I may have found my new hangout for a lazy day in HCMC. I am sitting in a wonderfully over sized, comfortable chair in Highlands Coffee on the corner of De Tham and Pham Ngu Lao. It's big windows give me a clear view of the crazy activity outside (xe oms (motorbikes), taxis and pedestrians all trying to create space for themselves) but I am happily on the inside so I don't have to deal with the noise, pollution and constant attention from the peddlers trying to sell me something. The only problem is that it may be too full of tourists for my taste. But for now it's good.
What have I been doing lately?? Of course that is the first question that has OBVIOUSLY come to your mind...haha. My days and weeks consist of the same. During the school day I work a crazy schedule then try to decipher vague and cryptic emails for my principal in my free time. After school I tutor three Korean kids for an additional 12 hours a week. I am considering reducing my tutoring hours at mid year. I think one of my students might be heading back to Korea at Christmas break, so that might take care of some reduction in hours right there. The other two kids are cute too and I spend the majority of my time with them. The little girl is obsessed with appearance and I feel her eyes studying my earrings, my dress, my hair...but it doesn't annoy me because it is all due to curiosity. One thing is very clear...she WILL be a Korean princess with some boy carrying her purse on the subway when she is old enough to date.
Other news? Hmmm...looks like the director of our school is becoming more tuned in to the fact that our principal is a disaster. As a matter of fact I have heard from reliable sources that his job will be posted for next year. So, I think if I can live through this year things will be looking up in the future.
Oh yes, I will be going on weekend trips to Long Hai and Hoi An in Vietnam and then traveling to Malaysia over Thanksgiving break in about a month to see my roommate from last year who now lives in Kuala Lumpur. I am also trying to plan a trip to Cambodia and Thailand in February over Tet (lunar new year). Christmas is still up in the air, but the latest rumors are Laos or Philippines.
So, that's it for now. It has been a busy, but really kind of boring three months (except for a couple trips to Mui Ne). Hope to have more interesting things to post in the near future. I hope everyone has a Happy Halloween!! I can't believe that the holiday season is already here!! Take care everyone!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
One Month Later
This year has a totally different feel to it. I came in with expectations this year which was different from last year when I had no idea what to expect. The administration and principal continue to amaze me with their poor decisions and direction. The work permit issue keeps rearing its ugly head with no resolution in sight. My plan is to do nothing and if I am asked to leave the country because I have no work permit, then so be it. I don't have the time to decipher the cryptic and vague instruction from our "Human" Resources manager.
Although it is early in the year I feel the writing is on the wall for me to pursue other options. I plan on attending the regional job fair in Bangkok in January as well as try to apply to schools at home. I really do hate to have to leave this school and the friends I have made under such circumstances, but I cannot stay in a school where the administration and principal lie to teachers, students and parents on a daily basis. One of the reasons I came back to this school was because of the attachment I had developed toward my 11th graders last year. As of yesterday, at least six of them have left the school because of the administration and principal. At least another ten or so didn't bother coming back after last year. Sixteen students out of 38 is a pretty significant number.
Wish me luck and if anyone still reads this and knows of a high school history job opening please let me know :)
Although it is early in the year I feel the writing is on the wall for me to pursue other options. I plan on attending the regional job fair in Bangkok in January as well as try to apply to schools at home. I really do hate to have to leave this school and the friends I have made under such circumstances, but I cannot stay in a school where the administration and principal lie to teachers, students and parents on a daily basis. One of the reasons I came back to this school was because of the attachment I had developed toward my 11th graders last year. As of yesterday, at least six of them have left the school because of the administration and principal. At least another ten or so didn't bother coming back after last year. Sixteen students out of 38 is a pretty significant number.
Wish me luck and if anyone still reads this and knows of a high school history job opening please let me know :)
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Back in 'nam
Well, I have been back in HCMC for a week now and it feels like I never left. I remember getting here last year and having no idea what I was in for. This year is so much different because I felt comfortable getting off the plane and knew where I was, knew where I was staying (at least temporarily) and knew my way around the city. It took me at least 3 months to figure out my way around to different places and to feel comfortable in a taxi.
