What a load of nonsense.
The poor girl, Le Nguyen Quynh Anh, sang on Vietnam's got talent and quite rightly got told she could not continue in the competition. I don't need to be a judge to know that her voice is hardly inspiring. So at the end of her performance her mother comes onto the stage to protest her daughter's brilliance. I know it's an Asian thing, just as prevelant here in Vietnam as in China and Korea, the 'tiger mother' syndrome. But can we please just love our children for who they are? Is that such a complex thing to understand? Can't these parents see what they are doing to the mental health of their children?
Obviously not, as Quynh Anh's mother, on top of totally humiliating her daughter on national television, decided to write to the party to complain too! Now the family are complaining of being treated unfairly by the television network, of being made to look stupid.
Your first mistake was going on stage to say your daughter was good when she isn't. That DID make you look stupid. Not much work for the editors there. Your second mistake was to then continue your protests publicly and at a governmental level. Now you look even more stupid, because you won't let it go, and your detachment from reality takes the breath away. This probably led to the paradoy on VTV3.
Yes, TV shows should not edit programs to make people out to be stupid, but this is the nature of the beast - don't put yourself in that position in the first place and it won't happen. They don't make the talented ones out to be crazy do they? Take the hint. Love your kids, but don't build them up their whole lives on false promise because one day that matchstick castle will come tumbling down.
The finger pointing has to stop!
Showing posts with label comment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label comment. Show all posts
Feb 29, 2012
Jul 21, 2011
Notes from abroad
We are coming towards the end of our summer trip now having been out of Vietnam since the 10th of June. We've around England and Italy a little bit and also visited Chi's brother and family once again (story relayed here and here).
Comfortably asleep in cattle class torture chair:
And once awake again, reading a magazine, one of many activities attempted to keep her still for 5 minutes. Others included the ipad, a puzzle book, eating, singing songs, playing with the seatbelt, jumping up and down, looking out of the window, walking up and down the aisles, and on her part - constant wriggling and an epic tantrum ending with lying on the floor under the seats and refusing to move.
How is it doing all this travelling with a toddler you might ask. Well - the answer is - hard. BUT, as with all life's situations, you get on with it. Lou had already travelled from England to Vietnam, Malaysia, Greece and Thailand experiencing aeroplanes and boats and buses and cars many times, so adding another cross continental trip to England, Italy, Switzerland and France shouldn't be a problem. We thought. Those baby memories of earlier trips were probably of blurred lights and weird faces as she was moved from one crib to another. Now, with a fully functioning pair of legs and a non stop mind, the excitement of the whole trip was like aphrodisiac to a rutting rhino. She did remarkably well to last until nearly 1.00am in Bangkok airport before falling asleep for 7 hours on the overnight flight to Bangkok.
Lou looking dishevelled trying to keep her eyes open about 10 mins before boarding the 1.10am to London.
Lou looking dishevelled trying to keep her eyes open about 10 mins before boarding the 1.10am to London.
Comfortably asleep in cattle class torture chair:
And once awake again, reading a magazine, one of many activities attempted to keep her still for 5 minutes. Others included the ipad, a puzzle book, eating, singing songs, playing with the seatbelt, jumping up and down, looking out of the window, walking up and down the aisles, and on her part - constant wriggling and an epic tantrum ending with lying on the floor under the seats and refusing to move.
Once we landed the new country bought its first new experience, car seats. We do have one in Vietnam but only for long journeys and have not used it in a long time. A very tired, worn out toddler being asked to sit in a car seat when she is used to being cradled in mummy's lap in the back of a taxi = hard. She screamed for about an hour on the way home before passing out. It turned out to be a great lesson though, since that experience she has been as good as gold in that car seat.
So a few days in the UK having enormous fun with grandparents and uncle and auntie. Then it was off to Italy, more travelling but thankfully from our local airport 15 mins drive away. The outbound journey was relatively smooth.
Louisa attended to everything she had always wanted to do on her first visit to Italy, from visiting Florence, Pisa and Siena, sampling the local cuisine and puking all over herself and her seat in the hire car. Here she is at Ponte Vecchio:
Surveying the beach at Marina di Pisa.
Having fun in Siena's Piazza Del Campo.
So all in all a great bit of travel for her, and us of course. We returned to England for a couple of days again and then set off once more for a weekend in Gex. Chi had a chance to catch up with her brother and his family once more and we all had a great time once again thanks to the wonderful hospitality of brother Dai (Jean-Baptiste's) family.
Chi and brother, July 2011:
Since then we've been in the UK exploring the delights of Dorset, as much as the weather might allow...and we have gotten the real value of such a long trip home that I was looking for - experiences for my daughter that can't be had in Vietnam and some real time with my family. Her English has had an amazing boost too.
Activities have included trips the seaside with friends
Pony cart rides
Feeding all the swans at Abbotsbury
Exploring the rock pools at Osmington Mills
I get quite a few emails from various people in similar situations to myself - getting married in Vietnam, living in Vietnam or thinking of making the move, and also people thinking of moving back the other way. All I can say is - the UK is great for kids, so much to do especially the outdoors, but it is of course expensive. I'm lucky enough to have a job where I can spend time back in England in the summers if I wish. Personally, as a father, I'd like my daughter growing up with memories of England, similar memories to what I have, by doing these activities and more. It's important to me that she grows up with an equal knowledge of where I (and her) come from and that we instill a real sense of belonging and cultural identity in her, so that if she desires in the future, she can come to the UK and feel at home. For the time being she is growing up in Vietnam, but with a healthy dose of (my) home thrown in....
So a few days in the UK having enormous fun with grandparents and uncle and auntie. Then it was off to Italy, more travelling but thankfully from our local airport 15 mins drive away. The outbound journey was relatively smooth.
Surveying the beach at Marina di Pisa.
Having fun in Siena's Piazza Del Campo.
Pony cart rides
Feeding all the swans at Abbotsbury
Exploring the rock pools at Osmington Mills
Mar 19, 2010
That Vietnamese Thing
Ahhh family.
Or should that be: ARRRGGHHH! Family.
Those of us bethrothed to a lady of another nationality have not only the Mars/Venus collision to deal with but also the at times stupendous cultural differences to hurdle and manage. Understanding women is the holy grail of any man's life. Cultural 'clashes' however are certianly not always down to the wife and the wife alone, the accompanying family can have a large part to play in our headaches ( I will use the possessive pronoun 'our' representing all my bretheren in this situation).
In my experience potentially the most explosive sitauations are tiny misunderstandings. Things so easily get lost in translation, a sea of idioms, facial expressions and lost sarcasm. Never communicate important matters in writing. In the larger, longer term picture - we have to accept that there are some things about the Vietnamese that a foreigner may never understand - and that's not a bad thing either. For some it adds to the mystery and excitement. To others, it mounts into a burden of frustration. I know of many who have split from their foriegn spouses - but statistically we know of the divorce rates in western countries and should image the rate of divorce in mixed marriages is no higher if not much less. This article talks about it a little.
Now add children.
Our little babies come into the world and bless em they take over our lives and we watch them grow with joy. Parenting is a contentious issue in any household, never mind one that has to share the mindset of two continents. It starts from birth. Vietnamese traditions with regards to the birth of a child are not for the fainthearted and include the mother moving back in with her family, not leaving the house for a month and also not showering. Amongst many, many others. Personally, I think it all a load of nonsense with no basis in reality, but that's an opinion. I would have struggled to go along with it all if I was in a traditional family. Chi is also not worried or concerned with 'traditions' of this nature and although she has a large family, they are not close. Furthermore we had Louisa in England, away from all that cultural interference that, I am sure, just adds to the stress of the new mother who just wants to be left alone with her new baby. For this, Chi was doubly glad. It was a nice start. Others suffer the brutal onslaught of aunts and nannies and grandmothers storming the poor little thing and dicatating the environment and conditions of the first weeks and months. I guess it all depends on your family situation, but I'd imagine most westerners come to a compromise with thier adopted families - as in, when to back the expletive away from my little son/daughter and let me do it.
