One of the first things that I noticed about Ho Chi Minh City was that my senses were constantly being assaulted. The traffic was loud and smelly, as motorbikes, cars and taxis sped by. It took me about a week to feel confident enough to cross the street without that one moment of panic and the thought that, “Oh my God I am going to die!” After a man on a motorbike clipped me when he came up from behind me on the sidewalk, I realized that anywhere I can walk, motorbikes can travel too.
I often woke up to the sound of geckos laughing on my ceiling, dogs barking and the construction that was happening next door. Even the rain is loud here. One minute it can be very humid and sticky, and the next the rain is coming down in torrents. It is one of the more soothing sounds that I enjoyed while in Ho Chi Minh City, along with the Buddhist man I sometimes heard singing off of his balcony from the building next door.
Another quirk of the city is the burning of incense. Both in shops and on the street, there are pots of sand with red pieces of incense sticking out of them. When I saw one on the bus and asked what it was for, I learned that people can take the incense and burn it in front of the bus before it leaves, to promote a safe trip. Incense is burned on the streets so that wandering spirits who wish to cause accidents will be appeased and quieted. I don’t think this happens very often though, because I do not know how anyone could even take a piece of incense from its package hanging on the bus wall, before it speeds away. To live in Ho Chi Minh City was to be in motion, in sync with the city, harmonizing. I learned that though there are innumerable things to absorb, it is important to rest and take some time off. This allowed me to process and appreciate everything more the next time I went out exploring.
The scents here range from those of foods cooking on the street, to rotting in the gutters. One of my favorite smells is one which wafts up from a man’s waffle stand. Stands like his appear and disappear regularly. The city is always changing and the food that you planned on eating every day until the end of your trip because it was so yummy, probably won’t be there tomorrow. Some stores open when others close, so even though you may walk up and down the same street, depending on the time of day it may look different.
The people are very kind to foreigners. Every coffee shop I enter the people are friendly and want to get to know me. People are very eager to learn why I have come to Vietnam, whether I like it here and how long I will be staying? A woman at a dress shop I visited said, “Please come back! I can make anything you want! Tell all of your friends!” She was very sweet and because she was so kind, she made me want to tell everybody I know about her cute little shop and the friendly woman who works there. People are very eager to help me practice my Vietnamese. They may laugh at me sometimes, which took some getting used to, but I now know that it is only because they think my American accent sounds funny when I speak Vietnamese. It is also difficult to speak Vietnamese with people who don’t speak very much English because even when I try to speak Vietnamese, to them, it sounds strange because of my accent and they expect me to speak English. They do not expect foreigners to speak Vietnamese, so when I try and they listen, they have a hard time distinguishing between English and Vietnamese.
Taste is also different here. I have tried many things that I wouldn’t usually eat, simply because I am in Vietnam. I have eaten snails which were yummy, as well as cow blood, in both soup broth and in jelly form. I did not like the snake that I ate but I was told that it was cooked improperly. I would not mind trying snake again when it doesn’t resemble and taste like rubber. I also wasn’t particularly fond of the mouse and the fried frog legs I had. There were many little bones in the mouse meat, which made munching difficult, even though it was in a tasty sauce. The frog was a strange texture, which reminded me of chicken and fish. I am also not a fan of squid, mostly because of the texture which is also sort of chewy. The flavors of Vietnam are full bodied and surprising. I have had the best scallops I have ever eaten out of a large seafood eatery, which was hidden down an alley.
I was touched by Ho Chi Minh City. It being the first part of Vietnam that I was introduced to. I am already looking forward to returning in December, at the end of my semester abroad. For now though, I am in Hanoi and discovering another Vietnamese City for the first time. The results will follow soon!
This picture is the shrine inside the house of a Vietnamese buddy. Her family’s hospitality was amazing and the food was delicious.
I have to warn you that before you guys judge this meal was probably one of the best that I have ever had. Although this is not a picture of a shrine it is meal eaten only at the end of the year because it is suppose to bring good luck. However if you eat it at the beginning of the year you will receive bad luck. Can anyone tell what it is yet? It is dog meat! Yum. 
explorewithasmile, 
appelsina7, 
asiapod: walk~talk~learn 
DougReilly 3:30 pm on October 23, 2012 Permalink |
Adrian,
Glad to see you up and running on the blog. I applaud you for being open minded and in this case, culturally relativist. The distinctions we make between pet and meal, companion and nourishment, is culturally bound and varies from culture to culture to a huge degree. I look forward to more daring and insightful posts from you! Doug
Tatianna Jasmine 5:29 pm on November 9, 2012 Permalink |
Adrian!! Kudos to you for trying dog meat. While I was in Vietnam I could never get pass the idea of eating a dog. I am so glad you are being adventurous. Keep it up, i’d love to see all fo the other cool things you have been up to