Found biological mother after 1 day of newspaper publication: Girl followed Irish adoptive mother over 10,000 km to Ho Chi Minh City
Báo Thanh niên•22/11/2024
Returning to Vietnam for the first time after nearly 8 years living with her Irish adoptive mother, cute little Kahlia was excited by the strange thing of seeing motorbikes everywhere. The Vietnamese girl had unforgettable days when she reunited with her biological mother and family in Ho Chi Minh City.
In mid-November, from the faraway capital of Dublin (Ireland), Mrs. Karen Farrell brought her little daughter back to Ho Chi Minh City. This was her second visit to Vietnam, since the first time 8 years ago when the woman came here to adopt a child.
Mrs. Karen brought her daughter back to Ho Chi Minh City to reunite with her biological family after 8 years.
PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN
Ho Chi Minh City - Dublin is 10,000 km away
Kahlia was born at Tu Du Hospital (HCMC). On July 15, 2016, her biological mother abandoned her for some reason. She was then transferred to the Go Vap Center for Child Care and Protection, and was named Pham Thuy Lan Nhi. The kind-hearted Irish mother still remembers clearly the day July 6, 2018, when she officially adopted Lan Nhi. With the new name Kahlia, the life of the unfortunate Vietnamese girl from the moment she cried out at birth has turned a new page of light when living in the immense love of her adoptive mother.
When she first adopted Kahlia, Karen said she felt a special bond with her daughter.
PHOTO: NVCC
Vietnamese girl lives happy days in Ireland with her mother
PHOTO: NVCC
"Kahlia, a word of Hawaiian origin meaning 'my long-cherished wish'. Adopting Kahlia has truly been a dream of mine for a long time. She is truly the best thing that has ever happened to me. I feel so lucky to be her mother," the mother said emotionally. Not long after adopting her child, the mother decided to start the journey to find Kahlia's biological mother with the hope that one day, her daughter would not have to worry about her origins and origins. That also made her feel at ease as a mother. After 4 years of fruitless efforts, in 2023, with the help of Master of Architecture Do Hong Phuc, who is famous for supporting cases of foreigners reuniting with relatives in Vietnam as well as Thanh Nien Newspaper, she and her daughter received good news.
Kahlia smiled brightly on her return to Vietnam.
PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN
Just one day after posting the information in the article: Irish mother wants to find biological parents for her 6-year-old Vietnamese daughter, we found Kahlia's biological mother living in Ho Chi Minh City with all the information completely matching. However, we cannot publicly disclose information about Kahlia's biological family due to the family's personal reasons. "This is truly a miracle. I will arrange to bring my daughter back to Vietnam to reunite with her family in the near future," Ms. Karen told PV at that time. Since that day, Kahlia's biological mother as well as the family in Ho Chi Minh City have always kept in touch with Karen and her mother, even though they live more than 10,000 km apart. Every week, the Irish mother visits and sends moments of her little daughter to her family in Vietnam.
Kahlia's Way Home
The nearly 16-hour connecting flight landed at Tan Son Nhat Airport (Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City) with the excitement and nervousness of the mother and daughter. Many of Kahlia's relatives in Vietnam were waiting to welcome her. Receiving a bright bouquet of flowers from her adopted daughter's uncle, the woman was both surprised and happy, unable to express her feelings in words.
Kahlia excitedly experienced Ho Chi Minh City with her mother, excited to sit on a motorbike
PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN
So, after 8 years since her birth, the little girl Lan Nhi has returned to her homeland and roots. The Irish girl of Vietnamese origin said that she was surprised when in Ho Chi Minh City, there were motorbikes everywhere. This was really different from where she grew up. The mother and daughter stayed at a hotel in the center of Ho Chi Minh City and Kahlia had 4 days to meet and hang out with her biological mother, uncle, half-siblings and many other members of her Vietnamese family. "The first moment when she met her biological mother, Kahlia was a bit confused and scared. But I think that's normal. Luckily everything was fine. I really appreciate her biological uncle, he is a gentle, kind person who helped us during our days in Vietnam", Ms. Karen recounted. Finally, the Irish mother could rest assured and breathe a sigh of relief when her daughter was able to answer all the questions about her origins, something that, according to her, many Vietnamese children adopted in her country do not have. For Mrs. Karen, it was truly a blessing, a miracle.
Karen and her son at a reunion with Do Hong Phuc in Ho Chi Minh City.
PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN
With her adoptive mother and biological family, Kahlia was taken around Ho Chi Minh City. She boasted that she had been to shopping malls and happily bought 8 teddy bears to bring back to the hotel. Kahlia innocently said: "Here, my favorite is chicken. I love fried chicken and have eaten it many times in a row." "So, is chicken in Ireland and Vietnam different, Kahlia?", when asked by the reporter, the little girl and her adoptive mother both burst out laughing.
A loving hug to the benefactor
Before flying back to Dublin, and continuing her daily life with her daughter, Mrs. Karen had a warm meeting with us as well as Mr. Do Hong Phuc, the person who made this miraculous reunion possible. After greetings and warm hugs, she and her daughter told Mr. Phuc about their journey during their recent days in Vietnam.
The Vietnamese-Irish girl hugged and thanked Mr. Phuc for finding her Vietnamese biological mother.
PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN
She called her sister in Dublin to tell her about her trip to Vietnam.
PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN
- Mrs. Karen: At first, I thought you found relatives for everyone for money. But no! You did it completely for free. Why?- Mr. Do Hong Phuc: No! I did it for humanity. The reunions, joy and happiness of everyone are my greatest reward. The beautiful woman took out of her pocket a small gift from a distant European country, a lucky coin for Mr. Phuc. She hoped that the recipient of the gift would always have many good things in life. "I am truly grateful to Phuc and Thanh Nien Newspaper, because without that help, there would be no reunion, no trip today," Mrs. Karen emotionally hugged Mr. Phuc, not forgetting to remind her daughter to hug her benefactor before flying back to Ireland.
Mr. Phuc was happy to witness the joy of baby Kahlia's reunion.
PHOTO: NVCC
Ho Chi Minh City changes too quickly
Returning to Vietnam after 8 years, Ms. Karen said she was really surprised and overwhelmed by the rapid changes in Ho Chi Minh City. There are more skyscrapers and cars on the streets, but one thing that has not changed for the Irish woman is the friendliness and hospitality of the Vietnamese people. "There is an interesting thing, when looking at me and my daughter, many people think that we are mother and daughter and that her father is Vietnamese. Many people commented that we have many similarities," she said with a laugh. After this trip, the mother said that she still keeps in close contact with Kahlia's biological family in Vietnam. She plans to continue bringing her daughter back to Ho Chi Minh City to visit relatives next year. From now on, Kahlia has a peaceful place to return to - Vietnam.
Saying goodbye to Vietnam, Kahlia returned to Ireland with many memories. She hopes to see everyone again next year.
PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN
Sharing with reporters, Mr. Do Hong Phuc said he was extremely happy and moved when he learned that Kahlia had been reunited with her family and relatives. He was also a bit surprised when the adoptive mother let her daughter meet her relatives at this age. "The happiness that everyone is having is the motivation for me to continue my journey to support cases wishing to reunite with relatives. I hope that Kahlia and her mother will have wonderful memories in Vietnam," he confided.
Comment (0)