A Morning with MAG

(Written by Jill Piacitelli)
Day two in Dong Ha. This rural setting has changed some of our morning habits: Dave can’t get up at 5 to hit the badminton scene, people aren’t running back from quick communiqué via the internet, and no sweet French morning pastries. Here we wake up and march into the day like soldiers: 7 am sharp, quiet round tables, and the simple hardiness of eggs, a small baguette, and an inch of thick and very black coffee. It does the trick and we file into the van dispatched to our first morning stop back at the CPI office. Today, we will be with their neighbors and peers in landmine work - MAG (Mines Advisory Group -- www.mag.or.uk).

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In some ways an ending, in some a beginning

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here.

Posted by Chris Anderson

First I would like to apoligize for this Blog being posted late, for some reason it was not posted when I did do it. We are in Quan Tri now and I am reposting this at Clear Path Internationals office.
Today (Thursday 6-9-05) was another long day. We woke up early in the morning and caught breakfast same place as usual, in the first floor of our great inn. At 7:30 we were off to the Blind Association to finish our last day of labor work there. When we got there our mission was set out. Some were to weed the front grounds of the establishment, while another team was to dig a sports hole for equipment that would later be installed. We had some help from three of our interpreters which was great as well. Thanks guys!! Another hot day as usual, we all sweated together as we turned the front lawn brown and dug deep for the hole. This was a sad moment for some, being not only the last labor project for the Blind Association but also this is the last day of real labor work for the rest of the trip. We said our goodbyes to everyone there but we were not worried, for we will be seeing them the next day when we are marketing products for them in the morning.

We returned to the hotel to get ready for the afternoon portion of the day. We ate a great lunch as always, and instead of people taking the usual rest, we instead bought supplies and then planned what we were going to do for the last day of teaching both at the Children's House and saddest of all the Street Children house. We got all of our gifts together, balloons, candies, pens, toys, drinks, and other various items and set off at 1:45. We arrived at the Childrens House and began our activities. It was a light session. We started with games for the first leg of it and then we ended with conversation which we had to move inside because it started raining on us. We said our goodbyes to the kids at the Childrens House, exchanging email adresses and offering them to get in touch with us any time they felt fit for any reason at all. We were off to the Street Children's House.

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Sweat Labor and a Flash Flood

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. The images from this post are from the Clear Path Archive.

(Written by Caroline Cole)
We were off to an early start today. After a quick breakfast we headed out to the emerging teen center to continue our efforts. Galen and I assumed our places at the brick-slinging station. Our job consisted of placing bricks in baskets, hauling them from point A to point B, then latching the baskets to a pulley system that transported them to the top floor. I actually found the work quite satisfying. There is something to be said for using the sheer strength of your body to attain a tangible ends. The effort of my muscles becomes a place where kids can learn and recreate in. It is a way of transfering internal processes to the external environment, like art, a simple yet amazing alchemy. It is a way of manifesting intent. The engagement of the flesh somehow makes the service more complete, not a mere exercise of the mind, but grounded in the earth as well. It had a certain meditative quality. It slows me down, allows my mind to clear. It was also a way to really be with the Vietnamese people around me. Perhaps we could exchange only limited words, but we grew a natural sort of intimacy that can only be achieved through shared sweat and labor.

Later that evening we experienced a crazy flash flood that bears mentioning. In what seemed like a matter of moments, a seemingly benign rain storm ecscalted into a full-fledged city emergency. The streets were filled with about a foot and a half of water. The people of Hue seemed largely unphased by the situation. Children splashed
around in the filthy waves. Mother and fathers quietly walked there bikes home. Cyclo drivers donned tarps and sought customers completely undaunted. One fellow fished an eel out of the murky depths. The mood was generally quite cheery, people smiling and laughing. It was a break from the usual routine, the kind that awakens one to life's spectacle, and to the grace of having one another's company in this mad adventure.

