LOL in Ho Chi Minh City

4-6 July 2013

Went for the annual IRO teambuilding which took place in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The theme this year was LOL - "Live the Moment, Optimize the Strengths and Liberate Our Hearts and Minds".

Notre Dame Cathedral

As a former Participating Youth (PY) of SSEAYP, travelling to ASEAN countries meant an opportunity to catch up with PYs. Glad to be able to meet up with some of the Vietnam PYs even though I notified just 2 days back.

Ane welcomed us to her To Coffee Cafe at District 3.

While traditional cafes operate on the business model of having clients sit and chat with their friends, To Coffee is experimenting a take-away coffee concept. It also sells coffee powder grinders and filters for customers to DIY.

Ane holding her newborn baby

Dinner was at a street-side eatery.

Appreciated Hien taking his time out travelling 1 hour just to have dinner with me. And happy to know Ivy is now a Teen Magazine journalist. 

The following day, the Amazing Race began.

Photo with Pho2000 in our background

The subsequent rain in the evening didn't douse our fighting spirit. Running around Ho Chi Minh City and trying out local activities were pretty cool.

On the last day, met up with Thu and Quang of SKY programme, which Eunos CC Youth Club hosted in 2011 and 2012. Quang brought us to a new city in District 7. The man-made lake, the infrastructure and environment were impressive. One wouldn't even see the difference between Singapore and this part of the city.

Vietnamese Lunch at Thu's place was splendid.

Hope to visit Vietnam again!