A Dichotomous World

This weekend I bought a bicycle so I could cruise the streets of Ha Noi at break-neck speeds. Ok, well, maybe just the one speed of my one-geared bike. After some perusing of the Japanese and Taiwanese options that the shop-owner assured me meant quality (they looked the same to me) I settled on a classic Vietnamese bike complete with plastic basket in the front and a metal passenger seat in the back. The shop owner threw on some flashy stickers that said things like 'USA' and 'Amrny' and other words that don't make sense without me even asking, and I was good to go!

What struck me about this trip was my brief escapade into the Vincom towers, a popular shopping mall in the Hoan Kiem district. Inside I was suddenly transported into the high-fashion realm of Coach, Gucci, bright cosmetic counters, and smelly perfumes. This was a big change from the smell of exhaust and rotting garbage just outside. I was so overwhelmed by it all (and acutely aware of my shabby state and lack of shower) that I quickly left.

Inside Vincom Tower

Vietnam is proving to be a dichotomous country. For the most part, it's a poor developing country. The per capita income in 2008 was a little more than $1,000 and many people live on less than that. However, I see an upper class that is able to shop at Vincom and drive their Mercedes and BMW SUVs amongst the VN war-era motorbikes. I fall somewhere in between, I suppose. Even with my meager intern wages, I manage to live a relatively luxurious existence here with daily meals out and a weekly maid.

The country has come a long way into the free market world since the economic reforms (Đổi Mới) of the early 1990s shifted away from a centrally planned economy, as proven by the Louis Vuitton-toting Vietnamese businesspeople. But then again, scenes like this one of the market by my house remind me that the majority of the country still practices a non-Gucci lifestyle.

Bia and soccer

A typical street in the Hoan Kiem district. This is more of the 'touristy' area.

It's Saturday night and I'm currently watching Australian rugby on TV and the 3-inch spider running around on my wall. What else would I be doing in Ha Noi? Julia and I had a grand ol' Vietnam adventure today. We ended up walking around our neighborhood for lunch and errands for five hours. It went smoothly, except for the part when we were at the checkout line in the giant Japanese dollar store and realized we only had the equivalent of $1 between us. Oops. We did eventually get our dollar incense, scented candles, and buddha (we're so Asian now) and sweetened the deal with a kem xoi with Betty, which is icecream with sweet/salty sticky tea rice and coconut. Delicious! We did some more wandering around dinner time and I think I can now find my way to the park area nearby. Maybe this means a run tomorrow? Hmmm...
We finished our evening by stopping at a local cafe (the lady knows us well as the bewildered white girls who sometimes stop for ca phe sua da- iced coffee with sweetened condensed milk) and joined the crowd of Vietnamese men who were drinking their Bia Ha Noi (Ha Noi beer) and watching a British soccer match on the big screen. All in all, a pretty good day.

This is me riding a xe om around the city.

If my smile seems a little too cheery, it's masking the hint of concern...

Julia made a video of the walk through the alley to our house. Check it out on her blog!
http://profoundfluxpudding.blogspot.com/

Greetings from the other side of the world!

Hello All!

So I decided that a blog would be a good idea to keep everyone up to date on my life on the opposite side of the planet. I'll try my best to keep this current....we'll see how that goes.

I landed safely in Ha Noi August 7 and moved into my new pad. It's great! Four floors, air conditioning in the rooms, and wifi. My roomies are nice. Betty has already been here for almost a month and Julia just arrived on the 16th.

Week 1
For those of you who know (and love?) my awkwardness, you would appreciate the many bizarre interactions I've had so far. I'm really honing my non-verbal communication skills. I've successfully made friends with cab drivers, old beggar women, and an assortment of flavorful locals- well, I at least give them something to laugh at.
Work is going well. I work for TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network. The office is small and all but the director are Vietnamese. Everyone is very nice and welcoming. Apparently I came to the office during one of their busiest weeks of the year. TRAFFIC co-hosted a conference on illegal wildlife trade with the Communist Party. It was held in Van Long Nature Reserve in Ninh Binh province about 2 hours south of Ha Noi. I bonded with elderly comrades over pig intestine soup and snails and saw rare Langur monkeys. Overall, a successful trip-I even brought back a nifty stomach parasite that wreaked havoc on my intestines for a solid three days. Hurray!!

Last night Betty and I went with some other expats to a Girl Talk concert in the city outskirts. Random, but so much fun! I'll be washing the glitter out of my hair for the next week...