Backpacking

one of our star students is learning dance steps in Ben Tre, Vietnam

(For background information on the origins of our Ben Tre trip, check out the previous blog entry on Saigon.)

Our Ben Tre adventure began very early in the morning. Catt, Hong and I were picked up by a large, people-mover styled van at 5:00 AM on Monday morning, November 5, 2007 from Hoa and Yoon's still-slumbering home. The sun was just peeking over the concrete blocks of Saigon as we made our way through the eerily silent streets towards the main southbound road. We each lay down across a row of unoccupied seats and slept, despite the freezing cold of the van- unaccustomed to the luxury of air conditioning, we were quite chilly! The driver woke us up at the halfway point; a dilapidated, road-side rest-stop with steaming bowls of pho on offer, served amid clouds of cigarette smoke in the early morning air. Continuing on, we made the ferry crossing and soon found ourselves in the Delta.

The small, sleepy town of Ben Tre and its friendly locals and relaxed pace belies a turbulent history of conflict. Sadly, the town found itself at the heart of some of the bloodiest fighting during the Vietnam War- specifically during the Tet Offensive. Many of the people in Ben Tre (and later, as we would learn, families of children who would be our students at the school where we taught) also suffered birth defects and illnesses as a result of exposure to Agent Orange, or dioxin, the defoliant sprayed by American planes to deny cover to Viet Cong guerrillas. The result of this poisonous and horrific practice is well documented at the Museum of War Crimes in Saigon as well, with plenty of accompanying grisly photographs. We would visit the museum after our week in the Delta, on return to Saigon for a few days.

Here are a few links with some interesting tidbits of history on Ben Tre:

http://www.iht.com/articles/2004/03/23/edpringle_ed3__1.php
Article from the Herald Tribune on the sad fate of Ben Tre during the Vietnam War, written by James Pringle, who covered the war for three years as a correspondent for Routers

http://www.rfa.org/english/features/blogs/vietnamblog/2005/08/26/blog6_vietnam_southerland/
Diary entry from Radio Free Asia on Ben Tre

http://www.nhe.net/BenTreVietnam/
"We had to destroy Ben Tre in order to save it."

Now, though, the town of Ben Tre is a friendly and industrious town, displaying few signs of the wounds of its past, worlds away from the tourist trail of neighboring My Tho. Among Vietnamese, it is perhaps most famous for its local production of coconut candy, made in factories surrounding the city. The Vietnamese, indeed, refer to the province as "coconut island" and the saccharine scent of candy hangs heavy in the humid air.

We arrived at the Ben Tre School for Special Students early that Monday morning, and immediately were escorted to a small room for a morning tea and a meeting with the school's principal, the vice principal, Ms. Ho Thi Thu Thuy, Ms. Thu, our friendly, extremely helpful and energetic interpreter, and Hong. It was at this first meeting that we most clearly were made aware of the expectations of our teaching in Ben Tre. Originally the foundation sponsoring our visit had hoped that we would be able to teach violin, but the violins had yet to be delivered to the school when we arrived, so we would teach the children the basics of piano, guitar, and singing (the request for singing, specifically, was "singing American folk songs." I later would interpret this as teaching them Beatles songs... I figured as long as it was in English that was okay, right?) The majority of our students in music class were blind, but (as we would find out,) extremely eager to learn, attentive, and naturally musically gifted. I also learned from vice principal Ms. Thuy that many of the deaf students had made a special request to learn "disco dancing," as well as the basics of classical western dance. Unsure of exactly what that entailed (but hopeful to please in any way,) and lacking any formal training in dance instruction, I agreed that we would do my best to teach them.

After our morning tea, we were ushered into our music classroom, already filled with our students for music class. Almost all of the students were blind, and ranged in age from 8 to 25 years old. They began by making a formal introduction, delivered by a particularly talented guitarist and singer named Tho. He sang some Vietnamese classical and patriotic songs for us while accompanied by an exceptionally gifted guitarist. They then asked Catt and I to sing and play them a song. We obliged, even though we really didn't have anything prepared. They blew us out of the water, but I'd like to think that our rendition of Jack Johnson's cover of "Pirate Turns 40" set a good tone for the week's lessons.

