Reflections From A Year Abroad

It was July 25, 2011 when we boarded the plan in Austin, and July 27, 2011 when we got off the plane in Singapore.  We've been here for a year.  Life has changed so much.  So many things are really different and yet, some things are just the same.

We've lived a year without a car.  I love it!  Sometimes I think about how car-dependent my life was from the day I turned 16 and got my drivers licence (and my first car!  Yes, I was spoiled!!) until the day I boarded the plane and moved to Singapore.  Driving was something I did every day, and now I haven't driven at all for a year.  The public transit here is really easy and fantastic.  There have definitely been a few times where it really would have been nice to have my own car, but those times have been few and I was able to find another way.  I'm impressed with how well the kids have adapted to walking everywhere.  They are really tough!  At first, with Wyatt being just barely 3, we ended up buying a stroller so that he didn't have to walk all of the time.  I put our stroller away about 3 months ago and we haven't needed it once.    

We've lived in a small space for a year and it's great!  My home in Austin was over 3000 square feet.  At the time that we moved, I really wanted to find a smaller home and see if we could live with less space. I was feeling a strong need to tread more lightly on the earth and reduce my carbon foot print.  It seemed like a big thing at the time to be open to living in a space smaller than 2000 square feet.  Well, I got my wish!  Our condo here is only about 1170 square feet and it is totally fine.  It's plenty of space.  We can function perfectly well and have all the space that we need.  It's really amazing how adaptable we all are.  I would choose this space again.  

We are traveling a lot.  I guess that's a bit of an understatement!!  Once upon a time, a long time ago, Scott and I were both travelers.  Separately, and then together, we ventured out into the world and tried to see a little piece of it.  Then we had kids.  There was one trip when Lily was about 17 months old that went terribly bad.  After that, we proclaimed that we would NEVER travel again!  We stuck to that for a long while.  Slowly, little by little we took a few trips and things went better than expected.  It was definitely more complicated as we continued to add more children, but we learned and managed.  Then we moved here and now we've been traveling every month.  We're trying to make the most of the time we have here and see the things to see on this side of the planet.  The more we travel, the more we realize how little we've seen of the world.  Our travel wish list just keeps getting longer. 

 I think of my children, their passports only have a few blank pages left!  Where is life going to take them when they've spent their young years playing on the beaches in Malaysia and Indonesia, climbing on temples in Cambodia and sea kayaking in Vietnam?  The whole world is their playground.  I am striving to raise kids that see themselves as 'world citizens'.  I want them to feel connected to the entire planet and to do what they can to foster world peace.  

Hiking up to the Hindu Temple in Bali, Indonesia

I love that they see pictures of the places their friends have visited or have moved to and they say, "Can we go there?!" or Madeline a couple weeks ago said to me, "So Mom, what country is it this month?".  Wow.  Their idea of what is possible is limitless.  What a gift!!

Some things are just the same.  Most days are filled with school, homework, playing with friends, dinner and bed time.  We try to find the time for the little things we enjoy.  Scott and I both enjoy reading.  Our digital book collection has dramatically increased over the last year!  It's really nice to be able to download any book you want to read and have it immediately available.

Scott still loves the Steelers!  Although, I don't think watching the game by himself on the ipad very early in the morning (sometimes at 4:00 AM) is as much fun as going in the evening with his friends to the sports bar. 

We are still dedicated to healthy living and eating.  I'm still forcing my family to eat whole grains and mostly plants.  We've eased off a bit on the strict vegan-ism.  We try, but it's MUCH harder here and not as practical, so we've found a balance that works for us.  I've just signed up to run a 21K (half-marathon) in November.  I'm excited!  There doesn't seem to be the kind of running community that Austin has, so I'll be training on my own more (or with friends), but that's okay.  

Singapore Zoo

Singapore Elephant Parade, December 2011

Lighting a lantern on the beach in Thailand.

Riding Elephants!

Lily's birthday and her AMAZING cake!

Scott fishing with Wyatt in Malaysia.

Hiking through the temples in Cambodia.

Jumping off the pier in Indonesia.

Ha Long Bay, Vietnam.

My sweet little Wyatt has started school!  I kinda breezed over his birthday in June.  It was a really busy month.  He's grown up into a sweet boy.  Preschool started last week for Wyatt.  He LOVES it!  I think he is really ready to have some time to play with the kids his own age.  I'm really proud of him.

Just a little collection of pictures of Wyatt from the last year.  My sweet little baby has grown up so much!

