I have been having a great time in Asia so far. Kicking things off, I spent a week in Seoul, Korea before arriving in Shanghai, China to start my exchange. There are six other Edinburgh students in Shanghai with me. My friend Jason is from Taiwan, so he has been a tremendous help to us all getting settled, fed and more. We are staying in serviced apartments for the duration of the exchange, which is more expensive than normal apartments, but far less of a hassle. After a week in a big room, Liz, Cassie and I have moved into a two bedroom flat.
China has a "Great Firewall" that restricts access to some websites. Sadly, two of them are Facebook and Google! While there are some workarounds, my overall access to both sites is limited, but I will make a better effort to stay up to date!
Classes started my first week in China. All the SIMBA classes are 4 days, Thursday through Sunday, so one is already done with! So far in Shanghai we have explored the city, and did a short day trip to Hangzhou to look at West Lake. We rented bicycles and rode around. It was really fun!
Because I have quite a bit of time before my next class, I decided to head to Southeast Asia. I just got in to Vietnam tonight, and will be in Laos next week and then Thailand. Cassie and Liz may be joining me in Thailand, which is great!
I have already experienced some ups and downs. I had to wait over an hour to get my visa at the airport, and I am pretty sure I somehow got ripped off by a cab driver (That was my own fault for not researching the value of currency here! At least it was only a $10 lesson.). My hotel in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is very basic and a bit dodgy. I have a fan and an AC unit, but I would bet money that no cool air is actually being produced. The man at the desk is very nice and accommodating, however. I can't be too picky for only $13 a night!
Things improved when I went out to explore. I went to a tiny outdoor pho restaurant, where I was joined by two nice Vietnamese men who showed me how to eat and season my dish. It was much more delicious after their intervention! They even ended up paying for my meal, which was really kind. One of them knew some English, but for the most part communication was smiling and hand gestures!
Tomorrow I will explore more of HCM and buy a train ticket for my journey north. On Saturday I hope to visit the Cu Chi tunnels, made famous by their use during the Vietnam War, and then start my journey north to Hoi An! Pictures coming soon.
1 comment:
Love seeing the updates, Traci. Be safe.
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