Lacking any specific lesson plans or instructional resources, but blessed with plenty of time, eager students, and friendly and helpful staff, we got to work. Regular classes had been canceled all week for our teaching, so we had plenty of students and plenty of time. We began by playing a rhythm game with the blind class to try to illustrate the concept of a "steady beat" in music. They would tap their thighs and then clap to a beat established by us (up on the drum,) and then take turns chanting an introduction, followed by a list of each other's names. The staff urged us to teach them games and songs in English where possible, as they were all studying English as part of their daily curriculum. The game went well enough, but especially because the students were blind, it was a little bit challenging for them to recall the order in which everyone was seated around the circle. In time, though, even the young ones got it. We finished the morning by teaching them the classic hit, "Row, row, row your boat," first as a melody, and then in a round. The students had beautiful, clear voices, and despite the language barrier (I mean, can you imagine singing a round in Vietnamese in one hour?) learned the song quite well. We finished off the day by teaching them the basics of the "ABC" song. Here are some pictures from our singing class:

These two girls were start students and leaders among their classmates. Great voices, too.

The girl on the right was a great guitar student. The boy at left was learning to play piano, and had a very nice singing voice.

Throughout the week, we taught our blind students introductory lessons on guitar and piano as well. These lessons presented all sorts of new challenges and insights for us. Certainly we gained an appreciation for the extra determination and effort our blind students put into learning their instruments. Instead of teaching through visual imitation, we had to physically show the students the difference between black ("skinny") keys and white ("fat") keys, by guiding their fingers along the keyboard. During the guitar class, Catt, Ms. Tho and I were able to instruct almost nine students at one time, thanks to the many donations of guitars the Degenhardt Foundation had obtained for the school, but it took a little while to demonstrate the fingering to each student. They were very patient, though, and in time we were able to teach basic chords to everyone. Many of the guitars were in need of new strings and picks, though, so we are hoping to send some new ones over in the future. Also, the ability level of the students varied quite considerably. Most were beginners, but two or three were quite advanced. We hope to organize another trip in the future in which we can bring several music teachers to the school and give the students more individualized attention on their instruments.

This student in particular was very, very talented on the guitar. He could pick up almost anything by ear, immediately.

Performing "Imagine" with voice, piano, and guitar.

Further on in the week, we also taught the children "If You're Happy and You Know it," complete with all of the dance motions, and as the final, big song, "Imagine" by John Lennon. The lyrics were very difficult for the children, but with hard work and dedication, they learned it in its entirety. They each have portable braille devices, which they can use to transcribe the spoken lyrics into braille on paper, punching out each letter. Each student created their own sheet of "Imagine" lyrics. We spent a lot of time reviewing the lyrics, their pronunciation, and their meaning. There were not very many dry eyes in the house when they performed the song at the end of our time together.

The children reading braille lyrics

Our singing class, as we would sit each day.

Reading the lyrics.

Our music classroom

The next morning we had our first dance class. This time most of our students were deaf. This made things a little bit easier, mainly because even if they weren't deaf, we still wouldn't have been able to understand each other (given our lack of Vietnamese), and the students were extremely talented at deciphering body language, reading facial expressions, etc. The interpretation took a while, because first we had to interpret our English instructions to Vietnamese (via Ms. Tho,) then Ms. Tho had to interpret the Vietnamese to the sign-language interpreter, and finally, the sign language interpreter would sign to the students instructions. You can imagine the chaos that ensued once we tried to teach an eight count dance step. I never realized how much we use shouted instruction (and lack of eye contact) in dance class. Instead of counting off "1, 2, 3, 4..." etc, we had to remember to count off on our fingers, raised high above our heads, while performing dance steps for the class to mirror.

We started off by playing some ice breakers- charades, followed by a series of dance stretches and warm-ups. It was all giggles after that and we decided to break down the steps of the waltz for them. The kids, to their credit, were wonderfully patient, energetic, and fun over the course of our two and a half hour session that morning. We had such a blast teaching them the waltz- and got a work-out, too. We devised a system where we used the green and white checker pattern of the tile floor in our classroom to teach them the basic steps on their own, first. Later we would put it all together, matching them up in pairs. Once everyone paired up to dance, we would beat a drum in three-count on the floor so that some of them could feel the inner rhythm/vibrations and dance to the beat more easily. At the end of the lesson, we divided the class up into two groups so that they could perform for each other.

