The Boat

Over the past two days I have been feeling more positive about my project work as well as more confident in my own abilities. I am looking forward to a trip to the Cat Tien national park this weekend as a treat.

Yesterday I took Crystal to the Saigon zoo for a little sightseeing. Racking up visits each time a guest comes to stay, I have now been to the zoo four times in six months, and I hope I never will again! Nonetheless, we enjoyed the sunshine and had a pleasant, peaceful morning. It is getting hotter by the day here; I now must put on suncream if I leave the house between 10am and 3pm to avoid sunburn. Usually I avoid venturing outside in this time period wherever possible. Come April it will be terrible, I've been told. Then in May, the rainy season is likely to arrive again, completing the circle just as I am about to leave the country. It will be interesting to see if the return of the rain brings home old memories from my early days in Vietnam. September already feels a lifetime ago. On occasions I will pick up trails of forgotten smells, in the house or on the streets, that remind me so vividly of my first impressions of life in Vietnam. I always feel startled to be affronted by these reminders of how I felt back then.

Today I had an appointment with a woman who is helping me to arrange a meeting at a shelter in District 7 for girls at risk of sexual abuse. It looks as though I will have the opportunity to visit this shelter in the coming weeks- an experience that will no doubt be useful and insightful research for my project. Another progress that has been made today has been my completion of another book review- this one of Nam Le's The Boat, a fantastic collection of short stories set around the world and written by a Vietnamese-Australian author. Please click here to read my review.