Day 9: 100,000 VND

Since clinic was no longer allowed for us, we only have one more thing to do: visit our last orphanage. This orphanage was located in Dong Hoi, Quang Binh, which was located about 3 hours away from Hue. It was a tiring day for all of us I'm sure after about 7 hours of traveling on the bus, but I am sure it was at the same time rewarding.

Before arriving at the orphanage, we visited a really beautiful cave called Phong Nha. We took a boat ride to go into the cave, and then was allowed to explore it on foot once we were inside. We found out that the two people managing the boat for our group gets paid 100,000 VND each time they give a ride like this, but this only happened about once every 2-3 days. I hope that the extra tips that our group give them will be able to provide some help to their lives. People everywhere in this country are still struggling to live, yet we are here right now, unable to do something about it...













We arrived at the orphanage at around 4 PM and stayed there for the next hour and a half. This orphanage was definitely more well off than the first one we visited, but they kids brought the same smiles to our faces just like the first one that we visited. This facility has 121 children, and all of them lined up to greet us upon our arrival. They were really eager and excited to receive the toys and stuffed animals that we prepared for them. A legit soccer field was located behind the orphanage, so we played another game against the orphans. The kids here played soccer on a regular basis and was ranked 3rd in the nation in their league apparently. We tried and played out hearts out, but still lost 0-6. In the meantime, the rest of the groups spent time playing volleyball or talking to the kids who weren't playing soccer. Cecilia told us about Mo, a girl whom she talked to. Mo told her about how her parents died, and how she was brought to the orphanage. When asked if she was sad, she replied "no." These kids have been through so much in their lives. So many things were taken away from them and their youth, yet they still smiles and look forward for tomorrow..

After today, our mission is complete. I hope that the lives that we met and the people that we helped would keep on living and working hard toward a better future. They have definitely left a lasting impact on all of us.

Over and out.

PS. sorry I didn't get the chance to take more pictures for today.