In China if you are a coffee drinker you are almost exclusively limited to instant coffee. As a coffee lover this caused as much frustration and peturbance to me as not having good wine or salad dressing might to someone else. And after seven months I had given up on any relief from my lack thereof, and had instead resigned myself to enjoying the "finer" kinds of instant crappy coffee they offer in this country of tea drinkers.
Vietnam on the other hand is filled with coffee. And not just any coffee but GOOD coffee, with every street vending stall selling filtered coffee and a small place to sit on their modest bit of sidewalk. And if thats not enough for you they might even have fresh baguettes and cheap wine, all courtesy of an age old time when French men and women roamed the streets looking for a place to hide from the brutal sun and enjoy a bit of caffeine and rest. Apparently it stook.
Hanoi was my first experience in another Asian country's capital. It was exciting to compare and contrast all the differences in architecture, living style and etiquette. The most common architecture was still heavily French influenced, meaning buildings with a narrow front and long in the back, piled closely next to each other, with porches on each floor and many roof terraces to gaze out upon the city. The living styles were slightly clausterphobic for the average Vietnamese household. Between the aging French buildings were long narrow alleys connecting countless entrances to inumerable homes sheltering large Vietnamese families. I was at one point squeezed so tightly in attempting to escape an alley that my stomache brushed both walls and my head was forced sharply to the right.
The etiquette was probably amongst the largest differences. No spitting on the ground here, nor can you expect to be badgered and followed in a shop until you buy a product. After finishing a Vietnamese meal it is also not polite to yell for a waiter to give you the check, as I discovered when many vehement looks were turned on me in a restaurant. I caught myself actually feeling incredulous that the Vietnamese would stare, and then realized I was picking and choosing some of the less desirable Chinese habits for my own benefit.
In Hanoi we visited all the major sites: Ho Chi Minh's mauseleum, a history museum, the Lenin statue and several well known restaurants. I had a particular interest in seeing Ho Chi Minh as I had never seen Mao's body in China. We entered upon a dimly lit room filled with roses, a dead body and eight well armed guards intent on keeping us moving, I was surprised to see Ho a bit yellow but otherwise in pretty good shape. I looked around the room that day also interested in the reaction of the Vietnamese. Did they agree with this preservation? Ho certainly hadn't agreed to it, and what was the point, really? It felt like I was oberving a religious relic. All it was missing was a peddler outside yelling, "five dong to come inside! Pray here for your soul, don't forget your savior!" But thats just me. The Vietnamese seemed to love it.
We saw many things in Hanoi, and I truly enjoyed all of it. There was just one thing missing: the sun, and this upset me. I'm not the kind of guy who has to see the sun in order to be happy, nor do I shrug my shoulders and avoid outdoor activities at the sight of a raindrop, but it had been a while since I saw a nice day. Yibin is nice and all, but if you like sunny weather you'd better be there on the right couple days of the year. So my expectations kept rising as we headed south- first to Hue, then Hoi An, Nha Trang and lastly Ho Chi Minh city (Saigon).
Hi Leo,
ReplyDeleteI know how it is to long for the sun which is what I feel after a bleak New Hampshire winter.
Here spring has finally arrived with some warm sunny days and we revel in it. Hope it stays around for the next few days when your mom and cousin Evelyn are here.
You are a good writer. Love your blog.
Aunt Eileen