attached to the jacket that Aunt Angela gave us (Thanks Aunt Angela for Layla’s first gift.). The maid was happy with this and let us leave. In retrospect, it was like a conversation I would have had with my mom. She even cleaned the room like my mom, reorganizing things so I could find them better.
The second time, I was reprimanded by a woman in the Old Quarter in Hanoi for Layla not having pants on. I guess her dress was unacceptable. It was too cold for a dress. Did I mention the weather was somewhere between 65 – 69 degrees and people were selling snowsuits for babies?
And the third time by our Hanoi escort, as I paying the hotel bill he gently asked, if that was all Layla was wearing? She was in a romper. I told him, no, that I had her outfit in the bag and would have to change her in the car. How was he to know that I took a shower, dressed two people, fed two people, packed, and said my goodbyes in an hour and a half? So I felt like a rock star for the fact Layla and I were downstairs on time. As I changed Layla in the car, I saw Hong looking back at us, maybe to make sure I was really changing Layla into something warm and also because the chicky would not stop crying while I changed her.
That’s another thing I’ll miss, how concerned people are about the babies. I bet Layla could have been in a dress in Moorhead in -70 below and not one person would have come up to me and said, your daughter should be dressed warmer than that. I’ll miss total strangers coming up to Layla or rather Ben and playing with him and talking to him. The Vietnamese really love children, men and women. I don’t know if in the US, I’ve ever had a man come up to me and say one of my kids was cute or engage me in conversation about my children.
I’ll also miss seeing how much stuff you can put on a scooter. I’ve seen people carrying long building poles on their scooters; boxes stacked 5 boxes high, containers, and floral arrangements. I even saw a woman riding a scooter who had one of those old fashioned hat suitcases around her wrist, while her passenger in the back was holding a laundry basket full of stuff.
I’m amazed how the backseat riders don’t even hold on to the drivers of the motor bikes. I’ve seen some backseat riders even ride with their hands in their pockets. I’d be holding on for dear life. The traffic is INSANE. Everyone is beeping. Beeping for you to watch out, beeping for you to get out of the way, beeping for you to move to the side, beeping for you to let them in. I’m sure some people beep because they see someone they know, but I don’t think I ever saw one of those beeps.
I’m surprised there aren’t more accidents. We were involved in one. Our taxi cab was rear ended; the person who hit us kept driving. Our taxi cab driver pulled over, saw there was no damage, and kept driving us to our location. Walking back from the Water Puppet Show, we saw two scooters get into an accident. Thankfully everyone was okay, but there was a whole lot of yelling going on.
I’m telling you if we moved to Saigon and I opened a scooter repair shop and started a restaurant right in front of my shop, we’d be set for LIFE.
Also, I saw people talking on cell phones on motor bikes. How can you possibly hear anything the person on the other line is saying with all the noise? I decided that the scooter drivers only answered the phone when it was someone on the line that they didn’t want to talk to, that way they could pretend to listen, yet not hear one word the person said. And if the person said, “Are you listening?” You could use the traffic as an excuse. The best of both worlds.
I’ll miss the dong. Though I never really exchanged my dollars for dong, it’s always so cool to talk about money in the thousands and hundred thousand. Italy, why did you give up the lira? Why?
How much is that? 90,000 dong, okay I’ll take it. Maybe one day, I can say that in English about something. How much? 90K, give me two.
I made a realization in Da Nang that I’m a total LA mom. The guy working at the hotel said something to me and I replied, “Si.” Then I realized I wasn’t in LA, so I signed yes. And then I thought, I’m not talking to my kids. FYI – ASL and Spanish just as useless as English.
God has been so good to me on this trip. I had great traveling companions who were willing and offered to help me out, the single traveler, any way they could. I’m so grateful to them for that. And at the airport, who do I run into in the Eva Airline line (fly Eva, it totally rocks!) but a mom who I met briefly in our hotel in Saigon. After being in Vietnam for three weeks, she and her hubby, their seven-year-old son, and their new baby boy were heading home to Wisconsin. She remembered me and she too offered to help me. And Eva sat all three newly formed families right behind each other on the plane. This had the potential of being a complete nightmare, but Layla, Nicholas, and the other baby boy stepped up to the plate and were angels. Okay, Layla cried for about five minutes en route to Taipei, but for a two hour plane ride I didn’t think that was so bad.
When we got off the plane in Taipei, I was mentally prepared for our 6 hour layover. I figured Layla and I got hang out and be fine, but as I walking down the terminal I saw my name on a board being held by an Eva representative. I panicked for a moment, but quickly put fear aside and walked to the ticket counter. I never did find out what they wanted, but I did get myself on the flight leaving in an hour and a half. SCORE! I said goodbye the Wisconsin family that had a 9 hour layover in San Fran and another 36 hours left of traveling before getting home. Once again, I’m so glad “The city I live in, the city of angels.” Sing it, Anthony!
The time flew by quickly though Uncle Steve, when this Dell Inspiron dies, the next laptop needs to be smaller and lighter. At times, I thought my back would break. I’m pretty sure that when my I arrived at my row, the guy to my right was calling the flight attendant so he could move to a baby free area. I’m sure he was thinking 13 hours with a baby, I don’t think so. But the plane was full, so he had to sit next to us. In my own unbiased opinion, I think Layla did very well on the plane ride. And the guy that wanted to move, even tried to entertain her when she faced his way. And the guy to our left, even alerted me when she started spitting up and tried to help me clean up. Once again, I was so blessed to be sitting next to two great people.