As soon as we returned to Nam with our 7 month old daughter under our arm the 'advice' began. Two tendancies the Vietnamese seem to have towards babies. One is to gorge them on food - gigantic bottles of formula milk being shoved into their mouths. When they should be moving onto solid foods (natures hint is the teeth she provides), they tend to be force fed bottles of liquid food as well, even until they are 2 or older. Louisa has been chewing on carrots and eating rice since she was younger then a year old. Concerned aunts seemingly try and grind Chi down by saying that Louisa is 'too thin' just because she is not as 'plump' as all the other babies. You can see them with a big bottle of food and a small towel hidden behind their backs just desperate to shove the whole lot down her throat and fatten her up. Well, she looks OK to me. Proud to say, 100% breast fed till this very day.
Or should that be: ARRRGGHHH! Family.
Those of us bethrothed to a lady of another nationality have not only the Mars/Venus collision to deal with but also the at times stupendous cultural differences to hurdle and manage. Understanding women is the holy grail of any man's life. Cultural 'clashes' however are certianly not always down to the wife and the wife alone, the accompanying family can have a large part to play in our headaches ( I will use the possessive pronoun 'our' representing all my bretheren in this situation).
In my experience potentially the most explosive sitauations are tiny misunderstandings. Things so easily get lost in translation, a sea of idioms, facial expressions and lost sarcasm. Never communicate important matters in writing. In the larger, longer term picture - we have to accept that there are some things about the Vietnamese that a foreigner may never understand - and that's not a bad thing either. For some it adds to the mystery and excitement. To others, it mounts into a burden of frustration. I know of many who have split from their foriegn spouses - but statistically we know of the divorce rates in western countries and should image the rate of divorce in mixed marriages is no higher if not much less. This article talks about it a little.
Now add children.
Our little babies come into the world and bless em they take over our lives and we watch them grow with joy. Parenting is a contentious issue in any household, never mind one that has to share the mindset of two continents. It starts from birth. Vietnamese traditions with regards to the birth of a child are not for the fainthearted and include the mother moving back in with her family, not leaving the house for a month and also not showering. Amongst many, many others. Personally, I think it all a load of nonsense with no basis in reality, but that's an opinion. I would have struggled to go along with it all if I was in a traditional family. Chi is also not worried or concerned with 'traditions' of this nature and although she has a large family, they are not close. Furthermore we had Louisa in England, away from all that cultural interference that, I am sure, just adds to the stress of the new mother who just wants to be left alone with her new baby. For this, Chi was doubly glad. It was a nice start. Others suffer the brutal onslaught of aunts and nannies and grandmothers storming the poor little thing and dicatating the environment and conditions of the first weeks and months. I guess it all depends on your family situation, but I'd imagine most westerners come to a compromise with thier adopted families - as in, when to back the expletive away from my little son/daughter and let me do it.
As soon as we returned to Nam with our 7 month old daughter under our arm the 'advice' began. Two tendancies the Vietnamese seem to have towards babies. One is to gorge them on food - gigantic bottles of formula milk being shoved into their mouths. When they should be moving onto solid foods (natures hint is the teeth she provides), they tend to be force fed bottles of liquid food as well, even until they are 2 or older. Louisa has been chewing on carrots and eating rice since she was younger then a year old. Concerned aunts seemingly try and grind Chi down by saying that Louisa is 'too thin' just because she is not as 'plump' as all the other babies. You can see them with a big bottle of food and a small towel hidden behind their backs just desperate to shove the whole lot down her throat and fatten her up. Well, she looks OK to me. Proud to say, 100% breast fed till this very day.
Taking a walk in the park and a Vietnamese father in broken English asks me when Lou started to run around like a maniac, as she was at the time. I told him she started walking between nine and ten months old. Rather pitifully he looked at his 13 month year old son who still could only sit on his bum. 'What kind of milk does she drink'? he asked me, as if all he needed to do was change his brand and suddenly his son would be up and about. Sure, children develop at different speeds, but absolutely no doubt about it, the environment you create for them has a massive impact as well. And this is point number two. We call it mollycoddling. Overprotection. Incessant carrying of the child doesn't help it develop muscles in order to lift its head, then crawl, then grab the furniture and haul itself up and eventually take its first steps. Babies get carried here I feel way too much when they should be left on their backs and then their fronts in a safe space on the floor. It is also, in my opinion, essential that baby smacks his or her head on the table in order to learn that table is hard and it hurts when you smack your head on it. Same goes for eating dirt/flowers/grass/grit/fluff etc. Depriving these sensory learning experiences that wire the brain with a proper understanding of the world impedes development.
I would add my own disclaimer - T.V. This flickering, confusing and noisy instrument has no educational benefit for young children - yes, even if it is on Disney channel. What it does do is interfere with the development of the area of the brain that handles attention - and the ability to hold attention. Whilst the child is staring hypnotised at the machine it is missing out on the more important happenings around it such as watching and hearing the conversations of adults in the room - amongst the many health problems associated with over exposure to TV is attentional disorders and speech problems. Anyone wants a copy of this book, mail me. I digress, TV is by no means an exclusively Vietnamese problem.
Hopefully I've explained some of the pitfalls and tribulations involved in a mixed marriage and raising children within one, and some of the irritations I have come across being a father in Vietnam. All stereotypes within this post must be forgiven for the sake of the whole.
Finally, here's our daughter Louisa, 16 months old, with her latest trick, making herself dizzy when the music comes on...
Aug 24, 2009
Swine flu asides
At coop mart they are handing out useless surgical masks when you spend over 200,000 VND. Chi just refused to take one point blank. "Don't give that to me...", she said, ah that's my girl, not caught up in this non-existent pandemic.A man came to change the toners in our Xerox wearing a mask. Chi asked "Why are you wearing that mask, are you scared of the swine flu?". "No", he replied, "I am wearing it because I thought you might be scared that I had swine flu". That pretty much sums up the madness that the WHO and the media have stirred up. "Take it off - in this house, no masks" quipped the wife.
The family keep whispering irritatingly ignorant points of view rebroadcast parrot fashion from the radio. "Don't take the baby around, it's not safe". Neighbours of the mother-in-law gossip to her - "Don't go to district seven, they have SWINE FLU there", Chi's friend not allowed to visit (despite being a grown adult). Two of our chefs from Connections Vietnam barred from working by their husbands because they might get SWINE FLU. People nattering on Facebook about WHERE TO BUY TAMIFLU (the proven to be dangerous and completly ineffective drug) in HCMC and if the vaccine is avaliable yet (untested and highly toxic, don't we ever learn anything?). Are they all crazy?!
How about less panic, fear and blind adherence to corporate media and more exercise, fresh air, healthy diet, vitamin D and good sleep. It's called an immune system people.
And yet we all have to go on, no matter how mad the world is.
But if anyone tries to take my temprature and certainly Chi's, look out because we can't garuntee where the thermometer will end up!
Aug 10, 2009
Petrol Station Madness
Having discovered Tuoi Tre's new English language website, Vietnews Online, I also discovered this story from Friday regarding a new 'decree' the government is 'mulling over' concerning retail fuel prices being set by the traders and being tagged to world crude prices. What really jumped out at me however was the following:
Another modification in the draft decree relates to the area size of filling stations. Area for parking must now be at least 20 meters in width and 10 meters from the pavement to fuel pumping machines.