If everything goes as planned, we will be heading back to Austin about this time next year.  Wyatt will be ready to start Kindergarten (I can't believe it!) and the girls will be ready for 1st and 3rd grades.  We're halfway through our Singapore adventure.  I'm loving every minute and so very grateful for the chance to be here.  We miss our families and friends so much.  It's hard to be so far away and to miss all the ups and downs with the ones we love.  We'd LOVE to have some more visitors!! 

I feel a little like I'm missing a piece to this reflection of the last year.  It's difficult to articulate how something has changed you, when you are still in the middle of it.  I can remember what life was like in Austin before, but I'm sure there are many details that I am forgetting.  Peace and love to you all!  

Vietnam - Ha Long Bay

 Our night on Ha Long Bay was definitely the highlight of our trip to Vietnam.  Our only regret is that we only stayed one night.  When I booked the trip, I wasn't sure how the children would do sleeping on a boat.  It turns out, the kids loved it.  

Our journey started with a 3 hour bus ride from Hanoi to Ha Long Bay.  We stopped once at a craft school for disabled.  They made these large statues and all kinds of other crafts (paintings, clothes, furniture, jewelry, etc.).  There were 2 other families on the bus with us.  One family ended up being on our boat too.  They are an Australian family living in Hong Kong, with 2 kids, a 5 year old girl and 9 year old boy.  My kids and their kids played their little hearts out.  It was perfect!  The second family on our bus was from Singapore and they actually live across the street from us!  The dad is one of the Year 1 teachers at the school where my kids go!  He recognized Lily and me.  Such a small world!

Our boat was the Dragon Pearl.  We had 2 rooms.  Scott, Madeline and Wyatt shared one room and Lily and I shared the other.  There were 11 rooms total on the boat and 19 passengers (12 crew).  On our boat were Australians, French and Norwegians.

We set sail at about noon.  A fabulous lunch was prepared as we embarked on our journey.  Our boat had 3 levels.  Our rooms were on the bottom level, the mid level had the dining room and an open deck and the top was open with lounge chairs.  The weather was fantastic and the scenery was stunning.  

Our first stop was at one of the large rock formations.  We hiked around it and inside!  There was a large cave inside that we got to explore.  Our guide told us that they found the cave about 10 years ago and there was a family living inside.  The family had been living in the cave for about 10 years.  They found it to be a wonderful home because it was cool in the summer, warm in the winter and good protection from bad weather.  The family agreed to sell their cave to the tour company and relocated to a nearby floating village.

This is our boat!

After exploring the cave, we got to do some sea kayaking around some of the rock formations.  Then we played on the soft beach!

Next, we headed back to our boat to travel to our cove for the night.  Once there, we dropped anchor and watched the sun set from the top deck.

It was nearly a full moon! 

The next morning, we were off again early and we traveled to the floating village.  

Once at the village, we got a private boat tour of the village by one of the ladies that live there.  The villagers catch fish and also farm fish.  There is also a Pearl Farm.  We saw the school where the children take lessons too.  It seemed to be a simple and peaceful life.   

This woman was chopping up small fish and feeding the large fish in the fish farm.

My cuties (a little sunny)!

Scott tried rowing the boat and found it pretty tough to steer it! 

This woman works to place small white beads in the oysters and then puts them in a cage and drops it in the water to wait for 20 years.  She also works to extract the pearls that were placed in the oysters 20 years ago. 

After our village tour, we went back to the harbor and returned to Hanoi.  We really enjoyed Ha Long Bay and wish we had stayed longer. 

Vietnam - Hanoi

The latest adventure for the Caudle family was a trip to Vietnam.  We spent 7 nights total, the longest we've stayed anywhere.  Truthfully, I think it was too long.  We were really ready to come home by the end, but we did find our trip fascinating and enjoyable.  I'm going to break it into two blog posts.  This one is all about our visit to the capital of Vietnam, Hanoi.  The next post will be about out trip to Ha Long Bay, where we stayed on a boat.  

Hanoi is the second largest city in Vietnam and the capital.  Hanoi was the capital of French Indochina from 1902 to 1954 and then the capital of North Vietnam from 1954 to 1976.  I found the remains of French occupation to be particularly interesting in Hanoi.  It is the only place in South East Asia where you can buy proper French Baguettes.  Mostly the bread in SE Asia is soft.  A hard crust is incredibly difficult to find, however, they know how to do it right in Hanoi.  The coffee was exceptional.  Many of the buildings in Hanoi echoed the French style. 

