Letters en route to Lao Chai!

I am honoured to announce that I am currently the mail carrier of 26 amazing letters written by a grade 4 class at Nelson Elementary School!

A couple weeks ago, the CBT Vietnam team came up with the idea to develop a pen pal relationship between an elementary school class in Vancouver and Lao Chai Elementary School.

So I got in contact with one of my elementary school teachers, Mrs. Chan, and pitched the idea to her. She loved it!

On Friday, I went into her class to visit and talk about the Vietnam trip. When I entered all the students knew me by name and eager to get started. For the letters, we asked them to introduce themselves and draw a picture of their favourite activity to do outside. All the students were so nervous about writing their letters. I kept getting questions like “How does this look?” or “Do they know this sport?” Many of them even did the letters twice just to make sure it was perfect!

Check out some of their letters! It seems like soccer is the class favourite.

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One week to go!!

Wow! After weeks of preparation and hard work, the team is now one week away from departure. We have spent the summer meeting weekly, sharing meals and laughter, planning our itinerary and putting together some exciting new ideas. We are now in the final stages, assembling our packing lists and brushing up on some Vietnamese phrases. Personally, this will be my first trip to Asia and I have never been more excited! I am thrilled to not only be part of an amazing and cohesive team, working on an inspiring project, but also to be travelling to a beautiful and interesting part of the world. 

One of the new ideas we have for the project is the creation of an environmental youth group in the Sapa region. This idea fits in well with the project's aims to reduce impacts in an environmentally  sensitive area and builds on the rich human capital found in the villages. Together with Sapa O'Chau, we will be facilitating meetings for passionate young people to learn more about how to maintain the natural environment in the region, particularly as this is one of the most noted features for many visitors. Sapa O'Chau aims to create a positive space for local H'mong to gain English language skills, particularly so that they can participate in the growing tourism industry as trekking and tour guides. Successful environmental stewardship is a long (and often winding) road but we know that we will be working with enough dedicated individuals to bring about some powerful change in the region. 

We look forward to sharing more about our adventure and we hope you'll check back regularly over the next few weeks. The team will be posting photos and updates to our blog and social media channels, so stay tuned and be sure to share with your friends!

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Spotlight: Lo May

It has been an amazing experience being connected with the Sapa villages as we all learn and grow together. One journey that we have had the opportunity watch is Lo May's. Today Lo May can be found in Hanoi, building up her resume as a tourism profesional, and preparing to make a move to Canada to continue her studies.

When we first met Lo May, she was running between her classes at the Taphin elementary school and the CBT Vietnam training sessions. Back then, she told us that she planned to become a singer when she grew up, and would often share her love for singing with traditional songs.

Lo May has had an tough adolescence. When her father passed away her responsibilities to her mother and family became so significant that she almost had to stop going to elementary school. Determined to finish school, it was double-duty for young Lo May.

Lo May has gained a reputation as a youth leader in her village. She has volunteered for NGOs such as Oxfam. She also gained a scholarship to go to highschool at the Vietnam-Laos Friendship School. Since graduation Lo May has become a local tour guide, and a key village trainer and interpreter for the CBT Vietnam project. You can catch what Lo May had to say about tourism and her village in the short film "When the tourists come."

Last year, Capilano University awarded Lo May with a scholarship to attend school in Canada. The scholarship will see that Lo May studies in Capilano University's International Student's Tourism Management Diploma Program. Her years as an undergrad will start this September.

Most recently, Lo May moved to Hanoi to try and gain experience working in Vietnam's growing tourism industry. She has secured a job working with a 3 star hotel group in Hanoi's Old Quarter as a receptionist at one, and as a concierge at another. Within her first week Lo May was making record sales!

When asked Lo May will say that she has learned a lot from the CBT project, especially when it comes to what she knows about tourism. She is excited for new opportunities, and plans to move into the kitchen as soon as she can. Not to leave her other positions, but to work all three! She currently starts at 7:00am working as a receptionist, has lunch, then moves to the second hotel to sell tours and transportation services till 10:00pm 6 days a week.

Lo May is one youth leader from Taphin village that we will be watching as she continues her exciting journey!

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