Second and Third Day

Woke up at four in the morning and sorted out gift bags. Around six, biked with dad to breakfast. Of course, I had to have hủ tiếu Mỹ Tho. It is still the best. After breakfast, we biked to Vườn Hoa Lạc Hồng to catch the breeze from the river. The beautiful morning and the peacefulness brought back so much childhood memories.

Visited our old neighbors Dì Ba and Dì 6. Our old house is now a giant villa. Went to see Cô Thà (my aunt) and Cô Hường (my fifth grade teacher). Cô Hường is raising a grand niece whose mother had passed away and father has left her after he remarried. Despite her situation, the girl is a smart student and her English is excellent. She is respectful and resilient. Cô Hường joked that I should take her with me. I think I should adopt her as well.

After visiting Cô Hường, I was exhausted. I went home and tried to take a quick nap. When my sister Trúc Em invited us to dinner, I was not feeling so well. She ordered signature dishes including grilled goat titties and bloody snail, I had to have some rượu Đế (Vietnamese rice liquored. With just a shot or two, I felt much better.

My two sisters (Lệ and Trúc chị) and their family came back from the beach and joined us. In such a loving atmosphere, I drink a bit more than I should. The result was terrible. I was fucking drunk.

I could not sleep once again because of the liquor and migraine. The next day, I tried to go out to breakfast, but could not eat. I went back to bed for a few more hours. Woke up and felt much better. Had a quick lunch with dad and sisters before paying a visit to dad’s sister and brothers.

With my dad, each visit was kept extremely short. We were able to squeeze in a visit to the temple I used to stayed in. Chị Châu was in tears when she saw me. We had a brief conversation with Sư Vô before dad told us to go.