Author: bochnerfamilyadventure

I visited the island of Koh Chang 20 years ago. I do not recognize it now. Unsure if where I visited was a different spot or it has changed that much. Either way, it is enjoyable. We are near a very family oriented beach and there are visitors from France, Austria, Russia and the UK. We have yet to meet an American. We are staying in a hippie resort and our house is rustic, rats in the walls scratching at night, geckos and spiders everywhere and biting ant highways. However, this is what is like to live in the jungle. Right? Our days are slow, hoping for Cork to feel better (he has been ill our entire visit here) and join us for an activity or meal. We did meet another traveling family through Facebook and that was an enjoyable afternoon that left the kids happy and very sunburned.  Traveling long-term can get lonely and meeting other travelers is key.  The people who stay on this beach are on vacation and have travelled here with their families or partner and do not seem that interested in making new friends.  However, the staff is super friendly and spending our days at the beach are fairly pleasant.  If we could just teleport a few family members or friends, it would be perfect!  Every night we watch a film from the 1980s, last night it was Gremlins.  The decisions made it that movie by the characters had us shaking our heads and cringing the whole time!  I think Raising Arizona is tonight’s feature.  Tomorrow we go to Bangkok with the hopes of catching a night train to Chiang Mai.

We are on Koh Chang. It is beautiful. We are staying at this hippie bohemian Thai French resort.  It is very nice.  The people are friendly and beach is two minutes away on foot.

However, from the morning or our arrival, Cork has been struck down with a febrile tropical illness of some sort. He has not been able to get out of bed for the last five days. The fevers and headache have abated, but the nausea continues. He cannot eat and is so tired. We went to a clinic yesterday they were not very helpful, although relieved us of $100 no problem. I was reassured by his good blood pressure and they did a CBC that showed a low WBC level, unsure what that tells us. The doctor said it may be Dengue, but he was not sure. Wait and see. I have exhausted my supply of zofran and he is on around the clock NSAIDs.  I avoid WebMD and hope that he is going to feel better tomorrow.

It has been difficult to be on my own with kids. We do not do much. Mostly hang out at the beach, go into town for the odd errand and watch my favorite movies from when I was twelve. So far we have watched Ferris Buellers Day off, 16 candles and Coming to America. I think FootLoose is tonight’s film. I am open to suggestions!

Cork was a trouper and walked the 10 minutes to the clinic.

Fingers crossed he feels better tomorrow.

We had a brief stay in Bangkok before heading off to the island of Koh Chang.  It seems like ages ago.  Here are some images and thoughts.

We stayed near the river and traveled by river taxis up and down to sight see.  Bangkok strikes us as organized, Western, clean, wide streets, the sky is relatively clean.  These are statements I never thought I would say. The contrast with Hanoi is striking.  Quieter. The people are also softer both in body and in voice.  Less hard edges.

Our first Thai meal at this little hole in the wall.  It was really great.e were i This was painted on the pedestrian bridge that went over the main road near our apartment.  We mused at the arrows because Thailand strikes us as so orderly and controlled.  This kind of instructional painting would never occur in Vietnam.A sleeping hog that we walked byView from the river taxiDon’t worry, there are Squishes.  Or in Thailand, Squishne. Wiring!WigsStreet foodStreet food galore, lots of fried itemsMy favorite kind of bagChinatown  The catfish are thriving in the Mekong river.  Global warming champion? So far we see that catfish, jelly fish, cockroaches and rats are survivors and have no problem with a changing climate.Temples, temples and more temples. Pomegratate juice.  Delicious.The reclining Buddha.  There are so many tourists that it is difficult to feel peace or a sense of spirituality when visiting these temples.  The largess is awe-inspiring and impressive.

View from our balcony

In Hanoi we met two other families through our Facebook group Our Tribe Travels, that like us, are travelling long term with thier children.  Vaida and Ali from London with thier two children Poppie (a sophisticated 8) and Johny (a joyful energetic 4).  They are about 2.5 months into a year of travelling in SE Asia.  We also met Dina and Roman who have been on the road for about three months or so and are parents of Peter and Sam (8 and 6).  The boys and Jack immediately became connected at the hips, sympatico. It was so nice to meet, share, commiserate and trade travel tips.  It was truly food for the soul.  The kids got on great, instant best friends.  We had coffee, then dinner and even met the next day to swim.  We hope to meet again in Thailand in December.

