My stay in Vietnam began in Ho Chi Minh City. While I was there, I toured different religious sites as well as took a tour of the city. After a few days in the busy city, we went south to the Mekong Delta. The Mekong River is crucial to the six countries in Asia that it flows through. We learned about the rich value it adds to the area by serving as a transport system and a city system.
We tasted delicious food and heard local music. Their music is focused on storytelling with extravagant costumes and interesting instruments. I then traveled to Da Nang, which is in the northern part of Vietnam. We had nights out with locals, participated in a cooking class and explored the beaches.
My favorite part was certainly the cooking class because our host was the most welcoming person we could ask for. She told us about her family's history in Vietnam as well as how she got her start as a home chef. It allowed us to connect with her life, although it was very different from our own. The cooking class was taught out of her house, and we met her nieces and nephews because their school had been closed down for two weeks due to the coronavirus. It was a scary time to be traveling, but I am grateful that she took us in and shared her culture.
