Volunteer in the land of a million elephants
Phonsavan, Phukout, Phaxay… names that seemed strange have now become familiar in the hearts of Nghe An volunteer students. One month is not a long time but it contains many meaningful youth works and projects to foster the Vietnam – Laos friendship.
Thanh Quynh - Quang Huy •30/08/2024
Phonsavan, Phukout, Phaxay… names that seemed strange have now become familiar in the hearts of volunteer students in Nghe An. One month is not a long time but it contains many meaningful youth works and projects to foster the Vietnam-Laos friendship. Returning to Nghe An when the mission is completed, the youth of Uncle Ho's homeland can be proud of having had a journey full of love in the Land of a Million Elephants.
Spread the love of Vietnamese
“Nát Đa will always remember you. This is the bag that Nat Đa’s mother made herself. She hopes you will accept it so that when you return to Nghe An, you will always have Nat Đa’s image in your heart!” - 12-year-old student Nat Đa in Phukout district, Xieng Khouang province said tearfully in the moment of saying goodbye to her “teacher” Nguyen Thi Hoai Thuong - a volunteer student at Vinh University.
So after nearly 1 month of implementing activities in Laos, Hoai Thuong and 24 volunteer students from Nghe An had to say goodbye to the land and people of Xieng Khouang. But the memories will always remain...
Holding in her hand the lovely red bag she brought back from the Land of a Million Elephants, Nguyen Hoai Thuong shared that after a period of interruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic, last July, the volunteer journey of Vinh University youth in Laos resumed with many meaningful activities.
This time, the Vinh University International Volunteer Team consists of 25 members, including 5 staff members, 6 volunteers who are Laotian international students and 14 volunteers who are students of the university. The team operates at 3 locations (Phonsavan city, Phukout district and Phaxay district, Xieng Khouang province), Lao People's Democratic Republic from July 7, 2024 to August 5, 2024.
The first volunteer area that the group deployed activities was Phonsavanh city of Xieng Khouang province, which is more than 300 km from Vinh city and has a large number of overseas Vietnamese living there. Although it is a city, the lives of people in the suburban areas are still difficult.
“Despite the long journey, receiving warm handshakes and listening to the warm song "Love of Vietnam - Laos" played by the Youth Union of the neighboring country to welcome the volunteer students of Nghe An, all the fatigue disappeared”, shared Chich Van Khut - Class 62A1, Mathematics Pedagogy, Pedagogical College, Deputy Head of the International Volunteer Team in Xieng Khouang - Vinh University.
Khut is a Kho Mu boy from Phia Khoang village, Bao Nam commune, Ky Son district. He is one of the pioneers leading effective volunteer activities of students in Laos. Khut said that the main task of the group is to teach Vietnamese to Lao students and trainees; organize social security activities, and learn about the culture of the neighboring country.
It was expected that about 300 students and trainees would participate in learning Vietnamese, however, when we heard that there were students volunteering to teach Vietnamese, more than 500 people signed up, including more than 200 officers, police, soldiers, and teachers working locally. Therefore, we cleverly arranged a scientific timetable to suit the situation.
Chich Van Khut - Deputy Head of the International Volunteer Team in Xieng Khouang - Vinh University
Although July is the rainy season in Laos, Lao students are very eager to learn and often come to class very early. During the day, they go to class, and at night, many Lao students come to the team's accommodation to review their lessons and study more. Their eagerness to learn has motivated young people to participate in international volunteer activities for the first time.
The content of the lessons includes basic sentences, including greetings, introductions, names, hometowns, vocabulary with a variety of topics. The students have integrated many activities and games into their lessons to help students have more excitement in the process of learning Vietnamese and absorb the lessons faster.
Luong Thi Van Anh - a 4th year student, class 62, Faculty of Social Work, Vinh University, was assigned to teach Vietnamese to officials at the Department of Finance and the Department of Transport of Laos.
Being of Thai ethnicity, Van Anh understands the Lao language. Therefore, Van Anh can easily communicate Vietnamese to officials and people in Laos.
In addition to teaching Vietnamese to officials at departments, Van Anh also supports teaching Vietnamese to students from primary to secondary school. Van Anh shared: "Everyone loves learning Vietnamese. In departments and sectors, officials learn to work or travel in Vietnam in the future. Students learn Vietnamese to study abroad or travel with their families in the future. Language has opened new doors, connecting people and culture from Vietnam to Laos."
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Messengers of friendship
In addition to teaching Vietnamese, students in the international volunteer team of Vinh University also carry out many meaningful activities such as covering the streets of Phonsavan city with Champa flowers - the national flower of Laos.
Along with that, this force also cooperated with the youth of neighboring countries to clean and decorate the grounds of martyrs' cemeteries in Xieng Khouang province; organized incense offerings at the shrine of Vietnamese heroes and martyrs who sacrificed their lives on the Lao front; participated in Vietnam - Laos cultural exchange activities. And there are many other practical activities and programs that the volunteer student team has shared and supported with children and the elderly in the area where they reside.
Letters from Lao students to teachers in the volunteer student team of Vinh University. Photo: Thanh Quynh
As a companion of the students on the volunteer journey, Ms. Doan Minh Trang - Deputy Secretary of the Youth Union of Vinh University shared: When she brought the group of students to hand over to the District Youth Union, they were welcomed very warmly and thoughtfully.
However, because the conditions at the volunteer sites were still difficult, the living and resting places for the students were extremely lacking. It was sunny but there were no fans, then looking at the kitchen and toilet facilities, and the lack of bedrooms, she had tears in her eyes. She thought that the students would not be able to overcome this difficulty, but unexpectedly, they surpassed the expectations of their teachers.
In such inconvenient conditions, the children managed to make ends meet, sharing everything from blankets to personal belongings. However, it was in these difficult circumstances that the spirit of solidarity and sharing was even more evident.
Ms. Doan Minh Trang - Deputy Secretary of Vinh University Youth Union
During that time, the funny stories over simple meals, the evenings together telling stories about the village, were precious moments that helped the children overcome challenges and feel more deeply the meaning of volunteering. They also received a lot of love from students, parents and officials of Laos.
On the farewell day, comrade Phetsamone Davongsone - Secretary of Xieng Khouang Provincial Youth Union said that it had been 7 years since the province had welcomed Nghe An volunteer students back to their country. Nearly 1 month of implementing activities, with many meaningful tasks, contributed to deepening the feelings of the youth of the two localities, educating the younger generation about the close friendship between the two countries.
The 1-month journey, although not long, left indelible marks in the hearts of the people, cadres, youth, and 2 provinces. After the meaningful journey, each student told himself that he would not stop studying, practicing, and cultivating the friendship between the 2 peoples of Vietnam and Laos, and was determined to return to Xieng Khouang, to the beloved country of Laos, in the following Summers!