Shocking I know (a bit of a rant if you want to skip)

There’s been a good degree of culture shock to this trip for the both of us already. Its hard not to start stero-typing people after years of working with an International school and recently living in China for one year. We’re not you’re a-tpyical backpackers cause the culture shocks of the countryside aren’t so ‘shocking’ anymore. I already told Jason but its hard not to feel ripped off to some degree – you see these travelers that have been on the road for maybe 6 weeks or a couple of months yet they’re eating pizza and chocolate croissants (ok so I’m a little obsessed with the croissants) and they get hot showers adjacent to their rooms when they want. I feel like I’ve had to work a year for this! Like this is my reward that I’ve worked hard for and done without for so long and their just ‘enjoying’ it like its ordinary street food! Oh, I’ve been in China too long…I’m not bitter but this is my first time out and I guess you can probably tell!

But back to the stero-typing (‘cause its fun) – those of you that have traveled overseas before would get a kick out of that movie ‘My Life in Ruins’ – completely a chick flick but she does this thing at the beginning where she scarily accurately puts everyone in a stero-type. Here’s my own version:

There’s always the Americans who’ve never been anywhere before. There’s always the Australians that are so drunk you can’t understand them anymore (or wished you couldn’t – at 4am I don’t care who you sex with but stop calling it the Amazon – its Vietnam for crying out loud). There’s the family with the teenager daughters, trying to do something ‘together’ (one is always laden with shopping bags and the other is either goth or emo and walks about 8 metres behind). There’s the sweet older couple (“Is it me, dear? I can’t understand the waiter’s English at all…” To which you can’t help but sympethically answer that no, his English is bad and help them interpret the menu…even if his English is fine but their English is not so great…). The divorced women – not too many of them prowling Southeast Asia – their money’s usually on the Europeans or Brazilians (Asians are too short…although I hear the market for Asian boyfriends is in Indonesia, especially if you’re rich and over 50). The young, independent single girls who want to be mini Mother Theresas and save the world before starting a promising career or getting married. Then my favourites -- young newly weds (who apparently invited the right people – ones that had money – to their wedding) and the “I’m-graduated-(or not quite graduated)-and-want-to-do-something-significant-with-my-life-but-I-don’t-know-what” people (best conversations and these people are usually the least judgemental). And finally for now -- my least favourite -- the sleazy old men looking for their very own, real life Asian porn…yeah we’ll stop the list here.

Everyone here for a good time. Everyone here to experience what Asia – Vietnam in particular – has to offer them. The thing we notice though is that Vietnam, is really good at back-packers/tourists. She knows just what to say and where to send you so you’ll have a really good time, buy a few lanterns and experience “back-packer Vietnam”. We’re used to the raw, squat in a hole, the locals are out to rip you off, kind of culture. So this trip is a little bit of an adjustment for us. Jason threw a motorbike taxi off guard the other day when he called him out on quoting us one price for the ride and then charging us another. Then they went back and forth for several minutes until Jason said he’d walk away with the money and not give the driver any. I don’t think they’re used to foreigners picking up on these kinds of things because we’ve seen foreigners paying prices far beyond what we know the locals pay. Yes, things are cheap, and yes, we could afford to pay a little bit more – but as I see it, its enabling a dishonest culture. Everyone should pay the same and be paid the same – that’s fair trade.

And its tough not being able to speak the language (again). Its very encouraging on one hand because I now realize just how much I can communicate in Chinese. Now I’m back to not being able to explain beyond their basic English why it is I don’t want to pay that price or stay at that hotel. Vietnamese is a beautiful language though – it sounds much prettier than Mandarin. We’d both like to learn in sometime in the next 10 years too since we live so close. Its like singing and laughter rolled into a spoken tongue – although it has six tones as opposed to Mandarins four and I’m already having a hard enough time with that!

But there’s always a first time for everything right? I rode my first motorbike taxi upon arrival to Hanoi and can I tell you, there’s nothing more exhilarating than riding a motorbike with a little Asian man driving you on the wrong side of the road?! I’m hooked! Some people jump go base jumping – I ride motorbikes in Asia.