So language class was actually very entertaining today! In an attempt to teach us numbers, we played a game where we were in two teams and on both sides we got numbered 1-9. When the teacher called a number, the person on each team with that never had to run from their desk and grab a paper from the front of the room. It got very aggressive very quickly haha. The first time my number was called, I smashed my face on my opponents shoulder... Sorry Kholer!
From lunch, it's a chicken head (beak pointing down). Very crispy and not much to eat.
The numbers were in an attempt to teach us how to bargain at markets in Vietnamese. This was because after class, we hopped in a bus and went to the Ben Thanh market. It was very reminiscent of the Turkish bizarre and just named me very anxious. How do you say "stop touching me" "stop talking to me" and "leave Britney alone" in Vietnamese? It was always "Miss, what you looking for?" And maybe they'd touch your arm to try and get you to look at whatever crap they had that you could see an identical version of if you kept looking straight. Look, if I'm interested in something, I'll come to you! I didn't buy very much because the haggling (which I did do, as well as everyone else fairly well) was not something I enjoyed. Just let me pay a good price and leave me alone!
The food stands were definitely my favorite. No idea what half the things were, but it all looked great! Big tubs of tiny dried shrimp and an array of dried fruits all open to whatever cared to land on it. Sam and I got a drink made from pressing sugar cane, and it was delicious!
After that we changed and went to Vina Capitol, which is a charitable investment NGO. They manage money and invest, and then use the profits to do really great things for the lower income Vietnamese people. They take ethnic minority girls and put them through school; they pay for kids who need heart surgery, and many other things. Their whole thing is trying to make impact, and it was great to see that they were doing just that. Very interesting company, regardless of the fact that, at one point or another, pretty much everyone was falling asleep 😛
For dinner we went and got "pancakes" (which were a thin, crispy thing with delicious stuff in the middle. Think Vietnamese dosa) and they were delicious. My corner of the table plowed right through two and a half of the decently sized plates.
After that we went to karaoke. Well we went to something, I'm still not entirely sure what it was. It seemed the place only had one room, and it was small enough that the 25-ish filled the little private room. Everything was guided and there were two TV's and two microphones. Our group had not had any alcohol in them yet, so it was interesting to see who could have fun with it sober and who became a wet blanket. Kristen, Beth, Rachel, and I sang so much that Kristen's voice was definitely sounding rough the next day. Oddly enough, the songs that got everyone going were Kesha's TikTok, Katy Perry's Firework, and Abba's Dancing Queen. It was a good time 😊
Some people went to a club after that, but a bunch of us crashed at the hotel. Tomorrow is lots of business, so gotta be on your A game!
The sign for the karaoke said "make impression never gone"
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