LAV@NUS

Chào các cô! Chào các bạn!

Quang Tài

Tôi tên là Quang Tài. Tôi là người Trung Quốc. Năm nay tôi là hai mươi hai tuổi. Tôi học ngành tin học ở Đại học Quốc gia Singapo. Tôi là sinh viên năm thứ tư. Sau khi tốt nghiệp tôi định làm việc ở Singapo. Tôi độc lập và thân thiện nhưng thấp và đen. Tôi thích nghe nhạc và xem phim. Tôi mê đi du lịch. Tôi muốn đi du lịch Việt Nam trươc làm việc đẻ to ăn đậc sản Việt Nam.

I have been to Vietnam twice. I went there for an Overseas Expedition Project, called Project Mam Xanh, which is under the NUSSU Volunteer Action Committee. I met a few friends in central Vietnam and had opportunities to work with them. I had the chance to learn how to cook Vietnamese food in central Vietnam and had cultural exchanges with the local people. It was there where I learned how to sing a Vietnamese song for the first time. However, I do not understand Vietnamese at all. It is pretty sad that I cannot communicate with people there. I am planning to go back to Vietnam again after taking some Vietnamese courses. Hopefully, I can communicate with my friends better and travel to more places that I haven't explored, especially North Vietnam. 

Quang Long

Tôi là Quang Long. Tôi là người Malaysia, đang học ở Đại học Quốc gia Singapo. Tôi học ngành cơ khí. Tôi là sinh viên năm thứ tư. Hiên nay tôi đang học tiếng Việt một tuần ba lần vì tôi rất thích nước Việt Nam. Tôi trông cao, đeo kính và đẹp trai. Tôi cũng tốt bung và chăm chỉ, nhưng chưa có bạn gái. Tôi thích dọc báo xà nghe nhạc không lời. Tôi thích đi du lịch vì tôi quan tâm dến văn hoá của giỏi này. Tôi muối làm việc ở ngân hàng sau khi tốt nghiệp.

Previous experiences with Vietnam:

I went to Ho Chii Minh City, Vietnam with two friends in August 2010. I really like the environment in Ho Chii Minh City although the traffic there is congested by millions of motorbikes. Vietnamese people are friendly and helpful and they always put their smiles on their faces. I was glad that I stayed in a very cheap and comfortable hostel in Pham Ngu Lao area. The owner of the hostel always lent his helping hand to us when we stayed there. We really had an enjoyable and memorable stay in that hostel.

We also went to the Chu Chi tunnel and the Mekong Delta. The Chu Chi Tunnel shows the creativity and wit of the Vietnamese peoplein defending their country during the Vietnam War. We really had an unforgettable memory of walking through the dark and eerie tunnel. The Mekong Delta is amazingly vast and crossing over the river by using a small sampan was indescribably fun. These two places are really amazing and I hope that I will have the opportunity to go back there again.

As a conclusion, Vietnam is really worth visiting because it is filled with an interesting colonization history and a unique culture.

Quang Vũ

Tôi là Quang Vũ. Tôi là người Singapo và sống ở Bishan. Năm nay tôi là hai mươi chín tuổi và học ngành kịch ở NUS. Minh rất thích đi du lịch. Tôi học tiếng Việt vì tội muốn đi Việt Nam du lịch. Các bạn có muốn với tôi đi Việt Nam du lịch không?

Previous experiences with Vietnam:

I have been to Vietnam twice. I first went to Hanoi in July 2011 for a research trip and I was fortunate enough to meet some members of the Vietnam Youth Theatre. One of them spoke in great detail about Shakespeare in Vietnam but he spoke only in Vietnamese! My translator friend, however, was very patient and interpreted his words into English. I suppose that was the reason why I decided to take up Vietnamese level 1 at NUS: to communciate with the locals. But the real highlight of that day was a local restaurant that my Vietnamese friends brought me to and the Vietnamese dishes were fantastic! They were nothing I had before and my tummy was well-satisfied by the feast. We had bánh xèo, phở bò, gỏi cuốn and ... I can’t remember all the names!

In summary, I have only wonderful things to say about my experiences: the people, the chaotic streets, the coffee, and the old quarters of both cities. I am glad that I took up Vietnamese because I’ll be going back there very soon!

Our reflections:

Most of us have been to the north or south of Vietnam and had wonderful memories of them. However, we feel that we do not know much about Central Vietnam. Our travelling project gave us the perfect opportunity to discover more about Central Vietnam. Thus, we chose Đà Nẵng and Hội An for our travelling project. While Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh and Hà Nội also have a long history and cultural past, we feel that they are cities of economic and political importance, and most of us are already familiar with them. Therefore, we are pleasantly surprised that there are so many different things to do in Central Vietnam and how it is so different from north and south Vietnam. The food, language and culture are different. If we like the beach and diving, we can visit Cham Island or any of the beautiful beaches near Đà Nẵng. If we like archealogy, we can visit the ancient ruins in Mỹ Sơn. In Hội An, you will get an interesting mix of Chinese and French architecture and food culture. For example, Mỳ Quảng can only be found in Central Vietnam. If you would to visit temples, there is a famous one at the Marble Mountain, which in actual fact it looks more like a hill from pictures.  

Travel to Central Vietnam! We think there is something for everyone! After doing this project, we believe all of us will be going to Central Vietnam to visit. The other groups also convinced us to visit the other cities and landmarks! (i.e. if they really give us the discounts they promised.)