The lower floor of our hotel is a restaurant that is completely open to the road on one side. The high water mark was essentially exactly level with the floor of the hotel, having swallowed the front steps. As if by divine providence, the flood did not rise that last fateful inch. Meanwhile, we all sort of took the cue of the locals and calmly finished our supper by candlelight (the power went out as well). It was one part fiddling while Rome burned, and one part romantic lakeside dining. Somehow the lack of panic seemed utterly normal. I think the Vietanmese spirit possessed me at that moment. Somehow it seemed as if we were all in this together, a peaceful resignation, a genuinely felt sense of community. Not the community we yammer on about in cliched sermons, but the real kind that develops after years of struggle and quietly plodding on. The sense of knowing exactly what is important, and knowing exactly how much the human spirit can take. It reminds me of a Joyce quote, "Go on loving, it's your only revenge."

The Rehabilitation Center

(Written by Celine Riendeau) Today we traveled to a Rehabilitation Center for Disabled Children. The disabilities ranged from children who had down syndrome and mental retardation to children who were born with a debilitating disease like cerebral palsy. The center works with the children for up to three months on their ability level. Things that are offered to the children are schooling if they are age appropriate, physical therapy and tasks to help them further develop mentally.

www.flickr.com

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Sunday - A Day of Rest

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here.

(Written by Laura Meyerson)
Sunday, sunday--our rest day. This is the day we normally don't have any scheduled activities, work or otherwise. Still, most of us found it impossible to rest and relax. There is so much history in Hue, the city and the landscape are beautiful, and we will have seen only a fraction of it by the time we leave. So, we take each opportunity to witness its magnificence while we can. Despite the slow but steady modern development of the city into a tourist hot-spot, much of the ancient architecture and traditions are visibly intact.

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Video: JSC Crew Visits CPI Families

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here.

Thanks to CPI Staff members Toan and Chi, we have video of some of the JSC group visiting with beneficiary families... click the button below to view in Windows Media format

There are also new JSC pictures posted to our flickr site!

Orange Dust

(Written by Trista Reigert)
Well, another eventful day. We awoke early to meet for breakfast at 6:30 for 7 am departure to the work site of a teen center being built in Hue. Upon arrival we load and unload heavy orange bricks, about five pounds each, that are hauled up flights of being constructed walls, or wheeled from the tiny mountains of surplus piling bricks to neat organized structures where the bricklayers can reach them with convenient ease. Some of us pick and shovel at the clay like dirt, triumphantly with hope for making a long foot deep trench along side the building. This is a morning of intense physical labor. While our clothes are drenched with sweat and carpeted with orange dust, our muscles are screaming and our minds are meditating.

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Johnson State Photo Update

The Johnson State Crew has uploaded more photos!

See a slide show of the pictures with the newest pictures first here.

Addendum to the Poem

(Written by Jill Piacitelli)
The accompanying poem below was written at the urging of Galen Dickstein, as we wondered what to do to capture the sweet anguish of being lost on our way to the work project of the June 2 morning. The rest of the group made it to the Thuy Xan Children's House to "weed the center's garden". From what I understand, this was a vigorous and dirty digging project done in blazing heat. But the school was absolutely beautiful, and is again, a place that we would like to expand our relationship with next year, after spilling the drops of sweat on their soil.

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Poetry While Lost

A poem, written while utterly lost, by Jill Piacitelli. This work of art was accompanied by a sketch by Galen Dickstein, the other lost participant.

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Children’s Day in Hue, Viet Nam

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here.

Posted by Nhi, the group's guide while in Vietnam

A new day came. Everybody looked refreshed. We all were ready for a day full of children’s activities as June 1st is ‘Children’s Day’ in Viet Nam: visit the children’s painting festival in the morning, celebrate the Children’s Day Party with sweet children at Street Children House in the afternoon, and take part in the music performance for children at Province Children House in the evening.

Leaving the hotel at 7:45 AM, we turned into the poetic Le Loi street riding merrily under the shade of trees, enjoying the fresh air. I drove my “steel horse” (meaning a motorbike) and the rest of the group was on their bikes forming a long line on the street as a group of working “aunties” traveled side by side on their way to work. Sometimes, people on the street looked at us with surprise and wonder and then gave us a smile.

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Still Sweating....

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here.

