Lidt af den vietnamesiske kultur

Saigon Opera House, lokaliseret i hjertet af Ho Chi Minh City og rundt om hjørnet fra vores velkendte shoppingcentre - Vincom & Parkson, byder i øjeblikket på en forestilling der afspejler ånden af det vietnamesiske folk og deres arv. Det er som om du bliver fanget i en vietnamesisk drøm om livet, overlevelse, kærlighed og alt indimellem.

Operahuset er en af Ho Chi Minh Citys mest prominente kendetegn, og var specialbygget i 1897 af den prisbelønnede franske arkitekt Eugene Ferret. I hele den franske kolonitid var denne smukke bygning vært for forestillinger med mange internationale kunstnere. Lukket under anden verdenskrig, blev den repareret og genåbnet, da franskmændene vendte tilbage i 1946.

I 1955 blev det omdannet til Sydvietnams Assembly House, efter franskmændenes endelige tilbagetrækning fra syd, og har siden gennemgået flere ombygninger. Bygningen er et eksempel på fransk kolonial arkitektur. operahuset er kun åben for offentligheden under arrangementer. Det er arrangementer såsom sang, musik, dansk og traditionelle og moderne teater af både lokale og udenlandske kunstnere.

Aó hedder den 60 minutters forestilling som 4 af os piger var taget ind og se. Det var et rigtig spændende show, der afspejler den vietnamesiske kultur gennem tuden. Der Blev brugt kurve, bambus, rytmiske bevægelser, herunder akrobatik, lyde og musik til at visualisere fortællingens budskab.

Det var en rigtig god forestilling der også bød på en smule humor, og endda en humor som man kunne forstå. ;-)

Det er altid rart og få indblik i den vietnamesiske kultur fra andre vinkler end vi får til hverdag. Og showet gav os helt klart en lidt mere moderne fortolkning af den vietnamesiske traditionelle kultur.

//Translation

A bit of the Vietnamese culture

The Saigon Opera House, located in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City, and just around the corner from our well-known shopping malls - Vincom & Parkson, currently offers a show which reflects the spirit of the Vietnamese people and their heritage. It is almost as if you get captured in a Vietnamese dram of life, survival, love and everything in between.

The Opera House is one of Ho Chi Minh City's most prominent landmarks and was custom built in 1897 by the award winning French  architect Eugene Ferret. Throughout the French colonial period, the beautiful venue was host for performances by many international performing artists. Closed during the World War ll, it was repaired and reopened when the French returned in 1946.

In 1955 it was transformed into South Vietnams's Assembly House, after the French final withdrawal from the south, and has undergone several refurbishments since. The building is a fine example of French colonial architecture. It is only open to the public during events. Events such as singing, music, dance and traditional and modern theater by both local and foreign artists. 

Aó is the name of the 60 minuts show which 4 of us went to see. It was a really exciting show, which reflects the Vietnamese culture through time. Baskets, bamboo, rhythmic movements such as acrobatics, sounds and music were used to visualize the story's message. It was a really good show which also featured a bit of humor, a humor which was understandable. 

It was nice to gain an insight in the Vietnamese culture from other angles then we get every day, and the show definitely gave us a more modern interpretation of the Vietnamese traditional culture. 

Klar til forestillingen :-)

Artisterne der står og spiller musik efter forestillingen :-)

-

Saigon Opera House 

Nete og LM med operahuset i baggrunden

Billeder fra showet

Lågsus ❤

Efter en weekend der har stået på ren afslapning og dovenskab, er de første to dage – mandag og tirsdag, gået med tøsehygge om aftenen.

Mandag aften tog Nete, Louise Mathilde og jeg ind til Big C, et center der ligger 10 min i taxa fra hvor vi bor nu. Det var meningen at vi kun skulle ind og spise aftensmad, men endte med dessert på Swendsen’s (mega lækker isdessert) og en tur i biografen. Det skal lige nævnes at der også er en biograf beliggende i centret.

