Hello, Ha Noi

So I've been in Ha Noi now for over a month now, figured it was time to write down what I've been up to. Let's start with the sight-seeing!

The residents at Bach Mai have been treating me well, making sure I get to see the city of Ha Noi. While smaller than Saigon, it has a lot of character and stunning places to escape the traffic/dusty roads. Though spending loads of time in Bach Mai Hospital has been great, it's definitely nice to get out into the sun every once in a while :)

Temple of Literature (Van Mieu)

Being the good students of medicine that they are, the residents took me to the Temple of Literature. When they "graduate" from medical residency, they come here to receive their honors before being let loose into the hospital as really good doctors. (Only the smartest medical students can pass the exam to enter residency- so not everyone gets to do residency, unlike the US system). Of course, this place is not foreign to students, as many flock here before exams to pay their respects to the gods of smartness... hoping for some miracle of a passing grade :)

The temple is one of only a few places that has well preserved traditional Vietnamese architecture. There are 5 extensive courtyards, all dedicated to Confucius and honoring the country's finest scholars. VN's first university was established here and was only reserved for those of noble birth (that later changed).

The relationship between teacher and student is one of the most beloved in the country and so the temple keeps true to this tradition. Stelae (82 still remain) standing on stone tortoises record the names, places of birth and achievements of the most prominent scholars, such as Ngo Sy Lien.

Well of Heavenly Clarity. I'm sure many a student has stood here, pondering over the next test.

One Pillar Pagoda (Chua Mot Cot)

A landmark of Ha Noi, the one pillar pagoda has become a symbol of the city as it appears on logos and banners. Constructed by Emperor Ly Thai Tong (1049) as an expression of thanks for a male heir, it was rebuilt after the French destroyed the structure.

The pagoda is made entirely from wood on a single stone pillar, resembling a lotus blossom.


Ha Noi Opera House (Nha Hat Lon)

Literally translated "House Sing Big", this 900-seat opera house was built in 1911 by the French. On Aug 16, 1945 the Citizens' Committee announced it's takeover of the city from the balcony. I've driven by this place so many times, I have to go inside one day. Usually at night, it's good place to people-watch.

Haiphong

One weekend I made the 3-hour trip with Anh Cuong to Haiphong to visit with his friends. It was a reunion of sorts as they all went to high school together. Haiphong, a smaller town outside of Ha Noi, is known to be a great place to go and hangout with friends due to the many karaoke bars, cafes and Do Son beach. We did a little of everything and ate our meals at one of his friend's restaurants. Among the many delicious dishes on the menu... coagulated pig's blood. Not so delicious. Tried it once and that might be the only time ever again.

"Bac Ho" Mausoleum

No trip to Ha Noi is complete without a visit to see Ho Chi Minh's body, right? Bac Ho is contained in a glass sarcophagus housed in this huge marble edifice. A long line of visitors can be seen daily eagerly awaiting their turn to pay their respects to the late ruler. Guards in white uniforms surround the complex 24/7, almost like the Buckingham Palace guards!

Sadly, I was there on a Sunday and missed my chance to stand in a long line to visit Bac Ho. There are tons of rules before you can actually enter: no shorts, no hats, no pictures, no belongings, no talking or laughing, and no hands in pockets. Pretty strict. For some visitors, it is a momentous occasion to see the Liberator of Vietnam; while others don't exactly place him in high regard due to his communistic ideology.

One of my favorite places in the city, though, is Hoan Kiem Lake (pictures in a previous post during the flower festival). The legend is that heaven sent a magical sword to Emperor Le Thai To to drive the Chinese out of Vietnam. After the war, a golden tortoise emerged from the water and reclaimed the sword. Hence the name, "lake of the restored sword".

The lake is located in the Old Quarter, the historic heart of Ha Noi. Most tourists will find their way into one of many small hotels in the narrow and congested streets. Thanks to the many small alleyways and nooks and crannies, it's really easy to get away from the tourist areas to really get a feel for the excitement and elegant old architecture. There's plenty of commerce among the more than 50 streets, plus women walking by with old baskets filled with cheap meals, bia hoi stalls and pho stalls. In the old days, each street was named for the product that was traditionally sold there.

More pictures to come as I take them (been spending much more time in the hospital than sightseeing lately).

