I Stand Corrected

The day started out like any other.  After a nice breakfast, we headed to UEF in our business casual wear to start our day. With another lecture in Vietnamese culture, this one on the religions of Vietnam, done it was time for language class again.  This had me nervous because I was sick the day of the last class so I had to miss it. It didn't take me long to get back into the swing of things.  The pressure is always on when the microphone gets passed to you and you have to say the words we learned just seconds before, but it gets easier with time.  When class ended, we headed to the international school to eat a very quick lunch and then head to our next destination.

To U.S. Consulate in Vietnam we had to go through two different forms of security and you're given a fancy visitor badge.  Once inside we talked about the different things that are handled at the consulate from four different staff members. It was interesting to see how each one of them got to where they are now and the situations that they handle on a day to day basis.  The environment around me felt strangely familiar and comfortable, I guess being on U.S. territory can do that to someone who's been away for a little while.  Once we finished with the briefing, it was time to take a tour of the grounds.

The old U.S. Embassy was on this very spot and was torn down only after damage had been done.  The ground that we stood on gave me an eerie feeling as I pictured the hole in the wall ahead of me and the ghosts of the attack that occurred there.  It was a feeling similar to the one I get when I go to old battlegrounds back in the states, but I know it is much more familiar to people in my life today. I looked around and took it all in for awhile, then the tour guide informed us about a building in an iconic image from the Fall of Saigon.  Unfortunately, the building that American citizens received a rooftop helicopter rescue from will be torn down later this year.  Which means that we are the last group of Plus 3 students who will be able to see it in real life.  After taking the annual picture around the sign of the fallen, we headed out to the American Center.

Getting cleared using my passport for the third time in one day was taking energy straight out of me.  Considering the long day we just had, all I wanted was to go back to the hotel and relax for a bit.  When we sat down in the room with a bunch of Vietnamese young adults, I grew nervous because I always embarrass myself when I talk to them, but as we split into smaller groups, it gradually got better.  I ended up talking to a group of girls about various things from schooling in America to what I have been doing for the past week in Vietnam.  I seemed to amuse them along the way as I rambled on like I always do when I'm nervous.  One of the girls was full of questions for me so the conversation never really died off at all.  Another is trying to get into UVA but is worried about taking the SATs which I can say is a challenge, but not something that can't be overcome with time and practice. At one point, Dr. Berman stood up and told us that we were free to go if we wanted, but could also stay, I was glad I didn't have to stop mid-conversation.  these girls had so many questions and so many random things that they wanted to talk about that I couldn't break away even if I wanted to, good thing I didn't.  Once almost everyone had left the center, we decided we should leave, but not before exchanging information and taking a couple of pictures.  The day was a success, and though a sad moment of remembering took place in the late afternoon, it simply filled me with joy to talk to these girls for the hours that I did.