Louise Mathilde havde gået et stykke tid og snakket om den nye gyser film The Conjuring, og Nete havde lovet hende og tage med hende ind og se den, selvom hun ikke er den største fan af gyserfilm. For mit vedkommende er det hvad det er. Jeg er heller ikke den største fan af gyserfilm, men jeg har ikke noget imod at se dem heller.  Vi endte derfor med at gøre Louise Mathilde glad.

Under over halvdelen af filmen sad de to tøser med popcornene oppe foran ansigtet, og hver gang de gav lyd fra sig, kunne jeg, og resten af salen, ikke lade vær at grine lidt af dem. Det var så sjovt at se hvordan de sad og kiggede væk gemt bag deres popcorn. Jeg ville så gerne have haft et billede af dem. :-)

Om tirsdagen havde vi alle aftalt at tage ind på Storm P efter arbejde, dvs. ca. ved 18-tiden.

Vi har længe snakket om vi ikke snart skulle tage på Storm P, der er en dansk restaurant, men også den eneste danske restaurant i Vietnam. Ejeren hedder Klaus Krogh Christensen og har haft stedet i 10 år, men har boet i Vietnam i 13 år.

Det var svært at beslutte sig for hvad vi skulle have, så vi endte med at bestille flere retter af flere omgange.

De serverede bl.a. stegt flæsk og persillesovs, karbonader med kartofler og brun sovs, frikadeller med kartoffelsalat, fiskefilet, ostemadder, leverpostejsmadder og andet smørbrød, samt ribbenssandwich, pandekager med is osv. osv.

Det var dejligt at få noget mad man kendte til igen. Og rugbrød.. Jeg bestilte rugbrød til mine frikadeller i stedet for kartoffelsalat. Udover det bestilte jeg også karbonader med kartofler og brun sovs, og selvfølgelig skulle man også lige prøve pandekager med is.  :-)

Jeg tror næsten at vi alle kunne trille derfra da vi tog en taxa hjem igen kl. 22.

//Translation

Luxury ❤

After a weekend with not doing anything but relaxing and being lazy, the first two days – Monday and Tuesday, were spent on fun with the girls at the evening.

Monday evening Nete, Louise Mathilde and I took a taxi to Big C, a mall located 10 minutes from where we live. Our intention were to only go there to eat dinner, but instead we ended up having dessert at Swendsen’s (really delicious ice dessert), and a trip to the movie. It is needed to be said that there also is a cinema located at the mall.

Louise Mathilde has been talking about the new horror movie The Conjuring for a while now, and Nete had promised to go with her to see it, even though she isn’t the biggest fan of horror movies. For me, it is what it is. I’m not the biggest fan of horror movies, but I don’t mind seeing them either. We therefore ended up making Louise Mathilde happy.

During the movie the girls was sitting with their popcorn in front of their faces for more than half of the movie, and each time they made a sound I, and the rest of the room, couldn’t help laughing a little of them. It was so fun to see how they sat and looked away behind their popcorn. I wish that I had taken a photo of them. :-)

On Tuesday we had all agreed to go to Storm P after work, at approximately 18 o’clock.

For a long time we have been talking about that we would like to go to Storm P which I a Danish restaurant. It is also the only Danish restaurant in Vietnam. The owner is named Klaus Krogh Christensen and has had the place for 10 years, but has lived in Vietnam for 13 years.

It was hard to decide what we what we wanted to eat, and we therefore ended up ordering several dishes, and ordering more than one time.

For example, they served beef sandwich, Danish meatballs with cold potato salad, fried pork with white sauce and boiled potatoes, karbonade with brown sauce and potatoes, pate lever posteg, fish fillet, pancakes with ice cream etc. etc.

It was good finally to get some food you that you know from back home. And rye bread... I ordered bread to my meatballs instead of potato salad. Besides that I also ordered karbonade with potatoes and brown sauce, and of course you need to try the pancakes with ice. :-)

I think almost all of us were full when we took a taxi back home at approximately 22 o’clock. 