Layla’s biggest difficulty with the ride was sleeping in the bassinette that was hooked into the wall in front of us. The bassinette reminded me of the Moses basket, minus the hood part and the handles on the side. Layla has proven to be a light sleeper so whenever she would fall asleep and I would lift her into the bassinette, her eyes would pop open and she would start crying. The times I did convince her to go back to sleep while in it, she would wake up 30 minutes later and I would take her out in fear she would wake another passenger. Then I would try to put her back to sleep…Well you get the cycle. I’m pretty sure she was doing this so I wouldn’t get too much sleep. After going through this five or six times, she finally went to sleep, with the safety belt around her stomach. The downside is that during turbulence you have to take the baby out of the bassinette. Uh flight attendant, don’t you think it would maybe help the baby stay sleep, like a car ride? That was a no go.
I have to say the Taipei airport maybe my favorite new airport. It’s so informative. Case in point, this was on the wall as we waited for our flight home.
Picking chrysanthemums
The chrysanthemums can be brewed into tea & are a valued Chinese herb that clears away heat, removes toxins, improves the liver function, and protects eyesight. These make it a good drink for modern people with their often greasy diets.
Did you know this about chrysanthemums? And this was complete with a picture of women picking them.
Also as we were landing they showed a new version of the “If you have a cough wear a mask” cartoon. It was as cute and as interesting as ever. A country that wants you to be as healthy as possible. How do you beat that?
Then a new cartoon appeared which reminded me of the Concordia Safety videos, we had to watch each year. The first scenario featured a sort of thug looking man asking a stranger to put some fireworks into his suitcase for him. Suddenly a McGruff, the crime dog, reincarnation appeared, except this dog wasn’t wearing a trench coat and hat and didn’t look as fierce, and told you this was wrong. The second scenario was of a man being approached by a woman, in a red strapless dress, asking the man to check her box in as his own. Once again the McGruff wanna be said, just say no. And the last one was of a man being handed a package from a random stranger inside the airport. The dog said this wrong also. Why don’t all countries show such videos before you land in their country? These videos were clever and smart and much better than the crap LA showed.
Angie Dickinson getting a star is supposed to attract people to LA? Does anyone know who she even is who wasn’t born before Jesus? Really?! Showing the opening of the Coliseum and the Olympics is really LA’s claim to fame. Uh, weren’t the Olympics here when I was just a gleam in my parents’ eyes? They gave their standard shots of Rodeo Dr, the Hollywood sign, etc….but the video screamed “Dynasty” which was fitting since they showed a shot of Joan Collins at her Bob Mackie best. Adam and Alex should submit a video to the powers that be at LAX so Los Angelinos don’t have to hold their heads down in shame once this travesty starts airing.
Sadly, the movie selection had changed and not for the better. I started off with Lakeview Terrace starring Samuel “The Man” L. Jackson. Uh, yeah. I’ve head Sam say when he was a kid all the adults in his house went to work every day so he has that same work ethic. I know some actors go on and on about the right project, yada, yada. So I admire Sam’s stance, but sometimes it’s okay to say “No.” This was a time, he could have used that two letter word. I watched the first twenty-five minutes and just had to bounce.
This time I reluctantly chose Eagle Eye. What a shocker that one was. Shia LeBouf is a good actor. He’s totally believable. It had a great supporting cast, including Billy Bob Thornton and Michelle Monahan. I truly enjoyed this film.
Then in support of womanhood or because I was sleep deprived I decided to watch The Women. Diane English, of the wonderful My Sister Sam and Murphy Brown fame, is the really the best you could do? On Murphy’s worst episode was a gazillion times better than this hot mess! And FYI - if being betrayed by your female best friend hurts more than your husband (spoiler alert) cheating on you, then you shouldn’t be MARRIED! But on the positive side, the film did “star” the second smartest woman in Hollywood, Jada Pinkett Smith. The first of course being, Kate Capshaw. If these two women gave a lecture at Learning Annex, Whit, Mel, and I would be there with bells on. Ah, the genius.
After being bored to sleep and then for some unknown reason waking up and rewinding to watch the end of The Women, I moved on to Death Race. Senseless violence is not really my cup of tea, but Jason Statham was great. But really Joan Allen has our career sunk so low that we have to star in a picture with the “actor” Tyrese Gibson? Really?! Tyrese should go back to singing in Coke commercials. I really liked him then. Sweet lady won’t you be mine…
Then I decided to leave the horrible world of the Hollywood selections behind when I found myself seriously considering watching Open Arms 2 and found a gem in the international section. The Italian film, La Sconociuta or The Unknown Woman, was released in 2006 and directed by Giuseppe Tornatore. Great! Riveting! And it went off, due to plane descent or something stupid like that, with about 20 minutes left. If anyone has seen this film can you please tell me how act three ends. I knew I should have watched this film first. Darn you, Samuel L. for sucking me in.
So there’s my movie review. In these two flights to and from Taipei, I’ve seen more movies than I have since becoming a mother 4 years ago.
Two hours just as I predicted after our flight landed, Layla and I were greeted at the door by Jory.
“Mommy, you have Sasha?”
“Jory, this isn’t Sasha.”
“Oma, Mommy’s here with Sasha.”
