Vietnam School Visit

One-third of the population in Vietnam is under the age of fifteen. The country wants to improve its education system but a history of war and poverty means schools are not equipped to provide enough teachers, books, or even chairs for all of the children. In some areas, kids attend school in half day shifts. Saigon presents a progressive image and seems to illustrate a more industrialized society, yet three-fourths of the population lives in the countryside in poverty.

International Literacy Day is being celebrated the day of our visit to a school.

A well-stocked Room to Read library.

Fun can transcend language.

The exciting news is that the government has given permission for RtR to reach into North Vietnam for the first time. This is both a triumph and a challenge. It will mean bringing literacy to 50 different ethnic groups including the most marginalized people living in the mountain highlands.

Sign me up right now for the joy that visit would be!

A Glimpse of Vietnam

This photograph was taken in Ho Chi Minh City, commonly still referred to as Saigon. The street scape is a contrast between modern buildings, street vendors and open markets.

A bamboo pole with a basket of bananas on each end becomes a fruit market. It is colorful and fun to see but a reminder of the basic economics of survival. Two plastic stools on the street becomes a restaurant. The lady in the photo below has a restaurant-to-go on her shoulder pole.

One is often called out to with "Please, Madame..." with an emphasis on the second syllable. It is a reminder of the French influence in the early colonization of Vietnam.

Electrical engineer Dave says this is what's known in construction terms as a "bird's nest"! Even he is speechless at how this lineman is figuring it out.

Crossing the street in Vietnam is the ultimate challenge. Motorcycles six deep do not stop. You step off the curb and keep going. The drivers have calculated your crossing and if you hesitate at all - you'll get smacked. The hum of the motorcycle engines is everywhere.

To get to the rural school on our itinerary we must travel down the palm-fringed Mekong. It is tradition that the face painted on the boat will help "see" the way in the dark.

On our way to the school we walk through a rural market and make friends along the way.

Pictures of the school will be in the next post!