The ministry estimates hundreds of filling stations in Ho Chi Minh City will be closed due to this new requirement.
Imagine the chaos if 'hundreds' of filling stations had to shut down...the roadside sellers of petrol will love that...or it could lead to more modern, larger and well equipped stations. What they should do is build bigger stations for cars/trucks only and leave the little ones for the bikes. I will try to follow this story and see if it develops any further.
Jul 11, 2009
Observations so far
We spent five nights in Happy Inn on Bui Vien next to Sozo cafe, and Chi said to me in the taxi from the airport 'I can't believe I am staying on Bui Vien'. I suppose it must be like someone from a district of Sydney coming back to Aus and going to stay in Kings Cross...but nice hotel overall.
As usual with moving house Internet access has been hard to come by and I've not had the chance to snap many pictures either. But here are a few observations so far:
What used to be a quaint little hotel on the corner of De Tham and Bui Vien has changed into this garish monstrosity. Crazy Buffalo. At night the neon lights up some multicoloured steam....
On a positive note (I think) one Lotteria has actually gone (probably replaced by another 16 elsewhere). Allez Boo is back, just on the opposite corner where the Lotteria was for a while.
One of the top five urine smelling streets in Saigon has been cleaned up as well, this is the little bit of pavement running from PNL up to Le Lai. It used to be a green fence that was saturated in cyclo driver by-product, no it looks a lot better.
Finally, the Phy My bridge is ready for opening in September. Looks pretty good! It will connect district seven to district two. I am hoping, praying, that it will take away the need for the heavy container traffic from the ports to travel through District 4 and then along Ton Duc Thang to get out of the city.
Other things:
1) A gaggle of women in Chi's mum's neighbourhood said we should put a T-shirt on Louisa to keep her lungs warm.
2) On two separate occasions a taxi driver has tried to insert the pushchair into his saloon car boot before folding it up.
3) Everyone thinks Louisa is a boy because she didn't have her ears pierced in the delivery room.
As usual with moving house Internet access has been hard to come by and I've not had the chance to snap many pictures either. But here are a few observations so far:
What used to be a quaint little hotel on the corner of De Tham and Bui Vien has changed into this garish monstrosity. Crazy Buffalo. At night the neon lights up some multicoloured steam....
On a positive note (I think) one Lotteria has actually gone (probably replaced by another 16 elsewhere). Allez Boo is back, just on the opposite corner where the Lotteria was for a while.
One of the top five urine smelling streets in Saigon has been cleaned up as well, this is the little bit of pavement running from PNL up to Le Lai. It used to be a green fence that was saturated in cyclo driver by-product, no it looks a lot better.
Finally, the Phy My bridge is ready for opening in September. Looks pretty good! It will connect district seven to district two. I am hoping, praying, that it will take away the need for the heavy container traffic from the ports to travel through District 4 and then along Ton Duc Thang to get out of the city.
Other things:
1) A gaggle of women in Chi's mum's neighbourhood said we should put a T-shirt on Louisa to keep her lungs warm.
2) On two separate occasions a taxi driver has tried to insert the pushchair into his saloon car boot before folding it up.
3) Everyone thinks Louisa is a boy because she didn't have her ears pierced in the delivery room.
Apr 11, 2009
Passport craziness
I remember when I was a kid we were included in our parents pass ports. Now even little babies need pass ports. So in five years time when Lousia is a walking talking little girl with long hair I'll be showing this picture of a 10 week old baby to grim faced immigration officials.
Louisa says:
Louisa says:
"That's bloody stupid, but they must be making a fortune from all those extra passports."
Feb 3, 2009
UK Update
You may have seen the media circus regarding the snow over here in the UK. Well yes, it certianly is snowing, thankfully I have had the last two days off. Here's what it looks like our end..(wish you were here...and wish I was on a tropical beach in a hammock...)
Aug 24, 2008
A driver's theory
Driving. England. Vietnam.
Let's look at the differences.
I'm currently learning to drive, and before you can take any practical tests you have to pass a theoretical test, a multiple choice exam where you need to score 43/50. Also required is a 'hazard perception test' where you watch 14 video clips and have to click the mouse when you see a hazard developing. Points are scored based on your reaction time to the hazard, from 5 to 1. To pass this puppy you need 44/75 points.
I really wanted to share some of my test questions for a couple of reasons. One is comdey value based on our shared interest in Vietnam and our tounge in cheek knowledge of its roads, two is highlighting some of the more patronising questions I've had to suffer. This is the way people are treated in my country...
Hopefully you can read these questions, if not use Cntrl and + to zoom in.
This one is designed to test your 'attitude'.
Two for a little Saigonese driving style humour now....I have selected the appropriate answers.
Let's look at the differences.
I'm currently learning to drive, and before you can take any practical tests you have to pass a theoretical test, a multiple choice exam where you need to score 43/50. Also required is a 'hazard perception test' where you watch 14 video clips and have to click the mouse when you see a hazard developing. Points are scored based on your reaction time to the hazard, from 5 to 1. To pass this puppy you need 44/75 points.
I really wanted to share some of my test questions for a couple of reasons. One is comdey value based on our shared interest in Vietnam and our tounge in cheek knowledge of its roads, two is highlighting some of the more patronising questions I've had to suffer. This is the way people are treated in my country...
Hopefully you can read these questions, if not use Cntrl and + to zoom in.
This one is designed to test your 'attitude'.
This one asks what you should do if your car breaks down on a level crossing (basically on a railway line) and the bell starts to go off...
Two for a little Saigonese driving style humour now....I have selected the appropriate answers.
What do you mean "that's not the right answer.."!.
Jun 16, 2008
Typical Day
The weekend is over, a weekend which involved a long and emotional school closing ceremony. A weekend which preceded a long and emotional 5 days at school, where many goodbyes to students and fellow teachers were shared in the form of cards, gifts, photos, emails and probably to be broken promises. Sharing the same building with around 250 people for ten months straight can be an intense experience, and it’s amazing how well you can get to know each and every one of those people. That’s what teaching is, an intense experience which you commit yourself to, all or nothing, physically and emotionally draining but incredibly rewarding and meaningful. And when it is over, you look back and think WOW. I survived. So as the day started on Monday it was a surreal, brilliant natural high to be on the first day of summer holidays. Recharge time. Yet I still find myself in the middle of this city, with its citizens. Still two more weeks before leaving
06:20 – Awakened with a startle and then a groan of realisation. The guys who do that mental drumming with dragon dancing, they practice on the other side of the canal, just outside our apartments. Just a combination of bass drum, cymbal and other percussion being slammed, smacked and bashed as hard as possible in something resembling a rhythm. But it’s 6.20. They do that for an hour.
07:30 – Pour out my bowl of cereal and observe the ants come streaming out of it. Damn it! Left the box on the fridge again. The only ant proof place in the apartment is deep inside the refrigerator.
09:00 – Yoga. Morning class with Japanese housewives. Get a damn good sweat on and feel great for the rest of the day.
11:00 – Get a haircut. Have a weird conversation with the hairdresser (as usual) where I just smile and nod at whatever he says even though I understand about 25% of what he is saying. Nice bloke.
11:30 – Go shopping at the supermarket in tax plaza.
