'Rejoice,' the letter said..

4000 Islands, Laos

Thu, 31 May 2012 05:13:32 -0400

4000 Islands, Laos

tried to go for that silky waterfall effect.

Wed, 30 May 2012 13:48:41 -0400

tried to go for that silky waterfall effect.

Babygirl.

Tue, 29 May 2012 11:48:30 -0400

Babygirl.

The road.

Tue, 29 May 2012 11:44:00 -0400

The road.

The way to Wat Phou, ancient Khmer temple ruins in Laos, is...

Tue, 29 May 2012 10:56:06 -0400

The way to Wat Phou, ancient Khmer temple ruins in Laos,

is paved with dirt & determination.

Hanh, one of my shelter girls who is graduating from the College...

Tue, 29 May 2012 10:35:25 -0400

Hanh, one of my shelter girls who is graduating from the College of Foreign Languages this year, went with me on my border run.

Within the first 5 minutes of arriving at our first guesthouse, she fashioned a fruit hook from a lone clothes hanger & picked fresh tamarind. Haha.

"Poverty is not simply having no money — it is isolation, vulnerability, humiliation and mistrust. It..."

Tue, 29 May 2012 01:06:16 -0400

“Poverty is not simply having no money — it is isolation, vulnerability, humiliation and...

Took about a week, but I finally finished my first batch of...

Mon, 28 May 2012 03:11:02 -0400

Took about a week, but I finally finished my first batch of letters.

Trips always bring out latent hobbies, yes?

Small personal goal: Motorbike through Southern Laos & make...

Mon, 28 May 2012 03:02:45 -0400

Small personal goal:

~~Motorbike through Southern Laos & make it back alive.~~

Accomplished 20 May - 26 May, 2012

I like my coffee dark, thick, and to smell of chicory.

Sat, 19 May 2012 06:18:46 -0400

I like my coffee dark, thick, and to smell of chicory.

on seminars & such.

Tue, 15 May 2012 04:08:31 -0400

In the future, the Memory-Impaired-Curmudgeon-Ai will serendipitously stumble across her old blog,...

Yes, how do these things happen? This question comes up...

Mon, 14 May 2012 21:02:00 -0400

Yes, how do these things happen? This question comes up often.

What’s worth noting is that for 15 minutes, we felt really VIP, until the boat docked significantly further down the river, and we were expected to walk back home. wompwomp.

Thanks, Hy, for documenting these experiences. REBLOG.

hyvhuynh:

Ai and I were invited by our shelter director to go on a dragon-boat one day after work… what we didn’t know was that we’d be in the city’s dragon-boat parade for Buddha’s birthday.

Really, though. How do these things happen?

The hip hop community in Hue is just full of passionate,...

Mon, 14 May 2012 20:59:07 -0400

The hip hop community in Hue is just full of passionate, beautiful souls. Whatta way to spend my free time.

hyvhuynh:

Our first Hue Hip Hop interview: Quyen Con. (Hue’s #1 Bboy!)

Never have I met such a passionate and dedicated 19-year old in the hip hop world. The heart in this kid is just incredible.

[5.13.12] Nostalgia for ice cream trucks & those hazy summer...

Mon, 14 May 2012 11:50:27 -0400

[5.13.12]

Nostalgia for ice cream trucks & those hazy summer days.

Hue’s Truong Tien Bridge was designed by Gustave Eiffel,...

Sun, 13 May 2012 21:09:41 -0400

Hue’s Truong Tien Bridge was designed by Gustave Eiffel, the architect behind a little piece called the “Eiffel Tower”

That’s neat.

[Run Hue] May 5, 2012: Interviewed Quyen Con, #1 bboy &...

Fri, 11 May 2012 19:10:02 -0400

[Run Hue]

May 5, 2012: Interviewed Quyen Con, #1 bboy & community organizer @ Coffee Kick

What a winner! hyvhuynh: My little brother, Nhat, is just...

Wed, 09 May 2012 11:54:31 -0400

What a winner!

hyvhuynh:

My little brother, Nhat, is just kickin’ butt in DaNang, and I couldn’t be more proud of him. He wanted to make a change in his life, so he packed his bags, moved to a new city, and is now working at a five-star spa and resort making about twice the amount he was making in Hue. (!!!)

This kid is go-getter… and I’ll always be on the edge of my seat waiting to see where he goes next.

[Marble Mountain, DaNang.]

[Shelter Staff 2012] I wanted to post this photo*, too. What...

Wed, 02 May 2012 08:31:47 -0400

[Shelter Staff 2012]

I wanted to post this photo*, too. What lovely emotions.

*photography by hyvhuynh.

on this time around.

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 02:25:00 -0400

Seven months back in the US: much of them spent trying to return for what may be my final long-term...

“Hi all, We had a very wonderful and memorable meeting...

Sun, 29 Apr 2012 05:03:57 -0400

“Hi all,

We had a very wonderful and memorable meeting today. From the bottom of our hearts, we thought, we talked, we shared, we played, we laughed and we cried together through a series of activities such as checks-in, individual strengths base, team building, affirmation and story telling. This is definitely an invaluable chance for us to gain a deeper understanding of each other and reinforce our relationship as a team.”

- From Thuy Dung Pham, US Shelter Deputy Director

One of my goals in returning to Hue, VN was to host a Shelter Staff Retreat. Very happy this was accomplished. TEAMBUILDING #1.