My First Motorbike Ride

Today I went on my first motorbike ride in HCMC. If you know anything about Saigon, you know that it is notorious for its motorbikes. My new friend Dzung, a Vietnamese teacher at BCIS, offered to help me find a clothes hanger for drying our clothes. As a family of six,  we have a lot of clothes that is washed and needs to dry - so after hanging our clothes around our apartment for the last two weeks it was time to make it right.  In Vietnam, people do not own electric clothes dryers like we do in North America, actually they are not even very common in Europe - I think the quick clothes dry method is a North American thing.

It had rained in the afternoon, so I was happy when it stopped,  because I was a little nervous riding the motorbike and everyone knows that when it rains, the roads are extra slippery...  We actually witnessed a wipeout right in front of the school our first week here.  It's not that they drive fast. ...it's just really slippery.

I borrowed a helmet from one of my colleagues,  because wearing a helmet is mandatory for anyone over the age of 10. Under the age of 10...no helmet required...Huh???? Yeah,  parents ride with their kids and babies on motorbikes. They are dropping  them off at school every day...without helmets...

Going shopping after school with Dzung.

We bought the clothes hanging rack, hangers, and some other household items at the market.  It started to rain again, so we decided to head home. Dzung pulled out her rain poncho and draped it over us. Its actually really cool...when it rains,  all the motorbikes pull over and everyone starts putting on ponchos.  Some ponchos actually have holes for two heads - for the driver and passenger...cool, right?!  Only problem is,  that sometimes you will see more than two people riding a motorbike.  I'm not sure what the record is,  but I have seen at least 4.

This is the clothes dryer that we bought. How did we get it home? I was holding it on the motorbike, in true Viet style! It was disassembled, but still pretty big. 

You would not believe what the Vietnamese are capable of carrying on their motorbikes.  I will start a photo collection.  But I have seen some pretty crazy things already ranging from trees to machinery.  Really crazy stuff...but normal here. 

It is one thing to be able to transport virtually anything on a motorbike, it is another thing to be able to navigate the traffic. The biggest vehicle on the road has the right of way... there is a distinct hierarchy. If you are a pedestrian you are at the bottom of the totem pole and you need to watch out,  but most importantly, you have to be predictable. Motorbikes on the otherhand are very unpredictable. They swerve around cars and trucks and all traffic just seems to merge around pedestrians...but you must be predictable with your next step...they need to know where you are going if they are to go around you. 

Ok...who has the right of way??? This is mild compared to the "busy" parts of town. ;-) Can you imagine rush hour???

CISS - The Canadian International School System - HCMC

One full week of school officially done! And it has been a busy one! It took the greater part of the week to figure out my schedule,  but getting there with only one conflict left.  We are teaching at the Canadian International School System also know as CISS in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. 

CISS is made up of 3 schools. CIS - The Canadian International School an Ontario curriculum school, working to prepare students for studies abroad and work in English speaking fields, BCIS - the Bilingual Canadian International School - a school teaching half Vietnamese curriculum in Vietnamese and students spend half their day learning in english, developing a good proficiency in English, and finally CVK - Canadian Vietnamese Kindergarden. 

Stepan is the Aquatics Director at CIS. This is a new position and he will be working to establish a structured program at the school to help students learn to swim and become strong swimmers - really a life skill in Vietnam with a really high number of drowning deaths each year.  There are rivers, oceans and pools everywhere.  In Vietnam, it is essential to know how to swim.

In the foyer of CIS.

Stepan looking at the Olympic size swimming pool he will be working at.

I am the Health and Physical Education teacher at BCIS. Teaching grade 1-11.  

Working here has been great so far,  but also challenging.  I spend most of my days outside,  or in a shaded foyer, which provides a large space,  especially for elementary cooperative games. Everything is open. All hallways are open air.  Only classrooms are closed in and shaded. For classroom teachers that is good.  They have their a/c, but for me things can get very hot!  And hot can be exhausting. Some teachers have told need that this is not hot.  Apparently April and May are deadly. ..going to have to figure something out, but on the flip side the winter should be very nice and pleasant!   

Stepan at work. Planning for the start of the school year.

PA Day snacks.

The food at the school ranges from incredible to intetesting... One of the teachers joking asked one day..."Whats for lunch?" , "Bacon wrapped snake heads." And I don't think he was very far off. ..I passed on that one.  However some of the lunches have been spectacular.  I love that fresh veggies are ALWAYS served in abundance,  and the fact that there is more than one selection also helps. ..if in doubt,  the soup has always been good.  Who doesn't love a bowl of noodles??!!

With Eva at the May Cafe (BCIS) eating lunch.

Hungry!

My lunch on Fri. Aug. 21, 2015

Snack time at school.

I love coconuts!

My outdoor classroom.   I have an indoor one too, it's pretty basic with desks and a whiteboard. 

This is the view from the foyer where I teach the elementary students.  I have a great view of Stepan's school. This is also where David, Veronika, Viktor and Eva are going to school. Yes, I'd love to be with them, but I can't complain.  I'm just across the street!  We all get to walk to and from school together, so that is great. 

The Bizu

The Bizu is small hotel in District 7 where we spent our first 2 nights in HCMC. It was quiet,  and our room had 3 double beds in it.  At $60US/night it was reasonable and a perfect fit for our family of 6. The room was tiny, just big enough to fit the beds, so fitting our suitcases in (remember 10 suitcases and 8 bags) was almost like a game of tetris. We stayed here our first 2 nights while we looked for our apartment.   Jet  lagged,  we were all up at 2am. After all, it was 3pm back at home! The hotel was quiet, and clean and had A/C, which is VERY IMPORTANT! We were just above the kitchen, so every morning (early morning, but no matter, we were up anyway) we could smell the incredibly delicious breakfast being made. 

I know...yum! So delicious. Stepan was so impressed...he was sad to leave the Bizu, because he would miss the fare.  However, after two nights (and two breakfasts),we said goodbye to the very kind and very helpful staff and moved into our apartment at Riverside!

Fun at Bizu.

It was great to be in a location that was not too busy and walking distance to restaurants and small convenience stores. The kids loved the fresh smoothie/juice bar just about a 5 min walk and we even had pizza for dinner one night from Pizza Inn. Not the greatest pizza ever, but lets be honest, you don't come to Vietnam to eat pizza.

Up, up and away...

Our adventure begins on August 8, 2015. We are flying to HoChiMinh City, Vietnam to teach at the Canadian  International School. Over the last couple months we have organized paperwork and packed up the house.  Running on adrenaline for the last 2 weeks.  I am totally exhausted,  but seriously excited to start our adventure! I honestly cannot thank my mom and  dad enough for their help during this chaotic time.  I don't think err would have made it without them. Our departure is bittersweet,  so excited for adventure,  but we will  really miss our family....Sometimes I wish I could be in two places at once,  and this is one of those times.

Our bags are packed and we're ready to go! 10 suitcases and 8 backpacks. We're talking about aapproximately 500lbs. of luggage.

Flying in comfort and style!

Wish we had time explore Hong Kong! We will have to come back sometime.