Day 6 - 28 November 2008

Initially, the Mekong Delta was thought to be just another piece of fertile land at the river mouth, where rice fields and crops that flourished. However, it was the exact opposite. It is like a miniature town with lots of amenities and different modes of transportation. We were ferried for a short distance on horse carriages. Even though short, the journey was quite bumpy, due to the many pebbles and rocks that sprawled the uneven path. The horses were quite thin and yet had to endure such heavy loads. Despite that, the riders had to constantly whip the horses to move at the desired speed and direction.

That is a reminder of the fact that a leader almost always has to bear the brunt of the consequences after every job done in a slip-shod manner. Henceforth, in the first place, they have to decide wisely right after weighing the given factors. Thus, if the horse does not follow instructions accordingly, it will suffer from the lash of the cane.

At a particular delta-island, we were taken to our boat by a sampan. It was just a simple boat made from wood and painted blue and a few of us tried to row it. Though a local made use of a rowing mechanism to steer the unstable sampan, we wanted to experience it. It was exhausting and caused our forearms to ache after a short period. It was because we had to row in the flow of the current and the eddied waters, but as we placed the oars down into the water, they had the tendency to float away from the boat. Hence we had to pull them closer to us, which were obstructed by the tug of the water flowing downstream. In this case, we had to coordinate perfectly to prevent the boat from knocking against the protruding aerial mangrove roots.

Upon reflecting, the first thought that came to mind was coordination. If all the members in an organization were to work harmoniously with one another, with neither any question being raised nor any doubts being posed, then it is like “the blind leading the blind”. Even if the leader was leading them into a precarious position or pulling them down into hot soup, they would not think twice and just follow. To coordinate well, the members must maintain an ongoing conversation, back and forth, to assure both themselves and the leader that they are on the right track.

Into the early night, we enjoyed a traditional Vietnamese water puppet show. The smoothness of how the puppets glided over the water surface, as well as the swiftness and accuracy of the puppets’ movements were like part of a “chain reaction”. The way one scene led to the other, the tight conversion of actions and the choice of which puppet to act first were amazing. The puppeteers were so highly skilled that I could see not see any hesitation but the show was highlighted by pregnant pauses during the interactions of the characters involved in a particular scene.

The presentation of a Vietnamese countryside life was put up in a simple manner, but it brought across to the audience the stories from the kampong that the ancestors wanted to tell. This is unlike the theatre arts that are found in the Esplanade or the Victoria Concert Hall, where the theatre actors have to play around with exaggerated expressions and the crescendo or decrescendo of their voices. The viewing gallery and stage had a touch of the 1970s infrastructure. With its short width and much smaller stage, it cuts a homely picture and “submerged” the audience into life on the fields. The advantage is that the contents of the show are able to echo off the walls and reach our senses.

(Reflection was done by Alexis Lion of 3/5)

Day 5 - 27 November 2008

XIN-CHAO! Today’s main highlight was the trekking at the Can Gio Forest Park. It was a long 2-hour trip from our hotel to the destination as we switched from bus to ferry and then to bus and finally a small ferry to tour around the park.

A mangrove swamp found at the edge of the forest park.

The first place we arrived at was the bat forest. We were divided into groups of 8 as we sat on small boats and toured the bat forest. The trip on the boat was a rocky one as we had to balance ourselves on the boat to prevent it from tipping over. It was definitely an exciting and unique trip for us.

Boarding the boat to see the bat forest.

Next, we brought ourselves to another part of the forest park. We saw a big metal tower known as Tang Bong Bridge. Both the boys and girls raced up the tower which was about 10m above the ground, and Cherie won! Haha. After which, we went to the crocodile farm and on the way we saw many monkeys near the path.

Unfortunately, one of our student leaders, Zhi Yuan, was being attacked by one of them. Luckily there was no scratch and hence we proceeded on to the farm. We were then again separated into 3 groups and sat on a boat to feed the crocodiles. It was an amazing experience for all of us as we fought with the crocodile to pull back the nylon string attached with a fish that they were craving for.

Finally after all that, we went for lunch at a restaurant nearby. We were served with local seafood delicacies and even had two big monkeys nearby to perform for us. In addition, there was a small suspension bridge for us to walk on and all of us had a fun time there as we walked cautiously on the bridge while some shook the bridge to add on the difficulty.

All of us enjoyed the trip but it was soon time to leave. However, the trip back was not very pleasant as it started drizzling and water came splashing into the ferry causing us to be drenched.

We then went back to the hotel to clean ourselves up as we prepare to go PHO2000 for a scrumptious dinner. After which we went back to the square restaurant in the hotel which we had the last lesson on communication strategies.

It was an unforgettable experience for most of us as we see the biological and natural sight of Vietnam, despite having some difficulties or obstacles in our way, we appreciated every happening. As everyone of us have learnt something that is priceless, valuable and for a lifetime: The magic of friendship.

