Contrary to your findings, I can't stop thinking about Vietnam. It's a magical land with kind, generous people.
Example: We lived in Da Nang in 2017. My adventurous wife was returning home
from Hoi An one afternoon on her rented motorcycle and sustained a flat tire near the gate to a construction site. The guards invited her over and provided her with a small table and chair while they called a mechanic friend to come and fix the flat. Then they served her some tea until her bike was rideable again. I want to say she wasn't charged and if she was, it was nominal, like 50,000d (two bucks). Acts of kindness are commonplace in Vietnam. I love it there.
Hi Jim, I love this story so much. I will share it with future audiences, especially young people. I found it to be that way when I traveled there in 2015--I felt welcomed and embraced by the people in Saigon.
And I'm afraid that perhaps I misspoke, or was just representing a narrow band of "collective memory" to the young people. Since so few of them had had first-hand conversations with family members about Vietnam I focused on that hoping to inspire them to keep a lookout for opportunities to ask question and open a conversation.
Hey Kat,
Contrary to your findings, I can't stop thinking about Vietnam. It's a magical land with kind, generous people.
Example: We lived in Da Nang in 2017. My adventurous wife was returning home
from Hoi An one afternoon on her rented motorcycle and sustained a flat tire near the gate to a construction site. The guards invited her over and provided her with a small table and chair while they called a mechanic friend to come and fix the flat. Then they served her some tea until her bike was rideable again. I want to say she wasn't charged and if she was, it was nominal, like 50,000d (two bucks). Acts of kindness are commonplace in Vietnam. I love it there.
James Robinson
USMC 1965-1969
Hi Jim, I love this story so much. I will share it with future audiences, especially young people. I found it to be that way when I traveled there in 2015--I felt welcomed and embraced by the people in Saigon.
And I'm afraid that perhaps I misspoke, or was just representing a narrow band of "collective memory" to the young people. Since so few of them had had first-hand conversations with family members about Vietnam I focused on that hoping to inspire them to keep a lookout for opportunities to ask question and open a conversation.