12:00 – At home watching the repeat of the 4th round of the
14:30 – Head to the bank. Here I have to transfer money to my account in the
She comes back and I’m in. That is until the papers get put onto the desk of a big fat guy in a blue shirt at another desk but right in the middle of the bank, I am presuming he is the manager (and white shirt at the next desk one day aspires to sit at the desk in the middle). I can tell he is a class A ***** just from looking at him. Seen it all before. He grabs the papers and starts making a fuss. He knows I’m watching him. It’s all for show. He tells the poor flustered woman that they can’t buy sterling today. She tells me. I tell her whilst tapping loudly on the perspex and pointing over at fatso ‘I want to speak to him’. He sees this and begins to look worried. She says he is trying to get sterling from other banks. Ahem. OK….so he plays around on the phone and after 5 minutes of pretending to phone people he grunts out ‘OK’ and gives her the thumbs up. He leans back thinking smugly ‘ha I weaseled out of that one well…’…seen The Office anyone?! As the green light is given a man next to me gives me the thumbs up and says bravo. A small victory for the people.
That’s only half the day and I am exhausted. Good night!
Jun 4, 2008
Economic Slide
Today I happened to catch the BBC World News Business program, and they had a short but worrying analysis from the studios of the Asia Business Report program, also on the BBC. The fact that inflation up to 25% is no secret, but the report stated this was only matched or beaten in Asia by Sri Lanka and Burma...The report also suggested that Vietnam is in serious danger of having to revalue the Dong by as much as 7,000 to the USD (taking it to 22/23,000 to $1) in order to stabalise the economy and this uncontrollable inflation (not now but sometime in the future).
Here is a link : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7431195.stm : Although I am not sure if it is the same report I saw, I can't actually get the vid to play from here!
All of a sudden, after years of posturing and confidence and bravado, the wheels are falling off. Banks are unwilling to sell $$$ and the tourist rate is up to 17,500. Stories of construction companies halting work are rife, with cost of materials now too high to make projects worth completing. Government money that was probably earmarked for much needed infrastructure projects around the country -- trains, bridges, roads -- may now need to be spent on funding vital imports. The situation is the same as in many countries such as India for example, where world oil prices are driving up fuel and food therefore raising the cost of living. In Malaysia the government recently announced it was halting all fuel subsidies, meaning price increases of 40%.
Life is getting tougher for millions of people across Vietnam right now, and possibly this is the time that the facade of development (in my opinion) in this country is exposed. A recent Thanh Nien report debated the validity of the poverty line - calculated at 16% living below the minimum average monthly income per capita of $16.1 in urban areas (http://www.thanhniennews.com/commentaries/?catid=11&newsid=38688). And that is for families. I fail to see how a family living with $17 a month is NOT living in poverty, the other problem as pointed out by TN is that the statistics were calculated for a set 5 year period beginning 2006 and ending in 2010, and not taking into account the rate of inflation! As wages in Vietnam are hardly tied to inflation, obviously the figures are misleading and the real poverty line is higher than 16%. TN constantly declares that foreign investors are not put off by the situation and continue to be attracted to Vietnam, but this has to be a major concern.
So, a spanner in the works of developing Vietnam. As the government tries to control inflation by curbing the growth rate, the hopes of a developed Vietnam may have to wait a few more years yet. 2020 was my magic year for a big improvement..but let's see what happens in the next couple of years. I am just thankful that I am able to earn a decent salary here and am not directly affected by supermarket/fuel price hikes. Others, ordinary Vietnamese, must well be feeling the pinch.
Here is a link : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7431195.stm : Although I am not sure if it is the same report I saw, I can't actually get the vid to play from here!
All of a sudden, after years of posturing and confidence and bravado, the wheels are falling off. Banks are unwilling to sell $$$ and the tourist rate is up to 17,500. Stories of construction companies halting work are rife, with cost of materials now too high to make projects worth completing. Government money that was probably earmarked for much needed infrastructure projects around the country -- trains, bridges, roads -- may now need to be spent on funding vital imports. The situation is the same as in many countries such as India for example, where world oil prices are driving up fuel and food therefore raising the cost of living. In Malaysia the government recently announced it was halting all fuel subsidies, meaning price increases of 40%.
Life is getting tougher for millions of people across Vietnam right now, and possibly this is the time that the facade of development (in my opinion) in this country is exposed. A recent Thanh Nien report debated the validity of the poverty line - calculated at 16% living below the minimum average monthly income per capita of $16.1 in urban areas (http://www.thanhniennews.com/commentaries/?catid=11&newsid=38688). And that is for families. I fail to see how a family living with $17 a month is NOT living in poverty, the other problem as pointed out by TN is that the statistics were calculated for a set 5 year period beginning 2006 and ending in 2010, and not taking into account the rate of inflation! As wages in Vietnam are hardly tied to inflation, obviously the figures are misleading and the real poverty line is higher than 16%. TN constantly declares that foreign investors are not put off by the situation and continue to be attracted to Vietnam, but this has to be a major concern.
So, a spanner in the works of developing Vietnam. As the government tries to control inflation by curbing the growth rate, the hopes of a developed Vietnam may have to wait a few more years yet. 2020 was my magic year for a big improvement..but let's see what happens in the next couple of years. I am just thankful that I am able to earn a decent salary here and am not directly affected by supermarket/fuel price hikes. Others, ordinary Vietnamese, must well be feeling the pinch.
May 30, 2008
Moving On
As with every expat, the time to move on has arrived. It may not be forever, but from June 30th TFW will be on holiday. To return, I am sure. When, I am not so sure.
What with all this baby stuff (by stuff I mean having one), it seems a good a time as any to head home, spend time with family and finally get certified as a teacher. I will start a PGCE in IT at Southampton University in September, and Chi and I will leave Vietnam for Paris on June 30th.
"What about her family?!" I hear you cry -- well, Chi's situation is rather unique, and her story I am planning to write as one of my final posts.
Connections will still be going strong though, no worries there!
I'll also be starting my own blog based on integrating back into the UK after so long away, address to be announced soon.
What with all this baby stuff (by stuff I mean having one), it seems a good a time as any to head home, spend time with family and finally get certified as a teacher. I will start a PGCE in IT at Southampton University in September, and Chi and I will leave Vietnam for Paris on June 30th.
"What about her family?!" I hear you cry -- well, Chi's situation is rather unique, and her story I am planning to write as one of my final posts.
Connections will still be going strong though, no worries there!
I'll also be starting my own blog based on integrating back into the UK after so long away, address to be announced soon.
May 21, 2008
The trees!
Alas the trees. The only nice thing about the canal, that dirty, odious monstrosity that creeps around my apartment block, was the green grassy area shaded by trees adjacent to it. It was an oasis in the city, although barely three feet wide. I come home from work and they have been cut down in the prime of their oxygen giving life. Why I ask, why? No one seems to know why!
The xe om drivers made me laugh, they hadn't moved their bikes an inch the whole day, the lazy sods.
The xe om drivers made me laugh, they hadn't moved their bikes an inch the whole day, the lazy sods.
Why why why!
On a separate note, Phil, congrats to you too. Drop me an email pls so we can get in touch...
On a separate note, Phil, congrats to you too. Drop me an email pls so we can get in touch...
May 19, 2008
Bike Fashion
Very interesting story today on Thanh Nien News today. This crazy ass kitschy fashion invading Hanoi, youths decorating their bikes :
See the story here.
Anyone up in Hanoi witnessed any of this?! Love to see some more pictures. I'll have my eyes peeled for the first fashion victim down here in HCM!
Teens have beautified small two-wheelers with glitter and plastic flowers, giant silk butterflies and teddy bears, Christmas tinsel and paper parasols and, yes, feather boas, in an anything-goes creative arms race. Youngsters have rigged blinking lights, MP3 players and batteries to the frames to blast techno and hip-hop down previously tranquil tree-lined streets, earning them both amused smiles and reproachful looks from their elders.
