Da Nang pt.2

I’ve just arrived in Hoi An after spending two weeks in Da Nang. It was a good chunk of time to get settled, explore, and enjoy having a bit of a routine again.

The main reason I was there was to volunteer, teaching English. I was in the classroom with both kids and adults, which turned out to be a great experience. It was especially rewarding seeing people gradually get more confident speaking.

Outside of the classroom, I also spent time helping one of the Vietnamese teachers improve her English. She’s hoping to move to the U.S. to create better opportunities for herself and her family - she supports her parents and four siblings while working full-time as a teacher. Getting to know her story and help her one on one was one of the more meaningful parts of my time there. We’ve agreed to keep working together over video calls even now that I’ve moved on.

When I wasn’t volunteering, I had a lot of downtime with the other volunteers - Adam from Slovakia and Yue from Australia. We ate a lot of good (and cheap) local food since we were living in a more local area. Unfortunately, I did get hit with food poisoning toward the end of my stay, which knocked me out for a few days - but I’m feeling back to normal now.

After recovering from being sick, I treated myself to a haircut to feel a bit more human again. On my last day, Yue and I visited the Marble Mountains. It was a great way to end the stay - auiet, scenic, and beautiful.

I also joined a gym while I was there, which helped keep a bit of structure to my days. I went regularly and joined a few classes, including a Zumba class. The local ladies were very excited to have a foreigner in the room - there were a lot of laughs and photo requests!

Overall, Da Nang was a really good experience. It gave me a mix of purpose, routine, and time to connect with people! Now having a nice time for my last week in Vietnam before I head to Japan! xxxx