(Written by Galen Dickstein)
Like all our days in Vietnam, this one began with a breakfast of watermelon, maybe a cold coffee and generally bread with cheese is involved as well. We gathered together with bike keys in hand and headed off into the sea of bicycles and motorbikes, over the bridge which is now a familiar route of our morning travel. Following Nhi on her motorbike has become a game, trying to keep her in sight while trying not to get into any accidents in the meantime. We arrived at our worksite after a little bike crash and losing our guide once, hot and sweaty and ready to work.

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Johnson State Trip Slideshow

The Johnson State College pictures can be viewed as a slideshow here.

As new photos are sent in they will be added to the presentation.

A Free Day

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here.

Posted by Chris Anderson

Today was a freeday for all of us. It began in the morning with some of our English student friends. They took some of us to a pagoda near the outskirts of Hue. It was amazing. There was a ceremony going on for a student who just recently took his own life due to having an incurable illness. All of our prayers go out to him.

In the courtyard were orchards with trees growing fruits for the monks to eat. The establishment had been around since the 1600's, built by the Chinese. It was wonderful seeing monks doing the same things that they were doing 400 years ago. The architecture was amazing and you felt felt such a sense of peace walking within its walls.

Members of the group went seperate ways throughout the day, getting ready for the week to come.

Thanks for tuning in,

Chris

Another Fine Day

(Written by Celine Riendeau)
Today we started off the day three people short. Tess, Angie and Chris were sick with the “thing” (various types of aliments that we all seem to be coming down with). The rest of us ate a wholesome breakfast at the cafe to prepare for our day of work in the heat.

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A Nice Change of Plans

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

Posted by Tara Duffy

Today was the day that we were to continue in our ditch digging efforts with our second group of Vietnamese economic students. We were told that this had been changed because of the flexibility of our service projects. We were told that we would be clearing away weeds and repairing the backyard of our beloved school house we have been teaching the children English. This sounded not only as a great relief, but also as a service project that really had a true connection with the group. These children, ranging in various ages, have become our greatest find here in this busy city.

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Mud Bath!

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

(Written by Trista Reigert)
Today was an intense day...one of our most intense so far. It began as we sped on our bicycles in the early morning to the irrigation trench where we would be vigorously hulling sewage and vegetation out of its polluted murky waters. We were prepared for labor, anticipating sweat and grime, but few expected the infested waters with such visible wildlife as leeches, spiders, frogs, crabs, snails, snakes, etc. And we, being the diligent determined hardworking Americans that we are, went in and all out, knee deep in mud, waste deep in water, as if to prove a point to our horrified Vietnamese compadres who looked on while politely picking at the sludge, dressed in their dressy attire.

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Brand New Song and Dance

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

(Written by Caroline Cole)--

Today we had the pleasure of meeting with the economic students here at Hue University. Once again we were called upon to perform. It seems as if we are morphing into a song and dance troup of sorts. We did our now famous rendition of "This Land is Your Land", followed by a rousing "Lean on Me." Luckily, Vietnamese people are extremely polite and our efforts were well received. The economic students sang us various songs as well. At this point some of the Vietnamese tunes are becoming familiar. We also played games and chatted with the students. There was a question and answer period as well. We fielded questions ranging in subject from why-we were-here to which-country-we-would-live-in-if-we-were-getting-married-to-a-Vietnamese-person. This latter question was no doubt directed at Chris, the sex symbol of the group. At any rate, we will be working with these students in coming days digging an irrigation trench. I look forward to getting to know them better.

This afternoon we taught lesson number three to the street kids. I'm proud to announce that our group has successfully completed the ABCs. I am teaching the youngest group along with Laura. Actually we are sort of the American mascots while our "interpreters" do a lot of the heavy lifting. It is really awesome to see them interact with the kids though. So much more physical affection and closeness is shown than in America.The kids are ridiculously cute and incredibly smart. At that age kids are like little sponges. I really think they are going to download a lot more English than we had imagined in the coming weeks. It is also increasing my pressing need to learn more Vietnamese. I wish I could be in on their cute little banter.

Sometimes I Sweat in Vietnam

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

(Written by Tess Gauthier)
This morning we met officials from the Friendship Union. For this we sat in a long rectangular room....black and white checkered floor, all chairs were lined in a long row, each chair seperated by a stand with 2 water glasses and bottled water, making the meeting feel very official. We answered a series of questions and got some background info. about the Friendship Union. Overall I think we made a good impression, even though we were drenched in sweat and probably smelled.

