Good Bye Hoi An, Good Bye Vietnam

March 14, 2008 - Friday

It is time to begin the journey home. It's a long road home. We left Hoi An at about 9am in a taxi headed for Danang. There we caught a flight to Ho Chi Minh City. We spent just enough time there to have a nice dinner - Brodard was no longer there (even though the sign was on the building!) so we found another place that felt more like American food than the other places. It truly was good food after only very Vietnamese food for days....the next morning we had to get up early (3am to be exact) and take a taxi to the airport to catch our flight to Hong Kong. Everything went as planned and smooth. From H.K. we flew directly to L.A. All the flights were on time and there were no problems. We landed in L.A. at 9am and caught the shuttle to go to the hotel we stayed at prior to our departure. There we were happy to find that the hotel staff did get my message about Sophie's meds and they put them in a refrigerator while we were gone. So, now we do not need to replace them (they are expensive!) AND thank God, we did not need them while we were travelling....

....we are now home and trying to kick he jet lag. Sadie gets very frustrated when she cannot sleep when she wants to. Both want to get back to school and hopefully Tuesday they will be able to - it took them forever to fall to sleep last night so we will see. Thanks for following along with us on our wonderful journey - we learned alot and relaxed alot. It was a good trip, enjoyed by all - it was a joy to see Sophie and Sadie take this trip as sisters.

Last couple days in Vietnam...

March 13, 2008 - Thursday

Today we went back to Hoi An town to have something that was custom made for Sophie re-fit. They goofed and made her pink silk shirt too big! It was one of the many custom clothing makers we bought from, this one called "Linda's"....of course this is the only one that goofed! After we returned we got on our bathing suits and hit the beach! This beach is so beautiful and peaceful - well, except for the ladies walking up and down the sand trying to get you to buy something! "No, thanks" is NOT what they want to hear. One lady told Steve "you buy from me....bad luck to you if you don't buy from me?"!! Needless to say, he did not buy from her and she was not very happy - so far, no bad luck for Steve!

The girls played in the waves with me for hours - picking up as many shells as we could get. Wave runners were being rode by other tourists near by. It would be so nice if our beaches in southern Calif. were this peaceful and calm.

After the beach we went to our room and cleaned up - changed bathing suits and hosed off the sand in our special beach shower. Then we went down to the pool to meet with Sophie's birthmother, brother and friend one last time before we depart. It was a nice time. Sophie and Sadie swam in the pool and more of Sophie's personality was shown than previous. We think it was good for them to see Sophie just being Sophie. She gave Sophie, Sadie and us another gift to remember Vietnam. Sadie and Sophie received beautiful silk dresses and Steve and I shirts. Sophie also received really cute pink p.j.'s. She will probably drown in them but maybe with a good wash and dry they will resize!

Then were the good byes and hugs and off they went on their motorbikes - looking back for one more glimpse, of Sophie. Meeting them was truly worth the trip....

A local restaurant experience - Hoi An

March 12, 2008 - Wednesday

We drove down the street to a local seafood restaurant. It is a very simple and torn down looking building. The roof was a tarp. The staff were extremely friendly and excited to know who was coming to visit. The food was probably very good for the locals. We, however, did not like it very much and it did not set well with our tummies. I already told the story in a previous post about the chicken....the girls do not want chicken for a while now. The Vietnamese like to try to get you to eat everything and that is very hard. You want to give them respect but you want to take care of yourself. It's one thing if it is just one tangerine, but, when it is lots of foods and they are constantly setting it in front of you - it is sooooo hard.

We enjoyed having a little more time with each of the family members and learn more about them. There is much we have learned and much that has taught us more about their ways and their souls. They are good people that live completely differently than us.

Beer Delivery in Vietnam!

For those of you that do not know, Steve's job is in beer distribution, so that is why there are these pictures, etc. talking about beer!

For all the beer delivery guys out there, here are some pics that I thought you might enjoy.

Hoi An at a glance - beautiful

March 11, 2008 - Tuesday

Tuesday we went shopping in Hoi An. Although it is very "touristy" it was fun. They have stalls of store and stores to shop in and most of them are kind of like duplicates. Then there were the places to have custom made clothes, street clothes, fancy clothes, Asian wear, and of course, ao dais. It was hot and humid but we still managed to all (including Steve) order shirts, pants and Sophie got an ao dais for herself and her best friend. I brought in my favorite capris and she just duplicated the fit and changed the fabric. We ordered it all before noon and it all was complete and delivered to our hotel by 6pm. The capris were only$7! Nice! Lots of fun watching the girls pick out treasures for their classmates, teachers and friends.