Thursday, May 15, 2014

Wednesday, 5/14: Saigon Newport Corporation and the War Remnants Museum



Our departure from the hotel was at the usual time, but we did not have class today. Instead, we went straight to a company visit. After a 45-minute long bus ride, we arrived at Saigon Newport Corporation, the largest shipping industry in Vietnam. The facility was absolutely massive, and I took plenty of pictures. We were briefed in a large auditorium, and then kept our speaker busy with a very long question and answer session. After the briefing we were taken to the main control room, and I was very impressed. The room was very open, and even though the jobs of those people is very stressful, it seemed like a rewarding and interesting job. We were then taken outside and were shown the storage area via a bus tour. There were dozens of huge cranes lifting boxes to and from ships on the nearby river.



Side note: my mom does finance work with a shipping country, and although the company works for does not ship to Vietnam, her boss is going to Saigon Newport Corporation next week for a big convention!

After we got back to the hotel, we were given a nice long break for lunch. We then met back in the hotel and walked to the War Remnants Museum together. The outside area of the museum contained many American vehicles that the Vietnamese claimed after the Americans left the country.

The inside was much more difficult to walk through. There were exhibits that had pictures of victims of the war, and children of people who were exposed to code orange, the chemical used to clear out forests. Quite frankly, I did not enjoy being in the museum, but I do think it was necessary for me to see some of the pictures to better understand exactly what both sides went through during the war.

I was able to relax after going to the museum by going to an authentic cafĂ© with a few Pitt and UEF students. There were no chairs; we sat on pillows and sipped delicious ‘ca fe sua da’ (pardon my lack of accents). It was one of the most authentic and enjoyable experiences that I have had thus far. I also went bowling with some Pitt and UEF students later that night.

No comments:

Post a Comment