We stayed in the Old Quarter.  The streets are narrow and there are many shops.  Mostly are very narrow where they meet the street, but they go back a long way.  This is due to the way the shops are taxed, it is only by the width of the street front property.  Our hotel (Hanoi Elegance Ruby) was on a tiny alley that was only open to motorbikes and pedestrians.  It was an interesting lane that changed dramatically between morning and afternoon.  There were a lot of meat and vegetable markets on the street.  When we walked down in the morning, it was very busy with people buying and selling the fresh food.  Fish were being gutted and filleted right on the street, whole chickens were freshly plucked and for sale.  There is no illusion as to where your food comes from!  By afternoon, most of the shops had sold their day's supply and closed up.

Another feature about the old quarter is that all of the craftsman shops are located here and they are grouped together.  It seems each product was designated a specific area of town to set up shop.  Near us, it was the musical instrument shops.  We thought they were great fun and decided to bring home a Gong.  Everybody needs a gong right?  I noticed an area for silk and for shoes and one for furniture upholstery.  Every shop had a bird cage hanging outside with a little bird in it.  I read that the birds were there for good luck (bad luck for the bird I think!).  The cages were ornate and beautiful.  I would have loved to bring one home (a cage, not a bird!), had it been practical.  

At about 6:30 am each morning, we could hear some sort of radio broadcast played in the alley over a loud speaker.  Of course, it was in Vietnamese, so I have no idea what it said.  It started with the same tune and maybe a greeting and then a message.  It lasted long enough for me to ponder what it was every day (10 minutes, maybe longer).  I think it was some sort of communist government morning broadcast to the people.  Interesting. 

St. Joseph Cathedral in the Old Quarter.  When we walked here, we were lucky to find a service in session.  Usually, the gates are closed and you can't get very close.  It's a Catholic church built by the French in 1886.

It was the rainy season when we visited.  According to the Internet weather advise for travel, it was the worst time to be in Vietnam.  We thought, well, a little rain is no biggie.  It rains in Singapore too.  We really lucked out with the weather, it was fine.  It did rain a little each day, but we bought these hats and they are really great for rain!  

We stopped at a little back packers cafe for afternoon tea and we met up with a young guy from Romania.  He is a magician and had just finished filming a magic show for a television program in Vietnam.  He had his bird with him that he uses in his routine and he let the kids hold it.  Madeline was especially enamored with the bird.  

A typical fruit stand in a corner shop.

One of the main attractions in Hanoi is the Old Quarter.  The thing to do, is to just wander around and get a feeling for it.  We spent a lot of time doing this.  We found our favorite restaurants and little shops.  It's a very busy place.  It's crowded and the traffic is nuts.  There are sidewalks, but they are used for parking of motorcycles and cars.  Mostly, we had to walk in the street.  There are very few crosswalks, so to cross the street, you just go.  Most of the time, Scott carried Madeline on his shoulders and I carried Wyatt on my back.  Lily stayed close to us and we were able to maneuver the streets.  I was very stressed at first, but by the end of the week, I found that I was pretty relaxed and comfortable with walking around.

We visited the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum.  It is a memorial located in the spot where Ho Chi Minh read the declaration of independence on September 2, 1945.  Photography is not allowed up close or inside the Mausoleum.  We did go inside and see Ho Chi Minh's body preserved for viewing.  It was quite a thing to see.  The Mausoleum is styled after Lenin's Mausoleum in Moscow.  Behind Ho Chi Minh is a large wall with two red flags made in the stone.  One has the star for the Vietnam flag and the other has the hammer and sickle on it.  For this American girl, it was quite a thing to see. 

Surrounding the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is a beautiful garden and grounds.  Included are the presidential palace (pictured above).  It was built in 1906 to house the French Governor General of Indochina.  

The Carp Pond on the Palace grounds.

Ho Chi Minh's residence on the Palace grounds (he did not live in the Palace).

This is the One Pillar Pagoda.  The Pagoda was built in 1049 by Emperor Ly Thai Tong as a sign of gratitude for the birth of his son. 

This is the gate leading to the Temple of Literature.  It is a temple of Confucius.  It was the site of the Imperial Academy, the first national university of Vietnam.  King Ly Nhan Tong built the temple in 1070.  It is nearly 1000 years old!