I guess every baby girl will be named Sasha in his world. And every baby that my mom isn’t prepared for will always be a baby doll at first.
“Is that a baby doll, Yash?”
“Uh, no. This is Katarzyna.”
Layla is such a trooper and I have truly been blessed. At the doctor's, I discovered I’m suffering from insomnia and Layla has a double ear infection. My baby flew across an ocean with both ears hurting. She’s my own personal rock star. This on top of all the new sights and smells, she was dealing with. Dec 28th, she had only seen probably down the alley in front of her orphanage and Jan 9th she’s taken 4 airplane rides and is being driven all across the greatest city in the world running errands with her Oma, big brother, and big sister. Though on the upside, her illness meant her doctor refused to start her immunization or do blood tests. I love our ped! She had Layla’s height checked twice because she couldn’t believe an almost-one-year-old was only 25 inches. She gave us some high caloric formula, so we’ll see what that does. If Layla is too short she can’t wear my wedding dress. Darn it, one of these girls is wearing this dress. I’m not saving it for my health.
And on that note, we are done. This has been an experience of a lifetime and as I look at the sleeping Layla and Rowan beside me, I know that every heartache, every pain, it was all worth it to be here. To be here with my new baby girl, who doesn’t know the meaning of the word nap or schedule (ha! ha! Let’s see if daycare changes that.); and her big sissy, who is still adjusting to not being picked up every time she asks. And to be with the greatest boy in the world, who now calls Rowan the baby or the other baby and Layla, the baby, the little baby or the other baby, and who takes to being a big brother like a fish to water, which I’m taking as a total sign from God that he is so going to be the Tiger Woods of swimming. Lessons start back up next Saturday.
“Mommy, the baby is crying because she loves you!” Did I mention Jory is also a sensitive, genius? Must some evil woman ruin him? The words of great philosophers run through my mind, “Girls of the world ain’t nothing but trouble….Never trust a big butt and a smile that girl is poison.”
But I digress, I’ve truly been blessed with my three great kids. And I have such peace to know we’re at the end of our adoption journey or at least for many, many years. There’s no thoughts of working on the next adoption or bringing home Jack (that’s the next kid’s name). We’re just going to be. Be a family. Be a group of people madly in love.
How lovely on the mountains are the feet of Him
Who brings good news
Good news;
Announcing peace, proclaiming news of happiness:
Our God reigns, our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
Our God reigns!
This is the airplane bed. That's Ben in the bed, I didn't get one of Layla in hers.
Sleeping in our hotel room in Hanoi.
Day Eleven
Why do Europeans and Vietnamese love such tall bathtubs? I feel like I’m jumping hurdles every time I take a shower. And speaking of showers, why don’t they like shower heads that are attached to the wall? The shower head at the end of a hose is not a shower; instead it reminds me of getting my hair washed at the beauty salon or in the kitchen on a lazy Saturday afternoon. Maybe there’s some connection between the high tub and the shower hose.
What I did find interesting was at the hotels, we’ve stayed at didn’t have bidets but instead shower hoses next to the toilet. I wonder if this is more cost effective than a bidet or if these hotels felt the hose was more practical.
Enough about the bathrooms today is d-day. We have a 2PM appointment, a 1:30PM pick up time to take us to the US Embassy for the visa interview. With Layla’s visa in hand, we would be free to leave the country ASAP. There is a chance we could get the visas back the same day. I hope we do. I’m feeling antsy
This trip is the culmination of my lifelong dream to adopt, granted I’m not in China or Guatemala as I thought I would be, but I’m some place better, the place where my daughter was born. Yet while my dream is being fulfilled, this trip is neither a vacation nor a complete business trip, it’s something in between. I wonder if it’s that something in between that’s making me want to go home ASAP. Or is it that I feel like I’m still living a dream since my whole family isn’t together. I miss my babies. I miss my bed. I miss being able to drink the shower water if I want to. I miss tap water.
I miss being able to choose to eat something other than steamed rice or fried rice. Though points for me for taking more chances with my meals then I could have ever imagined. I lived it up by having Cantonese fried rice at the buffet at the Saigon airport. I even had some no named snack that tasted like Cheetos, except without the cheese, at the Indian restaurant, along with my steamed rice.
I came to Vietnam with 14 bags of Ramen noodles, beef and chicken, 12 packages of delicious fruit snacks, and 12 tuna and crackers on the go. While the tuna isn’t as great as my own, I have to say these little packages of tuna and crackers really hit the spot. And fruit in a plastic container has never tasted so good. Only this morning have I had to open a package of noodles and sadly there were a disaster. I couldn’t find the seasoning package nor did the hot water thermos get the water piping hot so I ended up with slow cooking Ramen with absolutely no taste to them. Can you say, delicious? Though I did make Layla eat a few to tie us over until after the embassy appointment.
Nancy, the old pro with 3 China adoptions under her belt, told us to expect anything. She had been to visa appointments where she was asked questions one on one by the Embassy interviewer and others where she signed her name on the dotted line and that was that. I’m praying for a simple visa appointment, but better to be safe than sorry. I was actually a few minutes late meeting everyone in the lobby because as I was walking out of my hotel room, I thought what if they ask me about travel arrangements back home so I quickly and frantically tore up the room looking for my travel itinerary, which I had conveniently had put in the same envelope as my copy of the dossier I had had on my person since leaving LA Christmas night. With the itinerary found and my phone ringing, I went downstairs to meet the group and off we went.
