The Real Vietnam
-
-
- yollis
- added this
Yolanda Narain, a scientist at healthcare company Roche in Welwyn Garden City and a part time volunteer at the Welwyn Garden City Oxfam shop, has just returned from a two-week trip-of-a-lifetime to Vietnam, travelling as part of the Oxfam Communication and Exposure Tour.
From a base in Hanoi, Yolanda travelled to the Bao Yen, Bat Xat and Bac Ha districts in Lao Cai province in the north of the country and Ninh Thuan in the south, visiting Oxfam projects along the way. “Visiting the real Vietnam outside the busy tourist route was such a treat, and seeing first-hand the impact that Oxfam projects are having on people’s lives was fantastic,“ she said.
In particular, Yolanda was struck by how welcoming people were to her group, as well as their great enthusiasm for change. She said, “As I was thinking about how challenging their lives must be, I was pleasantly surprised to see fun, laughter and commitment, an immense commitment to make things better for their families and those around them.”
Yolanda and her group visited community projects including water management, livelihood and education projects, as well as a humanitarian programme in Bao Yen, an area badly hit by typhoon Kammuri in August 2008.
After two weeks in Vietnam, Yolanda is now back in Welwyn Garden City, but agrees that this is not a trip that she will forget in a hurry. She said, ”When Oxfam first told me that they were sending me to Vietnam, I was not aware of how lucky I was. I am now!”
From a base in Hanoi, Yolanda travelled to the Bao Yen, Bat Xat and Bac Ha districts in Lao Cai province in the north of the country and Ninh Thuan in the south, visiting Oxfam projects along the way. “Visiting the real Vietnam outside the busy tourist route was such a treat, and seeing first-hand the impact that Oxfam projects are having on people’s lives was fantastic,“ she said.
In particular, Yolanda was struck by how welcoming people were to her group, as well as their great enthusiasm for change. She said, “As I was thinking about how challenging their lives must be, I was pleasantly surprised to see fun, laughter and commitment, an immense commitment to make things better for their families and those around them.”
Yolanda and her group visited community projects including water management, livelihood and education projects, as well as a humanitarian programme in Bao Yen, an area badly hit by typhoon Kammuri in August 2008.
After two weeks in Vietnam, Yolanda is now back in Welwyn Garden City, but agrees that this is not a trip that she will forget in a hurry. She said, ”When Oxfam first told me that they were sending me to Vietnam, I was not aware of how lucky I was. I am now!”
-
- groups:
- Community, Agent Orange, Volunteer
-
-
yollis
-
Great !
- 2 years ago
-
yollis
