Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Back for one more year

A nice little couple

During our absence, Gilad has installed the dish and the new tomatoes have taken root.

After renewing our passports at the consulate, in 1 hour with coffee and gossip with the Consul Michal, expirations of visa and passport requiring,

we started with a very nice Vietnamese wedding near Vinh.

The custom is to arrive at the groom's parents, where the bride will go live later and take care of her in-laws. Then all the guests accompany the young man to go and get his bride from her parents.

Fortunately this time it was only a few kilometers, but it seems they do it even if the country separates the two families.

There we are at a small ceremony

with incense to ancestors

and to Buddha

and guidance to the young couple,

and we all return to the boy's.

The ceremony takes place during lunch,

speeches, rings, champagne, a little prayer and a few songs,

and finally greet the happy couple.

Things are getting serious

Initiated by Baz who ordered boats in Thai Hoa,

patched them up under the gaze of attentive and knowledgeable spectators and crafted oars with Keren and Barak help,

we all left to the raft river, that we really crossed,

this time floating.

A well done trip again,

not to forget the picnic;

we even got right to some rapids, not too rapid at this time of the year and certainly not enough for Gilad, where we scraped the bottom several times.

In conclusion and for the next time, everyone got wet buttocks except Yarden et me;

long live the small red stools.

Goodbye Chef

Another one who goes. But it's to go home to Cua Lo to get his restaurant off the ground on the for the season. Babette is also gone.

Phong Nha

Since it's not yet warm enough to enjoy the pool or to go to the beach and we had a long weekend (to commemorate the death of King XVIII)

we finally decided to visit the famous caves.

It's not very far ... in distance. 250 km and it takes just 8 hours.

2 hours to drive to Vinh, 5 hours by train

and another 1 hour by taxi.

This is an area that is open to tourism since only a few years, with enormous caves that have just been discovered like the Paradise Cave in 2009.

So we did the tour that Ben proposed, an Australian married to a Vietnamese who settled there recently by opening a small hotel in the middle of rice fields. Really nice and very helpful.

A very rich and well organized day. Starting with the Paradise Cave with its stairs that never end,

but the effort is well rewarded;

a visit to a small pagoda ... it had to be.

Here it's to commemorate the victims of the war which bodies have not been found yet.

Is that it was the most bombed region of the country, thereby passes the Ho Chi Minh Trail and the lane north of the 17th parallel to Laos leading there to refuel.

After lunch,

a walk in nature with bamboo bridges

and the blue river;

a little kayak ride

to a cave without light,

like real explorers. And all this in the rain, all day, we were soaked from head to toe, which we did not want to go swimming. This is the first time I see Yarden shiver like that.

The next day the Phong Nha cave itself

that is accessed by boat,

not bad too,

even if the lighting is a bit kitschy,

but here they love it;

and before leaving the area,

we still wanted to see Ben's Hotel (we had to sleep in town

this one being sold out).

So we decided to spend the third and last night in Dong Hoi

to make a short tour

before the train home,

and especially

to play a little with the sand on the beach.

As forYarden





she makes coffee for us in the morning now,

still centers her photos very well,

has always her's pictures taken when she does'nt mind,

still does'nt eat anything

and wherever weare,findsalways something to do.

Eifo achnou?

Passover

In fifteen minutes we were already eating, the shortest seder I've everbeen!

Fortunately we had wanted to sing, because the special envoy fromthe Bet Chabad inHo Chi Minh, he ...

Well, they still made the effort to travel to Hanoi ... We were about fifty, but very few children, so the aficoman was downright forgotten.

This time we really missed the party atmosphere from home, or even from last year in the farm and Savta Simha's kneidalach.

As for Yarden it was the occasion to see herfriends, especially to wearher dress and with the kind assistance of Ilana, Barak 's wife, shecould still sing my Nishtana on stage.

Arbel and Suong wedding

After a good coffee in Hanoi

and a stroll to the gymboori in the BigC,

we had to hurry back

for the wedding of Arbel and Suong the next day. We even have arrived in time for the feast of the day before.

Arbel's whole family was there;

Yarden was very pleased to dance a chachacha with her girlfriend Linh,

or rather it's Linh who danced

and Yarden improvised.

It was fun.

On the wedding day,

is that the chairwoman had decided to hire anyone to host a delegation of the government. We were able to go on time, but Suong girlfriends from the office could not attend the ceremony so she was a little disappointed.

As for the wedding itself, at Suong's house, it was really great and everyone was very moved.

First the Vietnamese traditional ceremony

with the fountain,

the big cake

the glass of wine;

then the Jewish ceremony under Baz and Mikha beautiful bamboo khoupa..

It was Barak who was the rabbi. He just forgot to put his kippah because of the emotion, but it was okay, nobody noticed.

Arbel finally broke his glass and it was a very successful marriage;

Suong's buddies finally arrived for dancing after dinner.

The laotian delegation

The next day it's the Vice Prime Minister of Laos who came to see the farm. He even waved at me when he arrived.

In his honor still a tent in the parking,

that's right behind,

with milk tasting,

speeches in Lao translated into Vietnamese ...

Give me that phone!

entertainment,

and a lunch on the grass in which

Gilad ate a shell!

The cows shipment

For once we could go.

In fact Gilad and Baz had to show themselvesat the port.

