Vietnam

My sister-in-law Laura has had a few really hard years with her health.  She was diagnosed with MS, TB, and Lyme's disease all at the same time.  One of those is a big deal.  She called me up and said that going to Vietnam was on her bucket list and she really wanted to go before she moved from Korea to America.  Andy, Mike's brother, could not take off work.  Would I be willing to go with her.  I am not sure what possessed me because I said yes immediately.  I am not a yes immediately type of person.  Anxiety and yes's without a lot of thinking don't usually go together.  To be honest, I have been interested in Vietnam for a long time, never thinking I'd actually have an opportunity to go so it never made it on my bucket list.  Also,  I have no idea what Laura's quality of life will look like over the coming years and I thought going with her on this trip would be something we would always have to look back on together.  I also knew that the chance to go to Vietnam again would most likely never present itself again.  So, I said yes.  Knowing me, you have to assume that I had a lot of days leading up to the trip with fears, some tears, and a lot of regret.  But also, courage.  And trust in myself and God.  

Laura said she only wanted to go to Hanoi and really spend time seeing the city.  I really just wanted this to be her trip and so I agreed to doing anything she wanted to do.  Also, I think I'm pretty easy to please anyway.  All of it would be interesting to me. 

The night before the trip I had so much anxiety that I got really quiet for most of the evening and then just cried at bed time.  Guys, I'm not a brave person.  I'm not a seasoned traveler.  Also, the hotel we booked tried to scam up and with just a few hours before our flights left, we had to rebook.  Another hiccup was that my flights got changed to almost an entire day after her flight arrived.  We had booked our flights so that we would both show up at the airport close to one another so we could figure out currency, immigration, and taxis.  When that fell through, my fears rose.  I just had to remind myself that I'm an adult.  I have a brain.  Most people are nice.  I've flown before.  I had a phone and money and time to figure things out.  

It did go fine.  Mike went into the airport with me to help me figure out how to find the portable internet contraption I prepaid for.  The giant guy sitting next to me wreaked of BO. Leading up to the trip it felt almost impossible to get a visa.  I'm not joking.  We tried so many times I lost count.  Every website we looked up for tips to getting the visa all said the same thing--good luck.  We tried a lot of different routes and finally ended up paying a company to get the visa for me.  After all of that, I was surprised that not one person asked to see my visa upon entry to the country.  

I got scammed by the taxi driver.  That was my fault because I felt it was shady and I should have said, "No, I'm not going with you" but he tricked me and I'm not good at being forceful with people.  He charged me at least double and made me pay for his parking.  I was furious.  I tried to talk his fee down and he stayed firm and by that time it was almost midnight and I was mentally and physically exhausted so I gave him his money and then had to walk a few blocks in a torrential downpour with my luggage to the hotel.  I hadn't eaten and didn't have any water.  Laura arrived half a day ahead of me and she so kindly found a shop that sold bagels and she had purchased water for us.  The hotel made a mistake with our booking and gave us a room with one bed so we shared the same bed for a few nights.  The room was right by the road and the motorcycles and street vendors zoomed by and yelled outside our window until 2 AM every night.  I had earplugs but Laura didn't, sadly.  We did finally get a different room after fighting with the front desk.  The second room wreaked of weed for the first night.  It was so strong it woke me up repeatedly. 

Every morning we went to the circle K near our hotel and bought our water for the day.  Our tours were interesting.  I loved all of them, even the ones that were clearly propaganda and anti-American.  I understood that there is a complicated history between the countries.  Laura is from Argentina so she didn't care at all.  Hahaha.  I loved seeing how everyone lived, loved the food, and loved all the vibrant colors of the city. 

It rained heavily daily and I brought shoes that had the soles worn down so I kept slipping on everything.  When I slipped and biffed it on the doorstep of the hotel in front of a room full of people, I decided I would break the sabbath and purchase some shoes with tread.  Everything was extremely cheap so the shoes didn't cost much.  Buying those shoes made everything better for me.  

The part of the city where we stayed was pretty clean.  Not Japan clean, but still very clean.  The further we got from the main hotel area, the dirtier it got.  The people are so poor and live in such humble circumstances.  It gave me such an appreciation for my life.  I did not feel that the people were very happy.  They seemed a little snappy actually, or at least, like they had an edge to them.  It made me very sad to consider the challenges they face daily.  By the end of the trip, I felt grateful for my life, grateful that I had the chance to broaden my view of the world, and also really grateful to go home to Japan.  I felt so grateful for my life in Japan.  

Laura left at 10 PM the night before me.  We set up a taxi driver to come and get both of us when we needed to go.  I said goodbye to her and went to bed.  At 4:45 AM I was down waiting for the taxi driver.  All the lights had been turned off and there was no one at the front desk.  I tried to get out of the front doors but they were locked.  I was locked in!  The taxi driver motioned to the front desk and I went around to see if I could find a phone or keys or something.  Nothing.  I thought, "I'm trapped in Vietnam forever."  The taxi driver ended up calling the front desk worker and woke him up.  He came out half dressed and unlocked the door for me.  

What an adventure.  I would do it again but I'd spend the money to stay somewhere nicer and I'd go somewhere besides Hanoi.  Five days in Hanoi was too long.  My Vietnamese friend said I would have had a better experience in Southern Vietnam.  Apparently, the food is better (hard to believe) and the people are much happier and friendlier.  

It was worth the trip.  I am so proud of myself for going.  There were a lot of things I didn't love but I never felt upset about experiencing them.  I never felt put out, even as I was getting drenched or sharing a bed, and showering in lukewarm water.  It was an experience I was happy to have.  

But to be clear, I hope none of my kids get sent on a mission there.  Hahaha