tales of wander
Vietnam
Adventures of a Voluntourist: Vietnam
This is the fourth and final installment of a series that I’ve written for WorldNomads. The anecdotal stories focus on my experience volunteering abroad. Randomness. A good percentage of the world does not believe in the randomness of birth—birth is either predestined or the result of a causal event. In other words, your lot in … Continue reading
On war, struggle, and saying goodbye
My last official day at the orphanage was Friday, but I couldn’t stay away. After meeting with a new friend on Saturday, I introduced her to the kids who have stolen my heart. Today, I returned to the orphanage alone to say my goodbyes. When it was finally time for me to leave, it tugged … Continue reading
A birthday in Vietnam
Yesterday was my birthday. The day started by taking the bus to the Ky Quang temple/orphanage, which is more Vegas than Vietnam in its appearance. The temple was built to appear as though it was carved into a mountain of rocks, with huge fake boulders surrounding the perimeter and a towering pagoda in the center. … Continue reading
War remnants
As I mentioned before, the orphanage where I am volunteering is privately run by a Buddhist organization in a fully functional Buddhist temple (Ky Quang). Government orphanages are available here, but they are very crowded; as a result, children in those facilities may not get the care or stimulation that they can receive at privately … Continue reading
Dog lovers, beware
Dog lovers, beware. You may want to skip this post. Okay, well don’t say I didn’t warn you. But in the vein of “when in Rome,” I experienced my first taste of a local delicacy: dog meat. Yes, really. Trust me, I felt more skittish about this than I did about the grasshopper, the tarantula, … Continue reading
On the Mekong, motorcycles, and volunteering
After a few days of relaxation in Sihanoukville (a sleepy Cambodian beach town), it was off to Vietnam. The first stop was Chau Doc, which is a small city in the Mekong Delta. It was while in Chau Doc that I had the pleasure of experiencing a motorcycle ride to the top of Muay Sam … Continue reading
tales of wander 