vietnam and cambodia
COMMUNITY TRIP 10/29 - 11/12 2023
You are invited to join us on the next Center for International Experiential Learning (CIEL) Community Trip to Vietnam and Cambodia from 10/29 to 11/12, 2023. We are offering this trip in two parts: A ten-day trip to Vietnam first (10/29 to 11/8), followed by five more days in Cambodia (11/08 to 11/12).
More than four decades after the Second Indochina War (1955-1975), known to Americans as the "Vietnam War" and to Vietnamese as "The American War" or "The Resistance War against America," there is much to be learned from Vietnam and its regional and global impact. Some of the issues that our travel and pre-trip education will explore include the effects of colonialism and imperialism under Chinese rule (111BC to 938AD) and French colonial rule (1858-1954), as well as Vietnam's colonial projects in Cambodia and its contemporary relationship with China.
We will examine the impact these historical and current events have had on Vietnamese national identity, how this history is reflected and told in the country, and what we can learn from it. We will also examine the legacy of Vietnam's civil wars and foreign interventions, including the role of the U.S. both during and after the war and why Americans are still being welcomed in the country. We will also address issues of Vietnam's reunification after the ‘fall’ or ‘liberation’ of Saigon, post-conflict economic devastation and reform, and how Vietnam has dealt with the issue of refugees and how this has impacted ongoing questions of reconciliation across diverse perspectives, especially with the younger people growing up after the war (more than half of which are under 35 years old). And to offer a comparison, we will travel to Cambodia to learn about its history and how it intersects with the story of Vietnam.
Itinerary
Our trip will start in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, with excellent international flight connections. Hanoi has much to offer: a beautiful old city and many important museums and monuments. Guided by Professor Kevin Pham, a Vietnam expert and scholar of Ho Chi Minh’s political thought, we will explore how the vision for an independent and unified Vietnam was developed here by “Uncle Ho” and his associates.
As Hanoi is the political center of Vietnam, we will also engage the questions of current developments and international/regional relations here and meet with government officials, regional experts, and Communist Party and/or military members. A visit with the U.S. embassy and NGOs working on regional questions is also planned. The city is very walkable and scenic. We will have opportunities to explore some of the rural areas around Hanoi and many opportunities for personal explorations during our free time.
On the morning of November 2nd, we will fly to Hue in the country's center. Here we will visit the imperial city and palace (World-Heritage Site), explore the roots of Vietnamese identity, and learn how it continues to shape Vietnamese thinking today. We will also experience the famous gastronomic scene here. The next day we will take the bus and explore nature and the countryside in this beautiful part of the country. And we will connect with the local population and environmentalists. We will end in Hoi An, the famous UNESCO World-Heritage City, for some time to relax and explore.
On Saturday, November 4th, we will fly to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon, although locals use both names interchangeably) and have four days in this buzzing metropolis. Besides being the former capital of South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam), it is also the business and financial hub of the country and a well-known center for the arts.
Through our partnership with Fulbright University Vietnam and Professor Yen Vu, we will get a unique opportunity to engage with the younger population, who comprise most of the country's population. A staggering 70%+ of the Vietnamese were born after the end of the Vietnam War (which Vietnamese commonly call the Resistance War Against America). As the epicenter of U.S. presence during the war, we will also explore the legacy and current sentiments of the Vietnamese toward the U.S. and other former colonial powers. We will meet with veterans of the conflict on the Vietnamese and the U.S. side.
The second part of the trip will start on Wednesday, November 8th, when we will fly to Siem Reap in Cambodia and continue to the famous world heritage site of the Angkor Wat temple complex. We will explore this magnificent site and other local monuments for two days and continue learning about the relationship between Cambodia and Vietnam and its critical role in history.
Before taking our bus to Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh and visiting the site of the Killing Fields on the way, we will learn about Vietnam’s invasion of Cambodia, which ultimately stopped the genocide there. Comparing how the two countries reflect on the same period of time, their relationship to the U.S. (and the West in general), and towards each other will be instructive as we finish our trip and reflect on our learnings.
