Sunday, September 18, 2011
Having landed at Tan Son Nhat International Airport to begin our Road Scholar program in Ho Chi Minh City, I've left behind the Red Sox's struggles for a playoff spot, an early autumn chill in New England, and most things American. During a long flight through New York and Hong Kong, I couldn't help but think of Viet Nam in forty-year-old terms, and hope that our fourteen-day journey on the Mekong will replace that country of myth and memory with a new appreciation for the magic and reality of a place created by the people who have called it home for thousands of years.
Our first morning in the city brought us to Notre Dame Cathedral and the Main Post Office. While describing the history of these two buildings, Thoa, our Road Scholar guide, directed our attention a block to the east. There, below a gleaming new office tower, stood an unforgettable icon from American television news and weekly magazines so very long ago.
Having landed at Tan Son Nhat International Airport to begin our Road Scholar program in Ho Chi Minh City, I've left behind the Red Sox's struggles for a playoff spot, an early autumn chill in New England, and most things American. During a long flight through New York and Hong Kong, I couldn't help but think of Viet Nam in forty-year-old terms, and hope that our fourteen-day journey on the Mekong will replace that country of myth and memory with a new appreciation for the magic and reality of a place created by the people who have called it home for thousands of years.
Our first morning in the city brought us to Notre Dame Cathedral and the Main Post Office. While describing the history of these two buildings, Thoa, our Road Scholar guide, directed our attention a block to the east. There, below a gleaming new office tower, stood an unforgettable icon from American television news and weekly magazines so very long ago.
The Fall of Saigon, South Viet Nam, April 30, 1975
The Same Building this morning, September 18, 2011
Great Start Tom, I am reading your first post.
ReplyDeletepat
This is so exciting!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to read this every day...
While I'm HARD at work of course :)