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RedStormSports.com E-Journal...St. John's Student Athletes in Vietnam
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E-Journal...St. John's Student Athletes in Vietnam May 30, 2004 HANOI, VIETNAM -
(First half of this entry is written by Dave) The food however continues to be an issue. I have fared a little better then Jillian has, but not much. Our coaches would be proud as we have gone on what we call the Vietnam diet. You sweat gallons a day, then eat rice and a little bit of fruit. We are definitely looking forward to a home cooked AMERICAN meal. While we are all for trying new experiences the newness of the food has begun to wear off. Our days are filled with many emotional highs and lows as we see, hear, smell, and feel so many different experiences. Since we arrived one of the more difficult yet truly fascinating things I?we have seen was the War Museum here in Ha noi (spelled in two words here.) This museum is located right across a park dedicated to Lenin with a huge statue of him. We knew it would be interesting right from the start. As soon as we entered the complex we were flanked with an old Mig fighter jet and an old rusting tank. It was said that this was one of the tanks that invaded the American Embassy in Saigon. One thing that I found truly fascinating about the museum was that there were three rooms dedicated to women. This is not something you would come to expect in such a country. These rooms however were dedicated to the mothers of all of the men lost fighting for the Vietnamese. One mother lost 9 sons, her husband, and two grandchildren. All of the photos showed very old Vietnamese women decorated with medals given to them by the government for their sacrifices. Some of the pictures made it look as if these women were proud to have of done all they could for a cause that meant so much to them. And would do it again in a heartbeat.
One exhibit that hit home more than any other was a collage of sorts of "enemy war planes." This huge exhibit included both French and American planes that were shot down in their separate wars. (The French occupied Vietnam as a colony for some 100 years ending with a long bloody war in the 1950?s.) It was surreal to find these plan parts with bullet holes and American fighter emblems. The Vietnamese are very selective in what they display and depict. The "American War" as they show it depicts a total, humiliating loss for the Americans. The wing dedicated to the war has a plaque above it that reads in bold letters, (in English) "Total Victory". Quite possibly even more troubling then the plane wreckage was the collection of artifacts take off of pilots that were shot down over Hanoi during the aggressive American bombing campaign of the north. Some of these artifacts included flight suits, helmets, patches, and boots. It really took me back. The Vietnamese take great pride in this war through these exhibits, yet would never tell you or hold it against you. They are very proud of the wreckage, because as they see it, it is testament to the sacrifices and strength of the defense of their beloved Ha noi. While their pride is understandable, it was very difficult for Jillian and I to see such exhibits. Jillian is writing here One of our class assignments is to go out into the city and talk to people about what is going on here: the topic of interest that Dave and I chose was to visit the WWF (World Wildlife Foundation) office. There we spoke to two different people, one was in charge of traffic, and the other in charge of environmental education amongst the Vietnamese. Traffic is the tracking and the prevention of the illegal capture of animals for sale on the black market. Vietnam has baecome a major "middle man" in the sale of endangered animals. The population explosion in China has created a major demand for endangered species to be used for traditional chinese medicinal purposes. Products that use tiger bones, Elephant tusks, Rhino horns, and snakes make up about 10-15% of Chinese herbal medicine. The Chinese believe that there is a spiritual connection between the use of these products and the characteristics of the animals. So if you were to use Tiger for arthritis you would then take on the strong demeanor of the tiger. Julie, the director of Traffic for the Indochina area, also explained to us that there are hardly any indigenous animals left in Vietnam. Due to deforrestation, and human encroachment many of the animals have simply vanished.The animal population used to consist of Asian Elephants, Tigers, Primates, Deer, and other plant life. Today they are trying to save the turtle population in the oceans of the coast of Vietnam. It is very hard to stop poachers here and in the Indochina area because there is a lack of supplies and accurate funding to help Park Rangers. The average salary of a park ranger is $15-20 a month. Often times they are in areas where Malaria is present, and they have no telephones, and maybe one bicycle. Even if they were to catch a poacher, they risk that the poacher will kill them or that they will not reach help in time to save the animals. After speaking to Julie, it seems like her job at the WWF is an uphill battle.It is very sad to me that there are so many endangered species that may simply become extinct because of the population explosion. Just a little bit of concern, education, and governement coporation can go a long way. Other than going to all of these amazing sites and speaking to the great people in Vietnam we have also been attending class in the morning. After class yesterday we had a luncheon with the american ambassador to vietnam Mr. Burghardt. This was simply something I will probably never get to experience again, just like most of thetrip so far. Mr. Burghardt spent twenty-twenty five minutes speaking to us about the relationship between Vietnam and the U.S. It wasn't until the last ten years that ties between the U.S. and Vietnam were re-established. He spoke about opening trade and commerce with Vietnam, the problems that face the Vietnames and Americans. One of the most intersting points of the afternoon was that Americans are the ones who still hold animosity, and that the Vietnamese hold no grudge towards the U.S. While we were there he also answered several questions from myself and other students in our party. He had said that the best way to change the viewpoints of the people both American and Vietnamese-American was to come experience life in Vietnam and see how much things have changed in the last 15 years. Along with Mr. Burghardt as one of our guests we also had 2 Vietnamese singers come to sing for us. Although I couldn't understand the lyrics, the songs were beautiful. One song was entitled something along the lines of, "Let's Exchange Shirts". It is a Vietnamese folklore that if you love someone you are supposed to exchange shirts with them and when you return home to your parents, you say that the wind blew your shirt off. I found this to be pretty funny. The past couple of days have been really busy between going to class and exploring the city. Today, we leave for a place called Ha Long Bay. It is supposed to be beautiful and very realxing. So we'll be relaxing on the beach and getting some sun. The first night we'll be staying on the boat, which I am extremely excited about. So you will here from us in a couple of days. Hope all is safe and wonderful where you are. As usual we look forward to hearing from everyone, our e-mail is david.harrow01@stjohns.edu and jillian.sandoval01@stjohns.edu. We'd like to thank all of the people who have e-mailed us thus far. |