Again, many good international flights leave from Phnom Penh back to the U.S. (or other international locations). We will depart on November 12th.
PART 1 VIETNAM
Sunday Oct 29th - Wednesday Nov 8th 2023
**If you wish to arrive earlier or stay longer, we can extend your hotel reservation**
Accommodation - Luxury and Boutique Hotels Vietnam
Vietnam
Four nights in Hanoi (most likely at the Chi Boutique Hotel - the highest-rated boutique hotel in the city in a great location – superior rooms with a view)
One night in Hue (most likely at the Ancient Hue Garden House - a beautiful hotel in a historic building)
One night in Hoi An (most likely at the La Siesta Resort and Spa – a 5-star hotel within walking distance of UNESCO Heritage Old Town)
Four nights in Saigon (most likely at the Myst Dong Khoi – a 5-Star hotel with celebrated modern architecture/design)
Expected Costs
$4,950 per person in double occupancy. Single occupancy and upgraded rooms are available at an additional cost. The trip will be capped at 20 full-time participants to provide an intimate atmosphere.
Includes:
11 days (10 nights) hotel and breakfast (in double occupancy)
All meals during the program (excluding alcohol, which can be purchased separately)
Transportation throughout the trip (including flights from Hanoi to Hue and from Hoi An to Saigon)
All guides, speakers, coordination, and entrance fees to sights, theater, and other events Assistance with arrival and departure transfers plus Covid/health protocols
Excludes:
Travel to Hanoi and from Saigon
Meals and transportation during free time
PART 2 cambodia
Wednesday Nov 8th - Sunday Nov 12th 2023
**If you wish to arrive earlier or stay longer, we can extend your hotel reservation**
Accommodation - Luxury and Boutique Hotels cambodia
Cambodia
Two nights in Siem Reap (most likely at the Anjali by Syphon – an eco-resort with a tranquil atmosphere next to Angkor Wat)
Two nights in Phnom Penh (most likely at the iRoHa Garden Hotel & Resort - an award-winning centrally located boutique hotel)
Expected Costs
$1,950 per person in double occupancy. Single occupancy and upgraded rooms are available at an additional cost. The trip will be capped at 20 full-time participants to provide an intimate atmosphere.
Includes:
5 days (4 nights) hotel and breakfast (in double occupancy)
All meals during the program (excluding alcohol, which can be purchased separately)
Transportation throughout the trip (including the bus ride from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh)
All guides, speakers, coordination, and entrance fees to sights
Assistance with arrival and departure transfers plus Covid/health protocols
Travel to Siem Reap from Phnom Penh (if not participating in Vietnam Trip (Part 1), we will deduct the travel costs)
Excludes:
Travel from Phnom Penh
Meals and transportation during free time
Dr. Kevin Pham
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Professor Kevin Pham is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Gettysburg College. He specializes in political theory and international relations and focuses on Vietnam. His father fled the country by boat on April 30th, 1975, a day known to Vietnamese anticommunists as the “Fall of Saigon” and to communists as the “Liberation of Saigon,” and his mother fled by boat in the early 1980s. He was raised in Vietnamese American communities with an awareness of the impact that war, displacement, and trauma has on such communities. After earning a B.A. in Political Science from University of California Irvine, he lived in Vietnam for a year. Then, he earned an MSc in Conflict Analysis from the University of Amsterdam and a Ph.D. from University of California Riverside. Several of his academic articles are the first to bring the ideas of Vietnamese political thinkers into the academic field of political theory, showing how Vietnamese intellectuals understood democracy and freedom and how they complicate and enhance conventional wisdom in the West.
He has presented his work at many conferences around the world. His book, The Architects of Dignity: Vietnamese Political Theories of Decolonization, is under review at a university press. It traces an intergenerational debate among six influential Vietnamese thinkers who had competing visions for how the Vietnamese should strengthen themselves to stand up to French colonial subjugation (1858- 1954). He is an alumnus of the Olive Tree Initiative (OTI) and worked as the Alumni Coordinator for many years. Kevin is one of CIEL’s founding academic advisory board members.
