Here is just a bit of fun vietnamese architecture! They really like dragons in Vietnam. They say that Vietnam is the shape of a dragon and that the dragon has provided them with much protection over the years.

The captain of the ship let me drive the boat for a few minutes. I must say that driving a boat in open waters is a pretty easy thing to do. The captain took over again however when we had to maneuver through mountain peaks. (probably a good thing too).

I got some additional Vietnam pictures from a friend, so I thought I would share some more. Our guide took this picture for us. We are jumping off our boat for a nice evening swim in the Gulf of Tonkin. It was very relaxing after our kayak excursion.

Little House on the Prairie

When I was little (and actually still), one of my favorite shows to watch was Little House on the Prairie. I always wanted to be Laura Ingalls and live in that time period. It looked like so much fun! Little did I know at that time, that when I grew up I would get to go back in time 150 years and live the "Little House" life. When you step into the mountain villages of Asia you really are stepping back about 150 years (though some of the houses do have satellite television and they sometimes have electricity). This past week I spent three nights in a village and we pretty much did as the villagers did. After an early breakfast of corn porridge and leafy greens, we spread out the corn to dry and then headed to the fields to work. It was about a thirty minute walk to the sweet potato/corn field. Once we arrived we squatted down and began pulling weeds out from amongst the sweet potato vines. We pulled weeds for about two and half hours straight. Most of the time we were under the shade of a tree, but when we weren't, that sun was hot. At around 1:30 we headed back to the village to cook lunch and rest (though I think they would have kept working had we not been with them). Then our host went back to the fields and left us to decornel the corn cobs and gather up the corn for the night. During dinner I observed how mothers without baby food feed their toddlers. The mothers would put meat in their mouths, chew, and then spit it into a spoon and feed their children. Of course the toddlers were also still breast feeding. After dinner was shower time. I took a shower out of bucket of water that had been heated over a wood burning fire. After showers, it was time for bed! I enjoy my trips to villages because they are so peaceful and the sky is so beautiful away from the pollution of factories and lights. But. . . I very much appreciate my 21st century life with a microwave, electricity, and a hot shower.

We found that pre-school aged kids pretty much run-a-muck all day long while their parents are working. It was truly a difficult thing to watch because these kids were doing all kinds of dangerous stuff they definitely were not hygeinic. The babies walk around without pants, and very few of them wear shoes. This little girl was playing in this pot with her brother, but I guess she got tired and decided to take a nap.

In the morning the villagers spread all the corn cornels out in a thin layer across the ground. The purpose of this is to dry out the corn so that they can grind it to make corn meal (which is then used to make the mush that they eat at every meal). Then, as the sun is setting, they sweep it up into a nice pile. When we were in the village, we helped with this daily task. They let us do it because it is difficult to mess up and they didn't really have to explain anything.

We swept up the corn and then put it away into baskets for the night. Then the whole process started again the next morning. I wonder how many days they have to do this before it is dry enough.