A Ha Noi Wedding

One of my main reasons for heading to Ha Noi was to attend Anh Hai's wedding (an ER doc at Bach Mai Hospital who I met while in Rach Gia). I ended up liking the city and people so much that I've decided to stay here for the remainder of my time in Vietnam! I've been here for a little more than 3 weeks shadowing in Bach Mai, as well as "teaching" the docs English. It's been an awesome experience so far, but more on "work" later. Have to share the weddings pics!

Weddings are a bit more complicated here, so it was really interesting to see some of the traditions that have been lost among VN family weddings in the US. Right off the bat, invitations to weddings are hand delivered to each and every guest by the bride and groom-to-be a couple weeks before the big day. Adds a more personal touch to things, doesn't it? Before the actual wedding day, there is also a ceremony called "An Hoi", which is basically the official engagement. On this day, the groom and his family/friends arrive at the bride's family's home to ask for her hand in marriage. Single young men associated with the groom's side come bearing gifts for the bride's family (cakes, fruit, jewelry), which are accepted by single young women associated with the bride. The older folk (parents of the bride/groom, grandparents, greats, etc) do most of the ceremonial talking until the groom can finally pick up his bride.

An Hoi (12/21/09): Meet the bride and groom-to-be!

The bride/groom then offer the traditional sacrifices to deceased family members and ancestors, offer ceremonial tea to all guests, and family/friends share a meal with their respective sides. (I started off the morning at the groom's side, but then joined the bride's side for lunch).

Prayers & gifts. Wedding days are known as "ngay dep", or beautiful/lucky days.

After all that business is taken care of, a few days later is the wedding! In the morning, the groom's side of the family arrives at the bride's house to pick up the bride. This involves a long parade of cars battling traffic across the city. After some more speeches from the elders, the bride is brought back to the groom's (their new house) for some more celebratory elder speeches. [Traditions here involve a lot of talking from the elders and tea-drinking.] Finally, the reception/party comes in the afternoon. Wedding receptions in Vietnam are usually very big, guests in the hundreds are the norm. Rings are exchanged, both families are introduced and there is a lot of eating and singing and cheers-ing!

Anh Hai & Chi Thao's wedding had an international touch with me coming from the States and their good friends Eloise & Benjamin flying in all the way from France.

My "dates" to the wedding, 2nd/3rd year residents from Bach Mai Hospital.

(12/26/09) Friends with the beautiful bride and groom!

Lastly, after the wedding, the bride and groom must go to the groom's "que" or homeland. Most people in Ha Noi come from rural areas further away, and so there are a lot of family members and friends that cannot attend weddings in the city. A second wedding of sorts is thus celebrated so everyone can be involved. Myself, Eloise and Benjamin joined Chi Thao's and Anh Hai's families for a trip to Thanh Hoa, a town/village (famous for pineapples and sugarcane) about a 3 hour drive from Ha Noi.

Thanh Hoa, right by Anh Hai's home.

There is a huge contrast between visiting "que" and the big city of Ha Noi. Thanh Hoa is a lot more peaceful and life is much simpler. Most families are farmers and live off the land. It is a lot quieter, of course, and at night, it is pitch black! I absolutely loved meeting his family/friends here, everyone is extremely genuine and welcoming.

Four-leaf clovers were everywhere! I felt lucky.

Anh Hai's younger brother chopping up the coconuts that he just picked. He insisted on teaching me the names of the many different trees/fruits. They were delicious!

We spent the night in Thanh Hoa to take in the sights and sounds. One of our adventures included a trip to a temple and nearby beach.

Bonjour, Benjamin!

We sat down and had tea with the caretaker who lives at the temple. He told us the story behind the gods worshipped here; of course I forget it all now, but the scenery was unforgettable.

Unfortunately it was a little too cold to swim.

Happy New Year from Vietnam!

Chuc mung giang sinh (a late merry christmas) and chuc mung nam moi (and happy new year) from Ha Noi :) I can't believe it's already 2010, and I can't believe I wasn't in the States to celebrate with family and friends. This was the first time that I wasn't at home to celebrate the holidays! Fortunately, I've been able to make some excellent new friends who have become like family, so it wasn't too bad being away (although it wasn't quite the same). I hear you guys are having quite the snowy winter and I am extremely jealous. Thank god I'm in Ha Noi right now, the weather is much cooler than the south so I don't feel as cheated.