Dr. Yen Vu
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Professor Yen Vu is a Professor of Literature at Fulbright University in Ho Chi Minh City. She is a first-generation Vietnamese-American scholar in French and Vietnamese Studies who earned her Ph.D. in 2019 from Cornell University. Prior to joining Fulbright, she taught French language and literature at Hamilton College, a top-15 liberal arts college in the US, for two years and held a postdoctoral research position in Modern Vietnamese Studies at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia University. She specializes in Vietnamese francophone literature and intellectual history in 20th-century Vietnam. Her current manuscript project focuses on how Vietnamese intellectuals have worked with and through language to establish their own ideas of freedom in colonial and postcolonial Vietnam. She has presented her research at annual meetings of the American Comparative Literature Association and the Association for Asian Studies, as well as abroad, such as at the Institute National des Langues et Cultures Orientales in Paris, France.
Her scholarship has also appeared in the Journal of Southeast Asian Studies and Diaspora. As scholar-teachers, Professors Vu and Pham are invested in making their research accessible to a broad public. This is the impetus behind their co-hosted podcast, “Nam Phong Dialogues: casual chats on Vietnamese History,” which can be found on Spotify and Apple, and includes listening notes.
Dr. Daniel Wehrenfennig
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Daniel Wehrenfennig is the Executive Director of the Center for International Experiential Learning (CIEL). He has worked in global education for over a decade. Born in Germany, he participated in many international educational programs during his youth and undergraduate education, allowing him to live in and experience conflict-affected areas in the Middle East, Kosovo, Northern Ireland, and the U.S. In 2003, he permanently moved to the U.S. where he received his Ph.D. in Political Science/International Relations from the University of California, Irvine (2009). During his graduate studies, he founded and became the inaugural Executive Director of the Olive Tree Initiative, an award-winning experiential learning program based in the University of California system and housed at UC Irvine. He also created and taught in the Conflict Analysis and Resolution Certificate Program. He was Vice-Chair of the Chancellor’s Advisory Council on Campus Climate, Culture, and Inclusion at the University of California, Irvine.
In his doctoral work, Dr. Wehrenfennig studied the Israeli-Palestinian and Northern Ireland conflicts comparatively in the context of citizen involvement in the peace process. Dr. Wehrenfennig is a recognized experiential learning and travel studies expert and has directed over 30 student and community trips in the past decade. He went on a Vietnam Scouting Trip this last Fall and is very excited to share the comparative lessons learned on the upcoming community trip.
Expert Guides
Reservations
To reserve a spot on the trip (for the whole trip or either part), email us at contact@cielglobal.org.
A $1000 deposit is requested. Once 20 people are confirmed (on a rolling base), people will be added to the waiting list.
Final Payment is due by October 1st, 2023.
Travel insurance will be at your discretion through your sources.
Check - Please make check out to “CIEL Community Trip” and send it to the Center for International Experiential Learning (CIEL), 1312 1⁄2 Montana Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026
PayPal/Zelle – We can set up payment by PayPal (this will incur an extra transaction fee) or Zelle (direct bank-to-bank transfer for qualified banks through multiple payments) – please inquire if you are interested.
Payments can be made by:
Pre-trip preparation meetings
It is important that we get to know each other and prepare for this unique experience. We encourage everyone to come to the in-person planning meetings for all travelers, which will commence in May/June 2023 in the Orange County area. If this is not practical for you, there will be options to join via Zoom, and we are happy to talk with you individually and bring you up to date.
Resources to prepare for the trip
A recommended reading list for confirmed travelers will be provided along with other resources. For further information, you can contact CIEL Executive Director Dr. Daniel Wehrenfennig via Email (wehrenfennig@cielglobal.org) or phone (323-788-1603).
We look forward to sharing this experience with you.