Swendsen's

We have died and come to heaven ! :P

 Pigerne lokker en i fordærv :P

Meeeeeen... 

Man skal jo også forkæle sig selv lidt en gang imellem ;-)

 Så er vi klar til gyser 

Storm P - eneste danske restaurant i Vietnam

A night out in Ho Chi Minh City

Så blev det tid til at indtage HCMC by night for anden gang. Denne gang var det for at fejre Netes fødselsdag.

Men inden da skulle der selvfølgelig lige lidt nyt.

Louise Mathilde og jeg havde fri fra job allerede kl. 12, så vi havde god tid til at gøre os klar til aftenens begivenheder. 
Jeg skrev lidt med Liv efter at jeg var kommet hjem til hotellet, hun var endnu ikke kommet hjem endnu fra job, og vi endte ud i en samtale om hvorvidt jeg skulle farve mit hår eller ej.  Liv vidste at jeg i et lille stykke tid har gået og været lidt træt af mit hår, da jeg ikke rigtig føler jeg kan styre det hernede pga. luftfugtigheden, og snakket om at jeg snart trængte til at der skulle ske noget nyt.

Jeg endte med at skrive til Linn for at høre hvis det nu var jeg endte med at blive overtalt, om jeg måtte købe den ekstra hårfarve hun havde til at stå, da jeg ikke havde mulighed for at tage i supermarkedet. Det måtte jeg gerne, for hun skulle alligevel ikke bruge den foreløbig. Da jeg senere skulle ovenpå til Louise Mathilde og Nete for at låne hårtørrer, fortalte jeg om den ide Liv har fået puttet i mit hoved. De syntes det var en vildt god ide og blev ved at sige at jeg skulle gøre det.

Så jeg gjorde det..! Jeg gik ned til Marie-Louise, der bor sammen med Linn, og fik hårfarven, gik op til de andre piger, og ja.. Så var der ingen vej tilbage..

Vi startede aftenen på Jaspers, australsk restaurant lokaliseret i distrikt 1, og samme restaurant som den første aften hvor vi alle var samlet.

Maden var rigtig lækker. Ved ankomst fik vi serveret drinks – cosmopolitan, som Nete havde bestilt til os i forvejen. Efter maden var nydt, blev vi spurgt om vi ville have dessert og idet vi skulle til at sige nej tak, fortalte tjeneren at de var på husets regning. Så kan man da heller ikke andet end at tage imod. Vi bestilte alle blødende chokoladekage med undtagelse af Louise Mathilde der lige ville være på tværs og have Créme Brulée. Så kunne aften heller ikke starte bedre – hyggeligt selskab, gratis drinks og dessert.

Vi havde for længe siden snakket om at vi skulle tage på Sky bar en aften og se hvad det var for noget. Vi havde hørt at det skulle være rigtig fedt – et fint sted med fed udsigt over hele byen, men dyrere end andre steder. Drinksene ville koste ca. det samme som hjemme i Danmark, men uanset hvad, så skulle det opleves, og vi havde derfor aftalt at gøre det på Netes fødselsdag.

26. etage og vi er ankommet til festen. Det første man næsten ser når man stiger ud af elevatoren er udsigten. Fantastisk udsigt over byen og dens mange lys. Herefter kan du bare se hvordan folk står ude under åben himmel på en kæmpe terrasse – danser og hygger med drinks. Indenfor er baren og et lille lounge område. Stemningen er rigtig hyggelig og du får også hurtigt fornemmelsen af at Sky Bar er en af de finere steder i HCMC. Sky bar er også den første ”fully open-air skybar” i Vietnam.

Efter Sky bar tog vi videre til Lust. Det var her vi startede ud sidst vi var i byen. Da vi ankom, var stedet fyldt – både på dansegulvet og i baren, så vi gik derfor videre ind ved siden af som er lidt mere stille og roligt, hvor man kan sidde og snakke sammen uden alt for højt musik.

