Vietnam...

We have just had a 5 day holiday in Cambodia, called Pchum Ben.  It is a very "dark" holiday. It's purpose is to honor and appease ancestors by bringing sacrifices to the Buddhist temples where the monks will present the sacrifices to the unseen ancestors.  These sacrifices are believed to have a huge impact on the afterlife for the people of Cambodia. If their ancestors are satisfied, their chances are better after this life.  It's actually one of the most important "spiritual" holidays in Cambodia.  Please pray for the people who have been involved in these sacrifices.  Pray that the believers would remain strong and those who do not know Jesus would see the emptiness in these sacrifices. Pray that they would hear about the one true God.

DONG IS THE CURRENCY IN VIETNAM - 50,000 DONG = $2.50

For this holiday, we had 4 days off from school, which turned into a 6 day weekend :). Friday morning we took off for Vietnam. A friend, named Kitty, who we met on our trip to the beach joined us on this trip also. Kitty is young lady from Hong Kong who is working in Phnom Penh.  We shared a hotel together, so we could split the cost 3 ways.  Paying $5 a night for hotel isn't bad at all :) 

OUR HOTEL

SHEILA'S NEW FOUND FRIEND OUTSID OF OUR HOTEL

It was a little bit late when we arrived to Saigon, so we decided to try to catch a Water Puppet Show that first evening.  It is just like it sounds.  Puppets dancing on the water acting out ancient Vietnamese stories with a mix of storytelling and singing.  It was quite a sight to see.

OUTSIDE

INSIDE

The first day we jumped on a tour to the Mekong Delta, which is where 4 different river collide. We visited a few different islands and learned about some of the local culture. The highlights of the tour was probably our tour guide, Foo, and some of the people we met on the tour. Foo told some jokes and made the trip exciting. We met some Muslim women on the tour with us. We had opportunities to talk with them a little. I also had an opportunity to talk about Jesus a little with our friend Kitty. Please pray for her. She has heard the gospel from many people. Pray that her heart is being softened towards Jesus.

KITTY & ME - APPARENTLY I DON''T KNOW HOW TO WEAR THESE HATS :)

VIETNAM?

On day 2, we took another tour to the Cu Chi tunnels. These extensive tunnels were built by the Vietnamese people during the Vietnam war. It is very interesting to hear the history behind what went down during this intense war. I have to be honest that I'm a little confused on what exactly the meaning was behind all the fighting. It has made me want to do some research on the history of the Vietnam war. I do know that is has left a lasting impact on this country and all the people who were involved. Our tour guide, Bill, was a Vietnam Veteran who is originally from Vietnam but served with the United States Navy as a general and a translator during the war. He was a good tour guide and I could tell that he was very passionate about the US Soldiers and about the Vietnamese, his own people. Can you imagine fighting a war against your own people? Wow! Anyway, these tunnels are made for small people. They are brilliantly designed to keep big Americans soldiers out.

OUTSIDE OF THE TUNNELS

That night, we went to dinner with a relative of Tiet Parsons, a dear friend from Texas. The girl's name was Ngan and she brought her fiancé with her. Shiela said that they win the cutest couple award, and I totally agree! We went to dinner and ate some Pho, which is very traditional Vietnamese dish. I love it! We topped off the evening with an iced coffee.  It doesn't get much better than that ;)

NEW FRIENDS

On day 3, we ventured out to find some historical land marks in Saigon. We found an old catholic cathedral, the old post office, and Indendence Palace. I have found that visiting museums in other countries is often difficult unless you have a really good tour guide.  Sheila and I find ourselves filling in the gaps with our own made up history. :) JK. On thing I have found to be TRUE is that history can be very biased and everyone has their own opinion of the so called "facts". I'm so thankful that we know that the Bible is truth and not written by man. Man always distorts the facts with opinions. All this to say that the history of the Vietnam war is still a little cloudy to me. I've gained bits and pieces from just being here, but trying to figure what's true and piecing it all together is the tuff part.

SAIGON CITY

SAD PICTURE

COFFEE!!

One afternoon, we visited an orphanage in Saigon. The orphanage is composed of about 600 disabled children. The staff to child ratio is about 1:20. We showed up to hang out with kids, and they put us to work right away. We helped out during dinner and played with kids a bit. It was a very intense hour and half. These kids are loved deeply by God. The first shall be last, and the last shall be first.  I later came to find out that these disabled children may have come from the aftermath of the "agent orange" chemical that was released by the US during the war.  This chemical is said to cause both mental and physical disorders which may have been passed genetically to the 2nd or 3rd generations.  However, I don't know how much of that is true.  The following day we visited another museum in Saigon to find out more of this intriguing history of the Vietnam war.  We visited the War Remnants Museum, and for any of you ever visiting Saigon, I would recommend this museum.  All I can say is that it opened my eyes to something I never hear about in America.

INSIDE THE WAR REMNANTS MUSEUM

I ride a bicycle in Phnom Penh, but here I would have to get a moto to survive on the streets. Check out this picture of the sea of motos, lol.

MOTO CITY!

The last night in Vietnam we ate some good shrimp, cooked in a coconut, at a night market.

SHRIMP COOKED INSIDE OF COCONUT

So.... Our bus left Saigon at 6:45 on Wednesday morning to head back to Phnom Penh.  What was supposed to be a 6 hour bus ride turned into an outrageous 13 hour bus ride.  Wow!  Apparently we didn't take into account the fact that everyone would be traveling back on the same day, lol.  And, while we were in Vietnam, the former "great king" of Cambodia passed away at the age of 89.  He was greatly loved by the people of Cambodia. He was living in Beijing, so they had to ship is body back to Cambodia, and the funeral procession took place today which probably also contributed to the massive traffic jam.  Our bus moved about 1 mile in 6 hours waiting in a line to cross the river by a very.  After we had sat for about an hour, the bus attendant asked each passenger if he/she would be willing to chip in $2.50 towards a $100 bribe to pay the police so we can move to the front of the line.  REALLY?  Yes, our plan was to bribe the police, lol.  We jumped off the bus a couple times to walk around, because the line wasn't moving at all.  At about 5pm we decided to walk down to the river to see the ferry and how long this line really is.  Whoa!  Our bus was at least still a quarter of a mile back.  We thought we would be there waiting for the ferry another 3 or 4 hours which would put us home about midnight.  All of sudden, one of the guys working on our bus flags us down and tells us our bus is loading the ferry right now.  We just happened to be in the right spot for him to find us and we were right next to the ferry loading.  Our bus had taken a short cut, paved by the bribe, lol.  We almost missed our bus and we would have been stranded on the other side of the river.  Scary thought!  I know the Lord graciously intervened.  We could have easily been left behind.  The Lord has protected us so many times.  It make me so thankful for the Lord's provision in my life, and most of the time I don't even notice it!  Thank you for all your prayers as well.  I know that the Lord is answering them!

6 HOUR TRAFFIC JAM

HOW MANY PEOPLE CAN YOU FIT IN A VAN?

CHILLIN'