Vietnam & Cambodia Trip Report

Freda Nicholson & Karen Henson

We went on a "Discover Vietnam & Cambodia" Friendship Force exchange with FF members from Oregon, Montana, North Carolina, Minnesota and Washington, DC from April 16 to May 2, 2008.

The first twelve days were spent in Vietnam.  We had a four-day home stay in Hanoi and also toured in that area.  The host organization was the Vietnam/USA Friendship Organization.  They also furnished the guide for the remainder of our time in Vietnam.  Our host owned and operated a school for handicapped children.  A bonus was to meet a fellow American who was a student from San Francisco working in the school and living in the home of our host.  The host had two energetic grandchildren and their parents also living in her home.  All were very friendly and fun to be with.  Our final night in Hanoi was a dinner and entertainment provided by the hosting organization.

The rest of our stay in Vietnam was spent touring Hu Long, Hue, Hoi An, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).  It was interesting to visit many of the sites prominent in the Vietnam conflict, and we even crawled through the Chu Chi tunnels near Ho Chi Minh City where the Viet Cong operated.

We had four days touring in Cambodia and visited the ruins of many early temples and palaces from 1112 AD.  The most outstanding one was Angkor Wat.  We also saw villages and learned about the way the people of Cambodia lived.

A bonus to the trip was a day's tour of Seoul, Korea, while en route to Seattle, Washington, our USA entry point.  They were having a Labor Day & Buddha's Birthday celebration at that time.  We were able to see some of the festivities involved with these holidays.

It was an interesting and educational trip and a chance to also get to know fellow Friendship Force members of other chapters.