See the story here.
Anyone up in Hanoi witnessed any of this?! Love to see some more pictures. I'll have my eyes peeled for the first fashion victim down here in HCM!
Mar 29, 2008
Talking about traffic : Real Solutions
A while back a gent called Neil Fitzgerald wrote a piece in Thanh Nien called 'No Through Road'. The piece talked about solutions to HCMC's increasing traffic problems. I wanted to comment on his thoughts and add a few of my own, by no means written from any area of expertise, just my opinions. Sorry for the lack of pictures which I had intended to accompany this post. Maybe I will repost when I have the time or inclination to head out during rush hour.
Neil Fitzgerald's solutions are as follows:
1) Public Transport.
Of course we will have the 'subway' of which only 3km will actually be underground. We have a number of lines built by various contractors : Japanese, Chinese, German. The Japanese line has 'broken ground' according to a friend of mine. The line however faces problems already. It has to run through an area bordering D1 owned by the military - they have told the contractors they will 'let them know in 2 years'.
Conclusion : Large part of the solution to some of the city's problems but will take too long to complete. Could open up the city to other options (discussed later).
2) Carpool
Korean executives and wealthy Vietnamese parade around in their cars one up plus driver, this is not going to change.
Conclusion: No way this is a solution.
3) Box Junctions
Yellow criss-cross grids in the road which are meant to show areas always to be kept free. The frequent occasions I have witnessed a bus, taxi or other driver exhibit about as much intellect as a wet vegetable by joining a cue directly in the center of a crossroads lead me to believe that road markings, no matter how threateningly they are painted, are useless. Box junctions are however in this sense indicative of Saigon's traffic problems.
My general feeling is that the traffic, no matter how busy, usually moves. However, along each tree-lined boulevard is a tightrope walking left turn across the other lane with no system of give way, a thin layer of ice about to be shattered by an impatient bus driver who presses into the wrong lane. The ebb and flow of the nimble two wheeled traffic is on a knife edge. Gridlock does occur, but usually due to someone else's stupidity.
Conclusion: Again, observation of newly painted box junctions is optimistic, and a drop in the ocean.
4) Widening streets
Many streets have the capacity to be widened, especially ones like the nightmarish Dien Bien Phu, also Vo Thi Sau.
Conclusion : Would help in some places.
Real Solutions - Short Term
------------------------------------
1) More traffic police.
Traffic police enable busy junctions to flow. We need many more such workers to police these junctions, at some places almost permanently.
2) Education
Educational campaigns to increase the observation of traffic laws. Education about using roads - i.e., cyclists staying to the right side of the road. It may seem like a minor point, but actually, the sight of three abreast high school children merrily sailing down the center of a street during rush hour painfully adds to the congestion. Slow moving traffic should be persuaded to stay on the inside.
3) Traffic Signals
More complex signals need to be introduced at certain points. For example, NTMK and CMTT allow both oncoming and left turning traffic. The resultant delay from left turning traffic blocking the oncoming traffic from the other direction means that only a small percentage of vehicles are able to get through. A signal allowing one direction at a time would allow a much greater flow of traffic although mean longer waits.
Roundabouts need the addition of traffic lights, most are horribly susceptible.
4) Road systems
Some current road systems are the main reason for rush hour queues, a ludicrous left turn with no signal or a small alley that allows people to cut across an insanely busy street. Certain routes need to be out of bounds during rush hours. My favourite is just after the Dien Tien Hoang - Dien Bien Phu junction, heading towards Vo Thi Sau. Here we have a series of disruptive systems that cause havoc with the flow of traffic.
Real Solutions - Long Term
------------------------------
Ho Chi Minh City is a massive urban area. The city is a never ending sea of junctions and traffic lights. Interwoven in this urban fabric are schools, government offices, businesses and residential areas. So much of the city's economic infrastructure is based in the five or so central districts, thousands of people commuting from surrounding provinces. Come five o clock when businesses are closing let's say you have to get from D5 or D10 to Binh Thanh, Phu Nhuan or Go Vap, all huge residential areas. Your options are reduced to one or two relatively narrow streets : Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Dien Bien Phu, 2/3....all horribly jammed in rush hour. Studies need to be done (if they haven't already) about where the traffic is coming from and assess the daily patterns of movement between districts and around the city. This can help better understand the strain currently felt on the existing road network.
With regard to residential areas, problems are faced by the uniqueness of areas in Ho Chi Minh. Hidden behind the boulevards and intersections are a labyrinth of alleyways and gated communities, each with their own economy of cafes, street sellers, food vendors, private tutors, refuse collectors and way of living. It is common for young Vietnamese to know this environment as the entire world, barely leaving the alley until they reach their late teens. Urban Saigonese have been living this way for generations, however it is essential that they are open to adapting new ways of life in order to cure the cities problems and make it increasingly livable for everybody.
Look to Singapore or Seoul, Tokyo or KL. All massive urban areas, mostly developed relatively recently. Especially in Singapore and Seoul, the solution has been housing projects on a massive scale, all linked to the main business districts of the city center by efficient transport. We have to recognise that HCMC is no longer the small city that some perceive it to be, rather that it will in the future be a massive area of people as its boundaries continue to expand in all directions. According to Wikipedia, HCMC's urban area is the 28th largest in the world, just one place below Bangkok, two below London, and two-thirds the size of Beijing -- it is bigger than the areas in Hong Kong, Taipei, Tehran and Dhaka, not to mention European cities such as Madrid and Milan.
The current developments we see are sporadic apartment blocks going up still inside the city. This is a drop in the ocean compared to what is needed. Train lines running from the city center to outlying areas such as Suoi Tien and Go Vap put in place the infrastructure for large scale mid-range housing projects. Given the choice, I feel most Vietnamese would prefer a couple of short train journeys, say one hour in length, compared to one hour of wrestle and sweat on a motorbike on the cities streets.
It is OK to say that the apartment blocks in Seoul and Singapore are ugly and lack character, but they are ruthlessly efficient in keeping bulging populations in check. Just a small corner of Seoul, but look at the housing available....in 3D, apartments.
These developments may take some convincing for Saigon city residents to make the move but they would soon discover the benefits of out of town developments. More space. Cleaner air. Infrastructure naturally follows such as businesses, shops, cafes. Cheaper rent away from the city (for residents and businesses). All linked to the cities metro system with close convenient stations. Distance and journey times are skewered in Vietnam because of the congestion but with good transport links the actual distances are very short.
To go a step further, the future may be in developing 'satellite' cities, such as in Korea. These are whole urban areas that are modern, well planned, have plentiful housing and attract people -- creating an alternative to what is now available. I visited my friend in Illsan, Korea, one such city. Linked to the main hub by train and newly built highways, these new cities could be the future of the entire Mekong Delta region - the question is, could the population adapt.
Neil Fitzgerald's solutions are as follows:
1) Public Transport.
Of course we will have the 'subway' of which only 3km will actually be underground. We have a number of lines built by various contractors : Japanese, Chinese, German. The Japanese line has 'broken ground' according to a friend of mine. The line however faces problems already. It has to run through an area bordering D1 owned by the military - they have told the contractors they will 'let them know in 2 years'.
Conclusion : Large part of the solution to some of the city's problems but will take too long to complete. Could open up the city to other options (discussed later).
2) Carpool
Korean executives and wealthy Vietnamese parade around in their cars one up plus driver, this is not going to change.
Conclusion: No way this is a solution.