Part of me was still expecting to see tons of adoptive parents as we went inside the Embassy, housed in a very ordinary looking office building, but that wasn’t how it was. There was no one in the office except for us. No one. We stood in line to pay the visa free. And unlike, most places the US Embassy seems to take every credit card. I still don’t understand why American Express isn’t widely accepted over here. Did they not see the commercials? Do they not know the slogan, “Don’t leave home without it.”? I love AE, ever since they saved me when I left all my travelers cheques in London and easily replaced them when I landed in Malta. Who in the world would have thought AE would have an office in Valetta, Malta? But I digress, we paid our fees then sat down for a minute. A nice woman from the Bay area, who has worked at the Embassy for two years but was due to complete her assignment shortly (isn’t it amazing what three families can find out in a short period of time?) called me up first.
Layla and I armed with our dossier were ready and walked up the window, and like Jory’s finalization hearing it was a big letdown. I was asked to double check addresses and spellings on a few sheets of paper. I was asked to sign my name a few times. Then I was asked if I would have Layla immunized when I came back to the states, which I replied, “Yes.” Another signature and I was told the visa would be ready between 4:30 – 5PM. This was it?!?!
Part of me was joyous and ecstatic that I didn’t have to hand over any paperwork that had been lost. Or clarify any answers on my paperwork. But another part of me was sort of bothered. Did this woman know how long it took me to make a complete copy of my dossier? Not one, but two copies because I had to leave a complete copy with my trusted and dear friend, Ellen, just in case mine was stolen or spontaneously combusted. Did she know that after driving over 70 miles round trip on Good Friday 2007 to get everything authenticated and notarized, I just made three photocopies of everything and threw them in an envelope because I was so over seeing any more paperwork and because I had to meet Mel for the 5PM showing of The Grindhouse? It took days to weed through all those copies and make three complete dossiers and now they could all be burnt. (Ellen, you can shred or burn the copy I gave you, please. Thank you, wonderful friend.) Oh well, que sera, sera. So I let those feelings go and sort of worried about if Todd G, the greatest travel agent ever, could find me an available seat out of Hanoi ASAP.
You can't take pictures at the Embassy, but either Lisa or Nancy was able to get this one before we were told and saw the posted signs.
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 15 Thursday, December 25, 2008
Flight 15 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (M)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Los Angeles Intl Arpt (LAX)
10:50 PM
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Arrive: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE)
TAIPEI 5:40 AM
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 391 Saturday, December 27, 2008
Flight 391 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (L)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE)
TAIPEI 9:10 AM
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Arrive: Tan Son Nhut Arpt (SGN)
HO CHI MINH CITY 11:35 AM
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Leg One of the journey.
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 398 Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Flight 398 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (L)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Noibai Arpt (HAN)
HANOI 12:35 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Arrive: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE), Terminal 2
TAIPEI 4:05 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Equipment: Douglas MD-90 Flying Time: 2:30
Meal Service: Meal
In-Flight Services: Non-smoking
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 16 Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Flight 16 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (M)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE),Terminal 2
TAIPEI 11:55 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Arrive: Los Angeles Intl Arpt (LAX), Terminal B
7:15 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Equipment: Boeing 777-300 Flying Time: 11:20
Meal Service: Meal
In-Flight Services: Non-smoking
Todd came through in a big way and got us out the day after we got Layla's passport. And Eva came through in a big way and put us on a flight that left Taipei only 2 hours after we arrived. YIIPPEEE!!!!
What I did find interesting was at the hotels, we’ve stayed at didn’t have bidets but instead shower hoses next to the toilet. I wonder if this is more cost effective than a bidet or if these hotels felt the hose was more practical.
Enough about the bathrooms today is d-day. We have a 2PM appointment, a 1:30PM pick up time to take us to the US Embassy for the visa interview. With Layla’s visa in hand, we would be free to leave the country ASAP. There is a chance we could get the visas back the same day. I hope we do. I’m feeling antsy
This trip is the culmination of my lifelong dream to adopt, granted I’m not in China or Guatemala as I thought I would be, but I’m some place better, the place where my daughter was born. Yet while my dream is being fulfilled, this trip is neither a vacation nor a complete business trip, it’s something in between. I wonder if it’s that something in between that’s making me want to go home ASAP. Or is it that I feel like I’m still living a dream since my whole family isn’t together. I miss my babies. I miss my bed. I miss being able to drink the shower water if I want to. I miss tap water.
I miss being able to choose to eat something other than steamed rice or fried rice. Though points for me for taking more chances with my meals then I could have ever imagined. I lived it up by having Cantonese fried rice at the buffet at the Saigon airport. I even had some no named snack that tasted like Cheetos, except without the cheese, at the Indian restaurant, along with my steamed rice.
I came to Vietnam with 14 bags of Ramen noodles, beef and chicken, 12 packages of delicious fruit snacks, and 12 tuna and crackers on the go. While the tuna isn’t as great as my own, I have to say these little packages of tuna and crackers really hit the spot. And fruit in a plastic container has never tasted so good. Only this morning have I had to open a package of noodles and sadly there were a disaster. I couldn’t find the seasoning package nor did the hot water thermos get the water piping hot so I ended up with slow cooking Ramen with absolutely no taste to them. Can you say, delicious? Though I did make Layla eat a few to tie us over until after the embassy appointment.
