Last Day

It was our last day in Ho Chi Minh City and it was also our most eventful day. We started with sports in the morning, lunch, packing, presentations, the farewell dinner, and then the airport. I had the most fun playing the games this morning with the UEF students than I had all week. We…

VSIP and II-VI

Today we visited Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) and II-VI. Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park is a township developer that provides locations for people to learn, work, and live. It was a project initiated by both the Prime Minister of Singapore and the Prime Minister of Vietnam in 1994. Due to the government involvement, VSIP was…

Company/Professional Issues

Today we went to the Reunification Palace, otherwise known as the Independence Palace. We took a tour of the building to see each of the historical rooms. We saw banquet rooms, bedrooms, rooms used for war discussions, a movie theater, and a room for games. We also went into the basement to see the bomb…

Memorial, Pagoda, and Museum

Today we had a history and culture class, a language class, and a class about Buddhism. After learning about the history of the first Buddha and the Buddhist religion, we went to the Thich Quang Duc Memorial. This memorial commemorates a monk who lit himself on fire to protest the violence of the Vietnam War….

Ben Thanh Market

Today we went to the Ben Thanh market to practice our Vietnamese by bargaining with the sellers. This was a very interesting experience because of a few things. First, the inside of the market was relatively expensive. Everything is still very cheap when compared to the price of the same product in the United States…

Comparing to “Culture Smart”

Today we went to see the Cu Chi tunnels and to learn about how the Viet Cong used them to fight against U.S. troops. After hearing the tour guide speak about throw elaborate and long the tunnels are, I realized how much of a clever initiative they were. The tunnels had three layers; the first…

Mekong Delta

Today we visited the Mekong Delta and toured a few of the islands in the middle of the river. The first island we went to was Coconut Island. On this island, we observed how the coconut candy is made and packaged. We also got to try the candy, as well as snake wine. Snake wine…

Global/National Environment

Today we received our traditional Vietnamese dress, called “Ao Dai.” The dresses were beautiful and extremely unique. We have nothing like Ao Dai in the U.S., which made the experience even more interesting. The dresses are long and colorful with white pants underneath. Some of the female Vietnamese students informed us that they were required…

Individual/Personal Issues

Today we went to Vung Tau Beach and spent time at the Imperial Resort. The resort was absolutely amazing with its clear blue pool and private beach. It was interesting to observe that while at the beach, the Vietnamese students tend to play many games to have fun. However, Americans are more likely to relax,…

Industry Analysis

Today we visited Glass Egg Digital Media. This Vietnamese company is a video game developer and art creation facility. Other video game developers outsource their graphic art needs to Glass Egg to make the production of a video game much faster and easier. Glass Egg Digital Media first began with the creation of cars for…

Value Network Principles

Today we visited Phu My Hung Corporations and toured its current project. The company is designing and developing communities in South Saigon that offer a more enjoyable place to live for Vietnamese and foreigners. Phu My Hung builds houses, condos, apartment complexes, schools, roads, bridges, and more. They strive towards more spaced out living areas…

My Current Attitudes and Beliefs toward Travel

I have been extremely fortunate in my life so far to have had so many opportunities to travel internationally. I have been on family vacations to Mexico, mission trips to Canada, and even a high school trip to France and Italy. The purpose of the high school trip to Europe was to experience the culture…