Vietnamese International Film Festival, Irvine CA

Chủ nhật qua Thư đa attend the last day of the Vietnamese International Film Festival at University of California Irvine. This is a biennial event. The festival bắt đầu từ April 12 và đã chiếu 51 films, including 13 features made by filmmakers of Viet descent from around the world. These films project a wide range of themes and genres, reflecting the experiences and issues that are important to diasporic as well as national Viet filmmakers.

Thư muốn share với các bạn cái documentary titled "Bolinao 52." This was about a Vietnamese refugee boat which drifted in the South China Seas for 19 days, encountered a US Navy ship along its course, but the captain of the ship refused to help them. After being afloat for such a long time, half of the passengers on the boat started to die. For the sake of survival, some survivors resorted to cannibalism. Out of 110, only 52 refugees survived when Filipino fishermen from Bolinao saved them. The subject was certainly depressing but this documentary turned out to be a story of fate, survival, and most importantly, forgiveness and healing. It is a very important piece of history of the Vietnamese refugees. This documentary will be shown on television (PBS) in 2008 và Thu would highly recommend các bạn in the US to watch it. You may even want to see it with your kids. It would be a great opportunity for us 1.5 generation to open dialogues with our kids về our refugee experiences.

Các bạn Nam Cali ơi, perhaps we can all attend the film festival together in 2009? Chim ở Bắc Cali và 4 phương nữa nhé. Thư thấy cuốn film đang in development titled Kingdom of Au Lac khá hấp dẫn!

Thân mến,
Kim Thư

CHH Wants You!

In 2006, some of these kids could read new library books, wear new uniforms, and in general had a better learning experience at their schoool Truong Tinh Thuong in Tan Thuan district, Hochiminh City, Vietnam

THANKS TO THE HELP FROM CHH

Couventines '79 Helping Hands

In 2007, CHH can still continue to make a difference. Equipment for the new Physics and Chemistry lab, a video projector to facilitate teaching, and last but not least, machine upgrade for the Computer lab - these are only a few of the projects where we can help.

So far, here's the list of birds who've signed up for CHH 2007:

1. Kim Phượng
2. Kim Thư
3. Thanh Mỹ
4. Diễm Quyên
5. Mỹ Linh
6. Mỹ Phượng
7. Thường Nga
8. Thu Khanh
9. Hương Giang
10. Thanh Vân
11. Minh Tâm

And remember, CHH stands for Couventines Helping Hands. Any kind of help you want to give will be appreciated by the Sisters. It's really the thought that counts!

CHH needs you. Won't you help? Feel free to get in touch with me for more info ...

Love,
G xxxx

The Sound of the Furies ...

Click to Play

(video contributed by Kieu Hanh - Kem Bach Dang, Saigon)

Gong Li in the City of Golden Armor

On the subject of films, the City of Golden Armor, which I recently saw with Ngoc Tran and Kim Thuy at the Galaxy Cinema, Nguyen Du, was a real feast for the eyes: a gorgeous, evil and vulnerable Gong Li, the epic battles, the scale of the wealth and luxury only to be matched by the betrayals. Zhou Yimou is definitely following in the footstep of Kurosawa or Bertoluci, cinematographically portraying destruction and betrayal on a grand grand scale!

Saigon in April is unbearably hot. A good memory for me was a swing session with Kim Thuy at the golf practice right next to Bach Dang river. We had some good breeze, and KT has one hell of a swing. Which could also be said for Tuyet Mai with her tennis forehand. We sweated it out at a local club right in the Tan San Nhut compound. At the end of the hour, hyperventilation seemed to be our only way of normal breathing.

Last but not least, I also managed to catch a bit of Trinh Cong Son music at the ATB, Phong Tra Anh Tuyet. Lots of love songs sung by very very professional performers with lots of lungs. Too bad none of his anti-war songs made it into the program (understandably :-)

Thinking of you as always ...
G xxxx

Journey from the Fall

Hi Birdies,

Haven't heard from you guys lately - not sure what's going on with the couventines' blog... But anyway, I just went and saw the movie Journey from the Fall and bawled my eyes out. So in case quy' nuong havent' seen it yet, please make some time to, because it surele brings back some really powerful memories of how we end up here in America, at least for me anyway. Just thought that I relate this back to you girls.

NN Phuonglan