Nancy, the old pro with 3 China adoptions under her belt, told us to expect anything. She had been to visa appointments where she was asked questions one on one by the Embassy interviewer and others where she signed her name on the dotted line and that was that. I’m praying for a simple visa appointment, but better to be safe than sorry. I was actually a few minutes late meeting everyone in the lobby because as I was walking out of my hotel room, I thought what if they ask me about travel arrangements back home so I quickly and frantically tore up the room looking for my travel itinerary, which I had conveniently had put in the same envelope as my copy of the dossier I had had on my person since leaving LA Christmas night. With the itinerary found and my phone ringing, I went downstairs to meet the group and off we went.
Part of me was still expecting to see tons of adoptive parents as we went inside the Embassy, housed in a very ordinary looking office building, but that wasn’t how it was. There was no one in the office except for us. No one. We stood in line to pay the visa free. And unlike, most places the US Embassy seems to take every credit card. I still don’t understand why American Express isn’t widely accepted over here. Did they not see the commercials? Do they not know the slogan, “Don’t leave home without it.”? I love AE, ever since they saved me when I left all my travelers cheques in London and easily replaced them when I landed in Malta. Who in the world would have thought AE would have an office in Valetta, Malta? But I digress, we paid our fees then sat down for a minute. A nice woman from the Bay area, who has worked at the Embassy for two years but was due to complete her assignment shortly (isn’t it amazing what three families can find out in a short period of time?) called me up first.
Layla and I armed with our dossier were ready and walked up the window, and like Jory’s finalization hearing it was a big letdown. I was asked to double check addresses and spellings on a few sheets of paper. I was asked to sign my name a few times. Then I was asked if I would have Layla immunized when I came back to the states, which I replied, “Yes.” Another signature and I was told the visa would be ready between 4:30 – 5PM. This was it?!?!
Part of me was joyous and ecstatic that I didn’t have to hand over any paperwork that had been lost. Or clarify any answers on my paperwork. But another part of me was sort of bothered. Did this woman know how long it took me to make a complete copy of my dossier? Not one, but two copies because I had to leave a complete copy with my trusted and dear friend, Ellen, just in case mine was stolen or spontaneously combusted. Did she know that after driving over 70 miles round trip on Good Friday 2007 to get everything authenticated and notarized, I just made three photocopies of everything and threw them in an envelope because I was so over seeing any more paperwork and because I had to meet Mel for the 5PM showing of The Grindhouse? It took days to weed through all those copies and make three complete dossiers and now they could all be burnt. (Ellen, you can shred or burn the copy I gave you, please. Thank you, wonderful friend.) Oh well, que sera, sera. So I let those feelings go and sort of worried about if Todd G, the greatest travel agent ever, could find me an available seat out of Hanoi ASAP.
You can't take pictures at the Embassy, but either Lisa or Nancy was able to get this one before we were told and saw the posted signs.
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 15 Thursday, December 25, 2008
Flight 15 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (M)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Los Angeles Intl Arpt (LAX)
10:50 PM
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Arrive: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE)
TAIPEI 5:40 AM
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 391 Saturday, December 27, 2008
Flight 391 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (L)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE)
TAIPEI 9:10 AM
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Arrive: Tan Son Nhut Arpt (SGN)
HO CHI MINH CITY 11:35 AM
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Leg One of the journey.
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 398 Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Flight 398 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (L)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Noibai Arpt (HAN)
HANOI 12:35 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Arrive: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE), Terminal 2
TAIPEI 4:05 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Equipment: Douglas MD-90 Flying Time: 2:30
Meal Service: Meal
In-Flight Services: Non-smoking
Flight - EVA Airways Corporation (BR) - 16 Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Flight 16 Non-stop
Class of Service: Economy Class (M)
EVA Airways Corporation Confirmation Numbers: CE2R3D
Depart: Taiwan Taoyuan Intl Arpt (TPE),Terminal 2
TAIPEI 11:55 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Arrive: Los Angeles Intl Arpt (LAX), Terminal B
7:15 PM
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Equipment: Boeing 777-300 Flying Time: 11:20
Meal Service: Meal
In-Flight Services: Non-smoking
Todd came through in a big way and got us out the day after we got Layla's passport. And Eva came through in a big way and put us on a flight that left Taipei only 2 hours after we arrived. YIIPPEEE!!!!
Christmas and New Year's Decorations Vietnam Style
Christmas at the Cherry Hotel in Hanoi.
These New Year's decorations are LEGEN- - wait for it- -DARY.
Yes, it's from TV, but it was the most exciting thing. No countdown shows. No biggest stories of the year. But there were fireworks. Everyone loves fireworks.
These New Year's decorations are LEGEN- - wait for it- -DARY.
Yes, it's from TV, but it was the most exciting thing. No countdown shows. No biggest stories of the year. But there were fireworks. Everyone loves fireworks.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Day Ten
Jockey store? Check. Calvin Klein Jeans store? Check. D & G Juniors store? Check. Jockey store? Check. Calvin Klein Underwear store? Check. Clinique? Check. Nine West? Check. B…ball store complete with Celtics 20 jersey? Check. But no MC DONALD’S?!?! How is that possible? And why do you need two Jockey stores within 3 blocks of each other? Are that many people in Hanoi buying that much underwear? Really?!? It is interesting though that there are KFCs, but no Pizza Huts since they are owned by the same company. But no MC DONALD’S. It’s a travesty.