Christmas & New Years are not huge celebrations in VN since only a small portion of the population is Christian. Most people are buddhist or have no religious affiliation. Of course, though, parts of Western culture have seeped all the way into Vietnam, and Christmas was no exception.

I still managed to see Santa, even if there was more than one of him, he wasn't accompanied by elves, and he was drinking beer in one of Ha Noi's famous sidewalk stalls (quan via he). I caught a glimpse of this phenomenon while walking through the Old Quarter.

Christmas evening, I went to mass at St. Joseph Cathedral for the Vietnamese service. That night I rode around the city with friends and enjoyed the festive surroundings over some hot coffee. Most people do not get off from work or school, so overall it was just like any other day.

Having an excuse to celebrate, the street traffic was even more crowded than normal.

The city of Ha Noi does a good job in getting decked out in lights for the holidays.

Missed having a Christmas tree this year!

My New Years celebration was also spent with new friends, Australian medical students that I met in Bach Mai Hospital. If you asked me 1 year ago, I would have never guessed that I would be in Vietnam, hanging out with Australians for the countdown to 2010! 20ish 2nd year med students from Sydney participated in an exchange program with Bach Mai Hospital. They come here to study/shadow for 1 month and in return, the hospital sends Vietnamese doctors to Australia to study new techniques. The Aussies were awesome enough to invite me to their New Years party- we rented out the top floor of Avalon Cafe & Lounge, overlooking Hoan Kiem Lake. Not a shabby way to ring in the New Year? Sadly, fireworks are banned in Vietnam and their was no "crystal ball drop" (I had to explain the significance of the Times Square ball to everyone), but we did have 2 countdowns, 1 for Australia and 1 for Vietnam.

Some of the girls of the group.

Known as "really tall guy", these 2 stuck out like sore thumbs in the hospital!

Over New Year's weekend, there was a flower festival (Le Hoi Hoa) around Hoan Kiem Lake, one of the many gorgeous lakes scattered throughout the city. I went to explore the many different flower arrangements with Chu Viet and Co Mai, the people that I am living with. Every evening they usually go for a walk around the lake anyways, so we just extended the routine a bit.

Co Mai & Chu Viet, my "host" parents :)

Hoan Kiem Lake, pretty ain't it?

Decked-out cyclos

My favorite.. lilies!

Mock "Temple of Literature" display

Ao dai (the new "little black dress") made entirely of flowers

There's never a dull day here.

Cheers to the new year, and can't wait to see what 2010 brings!

2 weddings and a funeral

After 3 months of working/traveling, it was time to head back to Vung Tau to relax and hang out with family for a little. I moved into Ong Ken's house for a couple weeks to spend time with everyone. It was nice having nothing to do and no where in particular to be for a change. My days were spent hanging out at the family restaurant, cafes and beaches. Most nights were spent at the restaurant helping out and cheering on Vietnam soccer in the SEA games! In the end they lost to Malaysia, but it was a good effort. Before coming here, I didn't even know VN had a team. They're not too shabby, but obviously can't compare to Manchester United. I also finally got my visa extended while in VT, so I was not deported from the country :)

I flew down to Rach Gia (again) for the first weekend in December for Anh Dieu's (neonatalogist in Kien Giang General) wedding. On Saturday, I took a 3-hour bus ride over to Can Tho to meet up with Anh Phuc and his friends for the night. Can Tho is the political, economic and cultural center of the Mekong Delta and so, unlike most of southern VN, stays open past midnight with tons of cafes, karaoke bars etc. Definitely the place to see the nightlife. Aside from the very lively waterfront, the city is well-known for its floating markets. Early the next morning, Anh Phuc and I made the 3-hour trip back to Rach Gia by vespa, just in time for the wedding. If you really wanna see the sites in this country, I highly recommend traveling by motorbike. And if you really wanna see some good fun, I highly recommend crashing a wedding. Guests by the hundreds are the norm and the beer never stops flowing. Karaoke and coffee usually follow later on to top off the night.