Det er ved at blive lidt af en tradition hernede, at når vi har været i byen så mødes vi næste dag og tager en taxa til den nærmeste Burger King. Her kan vi så sidde og snakke om gårdagens bytur, og stille og roligt vågne op efter byturen.

Resten af weekenden gik med at lave absolut ingenting :-)

// Translation

A night out in Ho Chi Minh City

Then it was time to take HCMC by night for the second time. This time it was to celebrate Nete’s birthday.

But before it could happen, something new needed to happen.

Louise Mathilde and I got of work at 12 o’clock, so we had plenty of time to get ready for the evenings event. 

I wrote a little with Liv after coming home to the hotel, she wasn't yet back from work, and we ended up having a conversation about whether I should dye my hair or not. Liv knew that I for a little time now, have been a bit tired of my hair, because I feel like I can’t control it over here because of the humidity, and I have talked about I soon need some new changes.

I therefore wrote to Linn to hear if it was possible, if I ended up being persuaded, to buy the extra hair color she had, since it wasn’t possible for me to go to the supermarket. She said yes, because she shouldn’t use it anytime soon.

Later, when I went upstairs to Louise Mathilde and Nete to borrow the hairdryer, I told them about the idea that Liv has been putting into my head. They thought it was a very good idea and kept saying that I should do it.

So I did it…! I went downstairs to Marie-Louise, who lives with Linn, and got the hair color, went upstairs to the other girls again… Now there was no turning back..

The night began at Jasper’s, an Australian restaurant located in district 1, and the same restaurant as the one we went to the first night we were together.

The food was really delicious. On arrival we were served drinks – cosmopolitan, which Nete has ordered for us in advance. After the dinner was enjoyed, we were asked if we wanted dessert, and as we were about to say no, the waiter told us that the desserts were on the house. Then it is impossible for you to say no. Almost all of us ordered bleeding chocolate cake, except from Louise Mathilde who ordered Crème Brulée.

The night couldn’t start better – good company, free drinks and dessert.

For a long time we have been talking about going to Sky bar and see what it has to offer. We have heard that it would be really nice – a fine place with a great view over the whole city, but more expensive than other places. The drinks will approximately cost the same as in Denmark, but no matter what, it was something that we had to experience. Therefore we agreed on going there on Nete’s birthday.

The 26^th floor and we have arrived at the party.

Almost the first thing you see, when stepping out of the elevator is the view. An amazing view of the city and its many lights. Then you see all of the people who are standing outside on the open-air terrace – dancing and enjoying themselves with drinks. Inside are the bar and a small lounge area. The atmosphere is cosy and you quickly get the feeling that Sky bar is one of the finer places I HCMC. Sky bar is also the first fully open-air skybar in Vietnam.

After Sky bar we went to Lust. It was here we began our night the last time we went out. When we arrived it was crowded – both on the dance floor and in the bar, so we went into the room next door where it is quieter and you can sit and talk without the music being too loud.

It is becoming a bit of a tradition over here that when we go out at night, we have to met the next to and get a taxi to the nearest Burger King. Here we will sit and talk about yesterday’s night out, and then slowly wake up after being out the whole night.

The rest of the weekend was spend on during absolutely nothing. :-)

Før 

Efter

 Fra Jasper's

Skål piger ;-)

Klar til at indtage Sky bar efter en god middag :-)

 Sky bar - me & the view 

 Dancers + the view 

 Louise Mathilde og jeg

 Linn og Nete - Vietnamstyle 

Billeder fra Sky bars hjemmeside:

Nyt hjem, ny uge og nye oplevelser

Så fik jeg endelig taget mig tid til at opdatere min blog. Som jeg sluttede af med sidst, så er vi danske piger flyttet tættere på vores praktiksteder.

