And wow I LOVE it here!
After a long house hunt (a little easier than in the States actually, here you get a real estate agent when looking for rentals instead of running around apartment to apartment.) I found my beautiful new home. It's a 2 bedroom (yes come visit!) 1 bathroom in the Hoan Kiem district. I love living in Hoan Kiem. It's essentially the city center and there is so much to do right outside my front door. There is a gorgeous lake about 5 blocks from my house, lots of shopping is near by, and of course all the tourist attractions in walking distance too.
The kiddos!
My class is the biggest class in the entire school (pre-K to 9th grade) with a whopping 11 students. I have a full time teacher assistant and she is a treat- she went to school to be a teacher and has a lot of fun ideas for the classroom.
Everyone at the school is really friendly, there is a family feeling here too. We often go out for dinners and adventures together. We all sort of need each other since we are all far from home- I haven't had this feeling at other schools. It's really nice to know that my coworkers will help me with my lesson planning and how to function in Vietnam.
Of course all the kids were excited and knew all this foreign food (I really should have gone to the Western Store to get some American treats instead). I did my best to pick out the nastiest looking chips I could- Fried Squid Rings. When I opened the bag I was ready to faint from the smell. The kids started screaming with delight all chanting "SQUID RINGS!." I tried one and was ready to vomit- they were awful!!!!! I guess Ms. Natalie has some maturing to do!
some things at school are very different:
1. We take our shoes off before entering the classroom
2. Kids list their favorite foods as things like "rice" and "eggs"
3. no desks- they use tables
4. We break for tea time on professional development days
5. We have to wear hats at recess since the sun is so strong
6. They don't have butcher paper, poster board, bulletin board border, or wooden clothespins- like how is a girl supposed to set up a classroom here?!!