3.18.2009
So, Forefront's first Vietnam Team of the year is on the ground and moving. Here is an update from Bruce Fraser (missions team online guru):
It's been a long two days getting from Virginia Beach, VA back to the Ta Phin Village in the mountains of northern Vietnam where we worked last year. We are all a little travel weary, but doing well.
Yesterday, we had a little time in Hanoi for sightseeing and some of us went to see the place where John McCain was held after his plane was shot down. It's interesting getting a perspective on things that is different than what we are accustomed to. It's a good reminder that ours is not the only view of the world.
Last night, we boarded the night train from Hanoi to Lao Cai. After a brutal Uno tournament, we tried to get what sleep we could on the train in beds not made for the average sized American. Around 5:30 AM we arrived in Lao Cai, gathered up our luggage and then took the hour long ride up into the mountains to the town of Sapa. After gorging ourselves on a breakfast of omelettes, bread and Pho (a traditional Vietnamese noodle soup), we did a little sightseeing around Sapa. Some went shopping, while the more adventurous of us (including yours truly) climbed Dragonback mountain which involved about an hour's worth of hiking up hill to an amazing view point overlooking Sapa.
But the best part of the day had to be our trip after lunch up to the village of Ta Phin. We arrived to find a crew hard at work paving the remainder of the school courtyard. Work on the first part of this project began last year, but will soon be finished and the students will have a place to exercise and play without getting covered in mud during the rainy season. The school headmaster was there to greet us and what an amazing difference we saw this year. Where last year he had been very formal and aloof, this year he was all smiles and warm greetings when we pulled up. He was happy to show us around the paving project, the computer lab, the water tanks and we were able to hike up to see the source that provided water not only for the school, but for many in the surrounding village. What an amazing thing to think that a bunch of people on the far side of the planet were helping to transform a village and better the way of live of these people who live in sometimes harsh conditions.
I'll post more photos soon. Most of them are on the digital camera and can't be retrieved until we come home, but I got a few shots of the school on my iPhone that I'll put up.
If you want to see more of what it was like here, check out the photo album from last year at http://picasaweb.google.co
More updates to come in the near future.
Bruce and the rest of the Forefront/Glocal Ventures team 