Vi er flyttet fra distrikt 2 der ligger nær distrikt 1 (centrum), til distrikt 12 som er industrikvarteret i Ho Chi Minh City. Industrikvarter her i HCMC kan ikke sammenlignes med industrikvarter derhjemme. Kvarteret her ligger omringet af beboelsesbygninger, markeder, templer, små gadekøkkener osv., så man er på ingen måder afskåret fra mennesker. Tværtimod. Der er meget mere trafik og larm her, og det gør det ikke bedre at vi bor lige ud til hovedvejen.

Det er interessant at se hvilken forskel der er på de forskellige distrikter i HCMC. Distrikt 1 er centrum af byen, den dyre del af byen. Distrikt 12 er et fattigere område, og kommer man længere ind i distriktet, hvor fabrikkerne ligger tættere sammen, bliver kvarteret også fattigere. Dette kunne vi se da vi forrige uge var ude og tage en dyr taxatur for at finde ud af præcis hvor vores nye hotel lå, og prøvede at finde ud af hvor vores forskellige praktiksteder lå i forhold til hotellet.

Vi mærker også tydeligt at det er et område hvor de ikke er vant til turister. Du kan ikke gå ude på gaden uden at alle kigger på en, skal snakke til en osv. Ligeledes er der mange få mennesker herude som kan snakke engelsk. Men så er det jo heldigt at vi har lært lidt basis vietnamesisk så vi fx kan guide taxachaufføren, bestille mad og drikke osv.

At være flyttet tættere på vores praktiksteder gør hele transporten frem og tilbage meget lettere, samt billigere.  LTP Vietnam, hvor jeg og Louise Mathilde er kommet i praktik, ligger 10-15 minutters kørsel fra hotellet, og koster mellem 90.000 – 100.000 Dong pr. dag med taxa, dvs. mellem 24-27 dkkr.

LTP Vietnam er en del af LTP Group, som er en dansk virksomhed. Ved LTP Vietnam producere de primært functional garment for mærker som Peak Performance, Vaude, Swix etc.

LTP Vietnam blev etableret i 2008 og har i dag 200 medarbejdere i produktionen.

Produktionen ligger i bygningen lige overfor bygningen hvor kontoret er placeret. Kontoret er placeret på 1. etage i en bygningen ejet af en anden produktionsvirksomhed. Mellem kontoret og produktionen ligger LTP’s Warehouse. Hertil ankommer metervaren og tilbehøret til de diverse produkter. Metervaren bliver her tjekket igennem af en maskine for fejl som pletter osv. Hvis metervaren har nogle pletter eller andre småfejl, vil medarbejderne putte små klistermærker på metervaren, samt notere præcis hvor disse fejl er placeret. På denne måde kan de der klipper, klippe udenom disse fejl. Tilbehøret som poser, lynlåse osv. bliver stikprøvet tjekket. Dvs. at der er nogle der går rundt og tæller om der er kommet det rigtige antal styk af posen med de og de mål osv. osv.

Jeg synes vores første uge har været god. Eller i hvert fald for mit tilfælde. De har været søde til at sikre sig at man forstår hvad det er man sidder og laver. De kommer med en god forklaring inden, samt forklare hvad formålet med opgaven er. Ligeledes bliver de ved at sige at hvis man har nogle spørgsmål, så skal man bare spørge.

De hiver også næsten en med når det er tid til frokost, ligesom om at det er den bedste frokost nogensinde der står og venter på os. Men det er nu meget sødt. Det samme når det er frugt tid senere på dagen, den får man heller ikke lov til at undslippe. Men det er nu rigtig sjovt at se hvordan de flokkes rundt om de der skåle med frugt, det er ligesom at se små børn der har opdaget at der står slik på bordet.