On our first day in Hanoi, we tried to visit the Temple of Literature, but we found it to be intolerably crowded!  We later learned that students love to come to the temple for good luck before they take their exams.  The day we tried to visit was the Sunday afternoon before exam week at all of the universities in Hanoi.  The place was packed!

We returned later in the week with our guides from Hanoi Kids.  Hanoi Kids is awesome!  College students volunteer to take tourists around Hanoi and teach them about the city and its history.  We had two lovely guides, Ha and Cong that took us to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and the Temple of Literature.  They were great with the kids and very informative and interesting!

Inside the Temple of Literature is this statue of the crane and turtle.  It signifies a special relationship.  In times of flood, the turtle can offer the crane a safe spot to land to rest its wings.  In times of drought, the crane can pick up the turtle and help it to find water.

These pictures are of the large drum (above) and bell (below) that were used by the Imperial Academy to announce a beginning or end to study time. 

This bridge is in Hoan Kiem Lake (green lake) in the middle of Hanoi Old Quarter.  It leads from the edge of the lake to the Den Ngoc Son Temple.

Entrance to Den Ngoc Son Temple.

These bicycles with seats are very popular in Hanoi.  We hired two of them to carry us home one evening.  We were planning on walking, but I unfortunately, stepped in a pot hole and fell.  Wyatt was on my back and luckily he was unharmed.  I scraped up my leg and knees pretty good and had blood dripping.  This guy was nearby and offered us a ride home (for a price of course!).

A visit to Hanoi is not complete without a tour of what remains of Hanoi Hilton.  The French called it  Maison Centrale and the Vietnamese named it Hoa Lo Prison.  The architecture reminds me of a mid-evil prison you might find in Europe.  The French built it in 1886 to 1889 (some dispute on the actual date, but in the approximate time period).  It was built to hold political prisoners in French Indochina.

During the Vietnam War, the prison was used to hold US POWs.  They endured miserable conditions including poor food and unsanitary conditions.  US pilots report torture and interrogation as part of their treatment in this prison.  The purpose of which was to get the pilots to make false statements about the US to provide North Vietnam with propaganda to use to promote the North's image in the eyes of the world.  That image is still promoted today, in the display hall at Hao Lo Prison.

I tried to photograph the top of the wall surrounding the prison.  It is cemented with cut glass protruding and what looks like electrical wiring.  

The prison grounds as they were when the prion was in operation.  All that remains is a small portion where the majority of the buildings are.  

There were two rooms where items and photos of the US pilots were on display.  In all of the photos the US pilots could be seen playing basket ball, watching movies and playing chess.  The museum is very particular to point out how miserable the Vietnamese were treated here in the hands of the French and how well the US pilots were treated at the hands of the Vietnamese.  

...

We visited the Ethnology Museum.  I learned that Vietnam is made up of 54 ethnic groups.  This museum is dedicated to preserving the history of those ethnic groups.  On the grounds surrounding the museum house, there are several traditional homes constructed.  We all enjoyed climbing up into them!  The grounds were lovely and it gave the kids a large safe place where they could run and play.

We saw the water puppet show!  Water Puppets are a traditional art form in Vietnam.  It originated in the rice fields as entertainment.  I really enjoyed the music played with traditional instruments.

It's difficult to take good pictures in dark theaters.  These puppets were holding candles.  

At the end, the puppeteers came out holding this large dragon.  The lights came up a bit, so I was able to get a little better picture.

The rest are pictures that I took in the Old Quarter.  

These little blue stools were EVERYWHERE.  Mostly, the people here live above their shops, so the sidewalk outside their shop is their front porch.  This is where they eat their meals and visit with friends.

A narrow lane off of one of the bigger streets.  The narrow lanes did not allow cars to enter, only motorcycles.

A little temple off the street.  A bicycle carrying vegetables (more blue stools).

These ladies were everywhere!  They sold all kinds of things in their baskets.  This one is obviously selling fruit.  Often they had bananas or prawns.  Sometimes they were selling donuts or baguettes.  Sometimes beads, necklaces, bracelets.  We visited the Women's History museum.  In it, they talked about these ladies that are street vendors in Hanoi.  Often, then come from surrounding villages (or maybe a village further away).  They can rent a bed in a kind of dormitory and live in Hanoi to earn money.  Usually, they go home to visit their husband and kids every two weeks, hopefully earning at least $20 (US dollars) in that time.  The men stay home with the children and farm (either crops or animals, often pigs).

I'll post about Ha Long Bay soon...  This one took me a while to process what I wanted to write.  It was really an adventure for us to visit Vietnam.