(Reflection was done by Cherie Lim of 3/3 and Jeremy Tan of 3/5)

Day 4 - 26 November 2008

Yesterday we went to the Cu Chi Tunnels. The journey to the Cu Chi Tunnels was long and tiring. During the long bus trip, the tour guide shared with us the history of Vietnam. However, most of us were tired and slept on the bus. The tour guide tried to keep us awake by playing games with us. The loser would have to sing a song for us in order to keep us awake.

Billy is a humorous local guide who just joined us.

The whole trip took around one and a half hour. Once we had reached the place, we walked through a pathway and it led us to a hut where we watched a short clip about how the Cu Chi Tunnels came about. After that, we walked around and the tour guide showed us the traps that are built during the war days A meeting room.

You don't want to fall in the centre of this trap!

There is a grass platform at ground level that rotates 360 degrees. Stepping on it can be fatal. There is no need to prove it.

Another trap devised by the Vietcongs.

Mr Siva inspects the entrance of a tunnel to be sure it is safe for entry.

Mdm J is getting out of the entrance. It is confirmed safe to enter the tunnel.

There were many traps set up to kill the US soldiers. We personally felt that the traps were very cruel and we could imagine how the soldiers felt when they were killed. As we reached the middle of the trail, we took a break for 5 minutes. We could hear the loud sounds of the rifles, where tourists could try shooting by just paying a few Vietnam dongs for the bullets. We then moved on to see how rice wine and rice papers were made by processing rice.

The lady is preparing rice papers to be packed and sold to tourists visiting the Tunnels.

Finally we reached the entrance of the ‘real’ Cu Chi Tunnels. There were 3 different lengths of the Cu Chi Tunnels that we could enter; 20m, 60m and 100m. Thinking that 100m was a very short distance and we could easily walk through it, we decided to take on the challenge.

Entering a tunnel, not knowing what to expect.

However it was not what we expected, the tunnel was around half of our height and it was so small that we could not turn left or right. It was dark, hot and stuffy with lights only after a certain distance. All of us began to have second thoughts about how easy we could get through the tunnels. Then, we all thought that we could not continue anymore as it was too hot and stuffy, even just that short distance already wore us out and caused us to sweat a lot. Therefore, we then took the nearest exit out which concluded that we only managed to complete 60m of the tunnels.

The tunnel is pretty small and short. Those who are taller wish they were shorter.

Alexis is taking extra precaution as she climbs out of the exit of the tunnel.

Last, we went to see the kitchen and the dining room for the Vietcong people. Along the way back to the bus, we walked past some souvenir shops. The most interesting one was selling sandals made from tyres of vehicles. Most of us bought the mini ones as key chains.
A group photo in front of an old tank destroyed by a land mine.

After buying the souvenirs, we went for our buffet lunch. Next, we stopped by a lacquer shop that made paintings which are for sale. We learnt about the procedures of making the lacquered paintings. Then, we proceeded to our next destination, the Dieu Giac Orphanage.

When we arrived, we could see the kids smiling as they were happy to see us. All the kids started to run about happily. However, there was one young boy that actually secreted faeces upon seeing us. He stood there aimlessly, not knowing what to do next. We supposed that he was so excited that he secreted faeces without even realizing it. We carried out the activities, designing the photo frames and t-shirts, followed by two ice-breaking games.

The children are definitely having a whale of a time.

This time round, the activities were more organized compared to the ones carried out the day earlier and all the student leaders were on task. The kids also cooperated well with us. There were older kids aging 13 years old and above. They were very caring and knowing that there was a language barrier, they helped us to gather the kids and settle them down.

Before we left the orphanage, we gave out all the presents that we had bought for them. Seeing the broad and wide smiles on their faces made us feel elated too. Although we were only able to bring joy and happiness to the kids for a couple of hours, we were already delighted enough.

A memorable photo in front of the Dieu Giac Orphanage before we leave.

Lastly, we headed for our hotel and had our dinner. We ended our day with a meaningful and exhausted experience.

(Reflection was done by Clara Woon of 3/2 and Regina Tan of 3/4)

Day 3 - 25 November 2008

Things to be brought to the Dieu Giac Orphanage.

Chilling out in the bus.

The name of the Orphanage in Vietnamese language.

Our day started of with the visit to Dieu Giac Orphanage. Upon arrival, we were introduced to the children.



After splitting ourselves into groups, we started our first game – designing photo frames, with the crayons, glitter glue and stickers. A girl sitting on a mechanical merry-go-round.

With language barrier, we faced difficulties communicating with the children. However, we persisted and tried our best to get a common understanding with the children. Although we faced certain problems such as working and communicating with the children, we still managed to conduct our activities smoothly. Some of the photo frames were also amazingly beautiful and creative.


A demonstration by Cherie, Xing Jie, Kaiser and Jeffrey.

Juliana and Yi Ting guiding a young boy on how to colour his photo frame.

We then moved on to the next activity – designing your own t-shirt. Each child was given a shirt to design using fabric paints. Some of the children were very innovative with their designs of their favourite cartoon characters such as the pokemon and doremon. It has indeed impressed all of us. Kaiser and Jeffrey were reaffirming the creativity of the children to boost their confidence.