The following week I went to my first VN funeral. A relative of mine (not sure how we're related, but she was a cousin of someone), passed away and so Ong/Ba Ken and I traveled up for the funeral. People dress in white here, and family members wear white cloth bands around their heads. Children of the deceased wear white cloaks. In my family, or at least in this part of the country, it is customary for people to stay awake the entire night before the burial, which happens in the very early morning, to keep watch over the deceased.

After 2 weeks of Vung Tau, I inevitably got a little stir-crazy being in 1 spot with nothing to do. Ha Noi was next up in my adventure book.

A Little Getaway to Phu Quoc Island

While in Rach Gia, Jeff, My-Linh and I just HAD to take a break from our hard work in the hospital to speed boat the 3 hours to Vietnam's largest island, Phu Quoc, in the Gulf of Thailand (15km south of Cambodia). Known for its black pepper, pearl farms and "nuoc mam", a potent fish sauce, the island isn't as inhabited and developed as most others- according to Lonely Planet, we explored the tropical paradise right in time, before it gets too touristy and crowded. Anh Phuc booked us a tour guide/car for our trip, so we really got to see the island inside out. A full day excursion turned into a weekend vacation, and we moved from a $10/day hotel to a 3-star resort. Why not splurge?

Phu Quoc Pearl Farm

On Saturday, our driver took us around the island to the more famous tourist spots along Long Beach. People come from all over to buy pearls at the Phu Quoc Pearl Farm. Sadly, our student/nursing/resident bank accounts didn't allow us to indulge here, but it was nice just window shopping. Plus, pearls remind me of Richmond.

The famous Phu Quoc dog, apparently a good hunter, distinguished by the ridgeback and blue tongue.

Cau Castle (Dinh Cau)

A temple on the rocks, complete with lighthouse, in walking distance of our $10/day hotel (I wouldn't recommend staying there, though). The temple was built in honor of Thien Hau, Goddess of the Sea, who protects sailors/fisherman.

My-Linh and Jeff on the pier, best spot to see the sunset.

We explored many remote beaches, including Bai Sao and Bai Dam, all with pristine white sand and crystal clear water.

Coconut Tree Prison

It wasn't until 1949 when the French handed the island over to the Vietnamese. Because of its location, Phu Quoc was a convenient spot for a remote prison during the French colonial period. When the Americans took over Coconut Tree Prison, they housed over 40,000 VC prisoners. Inside the museum today, there are very vivid depictions of some of the more popular torture techniques used back in the day. Seeing the displays is a little eerie since there is still an actual prison next door.

On our first night on the island, we went on a squid fishing tour. Quite the experience. Around sunset, we set sail on a fishing boat with a group of other tourists. Midway through our trip out into the middle of the ocean, we stopped at a floating hut to buy some bait (which for some reason, we didn't use) and food. Squid is best caught at night and so it was pitch black while we were at sea. We used hand-made contraptions, but forgot the necessary light to put in the water to attract the squid. So, no one caught anything. Aside from Jeff's catch of a pile of trash, that is. The boat ride in and out was probably the coolest part. Plus, we had some raw sea urchin for dinner!

Our trusty tour guide (I forget his name!), and our squid fishing boat.

On Sunday, we planned a full day snorkeling tour with the french company Searama. We had two stops for exploring the coral reefs and lunch on the boat. The weather was absolutely perfect for the occasion!

The top deck of our boat had these recliners, so on the 2 hour trip out and back to the island, we all enjoyed glorious naps.

I really like boats.

One of our snorkeling stops.

Snorkeling was good fun! I think we had enough of being out at sea by the end, though. We were getting a little dizzy with all the rocking.

The view from our resort hotel. Much bigger jump from the previous night's.

Great trip, great friends.

Thanksgiving in Rach Gia

After the PV team headed back to the States, I returned to Rach Gia, Kien Giang province for another 2 weeks (Nov 16-28) to continue working on the infection control project with My-Linh, the peds resident. Jeff, a recent nursing school grad, joined us for our last week. It was lovely being back in a familiar place with friends!

Hoa Bien area of Rach Gia

The street where our villa is located.

Hydrofoil boat that took us to Phu Quoc island for a weekend.

We stayed in the hospital's villa again and spent most of our time in the NICU and microbiology departments of Kien Giang Hospital. Thanks in part to the inevitable PV disorganization & miscommunication, we were working slightly blindly and had a lot of free time. But still, I think we got a good deal accomplished.

