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Letter from Sr. Susan McDonald, escort Vietnam Motherland Tour
Dear
Friends, I
am excited to announce Vietnam Motherland Tour 2007, a
momentous journey to Vietnam designed for you who were adopted from Vietnam and
for your parents, spouses, siblings, and friends. The dates are March
30 - April 15, 2007. From
April 1973 through April 27, 1975, I had the good fortune to care for
some of you, and worked with Rosemary Taylor as nurse-administrator of
New Haven Nursery in Saigon. I later wrote the book, For Children
Cannot Wait, specifically for each of you born in Vietnam and
adopted abroad. The book is
in English, German and French, and is an attempt to present information
to as many of you as possible, knowing you live in many lands. You are
welcomed on this tour from whichever country you now live. Whether your
parents worked with an agency or whether your adoption was private or
through the military, or if you arrived in another country from Vietnam
as an unaccompanied minor, this tour is carefully arranged for you.
I have escorted six previous trips (1998, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006) and I am looking
forward to the upcoming trip in 2007. We have a wonderful tour planned,
tailored to meet the specific backgrounds of each of you traveling, so
that you and those significant to you may connect with your roots and
history. We will make every effort to visit places pertinent to your own
personal history and meet some of the women, including Catholic Sisters,
who cared for you during your beginning days in Vietnam. The emotional
support of the group, as well as the joy of wonderful new, lasting
friendships makes this a most life-giving journey. The
tour begins in colorful, lively Saigon (today known as Ho Chi Minh
City), where some of you were cared for as babies or toddlers. In
addition to enjoying this city, you will visit nurseries and orphanages
where some of you lived, as well as historical sites. Many of you came
from the Delta, near Vinh Long, Can Tho or SocTrang and so riverboat
rides on the Mekong River and visits to former orphanages are important.
Some of you came from central Vietnam. In Danang, we visit Sacred Heart
Orphanage, China Beach, and Marble Mountain. We'll also travel to the
ancient town of Hoi An and the former imperial capital of Hue for
cultural sightseeing. Further north, you will delight in the centuries
old shopping districts of Hanoi, and visit historical sites such as the
former "Hanoi Hilton" and the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. We
conclude our journey on a boat ride amidst the mystical beauty of Halong
Bay. I
encourage you to join us on this journey which has been profoundly
important for those who have gone before. You are able to feel, smell,
taste, hear, and touch Vietnam, the land of your birth. It has been my
experience that something uniquely special has occurred for each person
who has gone on this tour and I hope it will be a similar experience for
you. Enclosed
is a preliminary day-to-day tour itinerary and a reservation form.
Deadline for submitting your reservation is January 31, 2007 although we
do encourage you to apply early, as space is limited. If
you have questions about the trip, please feel free to contact me at
(314) 968-1128; email susanmcdo@aol.com
or tour@motherlandtour.com.
Sincerely
yours, Sister
Susan Carol McDonald April 1973-75, FFAC Nurse Administrator
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