The Scavenger Hunt

Saturday started off with 3 hours worth of orientation for observing the new teachers this week as they do their teaching practicum at DAV (Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam). The vice-dean of the English department is also serving as a mentor/observer, so she was there too. She came armed with a cassette tape of two English news broadcasts she wanted me to listen to and a transcript to correct. Since I don't have a cassette player, I headed over to campus about 1:30 to check the transcript. It didn't take long - just lots of minor corrections.

From 4-7 we were supposed to have a scavenger hunt for VTF. But, Friday one of our good Vietnamese friends (Lien) called to invite us to her house to celebrate its renovation - the family had added two floors, upgraded the kitchen, and done a lot of other work. She had been trying for a couple of weeks to try to get the three families she was inviting to mesh with a date and we didn't want to mess it up. So we moved the scavenger hunt to Sunday afternoon. Plus, that would give VTF Saturday night to work on their lesson plans.

Unfortunately, some of them were thinking that putting it off to Sunday night would be a good idea. But we did the scavenger hunt anyway and they were finished and on their way back home by 7 PM.

What do you look for on a scavenger hunt in Hanoi? Stuff like:

• A photo of a live animal.
• A photo of a cooked animal (whole).
• A photo of someone on your team talking with a child.
• A photo of an artist at work.
• A photo of you in a store downtown. One extra point if the shop owner is in the photo.
• Team photo with a Colonel Sanders statue.
• Team photo with everyone wearing a conical hat.
  
• Team photo of you drinking coffee or fruit drinks at a café.
• A bus ticket stub.
• A pair of chopsticks or a new pair of plastic sandals.
• Three pieces of fruit.
• A postcard of Hanoi.
• A single-use packet of shampoo.
• A Vietnamese postage stamp.
• A bottle of “Joy” brand water.
• Ten business cards from ten places you’ve never been.

There were about 40 items in all. The Dalat team pulled off a 38-35 win.

So, it wasn't as flashy as the Olympics, but sending them out without their team leaders brought them back feeling a little more comfortable about negotiating Vietnam and, hopefully, happy about the start of some good friendships.

New Relationships & New Schedules

Tonight I met with a young man and his friend who want me to help them with their English. The guy's dad is the guard who works near our house. A while back he asked if I'd be willing to tutor them and we were finally able to meet tonight. The plan is to begin this weekend and trade one hour of English for one hour of Vietnamese. Maybe this is the start of some new friendships.

Until this afternoon, my boss at the Diplomatic Academy thought I was still in the US. I've been doing some work for the department via email over the summer so it's not that I've been hiding out these last ten days - the subject just never came up. But the new textbook for the juniors needs a few finishing touches before it goes to the printer, so tomorrow I'll head over to the campus to see if I can help with that. The fall teaching schedules are ready too.

It's been nice to be back early enough this year to get some things in place before training ends.

Teamwork

A few months ago I came across an online news article about a young woman from the midwest who will spend a year teaching on the outskirts of Hanoi as part of the Fulbright program. Her blog is frighteningly titled, "Things That Could Kill Me in Vietnam".

Last night she posted that she'd arrived in VN. She got through immigration with the "scary visa people in military uniforms" and got her bags, but apparently she was on her own when it came to getting to her school. She somehow ended up paying $120 for what should have been a $20 taxi ride. She arrived at the hotel with no one to tell her that it's normal for the hotel to hold your passport when you check in. All this happened in the wee hours of the morning after the long flight from the US.

I'm glad she's still writing about it from here and hasn't turned around and headed back to the airport. And I hope she makes good friends quickly and starts to feel more at home in her neighborhood.

But reading her story got me thinking about how much I appreciate ELI's team approach to teaching. While Nancy and I can negotiate VN pretty well these days, the experience we had 8 years ago of having friends, old and new, on the other side of the "scary visa people" sure made life a lot easier and more enjoyable.

Now we get to be the people on the other side. It's been fun doing for others what others have done for us.

Just Photos From First Week of 2008 VTF Training

Yes, it's that hot.

2/3 of the new teams.

Hoan Kiem Lake intersection.

Hit the Ground Running

With the usual slight bump, the plane hit the runway and we're back in Hanoi. Jet lag? What jet lag? Who has time for jet lag?

11 PM Wednesday: We drag the last suitcase into the house, take a look around, unpack a little, hit the showers, then the pillow.

Thursday AM: Unpacking.

Thursday afternoon: Nancy and Sandy go to Elysse; David answers email and reworks the all-country training schedule for the Vietnam Teaching Fellowship (VTF). People have been waiting for the schedule since the weekend.

Thursday, 9:18 PM: Bed.

Friday, 8:30 AM: Meet with the ELI country director to go over the schedule for the VTF training that will begin Saturday.

Friday, 11:15 AM: Lunch with the Camp Vietnam teachers who are at our school this summer.

Friday, 2 PM: Visit the school to observe Camp Vietnam in action.

Friday, 6 PM: Dinner. Food Shop 45!

Saturday, 8 AM: Meeting with other trainers at their hotel.

Saturday, 9:30 AM: Leave for the airport to welcome the 2007-2008 VTF teachers.

Saturday, 2:30 PM: Lead VTF on a walking tour around the hotel so they can get their bearings.

Saturday, 6 PM: Take VTF somewhere nearby for dinner. Anything but KFC!

Sunday, 9 AM: First training session begins. Full days for the next five weeks.

Although our heads are still spinning from being in the USA, we're off to a busy start!