Now, having said that, things that I had hoped would have changed between last June and now have not. Namely, our principal is still here and is still on a mission to get the school certified while avoiding, or should I say ignoring, all other issues in the school. He is single minded in purpose and his goals don't have a lot to do with students or teachers. His long term goal of having the school become certified is admirable and will help students down the line, but it is almost as if he is so focused on that goal that the needs of his current staff and student body don't matter. I am one of the lucky ones...I don't have a lot of interaction with him and make myself invisible so as not to attract too much attention to myself. We have a couple of teachers, however, that are trying to make waves and complain about certain issues. Those teachers are being handled with an iron fist. While I admire them for attempting to make a difference at this school I fear they are only wasting their time and making a bad name for themselves at the same time.
Enough of the negative...tomorrow is the first day of school and I am excited to see the kids. More after the year gets going...
Now, having said that, things that I had hoped would have changed between last June and now have not. Namely, our principal is still here and is still on a mission to get the school certified while avoiding, or should I say ignoring, all other issues in the school. He is single minded in purpose and his goals don't have a lot to do with students or teachers. His long term goal of having the school become certified is admirable and will help students down the line, but it is almost as if he is so focused on that goal that the needs of his current staff and student body don't matter. I am one of the lucky ones...I don't have a lot of interaction with him and make myself invisible so as not to attract too much attention to myself. We have a couple of teachers, however, that are trying to make waves and complain about certain issues. Those teachers are being handled with an iron fist. While I admire them for attempting to make a difference at this school I fear they are only wasting their time and making a bad name for themselves at the same time.
Enough of the negative...tomorrow is the first day of school and I am excited to see the kids. More after the year gets going...
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Feels Like Home
I am very glad to be in the USA for the summer. In many ways it feels like I never left. I arrived in Chicago the morning of the 13th and after cruising through passport control and customs the highlight of my weekend was meeting my niece Kate for the first time.
Here she is with her mom picking me up at the airport. Oh, I'm Pig, by the way. I did have jet lag but I don't think it was as bad as I thought it would be. After sleeping a couple of hours at my sister's house I woke up to a dinner of meatloaf and potatoes...I was in heaven!! Western food is something that I missed very much while in Asia. You can get it, but it just isn't made the same.
On Sunday Cheryl, Barak Kate and I were intending to go to an antique flea market, however there was a dog show there and so we went to a park instead. It was a really nice day and it felt good to be in fresh air and such green surroundings. Later in the day Cheryl drove me to Cliff's apartment where I am staying while I complete my masters at DePaul. He had a little surprise for me...he had planned a little gathering at Justin's beer garden and I had a good time catching up with friends I hadn't seen for a while.
On Monday I was still not on Chicago time and woke up at 5am. That morning I got a gym membership, was overstimulated at Jewel, went to Office Depot and took care of my McDonald's Bacon Egg and Cheese craving. Then I walked to DePaul and got my books for my class that started later that afternoon. I did all of this and was back to my apartment by about 9:30am.
Today is the first day (Wednesday) that I feel relatively normal. I am looking forward to being finished with class tonight because then I can just coast right into the weekend. It should be a fun one too. I plan on seeing friends from high school on Saturday and then a family cookout on Sunday, so I should have more pictures to upload to flickr. Speaking of uploading pictures, that is my next task. Check out my flickr badge to the right for the most recent additions!!
Here she is with her mom picking me up at the airport. Oh, I'm Pig, by the way. I did have jet lag but I don't think it was as bad as I thought it would be. After sleeping a couple of hours at my sister's house I woke up to a dinner of meatloaf and potatoes...I was in heaven!! Western food is something that I missed very much while in Asia. You can get it, but it just isn't made the same.On Sunday Cheryl, Barak Kate and I were intending to go to an antique flea market, however there was a dog show there and so we went to a park instead. It was a really nice day and it felt good to be in fresh air and such green surroundings. Later in the day Cheryl drove me to Cliff's apartment where I am staying while I complete my masters at DePaul. He had a little surprise for me...he had planned a little gathering at Justin's beer garden and I had a good time catching up with friends I hadn't seen for a while.
On Monday I was still not on Chicago time and woke up at 5am. That morning I got a gym membership, was overstimulated at Jewel, went to Office Depot and took care of my McDonald's Bacon Egg and Cheese craving. Then I walked to DePaul and got my books for my class that started later that afternoon. I did all of this and was back to my apartment by about 9:30am.
