36 days to go
10/10/2010 UPDATE
This blog post was mentioned on October 8th in an article in The Economist. Not a super positive article about Vietnam, but I’m pretty happy to have On The Bright Side mentioned in such an establish and respected publication. Imagine that! My little blog made it into The Economist! For my most recent post on the 1000 Year Anniversary of Hanoi, please click HERE.
9/24/2010 UPDATE
I wanted to see if anything has gotten better 20 days after my last post and many more days fewer than 36 to go until Hanoi’s 1000th Anniversary comes to town. So I did some snooping in the new and found some more supportive articles that the 1000 Year Anniversary of Hanoi will bring more disappointment than celebration:
Vietnam Net Bridge feels that the government forgot tourism.
My favorite quote from this article is, “It seems they were not well prepared for the event and so they could not gain high results. Another problem is that there had been no clear-cut long term planning. They just waited until the last minute to try their best.” Funny thing is, this is the famous Vietnamese pianist talking about an international piano competition. He happens to be performing for the opening ceremony on October 1st.
The words – golden opportunity for profit – is not what any tourist wants to hear!
I suspect that this type of exhibition will be everywhere. 1000 of this and 1000 of that on display. But could you imagine THIS???
And here finally is something which somewhat resembles a calendar of events. Still looking for more details!
I want to make something clear….I feel very privileged to be here during this most momentous occasion. I LOVE festivals and celebrations. That is evident if you’ve ever read some of my blog entries from Japan. I really want Hanoi and Vietnam to shine during this remarkable milestone. But having worked here for two years, I’m not even the slightest bit surprised by the lack of organization and the last minute planning…and the exclusion of the foreign community. It’s turning out to be a very local and exclusive event…and that’s a real shame. 1000 only comes around once. And I’d like to participate and really enjoy the celebrations!!!
9/4/2010 ORIGINAL POST
The main photo above shows the countdown screen at Hoan Kiem Lake which helps all Hanoians eagerly anticipate Hanoi’s 1000th Anniversary. The city is 1000 years old on October 10th. I’ve written before about the disorganization of the event and the lack of ability to capitalize internationally on such an occasion. A few new decorations have gone up around the lake such as the banners and tribute to Ho Chi Minh for Independence Day, as you can see in the photos.
Unfortunately, Hanoi has not gotten its act together enough to really draw attention globally. Working in tourism, it’s a big disappointment, as you have to rely a bit on the country and city to market the destination to foreign travelers. And what better occasion than the 1000th – 1000!!! – Anniversary of the birth of your capital city!?!?!? There has been absolutely no international news or marketing for this event. Here are some local news articles I’ve found:
“The biggest concern now is traffic jams.” http://en.www.info.vn/society/122-facts/11092-many-heads-of-state-arriving-for-hanois-1000th-anniversary
Best Wishes Sent http://www.hanoitimes.com.vn/newsdetail.asp?CatId=79&NewsId=17675
Wow, this sounds fun… http://www.thanhniennews.com/2010/Pages/20100820213343.aspx
Where? Schedule? Tickets? http://www.thanhniennews.com/2010/Pages/20100904165116.aspx
I hear that just as they did for Independence Day (an every other holiday), the flowers will go up around Hoan Kiem Lake, and there will be fireworks…but what of festivals? There are brief mentions of activities, dignitaries visiting from other countries, parades, gala dinners, cultural shows and such but I have yet to see a website with a calendar of events, nor do I know when all these festivities will take place, if I need to buy tickets, where to buy the tickets, etc. A little hard to participate when I have no idea who, what, where and when it’s happening!
My assistant told me a few weeks ago that the only news she could find through VNAT (Vietnam National Administration of Tourism) was an opportunity to advertise on the billboards which will go up around town. In fact, if you take a look at their website (http://www.vietnamtourism.com/e_pages/news/index.asp) you can barely find a focus on the upcoming birthday. A few other organizations have contacted us to advertise in special tourist publications, maps and cookbooks for the month. I don’t want to advertise, I want to DO something, ATTEND something, WATCH a show, a parade, a concert…something… and CELEBRATE. I simply cannot find the information on how to do that…and neither can any of my local staff.
In a time when SE Asia is fighting to attract tourists after an economic meltdown, H1N1 crisis, rampant reports of Dengue Fever, and political instability in Bangkok, Vietnam could have been the hero of the region by investing their resources to bring a positive focus to their country. I’m sure that in 1000 years of history, there is a heck of a lot of culture, people, events, food and amazingness to celebrate and showcase to the rest of the world. I’ll be curious to see what actually happens come October, but at just 36 days to go, I have a feeling this is a huge, HUGE, opportunity missed. And that’s really a shame.
Afternoon in Hanoi
After work today, I was eager to talk a walk about town. I’ve felt a bit disconnected from Hanoi recently. A few of my friends have either left or are out of town, and if it’s just me, I usually spend my free time at home at the computer. I can always find something to do or someone on SKYPE to catch up with.
