Exploring Ho Chi Minh for a week with work
This is my first work trip. Working remotely, you get to take your work with you everywhere, however this is my first work trip overseas for work. I still cannot believe that I am here. When I started at this company back in April as a freelancer, I never imagined that I would be invited on such incredible trips, especially so soon. This feels like a dream come true. And I am so excited to be back in Vietnam! I always knew that I would come back here but I did not think that it would be so soon. This is my first time travelling overseas entirely on my own. I thought that I would be nervous but it has been so phenomenally exciting. I leave for my flight tomorrow, so this is my last full day here.
This was the first time that I met my boss in person as well as the two other full-time employees. We all get along so great and it has made this trip so much fun! From the work days at the restaurant, to the activities at lunch time and the few full day trips, to the team dinners, we have bonded a lot and created some great memories. I have loved working remotely from the very beginning, however this has been so wonderful because it has given me the chance to fully appreciate remote work culture when you can get together and enjoy it all by bonding in person. I came on this trip as a freelancer who loved my job, and I am leaving (it is still crazy to think) as a full-time employee!
My boss asked me to come on full time and I am so excited. When I went to Vietnam earlier this year having not yet gotten into my field, I never imagined that I would be full time, in my dream career field, in a remote workplace. This truly does feel like a dream come true. I am excited to go home and celebrate with Josh and my family however I am going to be sad to say goodbye to these guys. I will miss the team dinners especially and joking around together. The people at this company are fantastic at their jobs and also great as individuals, so it has been a lot of fun. Plus, when I was living in Vietnam earlier this year, I did not get to see Ho Chi Minh, so this is especially cool!
It has been an incredible week. We have spent the mornings working before taking a break to have lunch at some incredible place that Kevin found. Then we come back to work for the afternoon and eventually clock off and break for dinner. It has been a great balance between working together and exploring a new city, both as a group and individually every now and then. On a few of the days, we have had extended lunches to explore the city. One a few days we did some tours. These tours were a definite highlight. I always find one of the best places to get to know a new destination is by learning about the culture and the history of the destination.
The first was when we went to the Ho Chi Minh War Remnants Museum. I knew before we went that this tour would be confronting and raw, but I will be honest, I had no idea just how intense it was going to be...seeing all that harrowingly vivid history on such a massive scale makes it even more astounding (and frankly, overwhelmingly admirable) that the Vietnamese people have overcome so much and are so kind and welcoming. You walk through lines of old military vehicles and a replica of the prisoner chambers used in the war. You need to go here if you come to Ho Chi Minh. It is such a humbling experience.
Then, a few days later, we went to see the Cu Chi Tunnels. We took the whole afternoon to do this experience and I will be honest, it has been the most confronting part of this week for me. Seeing the pictures and uniforms etc in the museum was rough, but actually walking around and through the tunnels is something else entirely. It is challenging to even describe it. You start the tour in small groups and they take you around to see some of the traps used during the Vietnam War. And then you see the tunnels that the Vietnamese people built to shelter from the war. We were able to go down into one of the tunnels and I had to come up because I felt so claustrophobic. The tunnels have been made a lot bigger so that us westerners could even fit in. Knowing that this was once a place for the Vietnamese to try to escape the horror that was happening all around them was harrowing. It felt wrong to pose for photos in the tunnels and to get into the little exit and jump up for a photo, so the only footage I got was candid video of others.
And then, to cap off the sightseeing aspect of our trip, we took a day off to do a Mekong Delta tour. Our tour guide took us down to a little swamp surrounded by bamboo and these small boats started to come up to us. Our group got onto one, they gave us each a conical leaf hat (i.e. the Non La, a traditional Vietnamese symbol with a legend about the history of rice growing here in Vietnam), and off we went. A kind man stood at the back of this little boat and steered it through the swamp out into the larger river bend using a bamboo stick. I loved this, I thought it was such a fantastic way to experience the river. Floating markets adorn the river at points, however we soon got onto a bigger boat as we went into the main section of the Mekong to visit some traditional markets and eat some traditional foods for the afternoon. It takes almost two hours to get there from the city, however it is so worth it.
This week has been so special. Ho Chi Minh city is full of unique architecture that is an intriguing mixture of French artistry, traditional Vietnamese style, and the homes, stores, and markets that are peppered in between. My favourite part of the city itself is without a doubt the little side alleys. Theses alleyways were lit up and decorated with little flags and brightly coloured scooters. It reminded me of Da Nang in those little side alleys and I loved it. I cannot believe that this week is already coming to an end. It has been a great week and I am feeling very thankful to be here and to be given this type of opportunity. It makes me love remote culture even more and it makes me so excited for what is to come.
'Each night the black sky and the bright stars were my stunning companions; occasionally I'd see their beauty and solemnity so plainly that I'd realise in a piercing way that my mother was right. That someday I would be grateful and that in fact I was grateful now, that I felt something growing in me that was strong and real.'
- Cheryl Strayed, Wild
