Today was our busiest day. We started the day at the Ben Tanh Market. The market was a large building that was packed full of souvenir and food shops. It was an overcrowded space. Walking through the narrow lanes in between the shops, The noise from all of the bargaining was loud and overwhelming. The buyer…

Today we visited Vina Capital. It was a lot of information to take in during their presentation. Vina Capital is a leading investment management and real estate development firm. They are one of the nation’s first venture capital funds. The corporation combines international investment expertise with local market knowledge to help companies thrive in the…

Today’s trip gave me a different perspective of the Vietnam War. We drove a couple hours to the Cuchi Tunnels and started with a tour around the old Viet Cong camps and tunnels. The tunnels were used as an underground defense system during the Vietnam War. They were used to connect the underground storage rooms,…

Our morning started around 7am. We ate a quick breakfast and then jumped on the bus for a 2-hour ride to the Mekong River. On arrival, we were already surrounded by tourist shops with gifts and food to buy. We started the day on a boat, large enough to fit our entire group, and motored…

The U.S. Embassy seems to be an almost ideal career. Employees travel across the globe on various assignments at the U.S. Embassy locations. They are able to live for a few years in the country of each assignment and fully immerse themselves in the foreign culture. For each assignment, they must train for four months…

This was definitely the most relaxing day that I’ve had since the semester at Pitt started. The resort in Vung Tao can only be described as paradise. This was the first time I’ve been able to swim in the Pacific ocean and the water felt amazing. The pool was also very refreshing. The resort was…

Today’s site visit at Glass Egg Corporation was fascinating. The company works on graphic designs for many big-name video game companies. They are known for their detailed work and unique techniques with designing primarily cars, but they are also slowly expanding their work into other specialties including weapons, science fiction space ships, and more recently,…

Phu My Hung developments were impressive. The corporation works to motivate the development around Ho Chi Minh City by creating urban expansions with the construction of centers for education, business, residence, etc. Today, we learned about the corporation’s future plans and about its current projects. They have plans to improve on infrastructure by adding a…

Hello Vietnam! Our day started with the welcome ceremony and a city tour. The city tour was an amazing experience. Driving through the narrow city streets, infested with motor bikes and people was something that I’ve never seen before. The streets were surrounded by vendors, selling foods (that I’ve never seen before) and other convenience…