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Teaching the Alphabet

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

(Written by Laura Meyerson)-- As usual, breakfast itself was an event with delicious pastries, fresh fruit,warm bread, and even eggs. Following breakfast, we headed to one of the rooms and discussed the importance of the reflection process during this trip. Our first topic was humility as central to any learning experience, especially one that requires a partnership created in equality. Next, we discussed the benefits of reflecting: awareness of feelings & discusion/consideration of our actions--the combination of which basically keeps us in the moment and so,engaged in the experience. We couldn't have broached this topic without including the active citizen continuum. The consensus was that reflection is how our experiences and feelings will translate into action, here and at home. Our reflections will last a minimum of 1/2 hr, and maximum of 1 hr, and are alternated daily with group building to maintain our cohesive team--and to have fun. We then discussed the day's activities: meeting w/officials of the FriendshipUnion, and teaching English to "street" children (those who cannot afford standard schools and are most often orphans).

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Cultural Exchange

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

(Written by Angela Twerdok) So far, our overall welcome from the Vietnamese people has been extremely warm. We receive random hellos and smiles by all we meet or even cross in passing on the street by bike and foot. At a cultural exchange with at a local school yesterday afternoon, our welcome to this country became quite elaborate and was more than our group expected.

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Meeting our Interpreters

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

(written by Dave Whitaker)
Today was our first full day in Vietnam. We roused surprisingly early from our slumbers with but minimal trauma from the rigors of our journey. As the light of morning glinted off the polished stone tile of the Hung Vuong Inn, a gentle harbinger of the searing heat to ensue, we savored our first meal in over 36 hours outside of “coach class”.

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The Vietnam Adventure Begins

A group of students from Johnson State College (JSC) is spending the next few weeks with Clear Path International in Vietnam. This is possible due to a partnership between Clear Path, the Break Away Program and JSC. The students and staff will be posting tales and photos from their journey to this blog. You can read all of their posts by clicking here. Photos can be enlarged by clicking them

(Written by Jill Piacitelli)

Well, here is the story of our journey from the beginning. I promise to try and make it entertaining… as entertaining as 38 hours of travel can be. The bulk of the group left from a Johnson State College parking lot on Wednesday, May 18th, at 3 pm. This was the place to be: a swanky school van, beautiful early summer weather, and a send off like unto those days of glory when competing for the high school wrestling championship. Staff and administration from the College sent us off with waves, shouts, and signs like “You rock!” and “Thank you!” and “Try to come back!”

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Meet the Johnson State Group

Listed below are the group partipants in the Johnson State College trip to Vietnam with the Break Away program.

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Benefit Concert in Northern Vermont

APRIL 21st THE LONG TRAIL TAVERN, Johnson VT
The Ghosts of Pasha will be performing with
The Mud City Ramblers

To Benefit Johnson State College's Breakway trip to Vietnam!

CPI Executive Director Honored

Congratulations to Martha Hathaway our Executive Director, who was honored by the Governor and Vermont colleges.

The story is here. Our thanks to our friends at Johnson State College!

Johnson State Breaks Away to Vietnam

Greetings from Johnson State College. My name is Laura and I am here in Dorset, VT with two fellow students, Angie and Tess. We are participants of this year's Break Away trip to Vietnam. Break Away is a student lead program out of the Center for Service Learning at JSC. Break Away encourages students to devote their time to exploring social issues and then connect with the social issues through direct service, education and reflection. Break Away is a program specifically designed to give it's participants the tools to let their community become the center of their values and morals and ultimately become active citizens. After last year's trip to Vietnam with CPI, it was decided that a return trip should be planned to continue building relationships with the Vietnamese and to become effective advocates for the landmine and UXO relief efforts of CPI. We are excited to be working with Martha, James, and Britta and (those of us who have never been to Vietnam) cannot wait to meet the rest of the CPI crew and especially the Vietnamese people. We are very grateful for this opportunity, and for all of the people in Johnson, Dorset, and Vietnam who are making it possible.