My first trip back to Saigon and it feels like home.
What can I say, I love living in America and never thought traveling to another country would ever feel like home. Yet for the first time in my life since leaving Vietnam in 1981, I was surprisingly greeted with a rush of sentimental emotions which were foreign yet familiar all at once.
I can honestly say I felt as if I finally came home for the first time since leaving Vietnam. I believe it was because I never had a chance to say a proper goodbye to a country where I grounded my first steps and spoke my first words. I was never told we were to leave our home forever. We were told France would be a great adventure. I was asked to give away my toys but did not receive any explanation as to why except to say there will be more in France. Maybe even in my family’s heart of hearts, they could not and would not allow themselves to believe they were to leave forever either…
I love Vietnam.