But moving on, is a museum really a museum if it doesn’t have scaffolding? I think Dr. Olin “the smartest and hottest man Yash knows” Storvick I think would say, “No.” Here’s the story about the wonderful Dr. Storvick. When he was a wee lad attending Luther College majoring in chemistry, he thought he would take Greek and Latin to help with his chemistry. He discovered he loved the languages so much, he decided to triple major. Triple major. In chemistry, Latin, and Greek. How hot is that?!?!? He later became a Fulbright Scholar and studied in Greece. But because his wife was at their apartment in Athens with their two children, she didn’t get to travel and so he brought her back to Greece to show her around. And out of the kindness of their hearts, they took time out of their schedules to show us, college students, around Greece and we went to many, many, many museums. And some of them had headless statues, if you can believe that. I really should have found out if Dr. Storvick had single grandsons as brilliant as him. Chemistry, Latin, Greek, so hot. Yes, Linda, I have a crush on Dr. Storvick.
Now back to the Vietnam trip…Our first stop of the day was The Temple of Literature. It was the first university in Vietnam. Some buildings inside the temple had to be rebuilt due to the war, but the things left standing were incredible. Writings etched on stone from the 1400s. Sadly they were fading, but amazing to look at.
They had musicians playing in one of the buildings. There was one instrument where the woman just clapped her hands in front of one of the open pipes and each pipe made a different sound. Why didn’t they have an instrument like that for me to learn to play when I was growing up? Maybe Jory, Rowan, and Layla could learn how to play it….
Layla and I walked around the temple; people watched all the various nations congregating all over the place. We tried to have a conversation with some teens on a field trip, who were admiring Layla, but that didn’t work out so well. Some things hand gestures and facial expressions just can’t express or explain.
It was during a walk that we received our first ignorant comment. A Vietnamese woman came up to Layla, touched her face, and in her limited English said, “Light skin. Good.” Really?! You don’t know that much English, but you know enough to comment on skin color. God must be so proud of us.
Pardon me,
Your epidermis is showing
I couldn't help but note your shade of melanin
I tip my hat to the colorful arrangement
Cause I see the beauty in the tones of our skin
We gotta come together
And thank the maker of us all
We're colored people,
And we live in a tainted place
We're colored people
And they call us the human race
We've got a history so full of mistakes
And we are colored people who depend on a Holy Grace
Upon seeing my travel mate with beautiful pearls around her neck, we headed off to the jewelry section. I’m still not sure why there is a jewelry store at the Temple of Literature, but who am I to question it. A pregnant woman greeted us as we peeked inside and stuck to our side like glue. Surprise, she worked in the jewelry section, too. She told me about her son and explained to me Vietnam wasn’t big on diamonds and gold. She was right I realized when I passed jewelry stores I didn’t see displays full of diamonds, though I did see a Cartier sign on a store so they do sell some. She said Vietnam was all about the jade. Did you know real jade can scratch a mirror without harming the jade? Nope, I didn’t either but she showed me repeatedly. And somehow I ended up with some jade. I don’t know exactly how that happened, but it did. Before I left she told me I had to rub my hand on the top of the turtle, there were turtle statues everywhere, the tablets sat upon the backs of the turtles. The turtles she explained represented the woman and brought intelligence, wisdom, and a warm heart. Just as the jade wards off illness. The dragons, which were on the top of the buildings, represented the man strong and powerful. But the boys could also rub the heads of the turtles. The things you learn in a jewelry store in a temple.
On the second floor in one of the buildings they had shrines for the three kings, who truly made the Temple what it was, but strangely all of their statues looked exactly the same. Hmm interesting….
We left the Temple in search of a restaurant and we walked and we walked. This was highly unusual because you can’t go a block in Hanoi or Saigon without coming across a restaurant, I mean besides the ones on the sidewalk. But this time nothing except for a second floor café that seemed sort of shady and there didn’t seem to be any way to get to the second floor, so we kept walking. And as we turned the corner, we ran into a supersized, that’s right, KFC. Two days in a row. This time I thought I would shake things up a little and got fries instead of mashed potatoes and cole slaw.
With our bellies filled, we backtracked and went to the Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts. The first few rooms were filled with artifacts which pre-dated Jesus’ birth and some from around the time of His birth. How can a top of a drum last for thousands of years? It’s unbelievable. The Vietnamese museum was very trusting some of the artifacts weren’t under lock and key; you could reach out and touch them and the statues if you wanted to. It was nice they were so trusting, but another part of me wanted to beg them to protect these priceless pieces at all costs.
Room after room was filled with statues and paintings from different eras. After seeing so many paintings, I started to play a game. As is the Vietnamese way, the titles of the paintings and statues were pretty straightforward. “Young Girl Playing,” “Fairies riding on a dragon,” etc… So the game was to guess the title before reading the accompanying plaque. My gosh, the game was hard.
I knew upon seeing soldiers walking on a bridge through the forest that the title of the painting was going to be “Soldiers on a bridge” or “Soldiers walking through the Forest.” But I was wrong, the painting was entitled, “Green.” Green?!? Yes, the forest is green but to call the painting green, ugh. Then just when I was sure the painting was called “Young girls playing,” the plaque read “Lantern Festival.” Yes, the girls had lanterns in their hands, but come on. I’m telling you the game seems easy, but it isn’t. It really isn’t.
