"Trip Back to My Roots" a Ho Chi Minh City Travel Page by neurochic

In March 2005, I took a trip back to Vietnam for the first time with my husband. I had many a mixed emotion going back being of mixed heritage (half Vietnamese/half American). I was terrified that I would be treated as a pauper, but at the same time so extremely excited to finally visit the place where my mother grew up and where my parents fell in love so many years ago. Growing up I heard so many wonderful stories of my mom's homeland and I knew I needed to make this trip to understand a little bit more of who my mother is and ultimately the roots that make me who I am. I was so pleasantly surprised that the people of Vietnam from South to North embraced me with open arms and the warm smiles and boistorous laugh that is so familiar to anyone who is Vietnamese.

Once again I traveled back to Vietnam in March 2006. This time I convinced my Vietnamese mother and American exGI father as well as my husband to accompany me. My parents had not been back since the Vietnam War (@ 40 years) because my mother was fearful. The mission was to meet my Vietnamese family, my long lost family that I never imagined I would ever be given the opportunity to meet. Also the plan was to experience Vietnam, mainly Saigon and My Tho (where my family is originally from) from a locals perspective.

Needless to say the trip was wonderful, often times surreal, and a true eye opener, as well as often times frustrating secondary to my lack of ability to speak Vietnamese and my family's lack of ability to speak English. It was amazing to finally meet the people I had always imagined and for them to accept you with warm open arms like you never were gone was just a true glimpse into the human spirit. This trip was all orchestrated by my sweet dear husband Benjamin who was the fire that lit by butt in gear to visit Vietnam in the first place despite all my fears. If it weren't for him I don't know if this dream would have ever come true for me or for my mom. I will always be so very grateful to him for this.

So throughout my old Ho Chi Minh City page you will find some new tips and such. You will know they are new by their green headings. Also to find out more about my family reunion, please check out my travelogue.

Okay I LOVE GOLF. I picked it up last year, again at the urging of my husband Ben (Gosh I love that kid!) as a way to let out my frustrations since my knee could no longer handle any strenuous activities like kickboxing or tae kwon do (tore my ACL). Also being a doc you always hear that you have to learn golf to network. Being the ghetto city hoodrat that I am, before I picked up the game I heckled those that would watch golf on TV. But let me tell you, the game is addictive. The game is alot like medicine requiring skill, patience, and there is always room to learn more. So to make a long story short, when I was in Vietnam, my father, husband and I went to Song Be Golf Resort which was AWESOME! If you love golf and you will be in this area, check out my travel tips about this resort.