I was allowed to sleep in today from all the travelling I did yesterday. After an authentic Pho breakfast, I did some locational shots at the Betania kindergarten and also worked with the elder sisters.
The Archbishop of Hue meeting the aspirants here in Saigon.
The archbishop of Hue came down to personally meet all the sisters here at Betania. Since it was a full day's affair, Sr Nga took me to another community 30 mins away called Tan Pu where I spent half a day documenting another child care home. This is situated right next to the largest parish in Saigon - 24,000 parishioners every weekend!
Bell Tower of Tan Pu parish.
When noon arrived, Sr Nga brought me to the city centre to visit the Cathedral (also nicknamed the Notre Dame of Saigon) and the surrounding landmarks.
And hence the nickname...
On the way back to Betania, I was observing a lot of the messy traffic and marvel the way our driver (in a van) dodge and swerve calmly at the oncoming scooters.
Okay, sorrie about the last post. I just wanted to know anyone's reading (as opposed to viewing the images).
A smile from Saigon as she greets me. ;oD
When I arrived at Ho Chi Minh International Airport, I was greeted warmly by Sr. Nga who actually came by from Hue to ensure that I knew my way around Saigon. This name, Saigon, is interestingly being used by the locals more and more.
After lunch, I was tasked document the work done at Nha Tinh Thuong Xuan Phuong or Xuan Phuong House of Love home. ( I must state that I will not be using any of the accent marks just because it'll take forever to locate them on the keyboard. :oD ) Many of the parents who send their kids here can't afford to pay anything.
Lower grade school kids doing craft work.
A French volunteer teaching higher grade students English.
One of the sisters at the nursery on the 2nd floor.
The sisters here in the Betania community in Ho Chi Minh have expressed their gratefulness for my presence, but I am still convinced that it is a bigger blessing for me to be here.
The first Vietnamese word I learned here is my surname, Tan. The sisters use it because Tan is an actual word in their language which means "modern".