Den første arbejdsuge har været nem. 4 dage på job ud af 6 dage. Dette skyldtes at de mandag d. 2 september holder Independence Day. I den anledning skulle hele kontoret på weekendtur til Van Tiet, hvilket betød at fredag og lørdag, hvor vi normal skulle have været på job, var fridage. Torsdagen var ligeledes en nem dag. De havde ikke de vilde arbejdsopgaver til os, så vi sad allerede fra halv to, to og var færdig med dagens job. Dette resulterede i at vi spurgte om det var muligt at gå før, hvilket ikke var noget problem og vi fik derfor weekend 2 timer før tid.

Fredag og lørdag stod på ren afslapning. Eller sådan ca..

Vi skal på baggrund af vores 9 uger praktik, skrive en individuel eksamensopgave som vi skal op og forsvare ca. 3 dage efter vi er landet i DK igen. Opgaven får vi ca. halvanden uge til at skrive efter vi har overstået vores praktikophold. Herefter står den igen på skole på HUTECH.

Så fredag og lørdag blev brugt på at kigge på mulige emner til denne opgave, men hovedet ville ikke altid det jeg ville, så det endte egentlig med at være et par forholdsvis afslappet dage.

Søndag var vi (Linn, Marie-Louise, Liv og jeg) ude at udforske vores nye område. Se hvad kvarteret helt præcis har at byde på. Som nævnt tidligere er det muligt at finde markeder, templer, små gadekøkkener osv. her. Vi besøgte en af disse templer. Her var der liv og glade dage. Ude i gården var der en masse børn der legede i en stor rundkreds. Til vores overraskelse begyndte nogle af disse børn at snakke engelsk til os, og der var da også nogle ældre tøser i blandt der spurgte om det var muligt at få taget billeder med os. Man er jo helt berømt hernede bare fordi man er europærer, men det kan virkelig også blive trættende i længden.

Templet var rigtig fint og stemningen omkring var meget afslappende og du kunne næsten ikke hører larmen fra bilerne ude på vejen. Eller også var det bare fordi du blev påvirket af den afslappende og rolige stemning der var på templets område at du ikke tænkte over det lå lige ud til en hovedvejen.

Mandag – Independence Day

Vi havde alle aftalt at tage sammen ind til distrikt 1 for at se hvad der egentlig sker sådan en dag. Vi havde fået af vide af Mr. Phu, vores lærer den sidste uge på HUTECH, at vi skulle tage ind  omkring Reunion Palace.

Vi startede dagen ud med en tur ned til den lokale bager. Herfra tog vi en taxa en til byen efter morgenmaden. Vi startede dagen i Diamond Plaza (shopping center) for at se hvad de havde og byde på. Vi har primært kun været i Vincom centret og Parkson (center), så det var da spændende og se forskellen på de forskellige centre.  Diamond Plaza virker til at være en blanding af Parkson og Vincom. Stueetage er opbygget ligesom Parkson, med makeup og parfumer på nederste etage. På 1. sal ligger der butikker med dametøj, sko og tasker, og 2. sal byder på herretøj, sport og igen tasker. Prismæssigt virker Diamond Plaza til at være dyrere med nogle af butikker end fx Vincom.

Herefter gik turen til Vincom hvor vi også indtog vores frokost. De andre piger er altid ellevilde når vi er i Vincom.. SUSHIIII.. Det er himmelen for dem. Godt at de har noget kaldet Food Square hvor det er muligt at få så meget andet også. For Sushi er godt nok ikke lige mig! Men det er altid rigtig hyggeligt her, og du har stadig muligheden for at sidde samlet selvom man ikke bestiller fra det samme sted. Du skal bare bestille din mad, købe drikkevarer ved en anden bod, og så er der tjenere der bliver kaldt på via en klokke, og så kommer de med maden når den engang er færdig. Du får bare et nummer med fra ”boden” hvor du har bestilt/købt din mad, og det er ud fra dette nummer de finder en i mængden.

