Journey to Peace Village

I'm back! Sorry about the delay, but I've been feverishly busy since Tet! I've been doing my classes and covering for other teachers. I've had some fantastic experiences--for example, I taught at a primary school called "Nguyen Sieu" where the kids treated me like a superstar, chanting my name "Mary Mary Mary!" and mobbed me in the hallways. I've even visited Thailand twice to try to straighten out my paperwork mess.

More about that later. Right now I want to tell you about International Women's Day. International Women's Day is celebrated on March 8 every year. It's a huge deal here in Viet Nam and people rush off to buy flowers for the women in their lives. It fell on a Saturday and I had just a fantastic day! I was showered with flowers by the children in my classes, especially the early morning kindy class. A few kids slipped me candy as well. The teachers room was just filled with flowers and my xe-om driver had a tough time getting them all home! It was very fantastic and I felt incredibly happy. This was the type of experience that makes it rewarding to be a teacher! I've never gotten so many flowers in my life!