It took a painting or two for me to get the Uncle Ho paintings. At first, I was like who is this Uncle Ho visiting the children. Then it dawned on me, Uncle Ho- - Ho Chi Minh City. I think I found the connection.
After seeing all the Museum had to offer, we headed back over to the Old Quarters in order to enjoy some ice mochas and such at Gloria Jean’s. I passed on the drinks, but did ask the kind woman at the information desk where I could find traditional Vietnamese outfits. She wrote down the name of the street for me so after the others finished their drinks, off we went to find this street while avoiding the main hub of taxis and motor bikes. (Did I mention that when I crossed the street to go to the Museum of Fine Arts that even the cop refused to stop for me and I was in the crosswalk?) Just as I was about to wonder if I had gotten the right directions, there in front of us was a shop selling Ao Dais. Cha ching! This year’s Christmas picture is going to be off the hook! After buying enough outfits, I looked across the street and realized we had found Ao Dai street. A block of shops selling the same thing. Really could someone explain to me how they all make money and stay in business?
For dinner, Nancy suggested this Italian restaurant. Its décor had a nice Italian theme and my lasagna was superb. It might have been the greatest meal I’ve had here, except I couldn’t enjoy it because someone took a five minute nap then woke up and there went eating time. Why couldn’t this have been a restaurant with baby loving waitresses and waiters?
At the end of the day as we were walking around the Old Quarter, I was holding my daughter in my arms, looking into her big brown eyes, and said, “I love you, Kailyer Shalea,” and then I paused for a moment and realized that wasn’t her name….At least she knows I love her sister.
Layout of the original Temple of Literature, before the wars and time ravaged some of it.
Pictures at the entrance of the Temple of Literature
A close up of the detail drawings above the entrance to the Temple.
Peaceful water ponds.
Yes, it's stagnant and still and thank God we visited in the winter.
The flowers almost distracted me. Almost.
Details about the architecture of the Temple.
Details about the students allowed to study at the first university in Vietnam.
The writings on stone.
Inside the Courtyard.
This is the view inside the courtyard if you were facing north.
This would be the view facing west. Hidden on almost the edge of the photo is the entrance to the jewlery store.
This would be the view facing north. You can see the entrance to another store. Who knew there could be so many places to shop inside a temple?
This would be the view facing south leading to the water ponds.
Inside the Temple.
An altar.
Altar with a king or someone in it.
An altar with two kings.
Details about some of the rulers.
And some more rulers.
Clothing the students wore.
And more clothing.
A writing block that maybe the students used?
The musicians inside the Temple.
MAY 31 - Rowan and Jory in their hard to find outfits. They had to put them on now because Jory's is already creeping up his arms and legs. I didn't take into account Jory not being a small Vietnamese boy.
But moving on, is a museum really a museum if it doesn’t have scaffolding? I think Dr. Olin “the smartest and hottest man Yash knows” Storvick I think would say, “No.” Here’s the story about the wonderful Dr. Storvick. When he was a wee lad attending Luther College majoring in chemistry, he thought he would take Greek and Latin to help with his chemistry. He discovered he loved the languages so much, he decided to triple major. Triple major. In chemistry, Latin, and Greek. How hot is that?!?!? He later became a Fulbright Scholar and studied in Greece. But because his wife was at their apartment in Athens with their two children, she didn’t get to travel and so he brought her back to Greece to show her around. And out of the kindness of their hearts, they took time out of their schedules to show us, college students, around Greece and we went to many, many, many museums. And some of them had headless statues, if you can believe that. I really should have found out if Dr. Storvick had single grandsons as brilliant as him. Chemistry, Latin, Greek, so hot. Yes, Linda, I have a crush on Dr. Storvick.
Now back to the Vietnam trip…Our first stop of the day was The Temple of Literature. It was the first university in Vietnam. Some buildings inside the temple had to be rebuilt due to the war, but the things left standing were incredible. Writings etched on stone from the 1400s. Sadly they were fading, but amazing to look at.
They had musicians playing in one of the buildings. There was one instrument where the woman just clapped her hands in front of one of the open pipes and each pipe made a different sound. Why didn’t they have an instrument like that for me to learn to play when I was growing up? Maybe Jory, Rowan, and Layla could learn how to play it….
Layla and I walked around the temple; people watched all the various nations congregating all over the place. We tried to have a conversation with some teens on a field trip, who were admiring Layla, but that didn’t work out so well. Some things hand gestures and facial expressions just can’t express or explain.
It was during a walk that we received our first ignorant comment. A Vietnamese woman came up to Layla, touched her face, and in her limited English said, “Light skin. Good.” Really?! You don’t know that much English, but you know enough to comment on skin color. God must be so proud of us.
Pardon me,
Your epidermis is showing
I couldn't help but note your shade of melanin
I tip my hat to the colorful arrangement
Cause I see the beauty in the tones of our skin
We gotta come together
And thank the maker of us all
We're colored people,
And we live in a tainted place
We're colored people
And they call us the human race
We've got a history so full of mistakes
And we are colored people who depend on a Holy Grace
Upon seeing my travel mate with beautiful pearls around her neck, we headed off to the jewelry section. I’m still not sure why there is a jewelry store at the Temple of Literature, but who am I to question it. A pregnant woman greeted us as we peeked inside and stuck to our side like glue. Surprise, she worked in the jewelry section, too. She told me about her son and explained to me Vietnam wasn’t big on diamonds and gold. She was right I realized when I passed jewelry stores I didn’t see displays full of diamonds, though I did see a Cartier sign on a store so they do sell some. She said Vietnam was all about the jade. Did you know real jade can scratch a mirror without harming the jade? Nope, I didn’t either but she showed me repeatedly. And somehow I ended up with some jade. I don’t know exactly how that happened, but it did. Before I left she told me I had to rub my hand on the top of the turtle, there were turtle statues everywhere, the tablets sat upon the backs of the turtles. The turtles she explained represented the woman and brought intelligence, wisdom, and a warm heart. Just as the jade wards off illness. The dragons, which were on the top of the buildings, represented the man strong and powerful. But the boys could also rub the heads of the turtles. The things you learn in a jewelry store in a temple.
