When in Việt Nam...: Fresh Eyes

Obligatory homie-selfie

In less than 13 days, Robert has experienced and explored the many cities I have admired and adored. After landing in Ha Noi, we immediately hit up Ta Hien street for bia hoi. We took a day tour around Ha Long Bay and ended the day with street BBQ. We walked around Hoan Kiem Lake and biked around West Lake. We sleeper-bussed into Hue and ate every delectable treat Hue had to offer (minus "com hen" due to fear of stomach issues). We explored parts of Hue I never bothered to get to know without a fellow tourist. We rested and relaxed in Hoi An, knowing that Da Nang had a lot of sites to explore and family to visit. He perfected the art of crossing Vietnamese traffic by the time we reached Saigon (meaning walking with your head turned as the right time, with the sternest face possible). We took in the Western lights and life in Saigon, then took a long bus into Siem Reap, where we currently are. Throughout our journey, he became acquainted with the friends and family that became the home that he once provided for me in San Jose. Meanwhile, I tried to remain strong as I watched the cities and people I once considered home pass me by as I left for my next destination.

When I was worried about leaving Hue awhile ago, David suggested that it would be good that Robert would travel with me around Vietnam as I bid the homeland farewell. He would help me transition from one home to another by providing the sense of home that I usually feel with him, my best friend who helped me with my challenges in the States and abroad. Sure enough, he was right. Robert has not only been super supportive and reflective during this process, he has provided me with fresh eyes -- a perspective that I needed when I at times felt sad about leaving friends and family, or defeated by a country that still has me questioning how Vietnamese or American I need to be to feel welcome.

Robert is a special dude. I'm not just speaking in a biased sense. I mean that he's so "dac biet" that Vietnamese people can't figure him out. Vietnamese folks are used to experiencing three types of foreigners: white, black, or Asian. He's none of the above. So whenever we travel, he either flies under the radar as another foreigner, or stands out more than others because he's a type of American that people are not used to seeing. He's been "hello-ed" by random kids on the street; he's been asked to be in pictures at tourist sites; and he hasn't received any type of negative treatment -- besides getting ripped off. (He actually takes that as a compliment because he likes being the special foreigner.)

Perhaps what makes Robert's experience in Vietnam so pleasant is his open-mindedness, inquisitiveness, and general positivity. When I take him around, he's either quiet because he's taking in his surroundings, or asking questions about how things work. Whenever he would ask questions, I would provide the cultural or historical information I know that supports his observation, and he would add in what he knows from what he has learned from school or experience. In turn, I have learned more through his observations and knowledge, giving me a different perspective that leaves me wishing I had more time in each city.

Throughout this trip, I feel myself slowly letting go of the negative forces that have consumed me and led me to believe I was not welcome here. My mind has also opened up to different possibilities and circumstances that will lead me back to this side of the world at another point in my life beyond visiting family and friends. I have released the burden of pain that I've experienced from this year's challenges and heartbreak from having to "chia tay," and I feel lighter with love and happiness throughout my travels. All this, I owe to Robert.

Providing you with his perspective, here are some key pictures he took throughout our trip: