i should have written this in the last posting, but i forgot. triggered watching a friend's vlog on youtube about his time in india. the vid is called "hardest part" on www.youtube.com/zzolaman, if you're interested.
before i came to vietnam, i had already been told by my friend rita about the poverty there. she mentioned a story about a woman asking for money carrying a baby when she was there. of course, this was under the blistering vietnam sun. rita's immediate reaction was telling the woman that she should get the baby indoors, into the shade. probably anyone's first reaction.
so, that was the story that i thrived and regurgitated on when i talked to people about my then, impending trip to vietnam. now of course, seeing it for myself, including my own experiences mentioned earlier, the depth of this problem is apparent, it just burns a hole at the bottom, even further.
i had also seen the woman that rita spoke of. this time, her child was not a baby anymore. by the looks, probably 3 or 4 or 5, still breathing, i imagine, flung over her shoulder. skinny. malnutritioned. even if you give this mother money, it's evident, it's not going to her child. it's seemingly hopeless unless the people are educated or made to understand that you can't do this to a being. this child is used a prop. it's sad. and true, it exists in this part of the world.
20070312
vietnam trip 2007 - part 3 - social poverty.
one afternoon, we went to a religious site. i really didn't know until i got there. my viet is pretty good, but when the tour guide goes into highschool level viet, i get lost. i'm not sure if i was the only one. after all, i didn't get an itinerary in paper form. basically, i was just following the guide around. anyway.
the religious site. the cathedral was one of two in vietnam. the other was in saigon. it was terribly mashed up during the war. there was this grand structure of this fantastic site. it was a tree. i forgot the name, but it was so strange. along with the middle part of the cathedral/tower, it was not destroyed. it has godly-like branches and stemmed out to mushroom like umbrellas. there was a service going on.
there was this bin of water that had the words "nuoc duc me." hey, to me it was funny. literately, that meant "virgin mary's water." it was in a solar power heater thing. ya.
this site was probably the poorest we saw the folk. not only poor but some had such physical disabilities. such as in pain staking, burns, inactive muscles, blindness.. this was where the people on my bus gave them money. it's not that i don't think it's a good cause, but i believe it's not anybody's responsiblity but the government's to take care of these people. i'm sad and slightly upset at this.
this stands next to the encounter of children working in the sand dunes at mui ne. immediately when we get off the bus, children come up and tell us if we want take a slide down the sand, we'd ask for them and donate for their plastic mat. before we got off the bus, the guide warned us about these children. they were young and giving them 5,000 dongs would suffice. that's 30 cents. another thing, don't give just for giving. there was this sweet girl, very smart alec. she tailed me and the aussie guy for a while. these children were from ages 6 to 14. basically, this is what they do on their time off, away from school, if they go to school.
i talked to a boy and that girl about themselves. they told me that 1 out of 10 children have the luck to go to school. i wasn't sure if they were exaggerating, but seeing that these children were out there, i doubted that less. we were near the best resorts in vietnam, and i can see that work in the resorts was totally the thing for everyone. everyone who lived here was part of that industry. these children will grow up to do the same.
the girl said that we can donate for services at any price. i was very relunctant. i don't think it's right, for some reason. anyway, she finally convinced the aussie guy to give it a try. which he did. apparently, a fellow child got angry that she got the money. and at 32,000 dong from the suggested 5,000 dong, that girl was extremely ecstatic. 32,000 dong is 2 bucks.
the religious site. the cathedral was one of two in vietnam. the other was in saigon. it was terribly mashed up during the war. there was this grand structure of this fantastic site. it was a tree. i forgot the name, but it was so strange. along with the middle part of the cathedral/tower, it was not destroyed. it has godly-like branches and stemmed out to mushroom like umbrellas. there was a service going on.
there was this bin of water that had the words "nuoc duc me." hey, to me it was funny. literately, that meant "virgin mary's water." it was in a solar power heater thing. ya.
this site was probably the poorest we saw the folk. not only poor but some had such physical disabilities. such as in pain staking, burns, inactive muscles, blindness.. this was where the people on my bus gave them money. it's not that i don't think it's a good cause, but i believe it's not anybody's responsiblity but the government's to take care of these people. i'm sad and slightly upset at this.