Our dance class was very special to us. During breaks, the students would give us hugs, play games with us, and teach us there own dialect of sign language. Unlike the States, where we have ASL, in Vietnam there is no "standardized" sign language. Thus, the sign language taught in the Mekong River Delta is a completely different dialect than, say, sign language in Danang or Hanoi. It even differs from the sign language of Saigon, just a two hour journey north. As a result of this lack of standardization, (and also, of course, because resources for deaf children in schools are expensive), our deaf students typically were far behind the blind children in their academic subjects. This is of no fault of their own, but a result of the need for more resources for them. The number of staff that could communicate to them in detail in sign language was a bit limited. That said, though, the teachers were extremely dedicated, and certainly did the absolute best they could, given their limited resources, materials and funding. One of our most treasured souvenirs from all of our travels is the care-worn sign language picture book one of our students presented to us at the end of our tenure in Ben Tre. When we come back to Ben Tre again, we should be able to communicate much more easily!

our dance class rehearsing the waltz

the waltz can be tricky when you're dancing it alone!

Megan demonstrating the steps

sometimes everything would just break down into total hilarity

Megan keeping the beat for the deaf dance class by beating a drum on the floor

Dancers watching half of the class perform

On our last day of classes, we adjourned early for an assembly. All staff, students, and even the local Ben Tre press (complete with photographer!) came to take pictures and watch the fruits of our students efforts. Our dancers performed the waltz, followed by a modern dance we choreographed for them. Our singers and guitarists performed "Row your Boat," "ABCs," and last of all, "Imagine." They did a wonderful job. Here are some pictures:

Singers on stage at the assembly

Students having a laugh on break from the assembly.

This student was the star singer who sang to us when we first arrived. He also performs at tourist shows at local hotels. Hopefully he can get a scholarship to music school at university.

In the end, though, I was unable to get away from the request for "disco dancing." The staff insisted that I teach them, along with the students, a few hip-hop moves. It was one of those mortifying moments that somehow transformed into being completely hysterical, liberating and uplifting. We all danced around in a huge circle. It was great. Here are some pics of disco dancing, Vietnamese-style.

During the week, we were assisted greatly by the help of Ms. Tho, our interpreter, (and incidentally a guitarist,) who was instrumental (no pun intended) in assisting with instruction as well as interpretation. Ms. Tho and her husband love music, too- especially the Beatles- and she helps teach an English course at the local university. We want to give a big thanks to Ms. Tho from the bottom of our hearts. Hopefully we will meet again one day in Vietnam! We are searching for a good picture from Megan's camera to post of Ms. Tho. Hopefully we can do that in the future. We also want to say thank you to the kind members of the teaching staff that ushered us to and from lessons each day. Those motorcycle rides were unforgettable. I can now ride side-saddle on a motorbike, carrying bags, cameras, etc, in a dress, no problem. Catt can, too! Just kidding.

While in Ben Tre, we stayed at the Hung Vuong Hotel, set prominently on the riverside. Our outside-of-school routine was simple and sweet- each day we would wait for teachers from the school to pick us up on the backs of their motorbikes for the fifteen minute ride to work for the day. They would return us for an hour and a half lunch recess, and then we would return in the afternoons. In the evenings, we'd poke around the market, get several smoothies from the greatest fruit shake lady in Vietnam, check up on internet at the post office, and work tediously on our curriculum and lesson plans for the next day's classes.

Riding to work on motorbikes in Ben Tre, Vietnam

Here are some pictures of our time, after school, in Ben Tre:

On the riverfront in Ben Tre

sunset over Ben Tre in the Mekong River Delta

The greatest fruit shake lady in the whole of Vietnam. We'd get a mixed shake (Vietnamese style, with condensed milk for sweetness) almost every night after work.

View from our hotel, the Hung Vuong Hotel, at night

One of our last nights in Ben Tre, Ms. Thuy (the vice principal,) Mr. Minh (a teacher at the school who speaks excellent English,) and another teacher took us out for white coffee and fresh fruit at the new, flash coffee shop on the Ben Tre riverfront. As the moon rose, and the music went on into the night, we had a wonderful conversation about music's ability to empower young people, and the importance of having a strong music program at the school. Most of the children live there, away from their families, because it is the only school in Ben Tre Province with staff and facilities specifically catering to deaf and blind students. Ms. Thuy explained to us that music can be a source of inspiration, creativity, community, and empowerment in the lives of these young people. We couldn't agree more. We want to say thank you to the staff and administrators of the Ben Tre School for making this inspiration a reality in the lives of the young students who call the dormitories of Ben Tre home. You have forever made a difference in their lives, and you certainly have forever made a difference in ours. We will see you again one day.

Us with Ms. Thuy, Vice Principal of Ben Tre School

Us with staff. Thank you, thank you for giving us a ride to work each day!!

Our faithful audience member and groupie for most of our lessons.

learning the waltz

Ben Tre students watching from the courtyard

practicing sign language with our deaf kids

Disco dancing

Sign for the school

Ben Tre school grounds

Megan and Catt... and cool motorcycle helmets... taking one last photo before we leave Ben Tre.

