Thank heavens for air conditioning.

(salt of Nha Trang)

More news trickles in almost every day now. I've been in contact with two people from Nha Trang University, the Vice Dean and a man from the Office of International Relations. The Vice Dean is also in charge of foreign languages, and she is so helpful and welcoming. I learned from her that the university has 20 English profs, most of whom are "young but hard working". Also, there are about 170 English majors at the school, and many of them come from the countryside. It seems to be a pretty large university.

At this point, I think it's set in stone that I'll be working with the English department and not the Marxism and Leninism faculty (oh well). Apparently I'll be doing a lot of team teaching, giving oral examinations, helping with class discussions and organising English Club activities. Honestly, it all sounds fun. Technically it's "work" but I know I'll enjoy most (if not all) of it. I won't be stuck at a desk--one of my worst nightmares! I'll be up and active and interacting with people and planning things. A perfect job for me. Everything is working out so well!

The Vice Dean did advise me to keep in mind that Viet Nam is a developing country and that there are many problems and challenges that they are trying to solve. My coming there, she said, will help them with those things. I'm glad that she's positive about my coming and that she feels like I can help, but I definitely don't have the mentality that I'm going there to "show them how to teach" or bestow on them the "gift" of English. I'm just glad to be going and having this experience.

(the only dorm I could find a photo of. Not sure if it's where I'll be living, though.)

I also found out that I'll be living in the postgrad/teachers/foreign student building/dorm. Bad news is that it's a "dorm", although I don't really know how dorm-like it will be. The good news is that my room will have AC!!!! This is a huge relief. Call me a spoiled American, but I LOVE air conditioning. My building also has a shared kitchen (not sure how many people share it). I'm assuming I have my own room but will share a bathroom. I need to get a little more info on those things. I had hoped that I'd be living in a house or apartment, but I think this arrangement will be wonderful. I'll have people around, I'll have a social setting to meet friends and I'll have some peer support. A safety net of sorts, and a way to prevent me from just going home at night to my apartment and not spending time with people. I can be such a homebody.

I've also been scouring my guidebooks for information on Nha Trang. I am SO DAMN EXCITED!!! This city is unbelievable. I didn't think it could get any better, with the white sand and blue water, but I was wrong. It seems that there's a substantial community of French ex-pats there (yay!). The city also boasts the biggest selection of international cuisine outside of Hanoi and HCMC, and even has the only Turkish restaurant in the country. As a vegetarian, I was worried about the food issue. But I think I'm going to be juuuust fine. There are several restaurants that serve or specialize in vegetarian dishes and meatless takes on Vietnamese cuisine. Plus, there are several French restaurants (including one owned by a French-Canadian), an Indian restaurant, a few Italian eateries, and even a Tex-Mex place! Of course I'm going to try to stick to Vietnamese food as much as possible, but I'm glad to know that I'll have some options when I'm dying for comfort food like pizza, pasta, almond croissants, and hummus.

To top it off, everything seems super cheap. Of course, this partially because Vietnam is one of the few places left where the dollar is actually worth anything. Food seems cheap, with meals ranging from 1-5 dollars. Even hotels are cheap (hint hint!).

I've been so distracted reading about Nha Trang, and reading the long guidebook I just received from Fulbright, that my Vietnam film series hasn't progressed much. (By the way, the guidebook informed me that foreigners in VN are prone to getting worms. EESH.) I did find time, though, to watch THE FOG OF WAR, a 2004 Errol Morris doc about Robert McNamara. It's touching to see McNamara cry at several points, especially given the subject matter at hand (see the clip below). An absolutely fascinating film. Morris shows why he deserves his title of "king of the documentary". I had never seen one of his docs before, but now I understand why he is considered by many to be the greatest living documentarian. The music in the film is also outstanding. Philip Glass, a contemporary composer that Sam and I love, did the score.



Tonight I'm watching THE SCENT OF GREEN PAPAYA. a Vietnamese-language film that was made in France. The director has two other movies, CYCLO and VERTICAL RAY OF THE SUN, which will constitute the next installments in my film series.

I'm soaking up my last few days with Sam. He leaves on Saturday for almost a month of touring in Europe. Then he's home for a week, and then off to Japan. Well, hopefully. Now it seems that he might have to go to L.A. for work and/or go to Japan early during that week off, cutting into the few days we'll be able to see each other in July before I leave. Sigh. This is the price of both of us leading really exciting lives.