this stands next to the encounter of children working in the sand dunes at mui ne. immediately when we get off the bus, children come up and tell us if we want take a slide down the sand, we'd ask for them and donate for their plastic mat. before we got off the bus, the guide warned us about these children. they were young and giving them 5,000 dongs would suffice. that's 30 cents. another thing, don't give just for giving. there was this sweet girl, very smart alec. she tailed me and the aussie guy for a while. these children were from ages 6 to 14. basically, this is what they do on their time off, away from school, if they go to school.
i talked to a boy and that girl about themselves. they told me that 1 out of 10 children have the luck to go to school. i wasn't sure if they were exaggerating, but seeing that these children were out there, i doubted that less. we were near the best resorts in vietnam, and i can see that work in the resorts was totally the thing for everyone. everyone who lived here was part of that industry. these children will grow up to do the same.
the girl said that we can donate for services at any price. i was very relunctant. i don't think it's right, for some reason. anyway, she finally convinced the aussie guy to give it a try. which he did. apparently, a fellow child got angry that she got the money. and at 32,000 dong from the suggested 5,000 dong, that girl was extremely ecstatic. 32,000 dong is 2 bucks.
20070311
vietnam trip 2007 - part 2 - sites & beautiful children.
well. i knew before heading there for a month, that it would not be enough. i had planned this "homecoming" for about 4 years, since 2nd year university. initially, it was my destination for teaching abroad, but that obviously wasn't. i don't know if i will go there for teaching english, but i will definitely return to visit. hence, this july. re: i just came back spending all of february there.
i took a tour from saigon up to mid-vietnam/hue'. and. it was life learning. if you want to see ancient buildings that have not become "renewed" by paint, but are essentially dilapidated, mid-vietnam is the place to go. everything is just as is. very little is invested in the upkeep. i do have to say, it's pretty impressive for vietnam. where china has sites that are well sponsored by the government, vietnam has mausoleums that are quite unique. they probably exist in china, but i haven't seen them. not near beijing, nor xi'an.
there was the 2nd last emperor's mausoleum where the "house" above the body was completely made of porcelain. pieces put together, to make a beautiful colourful montage to every corner of the room. also, for an emperor that reigned closer to the beginning of the nguyen dynasty, i recognized the similarity of the tomb being on a mountain, but on this mountain, there was place for people to chill, and study. there were lakes and houses where folk would pose poetry and literature. of course, this was for the people of high status. but, to have this sort of thing just steps away from the buried dead, i thought was interesting. an answer was that death, was natural. it was common, buried, but exists around us. i really like that. i guess that has some spiritual relevancy.
when we spent our 3rd night of the tour at quy nhon, a small city somewhere between saigon and hue, i didn't expect to have such an impression. after inquiring about the internet at the hotel i was staying at, the attendent's answer of "$2 U.S. an hour", i snubbed and went out to take a look at the folk opera playing outside. (at the other hotels, it was 5,000 dong per hour/30 cents an hour.) i went out snapping pictures here and there, making lots of flashes, people were staring. i wanted the moment, and i did make a video. i will put it up sometime. it was in traditional viet, which was even harder for me to get the gist of.
there was a group of kids. they were so beautiful. they asked me a lot of questions. at that point, i really didn't want to say that i was foreign. i just said that i was from saigon, but teaching in china. this is what i can do, communicated to children in vietnam, since my viet vocab is just up to there. i don't like to take pictures of children if i don't have permission, but they begged me. they were really cute. they were so innocent. the eldest offer to visit my hotel room, which i explained was a big no-no. to visit a stranger in their hotel room is no good. another boy repeated after me that it wasn't so good. brings to show, if you tell kids, they'll learn and function with that. they asked me if i would return with the pictures. that boy says i could be in the lobby (sometime?) and they can come by to see them. how even more beautiful. unfortunately, i lost those photos, due to my stupidity with my camera the night after. the boy did asked me if i will visit again, the eldest knew i may not. i said i would, sometime in the future. for them.
well. more later on vietnam.
i took a tour from saigon up to mid-vietnam/hue'. and. it was life learning. if you want to see ancient buildings that have not become "renewed" by paint, but are essentially dilapidated, mid-vietnam is the place to go. everything is just as is. very little is invested in the upkeep. i do have to say, it's pretty impressive for vietnam. where china has sites that are well sponsored by the government, vietnam has mausoleums that are quite unique. they probably exist in china, but i haven't seen them. not near beijing, nor xi'an.