Our apartment overlooks the bustling changing landscape of Hanoi around us.  Addie went to work capturing this view from her rooms balcony in her sketchbook.

We are living in a high-rise apartment in a different part of Hanoi.  It is an area filled with construction and traffic.  It is like the old buildings and streets of Hanoi are being swallowed by the towering high rises that are in various stages of building.  Since we have only been in the North, I can only speak of what I see here.  It feels like Vietnam is one large construction site, but people live in and work amongst the rubble so the state is not transient.  Piles of garbage, cement blocks, pipes litter the craggy uneven sidewalks (if there are any) and wires jut from every crevice. Business spills out of the small buildings and workers do their work on signs, frames, motorcycles on the sidewalk.  You walk around motorbikes parked on the sidewalk and mingle with traffic that is going all directions.  Every where there is mud, dirt, concrete, garbage and dust.  It is a large, sprawling grimy city filled with humanity that is both beautiful and utilitarian.  Old grand French architecuture is laced with electrical wires and bolts, large wheepy trees burst forth from concrete and flourish.  The traffic is loud, horns are the primary traffic control device and are used with relish.  There is a karaoke bar that is our nightly soundtrack.  The smog here is so intense that it is like San Francisco when the fog rolls in.

We have been welcomed by Anh and her family (her husband Thong, cousin, and two 4 yo twins Neo and Ling).  We live in our own apartment that we share with two other Vietnamese roommates.  In the morning we take a Taxi to the kindergarten and teach two classes from 0900 to 1045.  I have the two-year olds and Cork has the older kids.  Our second class is combined, four-year olds.  Over the two weeks the toddlers went from crying and staring at me wide-eyed,  to dancing and singing, a satisfying progress. Cork’s topic all week has been the solar system and one day one of his students said, “Teacher Cork, help me please.  As he pointed to Earth, he said, “That is my favorite!”  Cork answered, “Mine too!”. We are amazed how smart these kids are.

In the evening we have two classes, one from 6-7pm (5yos) and one from 8-9pm, (2-3yos).  We eat dinner in between at Anh’s apartment two floors up.  We teach the classes together and after the last one, reward ourselves with dessert from the Vinmart downstairs.

Anh and her family are great.  Anh’s English is amazing and she has been super receptive to any feedback we have about the classes.  She has two twins, Neo and Ling who have become favorite students of ours, and play regularly with Addie and Jack.  After a few days of our being here, Anh said that she overheard Neo and Ling speaking English together.  Wow.  We visited a flower farm the other day and had a photo shoot!  Anh and her family have been very welcoming and we are thankful to have found them on Workaway.info and be volunteering with them.

Our days are filled with teaching, chilling, going to our favorite coffee place, teaching more and then sleep.  We do not feel we have the time or energy to explore midday, as we are far from our old haunts (the old quarter) and this area is not very walkable.  Although in some ways we feel that we are passing time here, we are experiencing life in Hanoi and have become comfortable with our little piece of the familiar.

We have arrived in Bangkok, Thailand today.  We said goodbye to Hanoi this morning, treated to Beef Pho and Coffee by our host family, Anh and Thong.  There is an intensity mixed with a laid back attitude that is uniquely Vietnamese.  Our time here has been really special and as usual it is the people who remain primarily in our memories.  Anh, her husband Thong and her children Ling and Neo welcomed us with hugs in the lobby our first day, and have had us at their dinner table for the last two weeks.  They are kind, smart and generous people and we are lucky to have met them.

The parents of our students (the night toddler class) also wanted to say Thank You and presented us with large black ceramic water buffalo.  The gesture was very much appreciated, but it did not fit in our backpacks.  Anh now has a new sculpture to place in the garden of her new Kindergarten.

There is a plan to return to Vietnam in March with our friend Shane, explore the South.  Anh said she may meet us in Hoi An.  It would be great to meet again.

Jack got a haircut yesterday.  We bribed him with KFC.  Again, all done without English.  Have I mentioned that Vietnamese men love the fade? 40,000 dong ($2)

Teaching the solar system

Classes we taught in the evening at our apartment.