I spent last week in the coastal city of Nha Trang helping to teach a training course for Vietnamese MPA managers. The course was put on by NOAA and I had a really great time getting to know all the participants and other instructors. I was able to share some of my experiences from MLPA in California and also practice my Vietnamese quite a bit. Every night I went out with some of my new Vietnamese friends and tried a different small food stall - these ranged from tiny tables on the street to the couches of living rooms. We had excellent Pho, Banh Xeo, and seafood. One evening, I played badminton with my friend Vy and learned that it can be a pretty competitive sport! I'm still sore. I also visited a couple of the local early morning fish markets to see what they were bringing in - Tuna, Gar, Marlin, as well as sharks and manta rays at the pelagic market, and every small fish you can imagine at the more local markets. At one market, some local fishermen rewarded my ability to speak Vietnamese with a fish - of course I was unable to refuse, so I took my little Christmas present back to the hotel and we had it for lunch. It was a fun week with many new friends (I even earned a nickname) and hopefully I'll be able to take part in similar trainings in the future! While I was teaching marine resource management in Nha Trang, Nikki was down south in Can Tho escorting some high level officials to talk with professors in the Mekong Delta about climate change. Though it was a great opportunity, it sounded exhausting! The good news is that it's looking like we will have the opportunity to collaborate on projects together in the future - fun! The next week, Nikki had a nice girls' weekend with several of her new friends - shopping, shoes, brunch, and mid-day sangria - the usual!
Holiday season here in Ho Chi Minh City is in full swing. All the stores are decorated with lights and nativity scenes (most of the nativity scenes are strangely in huge constructed caves). The consulate had a Christmas party last week with food, caroling performances, and of course Santa. I was both the MC and one of the 5 elves, so helped to dole out presents to 106 very excited children, many dressed like Santa themselves! Last night, Nikki and I went with the post language program to an area in the north part of the city that is famous for its decorations. There were soooo many people! The decorations definitely lived up to expectations - my favorite was sequin veiled Mary and baby Jesus under a disco ball. We sang carols in Vietnamese and English, had fun playing with the local kids, ate all kinds of street food, and generally enjoyed ourselves. Nikki and I came home to our decorated apartment (complete with a fake tree and stockings) and enjoyed a wonderful Christmas eve eve together opening presents. And this morning we are off to Bali!
Happy Holidays to all our friends and family and hope you are well!!!
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