A busy weekend

Friday, Oct. 7 we met at our new apartment to finalize paperwork.  After several details, we are in!  We spent the day shopping for things to begin to set up house (we needed sheets, towels, a hot pot to boil water, cleaning supplies, and a few groceries at least), and made sure water and electric and wifi accounts were lined up.  Shopping is the most tedious thing. Most products are not subtitled in English, and to buy laundry products I type in phrases on the packaging to figure out if it's detergent or color-safe bleach or softener.  Some phrases are simply part of the brand name.  Sometimes Google translator just doesn't translate well, either!  We have a washing machine :) and I figured I would hang clothes to dry :( like most people seem to do here.  Then we figured out it's a combo washer/steam dryer!  We did try one load but I still had to hang clothes--we couldn't find the exact owner's manual online.  I have to figure out the dryer settings.  It's good to put our clothes in closets and not live out of suitcases anymore as we did at the hotel.  There are 2 bedrooms/2 baths so we're ready for visitors!

View out our window to the right--soccer fields to check out later for Bob!

View out our window (18th story) to left.  Lots of city.

View downwards.  An Amway office!!

Kitchen view/ laundry area outside

Living room

Bathroom sink and shower, also has a tub to right

No bidets, but all toilets we've seen have this hose attached...

Saturday the 8th we left by bus at 5:30 am for a 2 hour drive to Ben Tre province to participate in a vision screening put on by the Singapore Lions Club.  We screened 736 people in 9 hours who can't afford eye care in the usual fashion.  Our 3rd year students participated as well, 13 of them, and it was an excellent way to begin to get to know them.  I have learned their names!  Nhi, Thien, Cat Tuong, Linh, Hai, Man, Thanh, Hieu, An, Sang, Giang, Trang, and Ha.  (yes, I had to write them down) I forgot to write down the girl:boy ratio, I'll have to let you know later.  Too many details about the screening will make you yawn so I'll just share some photos!  These events are always both frustrating and rewarding.

Setting up for the day

Mr. Long, the department head of our optometry school.  The screening began with an "opening ceremony."

"Dr. Robert" talking with a patient in the ophthalmoscopy section, and teaching eager students as well

After the screening we had a nice dinner with the students and Singapore folks at the hotel across the street.  The students bussed back to Ho Chi Minh City after dinner but Mr. Long had arranged for us, the staff, to stay overnight. 2 staff members couldn't make it but Hui Hiang and Mr. Long stayed as did Bob and I.  Sunday Mr. Long had arranged a tour of Ben Tre, which is famous for its coconut candy.  The tour included some cool Vietnamese experiences in the village!

Random food photo from breakfast at the hotel.  I like it when food is labeled!
"Bloating fern-shaped cakes with green bean."  They were good.  Kind of sweet, they were on the
"dessert table" at breakfast. (near cream puffs and a coffee-cake type cake)

We rode on this horse-drawn wagon to a bee farm.

A bee hive

After the bee place (where we were offered honey and pollen granules to buy) we took a boat like this to the
next place.  We were given these cool hats to wear too!

The "next place" was this tourist place where we heard folk singers.  Here is Bob and Mr. Long conversing.
Mr. Long is Vietnamese and is teaching us a lot of local culture and customs.

Folk singers accompanied by interesting instruments.

We were served snacks (watermelon, longans/dragon eye, pineapple, guava, dragon fruit (the red rind and black-
seeded fruit), and chili salt to dip our fruit into.  The basket was brought over by a singer for tips. :)

I like the poster's honesty:  "the tourist place!"

We took another boat, this one motorized, to this island where coconut candy is produced.  Yes, we bought some.  There was also a museum of sorts educating about the use of coconut products, some shops, and a pretty garden with cool topiaries (a dragon, a Chinese lion).

That's all folks, for now.  We left Ben Tre about 3:30 and arrived back to our apartment about 5:30 pm, tired out but avoiding a nap so as not to wake up at 3 am wide awake! Today was another set of adventures (buying pans for our induction stove and taking forever to figure out Vietnamese labels on pans, and Bob's first haircut experience) but that is for the next blog.  Thanks for following our adventures!