We arrived in Saigon after a good nine hours on a bus from Nha Trang... the last three of which were spent driving through an absolute downpour of rain. We were travelling to Saigon as the first, preparatory step in the most important highlight of our trip to Vietnam- volunteer teaching music and dance at a school for blind and deaf in the Mekong River Delta town of Ben Tre, about two hours south of HCMC by ferry and road. We had first come into contact with the foundation assisting the school in their fledgling music program, the Degenhardt Foundation (http://www.degenhardtfoundation.org), when the foundation contacted Megan's orchestra in Washington, D.C., the Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic (www.wmpa.us) soliciting instrument donations. Although at the time we had no instruments to donate, we realized that the small town of Ben Tre could very easily be looped into our SE Asia itinerary- and since we both have musical backgrounds, we decided to offer ourselves as instructors, volunteers, or pretty much whatever they needed. The wheels were first set in motion in July of 2007, but we had spent a lot of time corresponding with the program assistant in Saigon, the cheerful and always helpful Hong during our time in Nha Trang by phone. When we told Hong that we would be travelling through Saigon before heading down to the Delta, she insisted that we stay with her cousin, Hoa and her husband, Yoon's family at their lovely home in downtown Saigon, Ward 8. And as is typical on this adventure, once again we found ourselves travelling blindly to a city we had never been to before, in a country where we didn't speak the native tongue, to be welcomed warmly into the home of a family we had never met. Such is life on the trail.

Arrival in Saigon that rainy night was so much more straightforward and pleasant than arrival in Hanoi weeks earlier. We easily flagged down an honest taxi driver, picked up Hong from her office, and together traveled to Hoa's house. There we were greeted by her entire family, dog, and staff. Hoa and Yoon Le have three lovely children, Michael (13), Kevin (10), and Jimmy (5), as well as four helpers (some of whom are also cousins,) who assist with cooking and housekeeping and keep watch over the family compound when everyone is away. Kevin and Michael (as well as their parents), speak excellent English, and we enjoyed listening to them play guitar, playing video games, taking the dog for walks, joking around, and shooting pool together at the local SuperBowl complex. We owe a special thanks to Kevin for letting us borrow his room for the four nights we visited. Thanks, buddy!

From the moment we were welcomed to their home, we were made to feel like family. We were automatically included in all meals, family outings (swimming at the local pool on Friday night, a visit to both Yoon and Hoa's parents' homes (including the most delicious crab feast we have ever had at Yoon's sister's house,) and a special treat- a trip by motorbike to the family "farm house" on the outskirts of Saigon for a huge dinner commemorating the passing of an important family patriarch.) Hong and Hoan (another cousin) also took us out for delicious pho on their motorbikes one afternoon. The entire visit was so special to us, and a really genuine and beautiful introduction to local life in Saigon in a normal Vietnamese family home. We could have never gained such insight into the generosity and friendliness of the Vietnamese people had we not had this incredible experience. We still keep in touch with Kevin and Giang through email, and hope that one day we can return our Vietnamese friends' hospitality in the USA. Here are some pictures:

Catt with Michael Le

Megan with Michael

Catt, Kevin, and Giang

Megan with the nannies at Hoa and Yoon's home

Meg, Kevin and Catt

Catt, Hoan, Hong, and Megan at a family reunion

Megan and Catt with the Le Family in Saigon

Preparing dinner at the family farm house- celebrating the anniversary of the death of the family patriarch

Jimmy

Fishing at the farm house

After four days of southern hospitality, we were on to the next great adventure... in the Mekong River Delta of Vietnam...

So one observation we made while we were in Vietnam... the vendors are extremely assertive (bit of a euphemism,) and even more gifted at separating you from your hard-earned dong (Vietnamese currency). They are extremely talented bargainers, and even better at convincing you that yes, you do want to buy that trinket/bracelet/leg-hair threading treatment/pineapple/grilled lobster at your beach chair. Things get ugly, though, the minute the traveller suspends one of the time-honored Rules of Purchase:

1.) If you say "maybe later" to a vendor on foot, especially in a situation where you are stationary and they are walking (say while on the beach,) they WILL come back to your chair. Don't get angry if they do.
2.) If you raise your voice and lose face while bargaining, there is a good chance the shopkeeper or vendor will, too.
3.) Pick your item carefully. Once money changes hands, there are absolutely no refunds, exchanges or returns. Period.

