Mar 2009

So you should know that I'm not working right now. I get up, do whatever, go out for a bit, hang round the house, watch HBO or StarWorld, clean the windows, spray the cockroaches until their dead (this is Vietnam, there are cockroaches wherever you live), clean the windows again, climb the four flights of stairs for fitness, walk to..... the beach?, cook dinner, wash the dishes, and go to bed. Oh, and somewhere in between all those things, I see my boyfriend, talk to him, call him, text him, because of course, we share the house. Oh, and also read and respond to emails (and when I say respond I mean respond to the ones that I can be bothered responding to, as of now 10:27pm I have 31 unread emails in my inbox).

So in amongst my incredibly busy days, I can just observe. I have many windows in the house, at different angles providing bird's eye view on anything and everything. One major thing that is rather unsettling to say the least, is the siren. The siren that makes me feel like a character in a World War II action/thriller/drama movie. While it rings (what's the sound verb for a siren, surely it can't be "rings"????) I pretend to be a frightened mother trying to gather her children down into the war bunker under the house. The bunker being the landlord's Suzuki Viva 100CC motorbike sitting in the middle of the kitchen. And when the sound stops, I relax and go back to killing the cockroaches.

Mmmmmm, my fun (and some exercise) for the day.

Can anyone provide speculation on this mystery siren? It goes usually twice a day, sometimes only once. My boyfriend suggested it is a Tsunami-is-coming warning.

I was not impressed by this suggestion, I find re-enacting the role of a 1940s housewife during war bombings is more dramatic than pretending to be hit by a massive wave of water, and......drowning.

We met some children yesterday. French speaking children. They didn't even bother to say "Hello" but bit the bullet and went straight to "Bonjour" and "com sava" (my severe apologies, I cannot write French). They just totally assumed we were French speakers, I proceeded with "Bonjour", and "sava" hoping that the response to how are you is simply "sava". Then I spoke really fast in English hoping that they would think I was speaking French but too fluent for them to understand. They just looked at me dumbfoundedly like I was a mad woman off on a tangent about how her husband didn't do the dishes like she told him to earlier. (sorry again, stupid metaphor).

Anyway, the children were very cute with their French tongue, and like my fruit and vegetable family and my landlord's who also speak French I am totally curious about how Danang has become a city of French second language, rather than English, like in Hanoi. Hanoi has had more French influence I had thought? My landlord's daughter teaches French at a bilingual Vietnamese-French primary school.

Are there many bilingual schools back in Australia? I know one primary school in Camberwell who also teach classes in French but that is all. When I have children, my children will be bi, tri, quad lingual (!!!!!) by the age of 3. Ok, that's exaggerated considering I couldn't even speak English before the age of 3. BUT, I would love it if my children could learn at least one second language when they are young. If I had any regrets, it would be that I didn't keep up a language at school. People ask me why my (ex) 2 year old students would need to learn English at such a young age. But, my goodness, it can accelerate a child in so many ways. I've seen it with my own eyes.

So moving on from the power of communication in this world of thousands of different languages, let's discuss food!!! Yay, food. Food provides me the sustenance and energy to walk up the many stairs in the house, to spray the Raid on the cockroaches and to peel the potatoes.

So a visit to the market the other day was so much easier than I thought. No haggling required, and I can even just speak in Vietnamese to figure out the prices of things per kilo. No crazy-lets-double-the-price-for-this-money-belt-and-phrasebook-carrying-white-tourist, but rather a lovely welcome, wide selection and attentive service. I will be going back to this woman again. However, I won't be going back to the woman next to her, who decided not to give me my change. I paid 50,000VND for a 10,000VND bunch of tomatoes and cucumbers, and by the time I had put the bags on the motorbike and gone back, she had moved on to another customer. I politely asked for my money, and she pretended like I was crazy and trying to steal her money. Anyway, I got the change back but only half of it, thinking she could keep the rest as a tip. Well I don't know about you, but giving a tip of 20,000VND on a 10,000VND purchase seems a little crazy. So I said no, and got it all back. Normally I wouldn't comment on this type of thing as I've been in Vietnam over 7 months, but the one thing I am really sick of, is being assumed I have lots of money because I am white. Plus, assuming tips from change is, in my opinion, such a bad thing to do. It makes me want to refund the goods and walk off. Ok, I will stop my rant here.

After my first week in Danang, I am very much impressed, much rested, and slightly more crazy.

Love.
Cat.

Danang is a city of just under one million people, but still the fourth biggest city in Vietnam. I've mentioned this city in previous posts, and you should know that I like it. It is a port city, situated on the Han River, adjacent to the beach. Check out the cities comprehensive website (in English!) which will give you some more information - http://www.danang.gov.vn/home/view.asp?id=116.

For a little information on Danang's involvement in the Vietnam/American War, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Da_Nang.

I've moved into a local neighbourhood with my boyfriend, 10 minutes from the centre by motorbike. Upon entry, we are immediate celebrities. Put two Westerner's together, and you get sudden and sometimes unwanted celebrity status. Also, for those of you who know what line of work my boyfriend does, you would understand when I say that almost everyone knows his name. Haven't decided if I actually like this yet. The great thing is, is that everyone likes to say hello, and we have some lovely Vietnamese landlord's who speak fluent French and their children speak good English. They live right next door.

The shop across the street sells all kinds of vegetables, chilli, coriander, lettuce, potatoes, onions, cucumber, tomatoes, eggs and fresh pineapples. We have already bought a delectable spread of fresh produce for 40,000 VND. They also speak fluent French. Not sure why the 2 neighbours we have do actually speak French but it's one difference between Hanoi. Maybe it's just coincidence. I really do look forward to having a good relationship with the shop women, who don't rip us off at all, but I'm willing to give a tip.

The beach is only a 10 minute walk.

And the view from our rooftop terrace on the fourth floor is lovely....

It's not too hot right now, but hot enough for air conditioning. I do actually dread the hot summer that occurs here in Vietnam every year wherever you are in the country.

I look forward to adapting to a new lifestyle on the beach, new friends (but will never be beaten by my Hanoians), and positive change.

Love.
Cat.

P.S. If you would like photos of my house, please send me an email and I will email you the link for the album.