Day 1- May 13, 2013

Today was our first full day in Vietnam.  Sleeping last night was very rough because of the time difference.  I slept a total of 4 hours.  This morning when we woke up we went to breakfast at the hotel.  Noodles and rice for breakfast is not my ideal breakfast, but it's something I'll have to get used to.  After breakfast we went to UEF and met all the Vietnamese students that will be with us for the two week span that we're here.  They were VERY nice and welcoming, not something you'll see every day in America.  The welcome ceremony that they put on for us was very cool.  There were two dances; one accompanied by a singer as well.  These performers were very talented!  After the traditional dance a few Pitt students, one of which was me, were brought up to learn a few moves from the dance in front of the class.  They're not as easy as they look!  After the ceremony we went to our first language class.  At the end of one day of class I have realized that Vietnamese is probably one of the most difficult things I have tried to learn.  The mix of all the different accents and tones makes it very challenging.  Two of my Vietnamese peers had asked if I had spoken it before though because apparently I had very good pronunciation.  Maybe I should stay here!  We had a family style lunch at Tham Luong Quan.  There was SO much rice to eat.  I could get pretty used to that!  Also, the bananas here are phenomenal.  Everybody's Supermarket, the grocery store at home, has some serious competition!  Later on, the group took a trip to the US Consulate.  It was really cool being at a landmark where so much has happened.  I've never been much of a history person, so I found it very interesting hearing about all that happened there the night of January 30-31 1968.  This visit was definitely an eye opening experience.  Tonight we went to dinner at the Wrap and Roll Restaurant.  There was so much good food.  The jet lag from this weekend is really beginning to kick in, so hopefully I'm able to catch up on sleep soon!