What Do the Men Do?
We've been traveling in Vietnam for officially one week and have obseverved many interesting things. One week certainly doesn't make us experts by any stretch, but sometimes it's more interesting just to sit back and try to make sense of things. One of the most glaring things that we've noticed so far is the far over-abundance of industrious Vietnamese women working and the lack of men doing likewise. I'm sure the men work, but the women just do EVERYTHING. Other than driving the cyclos (Vietnamese bicyle rickshaws), taxies, and motobike taxis, we've seen women here do everything.
In the morning, there are women hauling vegetables to sell in the markets or on the sidewalks. Then there are the women selling cooked food like pho noodles and banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches). The women don't just sell food from established store fronts, they have to carry all their cooking wares, bowls and food. We've seen women sweep the streets and run the dump trucks late in the evening. There are women running tour agencies, restaurants, and bicycle rental shops.
The men on the other hand, are much more mysterious. Similar to many Asian countries, they do a ton of lounging around. They are drinking tea in the morning, coffee in the afternoon, and beer in the evening. Sure, almost all the drivers are men, and there are plenty of men in the rice paddies, but the unproportional amount of working women vs. working men is staggering. Maybe they are all burgeoning entrepeneurs, wheeling and dealing their livelihoods. We would just like to know, "What do the men do?"
We left Hue yesterday morning on the Open Tour bus for Hoi An. The Open Tour system is a great way to travel through the bulk of Vietnam. It's extremely inexpensive. In fact, I'd be shocked if the tour companies don't lose money on these things. Basically, one can buy an open ticket from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi for around $25. You can get off at any of their stops and jump back on whenever you want. Or you can just book tickets from one stop to another. Our 4 hour trip (though it was only 150 km) from Hue to Hoi An cost us only $3 each. Its my theory that these companies try to make their money back by getting kickbacks on the stops we make and at the hotels or tour services that they try to get their passengers to book.
Hoi An is a completely different city from what we have traveled through so far. If anyone is familar with Yangshuo or Dali in China, Hoi An is very similar to those places. The old town has preserved much of the old architecure. Because of its strong Chinese and colonial influences the town seems trapped in times; straight out of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. The front door opens up to a living room area and then that opens up to an inner courtyard. There is usually a second story level that can be accessed through the second chamber. Pretty cool little town. Cars are not allowed into the Old Town which decreases the noise pollution dramatically. Bicycles are the norm here since town is flat as a pancake.
Other than walking around town and checking out the cool old buildings, most tourists visit the ubiquitious tailors all over town and get clothes made. We, of course, are not unlike the usual tourists and had to go and get some clothes made ourselves. I'm ordering a handful of work shirts, linen shirts and suits. Amy is ordering 5 dresses more to boot. I'm a little worried about my suits as the first fitting wasn't as exciting as I wanted it to be. Then again, I've never had clothes made to order before. I really like my linen shirts, but we'll see about the suits. We'll see.
One more day of refitting our clothes and then we're off to Nha Trang, Vietnam's premier beach town. Lounge heaven for us.
In the morning, there are women hauling vegetables to sell in the markets or on the sidewalks. Then there are the women selling cooked food like pho noodles and banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches). The women don't just sell food from established store fronts, they have to carry all their cooking wares, bowls and food. We've seen women sweep the streets and run the dump trucks late in the evening. There are women running tour agencies, restaurants, and bicycle rental shops.
The men on the other hand, are much more mysterious. Similar to many Asian countries, they do a ton of lounging around. They are drinking tea in the morning, coffee in the afternoon, and beer in the evening. Sure, almost all the drivers are men, and there are plenty of men in the rice paddies, but the unproportional amount of working women vs. working men is staggering. Maybe they are all burgeoning entrepeneurs, wheeling and dealing their livelihoods. We would just like to know, "What do the men do?"
We left Hue yesterday morning on the Open Tour bus for Hoi An. The Open Tour system is a great way to travel through the bulk of Vietnam. It's extremely inexpensive. In fact, I'd be shocked if the tour companies don't lose money on these things. Basically, one can buy an open ticket from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi for around $25. You can get off at any of their stops and jump back on whenever you want. Or you can just book tickets from one stop to another. Our 4 hour trip (though it was only 150 km) from Hue to Hoi An cost us only $3 each. Its my theory that these companies try to make their money back by getting kickbacks on the stops we make and at the hotels or tour services that they try to get their passengers to book.
Hoi An is a completely different city from what we have traveled through so far. If anyone is familar with Yangshuo or Dali in China, Hoi An is very similar to those places. The old town has preserved much of the old architecure. Because of its strong Chinese and colonial influences the town seems trapped in times; straight out of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. The front door opens up to a living room area and then that opens up to an inner courtyard. There is usually a second story level that can be accessed through the second chamber. Pretty cool little town. Cars are not allowed into the Old Town which decreases the noise pollution dramatically. Bicycles are the norm here since town is flat as a pancake.
Other than walking around town and checking out the cool old buildings, most tourists visit the ubiquitious tailors all over town and get clothes made. We, of course, are not unlike the usual tourists and had to go and get some clothes made ourselves. I'm ordering a handful of work shirts, linen shirts and suits. Amy is ordering 5 dresses more to boot. I'm a little worried about my suits as the first fitting wasn't as exciting as I wanted it to be. Then again, I've never had clothes made to order before. I really like my linen shirts, but we'll see about the suits. We'll see.
One more day of refitting our clothes and then we're off to Nha Trang, Vietnam's premier beach town. Lounge heaven for us.
posted by amy & albert at 6:52 AM
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