A blog is born

So here it is.  The new blog.

This will document, from this point onwards, my experiences as a VSO volunteer with KOTO in Hanoi, Vietnam.

As it stands, my leaving date is September 3rd, but there is a great deal to do in the meantime. 

People keep asking me whether I am nervous about my new life.  The honest answer is no.  It's all the work that has to be done first that scares the hell out of me.

Typically, having muddled along for the past 12 months as a self employed PR person, all of a sudden, when I am looking to wind down - everyone seems to be throwing work at me. The good news is that the cash I'll make will help clear things financially before I go, the bad news is right now I just don't have the time.  Unfortunately I don't have the guts to turn it down either.

To complicate matters even further, I have managed to do something very painful to my ankle.  I have played five-a-side without a single injury for years now, suddenly, when I really need all my mobility, I go and knock lumps off myself.

The good news is that despite the worrying bruising and a bit of swelling, it only appears to be a bad sprain, or at worst ligaments.  An xray in the next couple of days will hopefully confirm there are no broken bones.

Either way, clearing out the house and helping to fix it up for a potential buyer is beyond me right now.  I'll blog a little more in the future about why I wanted to do VSO as well as my love affair with Vietnam.  I just wish everything could be sorted so I could really start to enjoy the anticipation.

Comments

[Stephen]

Hi i am traveling to Vietnam next month for the first time. Could you offer any advice? The country looks magnificent in the pictures alone. My trip puts me in Saigon for (5) days and Hanoi for (3). How would you describe their culture as an American? Its difficult to get a clear idea of what its really like over there.