Meeting People, Even Without English

17/09/2025 Leticia Lượt xem: 118

One of my main roles here is to practice English with my coworkers. With some of them, I can have real conversations, which are always super interesting. Others are still learning, but little by little we’re making progress together.

Outside the office, English is not very common in the area. But if you go to Mũi Né, just 30 minutes away, you’ll meet plenty of English-speaking (mostly tourists). That’s actually where I met a Vietnamese girl from Phan Thiết who also speaks English. Encounters like this remind me that you can always find someone to connect with. In the meantime, it’s also a great opportunity to pick up a bit of Vietnamese.

When visiting families supported by the Thiện Chí Center in the mornings, someone always explains and translates what is happening. Sometimes it’s a coworker who speaks more or less good English, other times it might be a friend, a daughter, or someone connected to a community part-time employee. Either way, you always understand what’s important, and it gives you the chance to spend time with different members of the Center while practicing English with them.

Some evenings, I help one coworker and her daughter practice their English. We usually meet in a café and chat about a theme for an hour or more. I try to correct their grammar and pronunciation, but mostly we just talk and laugh, it’s a really nice exchange.

All in all, English has been both a bridge and a challenge. It has given me opportunities to connect with coworkers, children, and even new friends I wouldn’t have met otherwise. At the same time, not many people here speak it, so daily life often pushes me out of my comfort zone.

Leticia

 

Bài viết khác

Agricultural Models for a More Sustainable Future

07/10/2025
Leticia
11
Simple agricultural models help Tanh Linh families boost income, reduce waste, and gain stability.

From Hàm Thuận Nam to Tánh Linh

06/10/2025
Leticia
33
Today marked my first day in Tánh Linh district, visiting families supported by Thien Chi and learning how the team operates with new digital tools to monitor their projects.

Green library and ethnic minority families

03/10/2025
Leticia
63
The day showed two sides of Thiện Chí’s work: community projects such as libraries and scholarships that benefit many students at once, and direct support to families through housing and microloans.

Daily Challenges in Rural Vietnam

26/09/2025
Leticia
122
Three families working in dragon fruit farming, each balancing day labor, loans, and school expenses. Their stories show how hard it is to make ends meet when prices and harvests are so uncertain.

Life Behind the Dragon Fruit Farms

25/09/2025
Leticia
98
Visiting three related families showed me how dragon fruit farming, paired with microloans, sustains households through hardship. With over 1,000 families in the program, Thien Chi’s local collaborators play a key role in ensuring stability and opportunity in rural communities.

Employement program

24/09/2025
Leticia
99
Thien Chi’s employment program creates stable jobs for local families through workshops like rattan stick production, where every piece is carefully handmade.