3) Box Junctions
Yellow criss-cross grids in the road which are meant to show areas always to be kept free. The frequent occasions I have witnessed a bus, taxi or other driver exhibit about as much intellect as a wet vegetable by joining a cue directly in the center of a crossroads lead me to believe that road markings, no matter how threateningly they are painted, are useless. Box junctions are however in this sense indicative of Saigon's traffic problems.
My general feeling is that the traffic, no matter how busy, usually moves. However, along each tree-lined boulevard is a tightrope walking left turn across the other lane with no system of give way, a thin layer of ice about to be shattered by an impatient bus driver who presses into the wrong lane. The ebb and flow of the nimble two wheeled traffic is on a knife edge. Gridlock does occur, but usually due to someone else's stupidity.
Conclusion: Again, observation of newly painted box junctions is optimistic, and a drop in the ocean.
4) Widening streets
Many streets have the capacity to be widened, especially ones like the nightmarish Dien Bien Phu, also Vo Thi Sau.
Conclusion : Would help in some places.
Real Solutions - Short Term
------------------------------------
1) More traffic police.
Traffic police enable busy junctions to flow. We need many more such workers to police these junctions, at some places almost permanently.
2) Education
Educational campaigns to increase the observation of traffic laws. Education about using roads - i.e., cyclists staying to the right side of the road. It may seem like a minor point, but actually, the sight of three abreast high school children merrily sailing down the center of a street during rush hour painfully adds to the congestion. Slow moving traffic should be persuaded to stay on the inside.
3) Traffic Signals
More complex signals need to be introduced at certain points. For example, NTMK and CMTT allow both oncoming and left turning traffic. The resultant delay from left turning traffic blocking the oncoming traffic from the other direction means that only a small percentage of vehicles are able to get through. A signal allowing one direction at a time would allow a much greater flow of traffic although mean longer waits.
Roundabouts need the addition of traffic lights, most are horribly susceptible.
4) Road systems
Some current road systems are the main reason for rush hour queues, a ludicrous left turn with no signal or a small alley that allows people to cut across an insanely busy street. Certain routes need to be out of bounds during rush hours. My favourite is just after the Dien Tien Hoang - Dien Bien Phu junction, heading towards Vo Thi Sau. Here we have a series of disruptive systems that cause havoc with the flow of traffic.
Real Solutions - Long Term
------------------------------
Ho Chi Minh City is a massive urban area. The city is a never ending sea of junctions and traffic lights. Interwoven in this urban fabric are schools, government offices, businesses and residential areas. So much of the city's economic infrastructure is based in the five or so central districts, thousands of people commuting from surrounding provinces. Come five o clock when businesses are closing let's say you have to get from D5 or D10 to Binh Thanh, Phu Nhuan or Go Vap, all huge residential areas. Your options are reduced to one or two relatively narrow streets : Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Dien Bien Phu, 2/3....all horribly jammed in rush hour. Studies need to be done (if they haven't already) about where the traffic is coming from and assess the daily patterns of movement between districts and around the city. This can help better understand the strain currently felt on the existing road network.
With regard to residential areas, problems are faced by the uniqueness of areas in Ho Chi Minh. Hidden behind the boulevards and intersections are a labyrinth of alleyways and gated communities, each with their own economy of cafes, street sellers, food vendors, private tutors, refuse collectors and way of living. It is common for young Vietnamese to know this environment as the entire world, barely leaving the alley until they reach their late teens. Urban Saigonese have been living this way for generations, however it is essential that they are open to adapting new ways of life in order to cure the cities problems and make it increasingly livable for everybody.
Look to Singapore or Seoul, Tokyo or KL. All massive urban areas, mostly developed relatively recently. Especially in Singapore and Seoul, the solution has been housing projects on a massive scale, all linked to the main business districts of the city center by efficient transport. We have to recognise that HCMC is no longer the small city that some perceive it to be, rather that it will in the future be a massive area of people as its boundaries continue to expand in all directions. According to Wikipedia, HCMC's urban area is the 28th largest in the world, just one place below Bangkok, two below London, and two-thirds the size of Beijing -- it is bigger than the areas in Hong Kong, Taipei, Tehran and Dhaka, not to mention European cities such as Madrid and Milan.
The current developments we see are sporadic apartment blocks going up still inside the city. This is a drop in the ocean compared to what is needed. Train lines running from the city center to outlying areas such as Suoi Tien and Go Vap put in place the infrastructure for large scale mid-range housing projects. Given the choice, I feel most Vietnamese would prefer a couple of short train journeys, say one hour in length, compared to one hour of wrestle and sweat on a motorbike on the cities streets.
It is OK to say that the apartment blocks in Seoul and Singapore are ugly and lack character, but they are ruthlessly efficient in keeping bulging populations in check. Just a small corner of Seoul, but look at the housing available....in 3D, apartments.
These developments may take some convincing for Saigon city residents to make the move but they would soon discover the benefits of out of town developments. More space. Cleaner air. Infrastructure naturally follows such as businesses, shops, cafes. Cheaper rent away from the city (for residents and businesses). All linked to the cities metro system with close convenient stations. Distance and journey times are skewered in Vietnam because of the congestion but with good transport links the actual distances are very short.
To go a step further, the future may be in developing 'satellite' cities, such as in Korea. These are whole urban areas that are modern, well planned, have plentiful housing and attract people -- creating an alternative to what is now available. I visited my friend in Illsan, Korea, one such city. Linked to the main hub by train and newly built highways, these new cities could be the future of the entire Mekong Delta region - the question is, could the population adapt.
Mar 19, 2008
Another Day
Another day, more unabated madness.
Reporting on Thanh Nien Online, Minh Duc's quote pretty much sums it up :
"What the @#%&?!" said a foreigner unlucky enough to get stuck in a jam on Nam Ky Khoi Nghai Street in District 1, the city's main thoroughfare to the airport.
Minh Duc is talking about everyone's favourite topic, the traffic.
"Around 150 cars and 1,300 motorbikes are newly registered in HCMC every day" (cue horror music).
1,300 motorbikes. The city is big, but not so big they can all be swallowed up by these narrow streets.
An article yesterday also had me cringing, where reporters assess the need for 'green space'. I couldn't agree more, but just how do they measure green space....not by parks, no, but by trees. This is there equation : Green space = number of trees in city / people. It is depressing, and one of the main things HCMC desperately misses out on - even in newly developed urban areas - real parks and public spaces.
In HCMC’s 13 urban districts – 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, Go Vap, Tan Binh, Tan Phu, Binh Thanh and Phu Nhuan, over 30 percent of the 956 streets are treeless because there are no pavements or they are too narrow for tree planting.
Also darkly comical :
Reporting on Thanh Nien Online, Minh Duc's quote pretty much sums it up :
"What the @#%&?!" said a foreigner unlucky enough to get stuck in a jam on Nam Ky Khoi Nghai Street in District 1, the city's main thoroughfare to the airport.
Minh Duc is talking about everyone's favourite topic, the traffic.
"Around 150 cars and 1,300 motorbikes are newly registered in HCMC every day" (cue horror music).
1,300 motorbikes. The city is big, but not so big they can all be swallowed up by these narrow streets.
An article yesterday also had me cringing, where reporters assess the need for 'green space'. I couldn't agree more, but just how do they measure green space....not by parks, no, but by trees. This is there equation : Green space = number of trees in city / people. It is depressing, and one of the main things HCMC desperately misses out on - even in newly developed urban areas - real parks and public spaces.
In HCMC’s 13 urban districts – 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, Go Vap, Tan Binh, Tan Phu, Binh Thanh and Phu Nhuan, over 30 percent of the 956 streets are treeless because there are no pavements or they are too narrow for tree planting.