We witnessed a gross violation of the Rules while chilling out in the beach-side town of Nha Trang, a coastal city with a population of about 300,000, eight hours north of Saigon or so. But more on that, later.

We had selected Nha Trang because of descriptions like this one from Wikipedia:

"It is well known for its pristine beaches and excellent scuba diving and is fast becoming a popular destination for international tourists, attracting large numbers of backpackers on the Southeast Asia circuit. It is already very popular with Vietnamese tourists. Nha Trang Bay is amongst the world's most beautiful bays. Tourists can participate in Sea Festival and August- Nha Trang Rendez- vous Festival every 2 years."

While the beach at Nha Trang was nice enough, we probably would not categorize it as "amonst the world's most beautiful bays," especially after spending time in Indonesia, French Polynesia and Thailand. It is a bit built up with nondescript, concrete-block shaped mid-range motels and hotels lining the shore. There is also an extremely tacky resort being built offshore, with plans to connect Nha Trang beach to it by gondola lift. It was also perhaps one of the least restful beaches we've visited on account of the extremely opportunistic and shrewd sellers plying the beaches constantly with their items for sale. Regardless of all of this, though, our time at Nha Trang was not without humor, and we enjoyed the local food, a very clean and friendly guesthouse, and pretty easy beach access.

Pictures of Nha Trang:

waves breaking on Nha Trang Beach, Vietnam

eating lobster and crabs on Nha Trang Beach... tough life, eh?

Nha Trang Bay

When we first arrived, we headed down to the beach to spend a few hours relaxing by the sea. Typically anywhere in Asia, a local guy will own a small fleet of beach chairs and umbrellas. For a few bucks, you pay him to usethem for the afternoon. We did just that and were relaxing when the ladies began coming by, showing trays of cheap jewelry, temporary tattoos, food goods, etc to tourists lying on chairs. Three girls from Spain were sitting in beach chairs behind us. We happened to notice them bargining with one particular vendor for a while, closely looking at her selection of anklets. All of the sudden, a commotion begins. The tiny Vietnamese vendor, no more than five feet tall in a large conical hat, is up and yelling at the girls while they prance around their chairs singing taunting songs. Vietnamese vendors are coming out of the woodwork to join the original vendor in the cursing of these three girls. A circle of curious tourists begins to ring around the whole bizarre scene. Tangential to this whole thing is a large-ish lady screaming bloody hell about a frog cell-phone charm- like one of those dangly ornaments (sometimes larger than the phone itself), that people hang off their cell phones as decoration. We learn that apparently the original vendor had just sold the girls three bracelets (which they selected themselves from her tray.) Apparently, once money had been exchanged, one of the girls realized that her bracelet was broken or somehow defective. When she realized this, she pointed it out to the vendor and asked for a refund. Of course the vendor said no. As a result, the girl snatched a fistful of the vendor's wares, hid them in her pockets, and started taunting the vendor, saying she wouldn't give them back until the vendor gave her her money back. The vendor summons all of her little vendor friends, who started dropping f-bombs and threats at the girls liberally, and the whole thing is on the brink of fisticuffs- so much for the pleasant, peaceful slice of sand of which we'd dreamt. Anyhow, the original vendor starts pushing the girls, who push back, then the slapping starts, and the guy who owns the beach chair business runs in to get involved, because violent vendors are frankly bad for his business. The three Spanish girls start to stalk off (still holding the stolen goods in their pockets,) and a veritable mob of female Vietnamese vendors parades off on their heels. It gets ugly at the carpark, where the girls have parked their motor bikes- the vendors swarm the girls, steal their bikes, and say they won't give them back until the girls give back the stolen merchandise. Total stalemate, and I'm wondering if pretty soon one of them will start taking human hostages. On top of all of it, apparently the fat lady says that in addition to stealing the bracelets and anklets from the original vendor, the girls have also made off with her "froggy cell phone charm," which was a "gift to her from a nice tourist." The police come down and get involved just as it seems as if the Spanish girls are going to get a total beat-down from the mob. They sort of side with the tourists (basically because they've been instructed to err on the side of tourists in these sorts of situations- tourism is an important part of Nha Trang's revenue.) The bikes and bracelets are grudgingly exchanged. End of drama.

This sort of situation, we felt, whether it was fair or not, was the fault of the three girls. Rules are different while travelling in developing countries, especially when buying from vendors in cash. They should have more carefully examined the goods before ponying up the cash. Still, though, a humorous afternoon. And the fat lady got her frog back afterall. Good old Vietnam.

The fat lady, triumphant with her frog cell-phone charm