So we visited the boat

and watched how was the landing.

They have now the hang of things for this 13th time.

A sunday in the jungle, third edition

And a first dip in the pool. Finally summer.

Wewent therefore to sail on the same river, this time further upstream whereis much less water:

we had often to pull...

The landscape is still as beautiful

and the butterflies

emerge from their cocoon.

Gradually we equip: great oars,

seats which Baz was careful to cut the feet

and boxes for Ngoc's sandwiches and cameras.

At the end, we all were exhausted with the heat,

except Yarden who managed to take a nap in the boat before the end to recharge her batteries a little.

The lunch break

and the coffee break.

Oops, in the last kilometers;

Gilad had to end the route outside.

And then...

Meital, Or et Omer have arrived.

Hoang's birthday.

Yarden speaks Vietnamese almost fluently now, so sometimes in French it looks like: "cocorico cotcotcot, mom it's a con hen!" Is that all animal names are preceded by the word con.

A trip to Bailu.

There at least, there are slides.

As we had missed the gan's party of Yarden class because of Passover in Hanoi, we have not missed going to the one of the class above,

with a competition of knowledge between schools of the area (we won ...),

shows and awards

and Yarden who does not hesitate to take the microphone and go on stage when asked.

Miu's birthday, Hai's little sister.

As Passover, Yom Atzmaout was in Hanoi, we finally didn't go, but we still own the little gifts received from the Embassy.

Another wedding ... it's every other day right now. Besides coming back, "Mom I want to see the world" "and what do you wanna see in the world?" "I want to ride on the elevator in the Eiffel Tower."

This year, we decided to spend the long weekend in late April to celebrate the reunification and May 1 in Cua Lo; Gilad couldn't leave work.

We invited Nga, who is in her fourth month of pregnancy and Hoang.

It is the chef who booked the hotel for us near his restaurant.

He has spoiled us.

Who says holidays says many people, but we had right to fireworks, 

not to mention the rides.

In the bus on the way back in which we were 40 instead of 25, we had also been arrested two times and the driver has at one point hidden for about twenty minutes, Nga's sister in-law, who was making a little air with her hat to Yarden stopped, "Why did she make a pause?

In the village, at Meital

with Mikha;

A sunday,

at Kim

with her daughters;

Hanoi

So we left to Hanoi very quick, the doctor of the farm is no longer there, Yarden having a more than 40 fever and a swollen throat, it didn't happen for a long time, the Israeli pediatrician in Hanoi being convinced by phone that it was a bacteria, our antibiotics and antipyretics being expired and finally the local doctor willing to take her immediately to Thai Hoa for to get her tonsils out ...

At the end it was a virus, the pediatrician confirmed it after a blood test on the third visit after four days of fever, well ... Fortunately we're insured! And the antibiotic not having any effect after two days. Besides the emergency doctor we saw when we arrived had previously diagnosed it. That didn't prevent Yarden to receive her first infusion, 2 liters, taking advantage of the hole of the blood test, whereupon it was over.

Gilad went back to work, as for us, Willy, Tal's wife, graciously hosted us for two days while Yarden completely healed.

She got along very well with Bango.

In the meantime we took the opportunity to see the French prison when the fever lowered; very impressive, especially the guillotine, well I said I didn't know what it was ...

the jails that were left as they were;

and after Gilad's departure, we tested the Kinderpark.

Nice but not a cat in the midweek.

It consists of several small rooms

illustrating various trades, a big gymboori,

but hey, alone it's not fun;

there's one outside too;




and especially the costumes room with lots of princess dresses. What a joy!

Farm 3

The milking machine is finally going to be started after the visit of the expert group of the company

who came to assemble it and connect all the cables.

Many people in the dining room, which had not happened for a while.

And farm 1 milks 4000 cows and farm 2 over 3000 when they should have only 2700 each. It was about time!

So here they are,

comfortably installed,

them too...

and we also, at the top

for an overview. In fact the farm 3 differs from the others by its two additional floors with the second one with some meeting rooms and the third one, the viewing gallery making it in some way the test farm where Mrs. chairwoman will from now welcome all her visitors, bankers or other government or foreign delegations.

Finally the traditional banquet at the local restaurant, no BBQ this time, to thank the team.

For him, too...

The end of the school year party

The day before at Tramanh, the best friend.

She looks a lot like her

in terms of making the fools.

After makeup,

costume dressing

and rehearsal,

this time there are even boys,

the show with two dances,

diplomas

and distribution of sweets.

The visas for China

For the second time (chapter 10). It still takes 4 days.

But this year we took advantage of our acquaintances in Hanoi for not to be all alone in the hotel all week.

At Willie again, the first two days (Yarden had fever again),

then at Ronit who have both very kindly welcome us.

As for activities, a few rides down at Ronit with Adi and Goni,

the pool next to Goni's school

and the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum which is located next to the Chinese embassy and that opens only in the morning, we finally could visit it: «we'll see Bac Ho in real? »

The tour goes through the park where he lived

with his garage,

his house,

his reception hall

and his pond.

We could also attend Goni and Nate end of the school year party

with a little show with songs, drama and poetry they have written themselves;

Goni's one was on his little sister: he wanted to sell her.

It's just that here, it's the moms who receive diplomas for their gracious assistance throughout the year.