Hanoi, Vietnam I expected a lot from Vietnam, after so many friends raved about its wonders. I come away disappointed. I looked forward to a idyllic, verdant, and exotic land; and I got a noisy, grimy, and smelly place. Maybe I am being a bit harsh here. I enjoyed Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) and Hanoi, but the areas in between, like an internet stock, did not live up to their billing. Dalat, the central highland paradise; Nha Trang, the beach party spot, Hoi An, the charming old colonial port; and Hue, the historic Imperial City, all fell short of my anticipated splendor. Instead, all struck me as typical Southeast Asian third world cities - grey, drab, uninspired, monotonous concrete blocks construction so prevalent as it's cheap and resists the rainly monsoon weather well. Filled with traffic and avaricious locals. Paris but for Parisians The only Vietnamese I met all wanted one thing: money, US Dollars, hard currency. The typical daily litany: "postcard...you buy postcard from me! Where you from? Moto Moto? Cyclo - where you go? Woohoo! One hour cheap cheap You want shoeshine? Why not? You buy book from me? Hello, hello Guidebook? You come in my store! You cannot walk ten feet without being pestered. AAAGGGHHHHH!! Everyone you meet sees you as a walking ATM, dispensing Dong like some Johhny Appleseed! You quickly develop a siege mentality. In the morning you manage a smile and a firm NO; you walk briskly. By noon you ignore them completely. By evening, you want to punch even the kids. |
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Cynicism sets in. You see a blind man led by a teenager begging for money - you dismiss this unfortunate person believing he probably rents himslef out to beggers as a sympathy ploy. You begin to see every Vietnamese you meet as Egyptian camel drivers at Giza or Turkish carpet salesmen in Istanbul - a common breed of snake oil selling sub-humans. To be scorned and ignored, yet as inescapable as mosquitos, as aggressive as Africanized bees, attacking in swarms.
Rain, rain, go away...
It rained incessantly, from the day I left Saigon to my arrival in Hanoi. So a lot of activities ended up curtailed and I spent lots of time just reading in my hotel room. Rain and gray skies cast a pall over everything, especially my mood. Also, it being the holidays, I felt alone, separated from family and friends and all things familiar.
So I did not play golf in Dalat as planned. I did not lie on the white beaches of Nha Trang. I did not cruise the Perfume river or ancient tombs of Hue or Hoi An. And I did not visit the DMZ battlefields of which I read so much about as a teenager.
My listlessness and inactivity no doubt reinforced the gray mood the overcast skies put me in. Compounded by some desire to save money, I skimped on those minor luxuries which may have thrown some light into the murk. I ate sparing meals, sans soft drinks or sweets; lived in cheap hostels, where peeling walls and dank bathrooms predominated. In retrospect, I did little to alter my self-reinforced gloom.
The Telltale Heart
I felt real guilty for not enjoying myself as I expected to here in Vietnam. I felt in some way like I let down those who enjoyed this country in such an enthusiastic way. I felt like someone at a pretentious NY dinner party of self-proclaimed congnescenti who admits (gasp) to disliking the latest book/movie/restaurant that everyone raved about. An outcast.
We are raised with others' expectations imprinted on us; by parents, siblings, teachers, friends, coworkers, TV, etc. Shedding those expectations does not come easily like a snake shedding its skin.
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