#YOLO

Last night, we all ventured to the Black Cat for dinner in District 1. Stepping into the restaurant felt like returning to America for those few hours that we spent there. Other Westerners surrounded us, and the menu was completely in English. There was ketchup (unfortunately not Heinz), silverware, and full-sized napkins on the table. I ordered a burger. It was Australian meat, so it tasted gamier but still delicious. The most interesting part of the Black Cat had to be their 1.5 kilo burger that has been on TV. CNN named the Black Cat one of the top ten worldwide must-eats. After, we took a taxi to Go2, another restaurant, and we chilled on the roof there for a while.

We woke up today for our company visit to Viet Thai (Highlands Coffee and Hard Rock Café). Viet Thai is a large company with outlets including Highlands, that Hard Rock location, Aldo shoes, and more. We met at the main Highlands office for Ho Chi Minh, which also serves as the training center for new employees. We talked a lot about the business side of the company and less about the engineering side, but it was still interesting to hear about their plans to expand overseas, compete with international companies coming here, and create a “winning culture.” I never realized how relevant a (mainly coffee) company could be within a country, but when I learned that Vietnam is the largest (Robusta) coffee exporter in the world, I soon learned otherwise.

We visited the Hard Rock afterward. Among the memorabilia were Adam Levine’s jeans and a jacket from Rod Steward. It was just as American as the Black Cat, and lunch was awfully delicious yet awfully unhealthy. We had onion rings, French fries, potato skins, and ribs. My favorite part of the meal was watching Tran eat. She discovered how delicious honey mustard was and got dirty eating ribs. We all left so full, but before we left, we took a #YOLO group photo. Looks really cool.

We arrived back to the hotel and had some time before going to the War Remnants museum down the road. I found it really hard to walk through the museum without comparing what I have learned about the war to what was being taught there. As Tran identified, no matter what either side has been taught, the situation is not simple.

At the museum, it was also interesting to see all of the weaponry that was used in war. I thought of The Things They Carried once again and the physical baggage that the soldiers (on both sides) were carrying. I definitely think that I will write to O’Brien when I return home.

View from outside the War Remnants Museum 

A sign on the side of the building of the museum

We have the afternoon to relax, sleep a little bit, catch up on our blogs, and more before heading to dinner at 7 PM with the UEF crew. Having had my American food fix twice in the past few days, I am ready to see where they take us! I think that we will be trying Korean food.