Also darkly comical :
(Brand new) Nguyen Van Linh Boulevard in District 7 is 80 percent planted with peacock flower trees.
Their roots grow rapidly and protrude above the ground potentially causing damage to the road over the next 20 years, he said.
The 18 kilometer, 10 lane boulevard is one of the city’s biggest and most modern streets, playing an important role in the city’s economic growth.
Once again, short term visions for long term needs.Mar 12, 2008
An everyday journey
Here I am reposting something from over a year ago. This piece will be published in an upcoming book called 'To Vietnam with Love', from the same people as 'To Asia With Love', due out 'early summer' 2008. I am not quite sure of the final edited version that will go to print, but I'll give you the closest I have.
It is also a handy way of making an entry for this months $100 prize on the blog competition over at Expat Advisory (see post below!). If you are a blog writer in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos or Korea, GET INVOLVED (but write something low quality so I can still win). The $100 prize would boost your monthly income by $100 for a month - not bad.
An Everyday Journey - II
It is also a handy way of making an entry for this months $100 prize on the blog competition over at Expat Advisory (see post below!). If you are a blog writer in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos or Korea, GET INVOLVED (but write something low quality so I can still win). The $100 prize would boost your monthly income by $100 for a month - not bad.
An Everyday Journey - II
Jan 28, 2008
Reclaiming the streets...
The length of the country things are changing and quickly. Recent stories describe a number of dramatic changes, which if they are really enforced could impact on many low income workers. Firstly, the baffling ban on modified vehicles.
Already delayed until June (as described here), the impending new rules mean one less obstruction on the busy streets, but a possible end to employment for many. As the article says,
The ban will affect some 60,000 people in the city whose livelihoods depend on these modified vehicles, among which is the famous cyclo.
A large number of city dwellers will also suffer since these vehicles perform many essential services like collecting garbage, selling food and vegetables, and transporting goods.
Another aspect to be concerned about is the practical one. These modified vehicles are the only ones able to squeeze through Saigon's maze of alleyways to deliver items, collect trash and much more. Commentators are shocked that the government is considering this without any viable alternative forthcoming. Of course other forces could be at work, as suggested by this editorial.
Up in the north there's a storm over the street vendors.
This story was reported all over the world in newspapers and online news sites, with a headline something like : Hanoi to ban street vendors. See this story here from Thanh Nien called Sidewalk Shuffle.
The idea is to 'reclaim' the streets. The article says :
'The impending ban of Hanoi vendors from street side space raises public frustration over policies targeting low-income laborers.'
The city has already backed down once, the ban now coming into force on Feb 20th, significantly, after TET holiday (see the article 'Hanoi's street vendors given temporary reprieve'
In an interview with Thanh Nien, Nguyen The Thao, chairman of the Hanoi People Committee, said street vendors could be permitted in some alleys and lanes.
“City officials believe sidewalks must be returned to pedestrians,” Thao said.
Ahh the sidewalks. Saigon actually has some great sidewalks. Wide and well paved.
Of course the problem is, as pedestrians, most of the time they are difficult to navigate. That and the heat just puts me off walking anywhere in the city. Here's some typical sidewalks from the city center.
Already delayed until June (as described here), the impending new rules mean one less obstruction on the busy streets, but a possible end to employment for many. As the article says,
The ban will affect some 60,000 people in the city whose livelihoods depend on these modified vehicles, among which is the famous cyclo.
A large number of city dwellers will also suffer since these vehicles perform many essential services like collecting garbage, selling food and vegetables, and transporting goods.
Another aspect to be concerned about is the practical one. These modified vehicles are the only ones able to squeeze through Saigon's maze of alleyways to deliver items, collect trash and much more. Commentators are shocked that the government is considering this without any viable alternative forthcoming. Of course other forces could be at work, as suggested by this editorial.
Up in the north there's a storm over the street vendors.
This story was reported all over the world in newspapers and online news sites, with a headline something like : Hanoi to ban street vendors. See this story here from Thanh Nien called Sidewalk Shuffle.
The idea is to 'reclaim' the streets. The article says :
'The impending ban of Hanoi vendors from street side space raises public frustration over policies targeting low-income laborers.'
The city has already backed down once, the ban now coming into force on Feb 20th, significantly, after TET holiday (see the article 'Hanoi's street vendors given temporary reprieve'
In an interview with Thanh Nien, Nguyen The Thao, chairman of the Hanoi People Committee, said street vendors could be permitted in some alleys and lanes.
“City officials believe sidewalks must be returned to pedestrians,” Thao said.
Ahh the sidewalks. Saigon actually has some great sidewalks. Wide and well paved.
Of course the problem is, as pedestrians, most of the time they are difficult to navigate. That and the heat just puts me off walking anywhere in the city. Here's some typical sidewalks from the city center.
And here's some opinion on the issue from Viet Nam news, do street sellers get up your nose? Streets with street traders are increasingly becoming targeted by police. This article by Clare Walters in Thanh Nien (my favorite news source by the way) describes what is happening : Reclaiming the streets takes its toll on locals.
Slowly but surely, familiar sights are disappearing. This street used to be packed full of market stalls :
I'm not claiming the stalls have been permanently removed, but restrictions are tightening. The question is this: reclaiming the streets, the roads, the sidewalks, is it a necessary part of this country's development? I won't allow sentiment to get the better of me, and I am sure this is inevitable change which will lead to more organized, less chaotic cities (read KL, Singapore...). On the other hand, I'm sure that as usual the restrictions will be hard to police properly and that the total disappearance of cluttered sidewalks, street vendors and spluttering three wheeled delivery vehicles is still a long off. Watch this space.
Slowly but surely, familiar sights are disappearing. This street used to be packed full of market stalls :
I'm not claiming the stalls have been permanently removed, but restrictions are tightening. The question is this: reclaiming the streets, the roads, the sidewalks, is it a necessary part of this country's development? I won't allow sentiment to get the better of me, and I am sure this is inevitable change which will lead to more organized, less chaotic cities (read KL, Singapore...). On the other hand, I'm sure that as usual the restrictions will be hard to police properly and that the total disappearance of cluttered sidewalks, street vendors and spluttering three wheeled delivery vehicles is still a long off. Watch this space.
Jan 4, 2008
Queuing
London, England.
People queue. British people are famous for queuing. We queue just to get into another queue. We queue to ask about where we should queue. We separate queuing people with ropes and guide them with signs. We spilt queues when they get too big and start them again on somewhere else. We zig-zag queues to accommodate all the queuing people. Personally I had forgotten about this phenomena. However frustrating a queue may be, I prefer it to total and utter disorganization - i.e. Viet Nam. Not to say Vietnamese are disorganized, it is all for a reason...
Mounting experience with Vietnamese bureaucracy, most recently the registration of a motorbike, has exposed me to the systems within it. And the one rule of Vietnamese bureaucracy is : I don't know if there are any rules actually. Registering a bike seems like it should be a formality. It isn't. Arriving on a narrow main road deep into Binh Thanh District, a shop on one side of the street is the 'fixer'. Despite being a privately owned business, ALL bikes being registered must visit this place first (or one of the shops offering the same service). I'm sure the following scene is repeated throughout the city. Around ten young men work in the shop, along with the older administrative staff. They take off the front panel on the bike where the serial number is and prepare some paperwork for the police station across the road. Of course, no queue here. Just a 'who can shove to the front and get someone's attention first'. With roughly three new motorbikes arriving every minute, it's a lot of fun. Once they have done their bit and claimed 80,000 for 'insurance' (although I am not holding out hope of a payout), you can take the bike across the road to see the police, who read the number. Again, the 'queue' is just a stressful crush of bikes attacking a small portal from all angles. After this it's back across the road to the shop, where they offer to attach your numberplate to the bike (and make a killing by overcharging, a local garage will do it cheaper).
