catch-up, ketchup, catsup

I've been too lazy to blog, so I kind of forgot what's been going on... I really wished I could upload pictures to go along with my stories, so I'll just steal images from google until I return to the US.

We arrived in Hue yesterday (Tuesday evening). I was expecting the worst (heat, humidity, etc) because of what my doctor and family members have told me. The weather's actually not that bad. It's a lot more bearable than Saigon. There's a nice breeze every now and then. The streets are cleaner and there's not as many crazy motorbikes on the street. I feel a lot more comfortable here. According to Sanjeev, the city has changed a lot, now catering to tourists. Mia doesn't like it as much because there's too many people here who look like her.

So the organization we've been working with is called ACWP (Aid to Children Without Parents). Sunday in two southwestern provinces each cost $600 (including medicine and supplies), and about 1500 children were examined. Some kids that had to get some teeth extracted were really brave (they weren't given injections to numb the pain). I saw two who tried to hide. Trang and I had to give lectures about dental hygiene and the correct procedure to wash their hands. I thought it'd be interactive to have them sing "Kia con buom vang" (a nursery song about a yellow butterfly to the tune of "frere jacques"). Some kids got really into it, but others were really confused. For the most part, many of them already know the correct way to brush their teeth :D

The ACWP that's based in Hue have been really kind to us so far. The things that they've done for children are pretty amazing. There's this restaurant called "BLOOM" across the street from my hotel that was built by ACWP as a training culinary facility for the orphaned, homeless, and disadvantaged children in the region. They have the best Vietnamese coffee I've tasted thus far.


Today we helped out at a clinic in Quang Tri, which is near the Vietnam demilitarization zone (where the North and South separated during the war). I thought I would have trouble understanding the middle region's accent, but I managed. (I actually ended up ordering dinner in the Hue accent. It was weird). At this clinic, we mostly helped the elderly. Many had very high blood pressures and very high glucose levels in their blood. There were pharmaceutical students who helped out. Lien (my new friend!) is 21 and just finished her third year in pharmacy school. We talked about drinking, different school systems, and fish (my vocabulary is pretty limited).