Today is the first day (Wednesday) that I feel relatively normal. I am looking forward to being finished with class tonight because then I can just coast right into the weekend. It should be a fun one too. I plan on seeing friends from high school on Saturday and then a family cookout on Sunday, so I should have more pictures to upload to flickr. Speaking of uploading pictures, that is my next task. Check out my flickr badge to the right for the most recent additions!!
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Can't Wait
After about 5 attempts at uploading pictures to Flickr and my blog I have given up. So, sorry for the lack of pictures. I'll keep trying before I leave, but I can't promise anything. I can't wait to be back in a country where it doesn't take 5 minutes to load a web page or upload a picture!!
Since the middle of last week my workload has greatly decreased. We started finals last Thursday and they were finished yesterday. I also stopped tutoring for the year as of last Friday. It is Wednesday morning and I really have nothing left to do except get on a plane and head home.
And, because I have had time to actually think I started reflecting on the year. And, if I do say so myself, I think the teaching staff at this school did one hell of a job with basically no direction from the principal. Without getting into a long story, he is more interested in pleasing the Vietnamese staff than he is with getting to know his teaching staff and student body. Case in point...I am quite sure he did not know my name until two months ago. When we got here we had no resources, no textbooks and our library was a joke. There were no video or audio resources available...however, I have found that YouTube is absolutely invaluable! I found so much there that I could use in my classes.
As far as the social scene is concerned...I have to say that the expat scene here is quite different than that is Seoul. Here there are more foreigners here on short business trips than teachers. HCMC is growing and there are English schools popping up all over the place, so the need for English teachers and that aspect of the expat scene will increase. I just saw on a National Geographic show last night where Vietnam has the 5th fastest growing economy in Asia. Construction is constant and there are cranes everywhere you look. But, there are still so many poor people here. I think the average monthly salary is about $75-$100. No wonder they look at foreigners and think that we are rich. I had money stolen from me last month...I am quite sure it was one of the cleaning staff. One of the other teachers and I kind of joked that we hoped she used it to send her son to a better school or a year's worth of clothes or something.
This year is ending on a positive note for me. I do not regret that I decided to come here. I have met some great people...some have left already or are moving on to new opportunities after the school year is over. But I am lucky that except for my fantastic roommate, most of my closest friends are coming back next year. And, since I had 11th grade this year I wanted to come back and see them graduate next year. There are a lot of great kids in that class. So, I have had a lot of wonderful memories and some GREAT stories to share when I get home. I hope to see as many people as possible when I am home for the summer. Until then I am signing off from
Vietnam...see you in the States!!!
Since the middle of last week my workload has greatly decreased. We started finals last Thursday and they were finished yesterday. I also stopped tutoring for the year as of last Friday. It is Wednesday morning and I really have nothing left to do except get on a plane and head home.
And, because I have had time to actually think I started reflecting on the year. And, if I do say so myself, I think the teaching staff at this school did one hell of a job with basically no direction from the principal. Without getting into a long story, he is more interested in pleasing the Vietnamese staff than he is with getting to know his teaching staff and student body. Case in point...I am quite sure he did not know my name until two months ago. When we got here we had no resources, no textbooks and our library was a joke. There were no video or audio resources available...however, I have found that YouTube is absolutely invaluable! I found so much there that I could use in my classes.
As far as the social scene is concerned...I have to say that the expat scene here is quite different than that is Seoul. Here there are more foreigners here on short business trips than teachers. HCMC is growing and there are English schools popping up all over the place, so the need for English teachers and that aspect of the expat scene will increase. I just saw on a National Geographic show last night where Vietnam has the 5th fastest growing economy in Asia. Construction is constant and there are cranes everywhere you look. But, there are still so many poor people here. I think the average monthly salary is about $75-$100. No wonder they look at foreigners and think that we are rich. I had money stolen from me last month...I am quite sure it was one of the cleaning staff. One of the other teachers and I kind of joked that we hoped she used it to send her son to a better school or a year's worth of clothes or something.
This year is ending on a positive note for me. I do not regret that I decided to come here. I have met some great people...some have left already or are moving on to new opportunities after the school year is over. But I am lucky that except for my fantastic roommate, most of my closest friends are coming back next year. And, since I had 11th grade this year I wanted to come back and see them graduate next year. There are a lot of great kids in that class. So, I have had a lot of wonderful memories and some GREAT stories to share when I get home. I hope to see as many people as possible when I am home for the summer. Until then I am signing off from
Vietnam...see you in the States!!!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Time For an Update?
