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Close your eyes.

The air is thick with humidity and the smells of petrol and street food. Most waste is burned, leaving behind a subtle scent of trash.

The sounds of motorbike engines are unescapeable in this great city of Ho Chi Minh. With about the same population as NYC (8 million), the city is a sprawling province and traffic is chaotic.

It is now four days since we arrived in this quickly developing metropolis. Jet lag has been nudging us awake with the sun, and the activity here keeps our days long and full.

Our first day here, Paul and I wandered to a nearby park. As we sat on a bench drinking young coconut milk out of the shell, a man walked by who Paul had noticed earlier as he was sitting reading a book called mindfullness. Paul got his attention and we began talking. Ralph is from Georgia, USA and has been traveling through Thailand and Viet Nam. He told us of some beautiful Pagodas and showed us a few of his favorite restaurants in the area. Recently there was a cholera outbreak in Hanoi, so it is advised to be careful with street-food. We parted ways and Paul and I continued on. We picked up a map and a lonely planet guide and went to find some of these pagodas. The Jade Pagoda honors Buddhist and Hindu Dieties. The air was thick with incense and the rooms crowded with icons of gods, goddesses and buddhas.

After being ripped off by rickshaw drivers and feeling generally exhausted, we found Zen, a vegetarian restaurant in the "backpacker's ghetto." There we met Rebecca, an Aussi on a solo trip around SE Asia while on break from "uni." She joined us while we ate and afterwards we went to another small park where it seemed everyone was playing with these toys, they consist of a small spring-like structure with a feather on the end. You play with them by kicking the spring with your toe and they FLY! People kick them back and forth...it is a mix of hacky-sac, and badminton with your feet. We bought one and played for a while and had a few laughs before meeting up with Liz who was flying in from Hue.

The next day, we met up with Dr. Murray and his wife, Cathy, and son, Chad. They had flown in from the states the night before. We made different hotel arrangements to stay in a cheaper place.

Then we went to Ms. Don's orphanage.

When we arrived, the children were out swimming. This orphanage cares for about 30 children and is the one where the paintings are from. We were able to see where they paint and meet their art teacher. There are four young boys who have been chosen by the art teacher to take painting class. The teacher choses pictures for the boys to paint. We filled a suitcase to the brim with more pieces to bring to the states and I made arrangements to come back to spend a few days photographing and interviewing the boys. Our friend here, Hai, will translate for us. He told us about some other children's programs here. There are other orphanages for the disabled, blind and for children with HIV. As of right now, the plan seems to be, travel with the group for the next week or so, we are going to Hue in two days. After the group of students and Dr. Murray return to the US, we will return to Hue and hopefully live in Doc Son, an orphanage run by Buddhist nuns. Depending on how long we stay there, I will be in contact with Hai and when we are ready we will come back to HCMC to work in Ms. Dons and visit the other orphanages. Think About the Children has very limited funds, so if we visit the orphanages with severe issues (HIV, severe disabilities, blindness etc.) I know that I cannot offer them support from TATC, however I am hopefull that perhaps if I am able to make powerful images I can send them to larger organizations who could potentially offer some help.

There is so much work that needs to be done here. There is so much poverty. The streets are full of beggars, peddlers, and trafficked children. Apparently many girls who have been trafficked "sell flowers" both literally and figuratively depending on their age. Blue Dragon, a children's foundation based in Hanoi is working on the complex issue of trafficking. It is a vicious cycle...Traffickers are slick con-men who come into poor villages offering jobs for disadvantaged youth. Thinking they are offering thier children a brighter future, families agree to sell their children to these men for about 200 USD, which is enticing as most of these families face financial debts-so it seems like a great deal to be able to give their children a future while receiving a financial boost. The children are taken and are swept into a world of abuse and exploitation. Some of these children are rescued and returned to their homes...but the problem remains as poor families keep having many children that they cannot support. It seems that birth-control and family planning needs to be established in these targeted areas.

There is a cafe near where we are staying called SOZO, which is greek meaning "to save." They sell cookies, coffee and juices and employ disenfranchised youth. They don't turn anyone away-if someone wants to work their, they will find them a place. It is run by an Aussi who we met. She is a lovely woman who is working hard. They use really good ingredients and are always open to new recepies. She told us they got their cheesecake recepe when a woman came in and said "I know a great cheesecake recipe" and they responded, "great! come in the back and show us!"

Yesterday, we took a bus to the Cao Dai temple, it is near the Cambodian border. On the way we stopped at 27-7 Handicapped Handicrafts. This is a place where war victims work to create art. Beautiful art. July 27 is disabled soldier's day, hence 27-7. Take a look at the photographs.

Paul mentioned the temple in his email. It was incredible. Cao Dai is a religion that is a fusion of Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Confusionsim, Islam and Christianity. There are prayers four times daily. We were able to see the one at noon. The men and women dress in different colored robes, white for Cao Dai, yellow for Buddhism, blue for Taoism and red for Catholisism. The prayer was beautiful. Paul had to come get me to bring to to the bus as I was completely enthralled and would have been left behind. Good thing I have him around to keep me in check! Check out those pictures as well.

HCMC is quite a place, but I am looking forward to getting out of the city soon.
Needless to say, things are going very well. I love SE Asia. There is so much about this place that is like Bali...a strange homecoming it is.

More soon.

LOVE LOVE LOVE
eva