Cai May Parish

Sr Beatrice invited me and the family to join the Daughters of Charity in a visit to Cai May Parish where they will disburse the second payment for the students' school fees. (The background to this is that Christ Church Sec School, Singapore had raised money to pay for the school fees of 51 poor students in Cai May Parish in the Mekong Delta in Nov 2007.) I was pleasantly surprised to find that a new church hall had been built since Nov 07.

The spanking new church hall













The interior of the church hall













Father Vinh gave us a warm welcome as usual













Sr Mary talking to the girls














This elderly nun is one healthy old lady














Father Vinh talking to the girls before presenting them with a gift and the money for their school fees














CHR poster girl and her friend

S$ soars

Yes...it finally happened. The S$ hit the12,000VND mark on Wed 21 May 08 - I've been waiting for this for some weeks now as it hoovered around the 11,800 mark. Bad news though, for those who have to repatriate S$ back home.

S$100 will get you 1,200,000VND now - makes you an instant millionaire, albeit a poor one.

A first...

There's always a first time for everything...and tonight's the first time I rode onto the main roads around Sky Garden. Managed to pluck up the courage to bring the bike out of the carpark. The traffic was thankfully light, perhaps due to the drizzle. Whatever the reason, I'm thankful I got back in one piece. Been practising riding (more of practising falling!!) the past several nights going round and round the carpark...

The rain comes early

According to the local weather report, the rainy season will come earlier this year, and VN will be hit by about 6-8 typhoons. Not very good news. Was raining heavily yesterday for a while and then it was gone as suddenly as it came.

...and Bryan had his hair highlighted yesterday for 500,000VND at the Rose Hair Salon in Sky Garden. Considering the location, it's a fair price to pay.

HCMC Department of Education & Training (DOET)

HCMC DOET has just shifted from its former premises along Le Than Ton Street (across Parkson) to an old school building @ 18/20 Ngo Thoi Nhiem St in District 3. Looks like the school has been re-painted and it's rather quiet and serene inside. Or is it because I was there at lunch time? Went to visit an old friend, Ms Suong but timing was wrong as it was lunchtime. Will be going over there again tomorrow to meet with Mr Dan over Beatty Sec School's visit later this month.

You need to walk down this pathway and turn left at the end to go to DOET

Peaceful environment

Easier to turn in from Truong Dinh Street than NKKN

DOET has no say when it comes to Mother Nature's call

Cho Ky Hoa (Night Market)

Visited Cho Ky Hoa last night to see if we can buy some cheaper stuff for house. Cho Ky Hoa is the 2nd of 2 night markets in HCMC, the other being the famous Ben Thanh Night Market. There is a third small night market at Cho Binh Tay but not worth visiting.

Found this place by accident 2 years ago. It's a night market for the locals mainly. Sells lots of cheap apparels, watches, belts, undergarments, shoes/slippers, bags etc. Almost a km long, you can find a small food place with several local stalls at the half-way point. Located at the junction of Duong 3/2 (Ba Thang Hai) and Cao Thang in District 10, it starts only at about 7pm and is closed on Mondays. Visitors who want to experience the taste of local Vietnamese life should pay a visit to this night spot and soak in the atmosphere of a local night scene. 

At the start of Duong 3/2 is Maximart, a supermarket and departmental store. This supermart is quite big and well stocked, much better than the Phu My Hung Co.opMart (take it as the equivalent of NTUC in Singapore).

Slippers - 2 pairs for 15,000VND (S$1.40)

The family is together ... and Burberry Sale!!

well...almost. Joyce and Bryan arrived safely yesterday - the flight was delayed for about 2.5 hours. Reached Sky Garden at almost 9pm...then went for dinner, and not forgetting the obligatory visit to the supermarket...of course.

Coming out of Tan Son Ngat Int'l Airport at about 8pm

So many bags ... 

This Sunday afternoon, before we went for mass, we hit the Burberry boutique - and the sale is on - 20% to 50%. "Somebody" had a good time browsing the bags.

This bag cost US$880 after 20% discount

This bag costs US$1800 after 20% discount

This bag costs US$1100 after 20% discount

Notre Dame Cathedral

Some background on Notre Dame Cathedral

In 1876 the governor of Cochinchina held a design contest for a new church. Based on the original Notre Dame in Paris with a number of extra Gothic elements, the design by architect J. Bourad defeated 17 others. Completed in 1880 and using building materials imported entirely from France, at the time the church was the finest in all of the French colonies. These days the red-brick Notre Dame, known in Vietnamese as Nha Tho Duc Ba, remains a centre of worship for Ho Chi Minh City’s large Catholic minority and continues to be a pivotal landmark. (Source : ASIA LIFE HCMC)

Attended mass at Notre Dame Cathedral on 1 May 08 (Ascension Day, which is a day of obligation for Catholics). Ascension Day celebrates the ascension of Jesus to heaven after he was resurrected on Easter Day. 

For those of you intending to visit the church, the opening hours are :

8.00am to 10.30am; 3.00pm to 4.00pm (weekdays) - they are quite strict about the timings. 

Outside of these hours, you can only see the cathedral from the outside. You can't go in as the gates are locked - which will be a real pity. There's actually more to see on the inside.

Mass-times on weekends are :

Sat Evening Mass @ 5.00pm

Sun 5.30am  6.30am  7.30am  9.30am  4.00pm  5.15pm  6.30pm

Visitors can try to catch the mass at these times, if only just for a peek. The only English mass (part of which is still in Vietnamese) is on Sunday at 9.30am - attracts many curious tourists; so far, they've all been very respectful when visiting.

Notre Dame Cathedral & Diamond Plaza (green building on the right and at the back of the church)

A popular spot for taking that obligatory photo

Lots of stained glass windows in the church

The steel fence is to deter a favourite but shameful habit of VN men - to prevent them from peeing on holy grounds!! The sign says "Holy Place. Please keep it clean." You'll find that many VN men will answer nature's call in the open unabashedly. 

Mass times on Sundays

Visiting times on weekdays