If I had to pick which of my 5 days in Vietnam was my favorite, it would hands down be day # 2: the day we toured my dad's hometown. As a child, my dad would sometimes share stories with me of his own childhood. I knew enough to understand that his life in Vietnam was completely different than the life I was blessed and privileged to have in America, but I would be lying if I said that I really connected to his stories. The truth is, I didn't. How could I have connected with things that I had never seen nor experienced for myself? As we toured around his hometown, Nha Trang, suddenly I found myself wanting to know everything about his childhood. What did his house look like? Did he sleep on the floor? What was school like for him? What was it like being a child in a war-torn country? I could just kick myself for not caring about these questions in the past! (Although isn't that how it always goes? Your parents tell you things as a child and it goes in one ear and out the other!)
As the sun rose early on our second morning and we set out to explore Nha Trang, the first thing that struck me was how beautiful everything was. Nha Trang is a beach town! A seriously beautiful beach town where the mountains dip right into the ocean. How did I not realize that my dad grew up right along the water?
Alright, time for me to back up just a little bit. The sun did rise early, in fact, much earlier than I rose. And we did explore Nha Trang in the morning. But while some of us were sleeping (ahem...me and Janelle) others got up WITH the sun (at 5 a.m.) to take a dip in the ocean!
Uncle Hiep, Matt, Hung, Jason, Uncle Hanh and Dad
Vivi, the bravest of all the women, was the only one to wake up early and swim with the men!
So a few hours later, around 7 a.m., those of us who snagged those extra two hours of sleep were up and ready to hit the town! Our first stop - Cho Dam - a famous market in Nha Trang. My dad recounted the many times he walked through there as a child.
Dad with all of his children in his hometown :)
Don't you want to scoop up the little man in the middle and put him in your pocket? I know I sure did. Since that wasn't an option, I had to settle for a picture with him instead.
After we left Cho Dom, we hopped on a small private boat to sail from island to island around Nha Trang. The scenery was to die for!
Here we are with Vivi's nephews
The first island we stopped off at had an aquarium among other fun activities. As you can see, Matt was mostly excited about "drinking under a thatched parasol" ;)
The whole crew at the entrance to the aquarium
Walking with Ba Noi...isn't her hat too cute?! :)
Back on the boat.
"We are PHAM-i-ly, I've got all my uncles and me!"
(You may not know what a "Phamily" is...well, my maiden name is Pham)
So apparently, Matt is a fan of durian now. Umm....gross?
Then Vivi and Janelle decided to partake in the durian eating which meant that Jason, Dad and me all had to stay away from our spouses because they smelled bad ;)
After the boat trip was over, half the crew went back to the hotel for an afternoon of rest while Dad, Vivi, Uncle Hiep, Uncle Hanh, Hung, Matt, Jason, Janelle and I went to explore more of Nha Trang and check out Dad's old stomping grounds.
First Dad took us to his old house. It was so amazing to walk down the very path he walked on every day to get home! As we approached the front door I got more and more excited to see the very home he lived in. Thankfully, the new owners were more than happy to let us in and look all around!
Standing at the front door
Sitting in the very spot my dad used to sleep. He says everything still looks the same! He told us about having to sleep with one change of clothes and a bag of rice next to the bed every night incase they had to escape in the middle of the night due to an invasion.
Dad with some of the original furniture from when he lived there.
In the kitchen. My dad said he felt a little emotional being in his childhood home with his now grown up kids for the very first time.
After we left the house we walked straight over to the elementary school that Dad and his brothers all attended as children.
Then we continued on to the high school that Dad and Uncle Hanh went to (Uncle Hai, the one in America went here too).
Inside the actual classroom Dad used to be in. He said all of the desks and chairs are the same as when he attended the school back in the late 60s!
Jason was able to get in a quick game of basketball with the local high school kids. They loved it!
We also went up to see this big buddha statue up on a mountain. My dad shared with us that he used to walk up and then down that mountain as a short cut to his house (which is somewhere in this picture). He told us the story of one particular day during the war that he literally saw dead bodies rolling down the hill and had to step over them. What a sad thing for such a small child to witness! These were the things my dad grew up with on a daily basis. It wasn't until this trip that I put any of that into perspective.
So anyway, after an afternoon of touring the city in extreme heat, our stomachs were growling and it was time for Vietnam pork chop #2. As promised, I'm featuring it on the blog, ha!
To beat the afternoon heat, we went for a swim. It was really cool standing on this beach because as a child, my dad always told me this story about how he was knocked over by a enormous wave on the beach in Vietnam, which ultimately scared him from swimming to this very day. This is very beach that the wave knocked him over!
When evening came we made a very fast stop at one of Nha Trang's famous land marks, Thap Ba. It was actually closed to visitors, but my dad sweet talked the guards into letting us in. Thanks Dad!
Jason and our new cousin, Hung :)
Dinner consisted of more delicious grilled meats that we couldn't get enough of. We wrapped them in rice paper with veggies and they were SO good. We ate until we were all about to burst!
That was the end of a very long, but FABULOUS day # 2. I will never forget the memories from from that day and I'm so thankful that we were able to experience everything together! :) Check out the slideshow below if you're interested in more pictures! (Use the pause button to stop the slides and look through them at your own pace)
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