Day 9 - Sunday March 3, 2013 Dental Health Education Community Service Day, CHAU THANH District, Nhi Binh Village

Nhi Binh village was chosen by the Tien Giang Red Cross because this is one of the poorest village in the province.  Many families in this community are afflicted with leprosy, and even though forced quarantine or segregation of leprosy patients is unnecessary, many people are still afraid of coming in contact with these villagers and would not buy the local products grown or made from this area , so the economy here suffers as the result of this stigma.

240 parents with their children gather in the courtyard of Nhi Binh Kindergarten center to participate in the dental health education session this morning.  Every family will receive a gift bag of household items and dental care package.

Van offers a gift to a father with a child is who sick in a hospital, Lea to a mother with her special need child, our team gave gifts of household goods and money to 10 families with a special need child at this village.

Many times these community empowerment session can be very chaotic and disorganized, but today it went as smooth as can be with a crowd of 240 parents and their children, thanks to the organizing skills of the local Red Cross staff and the teachers at this kindergarten center.

Now we can have the rest of the day off, a little break to enjoy the sight and sound of the Mekong River.  We went on a boat tour to see the floating market of Cai Be, visited a few gift shops, and had lunch at an ancient farm house.

Look at these smiles, so happy to have a break and enjoy being "tourists"!

Fresh harvest of bananas.  Do you know that bananas are natives from tropical Southeast Asia?  There are over 1,000 varieties, I have personally tasted over 14-15 different types, different shapes, colors, textures, flavors, aromas, sweetness, starchiness ... if you love bananas, VN is banana heaven!

By lunch time we reached the restored ancient farm house in Dong Hoa Hiep commune by boat, one of our favorite stop for a beautiful lunch in the garden, surrounded with fruit trees and tropical flowers.  Mr. Kiet's Southern antique home was chosen among 355 houses in Tien Giang to be restored thanks the the Japanese & Vietnamese cooperation program.  It costs 1.5 million dollars to return this farm house to its glory days.  This house is 150 years old, there are 100 columns made from precious wood, and all of the carving as well as wood furniture were restored exactly as the original.  Last year Mr. Kiet died of a sudden heart attack at 52 years old, such shocking news for us, our team comes here for the Sunday lunch for the past 9 years and be greeted by Mr. Kiet and his wife (and his late mother), every year when we meet it is like seeing old friends, and it was sad not to see the same faces again.  A consolation is that Mrs. Kiet is doing well, she has the strength to carry on to raise their two children (the daughter is in the first year of dental school, a 6 year program) and keeps the ancient home open for business as usual.  The food is delicious as always, every dish is prepared with fresh ingredients harvested locally. 

Looking at Trang and her smile, we all feel the same, and the food, absolutely finger licking good!

 Paul and Robin's first time in Vietnam, and I think they fall in love with the Vietnamese cuisine, they enjoy tasting everything and real easy to please!

Mature jack fruits in the garden of the farm house

A rare sight, baby durian fruits.  Durian is one of the unusual fruits of tropical countries, it has become famous or more like unforgettable by the very unique aroma that no fruit can compare.  Trang and Phuong bought a few durian fruits and are talking about "a durian experience" one evening at dinner when they know the durians are ready, we can't wait!

Mountain apples

 Milk fruits, my favorite!

Red dragon fruits
 

Sunday night, another special night for our team as we go to Hung's paternal grandparent's home in Long An for another dining experience.  Hung's 2 aunts prepare a beautiful feast to welcome us into their farm home. The food is beautifully prepared, mostly vegetarian dishes, some ingredients had to be prepared several days in advance, they probably spend several days preparing this dinner for our team, and certainly put a lot of love into it too because we feel it in every bite.