Vietnam: Dong Hoi – The Orphanage

Dong Hoi is not high on the typical traveller’s list. It isn’t even featured in Lonely Planet, so I doubt it even crosses the minds of those who come to Vietnam.

However, we were heading there for a very particular reason.

For the past two years, my brother Ben has been involved with the Cardoner Project, a Jesuit-run initiative that sees young Australians helping out rural communities throughout South-East Asia.

In 2012, he spent seven months in northern Thailand teaching English and helping to build necessary infrastructure for local communities.

This time round, he was leading a small group of young men on an immersion that would see them volunteer their services to an convent-run orphanage for disabled children, an hour out from Dong Hoi.

We were met at the airport by Ben; who at 6 foot 1 was by far the tallest person there, his immersion leader Fr David and two nuns from the orphanage.

A hour later and we found ourselves in a rural village, welcomed by a large group of gorgeous children and the group of nuns who look after them.

For the next two days, we participated in orphanage life, attending mass at 6am and dancing with the kids on the ‘party’ night.

Party night included dancing, sweets and even a cream fight!

There are only two English speaking nuns, so communication was difficult, but hand signals and lots of pointing got us through.

Some of the experiences these children had gone through were just terrifying. One, born with a brain disability, was used as tiger bait in the north of Vietnam as a 13 year old. She was left in a cage for long periods, with hunters believing that tigers are more attracted to the scent of human flesh than animal. She was found by farmers and brought to the orphanage.

Another, born deaf, was blindfolded and raped. She became pregnant and her son, also partially deaf, now lives with her in the orphanage.

There are no psychologists or psychiatrists to help these children, most of whom have suffered too much already in their lives due to the taboo of disability throughout Vietnam.

Instead, it is the devoted and unwavering love of these sisters that sees them flourish. If there was ever an example of love conquers all, this is it.

It was an eye-opening experience that only reinforced the importance of these sisters’ work, as well as the impact of healthy relationships on these beautiful children.

When treated with respect, love and equality, they are blossoming into fantastic, caring people who, thanks to the work of the sisters, will be able to assimilate back into society once their time at the orphanage ends.

If you wish to help, you can find out more about the Cardoner Project here.