Jeg tror vi alle endte med at shoppe mere end regnet med. Men vi havde en rigtig hyggelig dag. Vi afsluttede vores shoppingdag på NYDC, en af vores alles yndlingsrestauranter hernede, med god western mad. Normalt er priserne en del dyre på western restauranter i forhold til vietnamesiske, men jeg synes egentlig ikke at NYDC er så dyr igen. Eller jo, hvis man jo sammenligner med de vietnamesiske restauranter, men hvis du sammenligner med andre western restauranter, så synes jeg ikke det er galt.

Efter maden var det jo så meningen at vi skulle have været henne og se hvad der end ville ske ved Reunion Palace. Men det virkede stadig ikke til at det var her tingene ville ske. Vi endte derfor med at tage en taxa hjem igen. Det havde også været en lang dag med shopping.

Det skal lige huskes at siges at NYDC ligger næsten rundt om hjørnet fra Reunion Palace.

// Translation

New home, new week and new discoveries

Finally I found time to update my blog. As a ended my blog last time, we, Danish girls, are moved closer to our internships.

We moved from district 2 near district 1 (the center of HCMC), to district 12 which is the industrial area in Ho Chi Minh City. The industrial area isn’t as we know it from back home. Here the area/neighborhood is surrounded with residential buildings, markets, temples, small street kitchens etc. so aren’t cut off from other people. On the contrary, there are so much traffic and noise here, and living right next to the main road, doesn’t make it better.

It is interesting to experience how different the various districts are in HCMC. District 1 is the center and the most expensive part of the city. District 12 is an area which is more poor, and if you travel further in to the district is gets more and more poor. This we experienced when we the week before moving, took a taxi to found out exactly where our new hotel was located and where our internships were located compared to the hotel.

It is clear for us to see that our new neighborhood isn’t use to tourists. You can’t walk on the street without everyone looking at you, trying to talk to you (in Vietnamese) etc. In addition, only a few people in the area can speak and/or understand English. But then it is lucky that we have learn a bit Vietnamese so that we know how to order food and drinks, how to guide the taxi driver etc.  

To be moved closer to our internships, makes the everyday transportation much easier and cheaper. LTP Vietnam, where Louise Mathilde and I are interning, located 10-15 minutes from the hotel, and costs between 90.000-100.000 Dong (24-27dkkr) per day with taxi.

LTP Vietnam is a part of the LTP Group which is a Danish company. LTP Vietnam primarily produce functional garment for brands like Peak Performance, Vaude, Swix etc.

LTP Vietnam was established in 2008 and have 200 production workers.

The production is located in the building across from the building where the office is located. The office is located at 1^st floor in a building owned by another production company. Between the office building and the production building, at the right, is LTP’s warehouse. This is where the finishing fabrics and accessories (zippers, bags etc.) arrives.

The fabric is being check for possible errors like stains etc. with the help from a machine. If the fabric has stains or other flaws, they employees will put small stickers on the garment and note exactly where the flaws are on the fabric, so that those who is cutting the garment can cut around these flaws.

They take random checks of the accessories to make sure that they have been given the correct quantity.

I think the first week have been a good week. Or at least in my case. They people at LTP have been really kind to make sure that you knew exactly what you were working on. They give you an explanation before they putting you to work, and to make sure you know what the purpose with the task is. They also keep on saying of you have any questions, please just ask me.

At lunch time they kind of drag you with, like if it is the best lunch ever there is waiting for us. But it is kind of sweet. The same happens during the afternoon when it is time for fruit. Here there is no way you can escape either. But it is funny to see how they gather around the bowls of fruit, like little kids who have just discovered candy on the table.

The first work week have been easy. 4 days out of 6 days at work. Due to the celebration of Independence Day on the 2^nd of September. Because of this, the whole office were going to Van Tien on a weekend get-away, and it meant that we had Friday and Saturday off from work. Thursday was also a easy day. They didn’t have much for us to do, which meant that we, already from approximately 2 0’clock were finish with our job for the day.  We therefore asked them kindly if it was possible for us to leave work early. With no problems we end up leaving work to hours before.