Yeah, I know...I have been really awful about updating my blog lately, which is entirely my fault. But, the unfortunate truth of the matter is that I haven't had anything real interesting to tell you all about in the last month or so. I added an additional 13 hours a week to my workload by picking up extra tutoring hours. The money is good, but it doesn't leave time for much else. Besides that, we haven't had a break since the Tet holiday back in January and since I have had no time off to do anything fun I figured might as well tutor, right?
I also regret to have to tell you that my camera is still broken and I haven't even attempted to get it fixed yet. There are so many places I could take it, but taking it and having them understand what is wrong with it are two entirely different matters. Bottom line is I need more Vietnamese friends to help me get things done.
Lately I would have to say that not being able to be understood has been one of my biggest frustrations. In the past 2 weeks I have had to explain that I needed an air conditioner fixed, there was a problem with the internet and the electricity was shut off (even though we paid the bill). Now, many of you may not know this, but March is the hottest month of the year in Vietnam...and when you live on the 12th floor that fact is magnified, well, at least 12 times over! And, I was the one who had to deal with all of these problems as my roommates were conveniently not home when each of these issues occurred. Learning Vietnamese is very difficult because of all of the different tones and accent marks each word has. I started taking lessons shortly before Christmas, but it was in a group setting with a bunch of other teachers. Some of them were not taking it seriously and were very distracting to those of us that were. I decided that if I was to learn Vietnamese it would have to be with a tutor one on one. It is not expensive, however, for me, at least, I haven't done so due to lack of time.
Ok, enough for now. My 8 year old student, Starfire (yeah, I said Starfire), is getting a little ancy.
Until next time!!!
I also regret to have to tell you that my camera is still broken and I haven't even attempted to get it fixed yet. There are so many places I could take it, but taking it and having them understand what is wrong with it are two entirely different matters. Bottom line is I need more Vietnamese friends to help me get things done.
Lately I would have to say that not being able to be understood has been one of my biggest frustrations. In the past 2 weeks I have had to explain that I needed an air conditioner fixed, there was a problem with the internet and the electricity was shut off (even though we paid the bill). Now, many of you may not know this, but March is the hottest month of the year in Vietnam...and when you live on the 12th floor that fact is magnified, well, at least 12 times over! And, I was the one who had to deal with all of these problems as my roommates were conveniently not home when each of these issues occurred. Learning Vietnamese is very difficult because of all of the different tones and accent marks each word has. I started taking lessons shortly before Christmas, but it was in a group setting with a bunch of other teachers. Some of them were not taking it seriously and were very distracting to those of us that were. I decided that if I was to learn Vietnamese it would have to be with a tutor one on one. It is not expensive, however, for me, at least, I haven't done so due to lack of time.
Ok, enough for now. My 8 year old student, Starfire (yeah, I said Starfire), is getting a little ancy.
Until next time!!!
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Decision Made!
I think the last entry I wrote had my decision whether or not to come back to Vietnam up in the air. It is no longer up in the air...I have signed an offer for two more years at this school. I am pretty happy about my decision. In the last couple of months I have started to develop a bond with some of the students here and I would hate to leave after only one year. And, there are plans on the table for a brand new K-12 campus to be built just south of one of the nicer areas of Ho Chi Minh City. So, I think improvements to the school are in progress.
In other news, many of you know that I submitted an essay to NPR's This I Believe program. Unfortunately it was not chosen to be broadcast over the radio but my essay is part of the database and can be found online. If you want to read it, go to This I Believe click on "Advanced Essay Search" and type Honigford in the last name field. This should bring up my essay.
And last but NOT least...I bought my plane ticket to come home this summer. I will fly into Chicago on June 13. I am really excited to see my family and friends!!! These next four months are going to fly by!
In other news, many of you know that I submitted an essay to NPR's This I Believe program. Unfortunately it was not chosen to be broadcast over the radio but my essay is part of the database and can be found online. If you want to read it, go to This I Believe click on "Advanced Essay Search" and type Honigford in the last name field. This should bring up my essay.
And last but NOT least...I bought my plane ticket to come home this summer. I will fly into Chicago on June 13. I am really excited to see my family and friends!!! These next four months are going to fly by!
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