We worked with the PICU and ICU departments to make up contact precaution signs for each patient bed. As I mentioned in an earlier post, due to limited space and resources, patients are not necessarily separated by illness. This is of course necessary in cases of various infections and pneumonia. We translated some awesome signs that we made to Vietnamese and hopefully these can help slow the spread of infection. Best case scenario would be to have each patient in a separate room. Or at least have all skin infections in 1 room, all pneumonias in another, etc. BUT, we gotta work with what we have...

In microbiology, we helped the dept recreate the ever-important antibiogram. In infection control, this sheet is incredibly vital, as it tells the doctor which bugs are resistant to which antibiotics at what rate in one specific hospital. While the gang in micro is diligent in keeping theirs up to date, Kien Giang Hospital's antibiogram was 30+ pages long. Hence, no one is going to read through the entire document, let alone use it as a reference in prescribing antibiotic treatments. To make matters worse, there wasn't much communication between the department and the doctors aside from releasing blood culture results. Doctors were not consulting the expertise of micro while dealing with antibiotics--a key factor in the enormous rate of nosocomial infection. (Let me tell you, translating microbiology terminology between English and VN is quite interesting).

Thanks to WHO, we were able to bring micro a program that allows them to easily create a user-friendly antibiogram, as well as other graphing measurements to better track infection and antibiotic resistance. We spent most of our time walking them through the program and showing them the advantages of using the antibiogram as a bible. It will be interesting to see if doctors will comply and how much this change will decrease resistance rates.

Thanksgiving (I can't believe it's already that time of year) happened to fall during our time in RG. My-Linh, Jeff and myself decided we had to introduce the glorious excuse to pig-out to our friends. It was hilarious trying to cook a feast with no oven or stove (only a burner and rice cooker). And it was even more humorous trying to explain this American holiday in Vietnamese to our friends... I think the only thing we got across was that people eat a lot to remember the day that old people first came to America.

The result from hours of slaving over a "hot stove"!!!!

OK FINE. So maybe not...

But, not bad, right? Turkey doesn't really exist in VN, so we had to settle for duck. Mashed potatoes, corn, banh bao (bread substitute), macaroni and PUPPY CHOW (!) for dessert. Man and Anh Phuc aren't too crazy about American food, but they ate our dinner and didn't get sick! And they loved the puppy chow.

Other than that, we spent our time hanging out with the doctors in the NICU and exploring Rach Gia. We ate most of our meals at this awesome restaurant (thanks, Lonely Planet) called Ao Dai Moi. The owner's kids live in the States, so he loved talking to us and feeding us! If you're ever in the area, I highly recommend this place. Excellent wanton. Banh Xeo Thanh Nhi is also a must- they have the best banh xeo (omelette-like dish) and banh khot (small rice cakes with shrimp).

Hanging out had to include some karaoking.

My-Linh and Jeff, choosing our next song. I'm sure it was something along the lines of Air Supply or Michael Jackson.

The incredible sunset from the lighthouse in front of our villa.

Myself, Jeff & My-Linh on our last night together in Saigon. Between the 3 of us, there were a lot of laughs, adventures and funny moments (with trying to translate). They made awesome travel buddies. I miss you guys already!

Goodbye, team.

40 volunteers, 6 hospitals, 2000+ patients, 2 weeks.

After a whirlwind 2 weeks traveling back and forth from Saigon to Binh Dinh and back again, it came time to say goodbye to the PV team. We had a banquet for all volunteers in Saigon at the end of the trip, the night before everyone was to head back to the States the next day. I had a lot of fun celebrating our last night together.

The ladies of Project Vietnam. They clean up nicely, don't they? Many had traditional ao dai's made, a far cry from hospital scrubs!

My-Linh, myself and Christina at our hotel.

Looking past the headaches of last-minute changes in plans, bureaucracy and disorganization, I really enjoyed hanging out and working with everyone. Each person brought something different to the table so that we could really help our patients. It's definitely different traveling alone again, after they all left, but it is a welcome change. While there was never a dull moment with the entire team, traveling with that big of a group gets tiring! It's more relaxing moving around with only a few, though I do miss the personalities! I know you guys all made it home safely, hope you've readjusted to life back in the States, and can't wait to maybe one day see you all again :)