Friday and Saturday were pure relaxation. Or kind of..

Based on our 9 weeks of internship we have to write an individual report which we are going to defend approximately 3 days after arriving in DK again. We get almost one and a half week to write the report after the internship. And then we are going back to HUTECH for a few weeks with school again.

Therefore, Friday and Saturday were spend on looking at possible subject for the assignment, but my head wouldn’t always cooperate with me, so it ended up being a couple of relaxing days anyway.

Sunday Linn, Marie-Louise, Liv and I decided to go explore our new area. To see exactly what it had to offer us. As mentioned earlier it is possible to find markets, temples, small street kitchens etc. We went to  visit one of these temples. Here the atmosphere was full of joy. In the yard in front of the temple, there were a bunch a children playing in one big circle. To our surprise, some of these children started speaking English to us and some of the older girls asked us if it was possible to take picture with us. Over here you are a celebrity just because you come from Europe. In the long run it is a bit tiring to be asked all the time if they can take a picture with us.

The temple was really beautiful and the atmosphere around it was very relaxing, and you couldn’t really hear the noise from the cars on the road. Or maybe it was because you were affected by the relaxing and calm atmosphere which was at the temple’s territory so you didn’t give it much thought that is was located next to the main road.

Monday – Independence Day

The Vietnamese people celebrate the 2^nd of September, the day they got independent from France in the year of 1954. Even though they only were independent for 2 weeks before USA and Japan invaded the country, the Vietnamese still celebrate this day.

Most people have the day off, but most restaurants and shopping centre are open on this day, which were lucky for us.

We had all six of us decided to go into district 1 to see what really happens on a day like this. We have been told by Mr. Phu, our teacher the last week on HUTECH, that we should go to the area near the Reunion Palace.

We started the day with a trip to the local bakery. From here we took a taxi into the center of the city. We began our day at Diamond Plaza (a shopping center). It was our first time here so we were interested in seeing what they had to offer. We have primarily only been to the Vincom Center and Parkson, which also is a center, located just nest to Vincom, so it was interesting to see the how this one was different from the others.

Diamond Plaza seems to be a mix of Parkson and Vincom. The ground floor is build up as in Parkson with makeup and perfumes on the ground level. The first floor offers shops with women’s clothing, shoes and bags, and the second floor offers men’s wear, sportswear and bags as well. Diamond Plaza seems to be a bit more expensive with some of its stores than for example Vincom.

After spending some time in Diamond Plaza we went to the Vincom center for lunch. The other girls are always very excited when we are at Vincom.. SUSHIII.. It is heaven to them, which I don’t understand. Then it is good that there is something called Food Square where it is possible to get a lot of different food. But it is always cosy to be there, and you still have to possibility to sit together even though you don’t order from the same place. You just need to find a place to order your food, buy the drinks at another booth and then there are waiters who is being called with help from a bell when your food is ready and then they will bring you your order. When you are ordering you get a number with you from where you have placed your order, and it is with the help from the number that they will find you among the others.

I got the feeling that we all ended up spending a whole lot more than first planned. But we had a nice day. We ended our shopping day at NYDC, one of our favorite restaurants with great western food. Normally the prices are a more expensive at western restaurants than at Vietnamese restaurants, but I don’t really think that NYDC is that expensive, not compared to other western restaurants, but compared to Vietnamese it is.

After dinner we were suppose to go to the Reunion Palace to see what was happening, but it still seemed like nothing was happening. We therefore decided to take a taxi and went home. It had also been a long day with shopping.

I should remember to say that the NYDC restaurant is located almost around the corner from Reunion Palace. 

 En hel dag med shopping - Samlet fik vi nok brugt ca. 27 mio dong :)

 Mine køb gennem tiden hernede

Notre Dame og det gamle posthus - anvendes stadig 

Et prøverum i Diamond Plaza 

Billeder fra Templet i nærheden af vores hjem