there was the 2nd last emperor's mausoleum where the "house" above the body was completely made of porcelain. pieces put together, to make a beautiful colourful montage to every corner of the room. also, for an emperor that reigned closer to the beginning of the nguyen dynasty, i recognized the similarity of the tomb being on a mountain, but on this mountain, there was place for people to chill, and study. there were lakes and houses where folk would pose poetry and literature. of course, this was for the people of high status. but, to have this sort of thing just steps away from the buried dead, i thought was interesting. an answer was that death, was natural. it was common, buried, but exists around us. i really like that. i guess that has some spiritual relevancy.
when we spent our 3rd night of the tour at quy nhon, a small city somewhere between saigon and hue, i didn't expect to have such an impression. after inquiring about the internet at the hotel i was staying at, the attendent's answer of "$2 U.S. an hour", i snubbed and went out to take a look at the folk opera playing outside. (at the other hotels, it was 5,000 dong per hour/30 cents an hour.) i went out snapping pictures here and there, making lots of flashes, people were staring. i wanted the moment, and i did make a video. i will put it up sometime. it was in traditional viet, which was even harder for me to get the gist of.
there was a group of kids. they were so beautiful. they asked me a lot of questions. at that point, i really didn't want to say that i was foreign. i just said that i was from saigon, but teaching in china. this is what i can do, communicated to children in vietnam, since my viet vocab is just up to there. i don't like to take pictures of children if i don't have permission, but they begged me. they were really cute. they were so innocent. the eldest offer to visit my hotel room, which i explained was a big no-no. to visit a stranger in their hotel room is no good. another boy repeated after me that it wasn't so good. brings to show, if you tell kids, they'll learn and function with that. they asked me if i would return with the pictures. that boy says i could be in the lobby (sometime?) and they can come by to see them. how even more beautiful. unfortunately, i lost those photos, due to my stupidity with my camera the night after. the boy did asked me if i will visit again, the eldest knew i may not. i said i would, sometime in the future. for them.
well. more later on vietnam.
20070310
vietnam trip 2007 - family in the native land.
it has been a while since i wrote. since last, i had a wonderful chance to go to vietnam for a whole month. mostly, i stayed at my aunts. we'd go into the city on her motorbike (very cool, by the way). we'd stop by her old house to park the bike and go grocery shopping. food galore. i was full every minute i was there in the country.
i got to see both my grandparents' old homes in saigon. i feel like everyone i know in china. i mean, in canada, we all live slightly oblivious to the history that our parents had when they were younger. how they lived, what they enjoyed, and the pains they took when they were our age. as a child to newcomers in canada, i finally got to see the life my parents left and brought upon them, the hardships that went on when they did so, even when they landed in canada. i love vietnam.
i met family that i never knew existed until recently. they lived in the same house my father did when he was young. it was humble and no new renovations, or any at all. they were working hard to make ends meet. i met two cousins that i didn't know existed. all in a world of their own. they had their problems and life, part of my family that i didn't know too much of. these aunts were very chatty compared to the rest of my dad's family in canada. which was real nice. and how my mom's side was very interlocked with my dad's side in vietnam. they knew each other pretty well.
well. that's just part 1 of my vietnam adventures. i loved vietnam. i will go again in july before i head back to canada.
i got to see both my grandparents' old homes in saigon. i feel like everyone i know in china. i mean, in canada, we all live slightly oblivious to the history that our parents had when they were younger. how they lived, what they enjoyed, and the pains they took when they were our age. as a child to newcomers in canada, i finally got to see the life my parents left and brought upon them, the hardships that went on when they did so, even when they landed in canada. i love vietnam.
i met family that i never knew existed until recently. they lived in the same house my father did when he was young. it was humble and no new renovations, or any at all. they were working hard to make ends meet. i met two cousins that i didn't know existed. all in a world of their own. they had their problems and life, part of my family that i didn't know too much of. these aunts were very chatty compared to the rest of my dad's family in canada. which was real nice. and how my mom's side was very interlocked with my dad's side in vietnam. they knew each other pretty well.
well. that's just part 1 of my vietnam adventures. i loved vietnam. i will go again in july before i head back to canada.
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