Jun Xing and Yi Ling were watching the progress of the child's art piece.
Beverley was mentoring a girl while Wei Rong was overseeing the group activities.
Angeline was bonding well with the girls.

After the t-shirt designing, the children were release for lunch while we started placing the small gifts for each of them. Their photo frames were also slot with different papers such a the most creative group and the most cooperative group to encourage them.

Due to the time constraint, we could only carry out two activities with them today. Although we were dead beat but we all felt that it was worth it. During this visit, we also went around the orphanage to see the environment the children live it. They only sleep on wooden beds with straw mats and their playground was a little run down. But as long as they get to play, they are contented.

The dog was also enjoying our presence at the orphanage.

One of the photo frames done by the most innovative group.

We were also saddened to see the two children aged 4 and 6 with illnesses. The four year old kid has her head bigger than usual and had problems moving herself. She is unable to speak nor move and she has to lie on the bed all day long. The other kid, aged 6, had deformed bones. Like the four year old girl, she couldn’t move and had to stay in bed. This experience and the things we’ve seen has made us realized the importance of being contented, filial to our parents but at the same time, learning to help the less fortunates to share our happiness and joy with them.
After bidding goodbye to the children, we left for our lunch. Our next destination was Reunification Palace and the War Museum. With the help of the tour guides, we understand more about Vietnamese culture and history. We got to see pictures, statues and hear stories about the Vietnamese pasts. It was very new and interesting for us to learn the history of another country.

A fusion meal: Indian chicken curry with the Vietnamese salad and rice.

The Reunification Palace

Resting at the the staircase in front of the entrance to the Palace.

Guess what Jun Xing was imitating.

Jeffrey posing beside the cannon at the War Museum.

At nearly 4pm we went back to the hotel to rest and get ready for dinner in the hotel at 7pm. Unfortunately , we were unable to go to the market for shopping due to the rain. However, this also provided us with another chance to have extra rest time to energize us for the next day.

(Reflection was done by Koh Hui Lin and Yeo Xing Jie of 3/5)

Day 2 - 24 November 2008

Xin chào (hello)! Yesterday, in the morning, we had breakfast in the hotel. Then, we visited Le Quy Don High School. On the way, in the bus, we were taught by our local tour guide how to speak basic Vietnamese sentences such as

Chào, bạo khỏe khong? (Hello, how are you?) and
Dạo này sao rồi? (How’re you doing?)

We were enjoying ourselves, trying to pronounce the unfamiliar words so that we could break the ice with the Vietnamese students. Even when we were alighting, we were trying hard, to practise pronouncing the words. We were then led to the school hall by the Vice Principal of Le Quy Don High School.



The Vietnamese students welcomed us with great warmth. We introduced ourselves and Jun Xing impressed them when he greeted in Vietnamese before he introduced himself.



They presented to us powerpoint slides introducing their history and customs of vietnam. They also gave us tips how to travel in Vietnam, recommending us some places to visit here.



We had a great time having a friendly Basketball match with the Vietnamese students. Our guest star, Mr Siva, had strengthened the team when he stepped onto the court. What’s score? Hmmm… not too sure. But we were very sure that we were having a lot of fun, sweating it out as we were playing basketball with them.



After our friendly match, we had our catered lunch placed in a rectangle box at the auditorium. The type of food served was rather similar to Singapore’s.



Next, out of no reason, we were invited to join the class for a one-hour nap! This was a rather different experience as the ones we shared in our country. The nap was probably a ‘power supply’ to their long school hours. Beginning at 8am and ending at around 5pm, it’s no wonder that they need to have frequent breaks to maintain their constant attentiveness.

In addition, we delightfully joined the class for a few lessons. We had English lesson which was conducted by Mr. Thomas, a foreigner who tried to make the class very interesting for us. Then we had a Biology practical session, cool enough, everyone was clad in ‘professor coat’, this was definitely a new practice for us! Highlighting the last lesson, we had home economic session. The students had spent 6 hours preparing spring roll before hand and fried it for us to savour. It was delicious!



At the end of the programme, we took a group photo and bid good bye. Some of us had even received small memorable gifts, and in exchange we gave them our precious collar badge as a momento.

After the visit to Le Que Don High School, we were all dead-tired and hungry. We were then brought to KFC for dinner, they had rice together with the chicken in a meal. On the 15mins walk back, we were faced with a ‘life-threatening’ After which we went back to the hotel and had a lesson about communication strategies which most of us benefited from it by learning how different communication style could result in various types of outcome.

(Reflection was done by Cherie Lim of 3/3 and Jeremy Tan of 3/5)

These photos were taken on the first day, 23rd November 2008.

These are our tour guides. Angeline on the left and Jonathan on the right.

Gary, another tour guide of ours.

Another tour guide from Vietnam but i still don't really know what is her name.

A candid shot of our teacher, Mr Siva.

Jay Chou(:
A small group photo.
Our 24/7 guard. HOW SAFE!
Bargaining ~ Bargaining ~