Julie & Mike - Day 0

"Day 0" must mean the real trip starts tomorrow.....let's find out.

Mike reporting in: "Hey buddy, took a plane to Qui Nhon City thís am. Hung out a bit today on a beautiful beach.

Picking up our bikes finally thís evening and we'll be biking tomarrow they say. Hey what can I say. Hotter than the hubs."

Uhhhhh....I've been to the hubs. And it is hot!

Julie here; "Yesterday was a very important day for this trip. We visited our first CARE projects up in the flooded highlands along the Mekong Delta (it is after all monsoon season), tucked away inside the jungle near the Cambodian border.

After all that fundraising, it was very rewarding to experience first hand the good CARE does for people."

Here Mike is introducing himself and telling the locals he's decided to open a restaurant here.

Okay, okay, according to Julie... "This is a meeting we had at one of CARE's projects in a small community, reaching out to many hamlets.

The goal of this project is to improve the daily lives of the people by distributing small loans and establishing a cooperative economic system within the society.

Each woman in this picture is the leader of two communities. Their duty is to facilitate the project within a specific community and to report back with the main coordinators.

They help, learn and depend on each other. This project looks at diminishing poverty through micro-economic values of helping small scale businesses and families with money distribution systems in order to promote an sustainable economy.

It was very cool to participate in this meeting; it sheds some light on what communities like these really need to escape poverty.

Definitely an eye-opener!"

Ha ha! So maybe opening a Vietnamese Mainstreet is not so crazy.

"This is dad in front of the well Care built in 2009.

Care gave 80% of the funds and the community pulled together the rest.

It is located at a school and serves over 90 hamlets."

From Julie again: "Coconut boats."

I didn't know you fished for coconuts in the ocean.

Man, I should have gone on this trip.

"Took a lovely stroll down the beach - this is Hai and I (tour guide)."

Hey, it can't all be hard work!

So, Julie, is tomorrow the day? Start of the bike trip?

"The day is nearly ending and we have finally received our bikes!!

Took them out for a spin today - wooah what an interesting traffic system they have got.

You feel like a fish in a school."

Okay, go get 'em guys!