On the second floor in one of the buildings they had shrines for the three kings, who truly made the Temple what it was, but strangely all of their statues looked exactly the same. Hmm interesting….
We left the Temple in search of a restaurant and we walked and we walked. This was highly unusual because you can’t go a block in Hanoi or Saigon without coming across a restaurant, I mean besides the ones on the sidewalk. But this time nothing except for a second floor café that seemed sort of shady and there didn’t seem to be any way to get to the second floor, so we kept walking. And as we turned the corner, we ran into a supersized, that’s right, KFC. Two days in a row. This time I thought I would shake things up a little and got fries instead of mashed potatoes and cole slaw.
With our bellies filled, we backtracked and went to the Vietnam National Museum of Fine Arts. The first few rooms were filled with artifacts which pre-dated Jesus’ birth and some from around the time of His birth. How can a top of a drum last for thousands of years? It’s unbelievable. The Vietnamese museum was very trusting some of the artifacts weren’t under lock and key; you could reach out and touch them and the statues if you wanted to. It was nice they were so trusting, but another part of me wanted to beg them to protect these priceless pieces at all costs.
Room after room was filled with statues and paintings from different eras. After seeing so many paintings, I started to play a game. As is the Vietnamese way, the titles of the paintings and statues were pretty straightforward. “Young Girl Playing,” “Fairies riding on a dragon,” etc… So the game was to guess the title before reading the accompanying plaque. My gosh, the game was hard.
I knew upon seeing soldiers walking on a bridge through the forest that the title of the painting was going to be “Soldiers on a bridge” or “Soldiers walking through the Forest.” But I was wrong, the painting was entitled, “Green.” Green?!? Yes, the forest is green but to call the painting green, ugh. Then just when I was sure the painting was called “Young girls playing,” the plaque read “Lantern Festival.” Yes, the girls had lanterns in their hands, but come on. I’m telling you the game seems easy, but it isn’t. It really isn’t.
It took a painting or two for me to get the Uncle Ho paintings. At first, I was like who is this Uncle Ho visiting the children. Then it dawned on me, Uncle Ho- - Ho Chi Minh City. I think I found the connection.
After seeing all the Museum had to offer, we headed back over to the Old Quarters in order to enjoy some ice mochas and such at Gloria Jean’s. I passed on the drinks, but did ask the kind woman at the information desk where I could find traditional Vietnamese outfits. She wrote down the name of the street for me so after the others finished their drinks, off we went to find this street while avoiding the main hub of taxis and motor bikes. (Did I mention that when I crossed the street to go to the Museum of Fine Arts that even the cop refused to stop for me and I was in the crosswalk?) Just as I was about to wonder if I had gotten the right directions, there in front of us was a shop selling Ao Dais. Cha ching! This year’s Christmas picture is going to be off the hook! After buying enough outfits, I looked across the street and realized we had found Ao Dai street. A block of shops selling the same thing. Really could someone explain to me how they all make money and stay in business?
For dinner, Nancy suggested this Italian restaurant. Its décor had a nice Italian theme and my lasagna was superb. It might have been the greatest meal I’ve had here, except I couldn’t enjoy it because someone took a five minute nap then woke up and there went eating time. Why couldn’t this have been a restaurant with baby loving waitresses and waiters?
At the end of the day as we were walking around the Old Quarter, I was holding my daughter in my arms, looking into her big brown eyes, and said, “I love you, Kailyer Shalea,” and then I paused for a moment and realized that wasn’t her name….At least she knows I love her sister.
Layout of the original Temple of Literature, before the wars and time ravaged some of it.
Pictures at the entrance of the Temple of Literature
A close up of the detail drawings above the entrance to the Temple.
Peaceful water ponds.
Yes, it's stagnant and still and thank God we visited in the winter.
The flowers almost distracted me. Almost.
Details about the architecture of the Temple.
Details about the students allowed to study at the first university in Vietnam.
The writings on stone.
Inside the Courtyard.
This is the view inside the courtyard if you were facing north.
This would be the view facing west. Hidden on almost the edge of the photo is the entrance to the jewlery store.
This would be the view facing north. You can see the entrance to another store. Who knew there could be so many places to shop inside a temple?
This would be the view facing south leading to the water ponds.
Inside the Temple.
An altar.
Altar with a king or someone in it.
An altar with two kings.
Details about some of the rulers.
And some more rulers.
Clothing the students wore.
And more clothing.
A writing block that maybe the students used?
The musicians inside the Temple.
MAY 31 - Rowan and Jory in their hard to find outfits. They had to put them on now because Jory's is already creeping up his arms and legs. I didn't take into account Jory not being a small Vietnamese boy.
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