Stress. A queue is stressful, but a non-numbered, non-queue, non-order system? Which would you prefer? Some are catching on - Vietnam airways have a numbered ticket system, but you often see customers unfamiliar with it. In the government office for registration of births, deaths and marriages there is a numbered ticket system. In the office for registration of business licenses, there is not. What there is : no air conditioning and a small waiting room crammed full of, on estimate, about 200 people everyday, all with no system as to who is next.
Corruption. The guys in the motorbike registration 'shop' pay the police to provide this service. We 'pay them' as does the garage who sold the bike to us. Essentially, it is around 20 jobs and a lot of money changing hands simply so a lot of money changes hands. The whole registration system could be overhauled, computerized, not even touched by the consumer. Bikes should be plated by the time they reach the showroom -- but then who's going to make any money out of that? The guys in the business registration office -- they are on (seriously) low salary, so they have to make more money somehow. How are you going to get served quickly? You have to know someone. How do you know someone? You get an agent to help you. They do the paperwork, and as part of their job, they should have a contact (who obviously they pay). Problem is, some wily people change the staff in the office every three months, so you've got to be on the ball. We had an agent, but after a recent staff change he was stuck and Chi waited one whole afternoon and a morning before being served. The staff in the office have another trick up their sleeve to make money - they pass on your details to the newspapers. By law, a new company must make three announcements in a newspaper. Suddenly, the same day as your application was processed, newspapers start calling asking for you to place your announcement in their paper. Says something about your rights of privacy here as well! So, once again, an overhaul of the system would mean a lot of people (office staff, agents, journalists) lose out on a lot of business. It is not so easy to dismantle the apparatus of corruption, millions will be affected.
It is only the government who can set an example, starting first with their administrative offices, and show the people that they respect them, they are honest and they are professional. After being talked to (once again) like a piece of discarded rubbish by a customs official at the airport, a guy probably younger than me but feeling extremely powerful in his green uniform, and after experiencing all of the above, it is clear to see that Vietnam still has a long way to go. And I'm not even referring to my own standards, my wife and her friends discussed the bike registration system last night, lamenting the fact that it has not changed a single bit in the last five years - "no improvement" they murmured sadly. Someone, somewhere, has to be motivated for change but, stuck in a system of payoffs, kickbacks and shortcuts, who would risk their livelihood, no matter how they make it, to battle such an enormous system that pervades almost every aspect of society?
People queue. British people are famous for queuing. We queue just to get into another queue. We queue to ask about where we should queue. We separate queuing people with ropes and guide them with signs. We spilt queues when they get too big and start them again on somewhere else. We zig-zag queues to accommodate all the queuing people. Personally I had forgotten about this phenomena. However frustrating a queue may be, I prefer it to total and utter disorganization - i.e. Viet Nam. Not to say Vietnamese are disorganized, it is all for a reason...
Mounting experience with Vietnamese bureaucracy, most recently the registration of a motorbike, has exposed me to the systems within it. And the one rule of Vietnamese bureaucracy is : I don't know if there are any rules actually. Registering a bike seems like it should be a formality. It isn't. Arriving on a narrow main road deep into Binh Thanh District, a shop on one side of the street is the 'fixer'. Despite being a privately owned business, ALL bikes being registered must visit this place first (or one of the shops offering the same service). I'm sure the following scene is repeated throughout the city. Around ten young men work in the shop, along with the older administrative staff. They take off the front panel on the bike where the serial number is and prepare some paperwork for the police station across the road. Of course, no queue here. Just a 'who can shove to the front and get someone's attention first'. With roughly three new motorbikes arriving every minute, it's a lot of fun. Once they have done their bit and claimed 80,000 for 'insurance' (although I am not holding out hope of a payout), you can take the bike across the road to see the police, who read the number. Again, the 'queue' is just a stressful crush of bikes attacking a small portal from all angles. After this it's back across the road to the shop, where they offer to attach your numberplate to the bike (and make a killing by overcharging, a local garage will do it cheaper).
Stress. A queue is stressful, but a non-numbered, non-queue, non-order system? Which would you prefer? Some are catching on - Vietnam airways have a numbered ticket system, but you often see customers unfamiliar with it. In the government office for registration of births, deaths and marriages there is a numbered ticket system. In the office for registration of business licenses, there is not. What there is : no air conditioning and a small waiting room crammed full of, on estimate, about 200 people everyday, all with no system as to who is next.
Corruption. The guys in the motorbike registration 'shop' pay the police to provide this service. We 'pay them' as does the garage who sold the bike to us. Essentially, it is around 20 jobs and a lot of money changing hands simply so a lot of money changes hands. The whole registration system could be overhauled, computerized, not even touched by the consumer. Bikes should be plated by the time they reach the showroom -- but then who's going to make any money out of that? The guys in the business registration office -- they are on (seriously) low salary, so they have to make more money somehow. How are you going to get served quickly? You have to know someone. How do you know someone? You get an agent to help you. They do the paperwork, and as part of their job, they should have a contact (who obviously they pay). Problem is, some wily people change the staff in the office every three months, so you've got to be on the ball. We had an agent, but after a recent staff change he was stuck and Chi waited one whole afternoon and a morning before being served. The staff in the office have another trick up their sleeve to make money - they pass on your details to the newspapers. By law, a new company must make three announcements in a newspaper. Suddenly, the same day as your application was processed, newspapers start calling asking for you to place your announcement in their paper. Says something about your rights of privacy here as well! So, once again, an overhaul of the system would mean a lot of people (office staff, agents, journalists) lose out on a lot of business. It is not so easy to dismantle the apparatus of corruption, millions will be affected.
It is only the government who can set an example, starting first with their administrative offices, and show the people that they respect them, they are honest and they are professional. After being talked to (once again) like a piece of discarded rubbish by a customs official at the airport, a guy probably younger than me but feeling extremely powerful in his green uniform, and after experiencing all of the above, it is clear to see that Vietnam still has a long way to go. And I'm not even referring to my own standards, my wife and her friends discussed the bike registration system last night, lamenting the fact that it has not changed a single bit in the last five years - "no improvement" they murmured sadly. Someone, somewhere, has to be motivated for change but, stuck in a system of payoffs, kickbacks and shortcuts, who would risk their livelihood, no matter how they make it, to battle such an enormous system that pervades almost every aspect of society?
Nov 17, 2007
Visions of 2020 to come true...?
Back in March this year I wrote a piece called 'Will 2020 ever come to Saigon'. In it I said :
What I envisage for the city is a pedestrian area encompassing Nguyen Hue, Dong Khoi and Lam Son Square. I am no urban planner and maybe it's too late to build the parking that would be necessary, but wouldn't it be nice.....
It looks like we may be on the first step towards this, according to a column inch in Thanh Nien recently (this taken from their new printed English version.
One can only wonder how much truth there is in this article, and how long it will take to implement such a plan. The word used is 'consider', so they are still only thinking about it. Personally, I think it's a great idea!
What I envisage for the city is a pedestrian area encompassing Nguyen Hue, Dong Khoi and Lam Son Square. I am no urban planner and maybe it's too late to build the parking that would be necessary, but wouldn't it be nice.....
It looks like we may be on the first step towards this, according to a column inch in Thanh Nien recently (this taken from their new printed English version.
One can only wonder how much truth there is in this article, and how long it will take to implement such a plan. The word used is 'consider', so they are still only thinking about it. Personally, I think it's a great idea!
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