So I pushed myself to go to do a little shopping today. I wanted to go to the camera shops to search for a case for my new camera and a new cover for my Mac. I went into one shop and said, “Do you have camera case for Panasonic Lumix?” The clerk replied, “Do you need camera?” I pulled my camera out of my purse and it’s simple cotton sack I’ve been keeping it in. “Nope. I have the camera.” She gave me the snottiest look and said, “No, we don’t have case.” Ok fine. Just because I am not buying the camera from you doesn’t mean you can’t sell me the damn case!
I quickly gave up on shopping after that first failed attempt (My patience has actually grown shorter in these 2 years in Vietnam) and decided to take a walk around Hoan Kiem Lake. I just wanted a leisurely walk, soak up the sights and hit the refresh button. I couldn’t walk five steps without someone approaching me.
I was ‘bothered’ by a kid trying to sell me guidebooks, or another who wanted to practice English or when I shifted sides and walked roadside, it was the motorbike, cyclo and taxi drivers begging for me to accept a ride. I even had some expat dude named Isaak walk up to me, ask me if I spoke English and then proceed to tell me about a special tour I could take into remote villages. Perhaps I normally would have spoken to the kid who wanted to learn English and engaged Isaak in a longer conversation about how he finds himself in Hanoi selling charity tours into the hillsides, but my whole point of taking a walk in the city was simply to observe the pace of life, people watch and soak it up a bit. I didn’t have one moment to absorb anything because just as I finished brushing off one person, then next was approaching me. I felt like an offensive lineman trying to protect my QB! How am I supposed to feel the pulse of the city if I can’t sit for a moment to observe it?
Vietnam just celebrated it’s Independence Day, as well as the death anniversary of Ho Chi MInh. Hoan Kiem Lake was also the hub of many activities, including the ever-present-on-special-holidays flower festival and fireworks. I’ve included a few photos of the remains of the flower festival. You can even see the cyclo driver carrying a potted plant to his cyclo. That guy stopped three times to dig up flowers from the remaining pots. Madness!
I thought I would stop in one more shop before I went home, and that was a jewelry shop I like, where I bought my little dragonfly earrings. Even in the tiny shop, I could not move an inch without the store clerk closely following my every footstep. I tried to strike up a conversation, to no avail and then decided that it was time to go home. I fended off the meter-less taxi drivers, the questionable motorbike guys who in very creepy voices say as you pass by, “Moto?” I finally caught a Mailinh taxi. The guy has driven me home before and it did nothing to put me at ease that he told me my street and side lane before I could tell him.
I stopped quickly at L’s place to pick up some cereal and some spices, and while there, listened in on two uber skinny 20-something girls debate if they should break their diet and get a chocolate bar or an Atkins bar. I didn’t bother to see what they chose. One of them proudly announced to the entire market that she would drink the large bottle of water by the end of the day. Um, whatever, girls. No need to justify what you are buying to each other or the rest of us. You’re young, you’re health conscious…we get it. We actually don’t give a shit…just buy the damn items and move along.
I arrived home, cranked up the air con (it was 37/98 today) and sat down at my computer to unwind. So much for my pleasant little afternoon in Hanoi.
MONKy Day
We all know that I’ve had my fair share of conversations with monks. But I took a bit of time this morning to visit a few temples and was delighted to meet Somchit. He showed me the paintings and carvings he’s working on and after I bought a painting, he invited me and my friend Aeng into his room for a polite chat. HIs room is a humble swelling, shared with one other student monk. He wears an untraditional red robe, a gift from his friend in Thailand. He’s about my age, speaks decent English and will remain a monk for his life. Some men join the monastery for only a limited time in order to receive education. Somchit enjoys his life, and therefore will devote his life to Buddhism.
My conversation with Somchit came after a short conversation with two other monks at another temple. The rain had just begun, but I wanted to get some photos of the Mai Temple. I met Bo and Ki, who you can see in the photo below. Bo had the best English, and spoke rather nicely, actually. We talked about how many students in the temple, how long they had been studying, and the upcoming end of Buddhist lent, Bun Ook Pan Saa. In fact, Pete and I have decided to go back to Laos and enjoy this holiday near the end of October. I told Bo and Ki that I would probably be back, and so they asked for me to come back to the temple to see the boats they will prepare for the festival.
When I finished my conversation and took a picture of Bo and Ki, I turned around to see a few other tourists gawking at the two boys as though I had just spoken to monkeys or something. I hope if you are ever at a temple, you’ll have the courage to say hello and start up a conversation with a monk you meet. They are usually very interested to practice their English and can be a great source of information and history about the temple and city you are in! Try it!
A (really) rainy day
Rainy seasons in South East Asia can be kind of cool sometimes. I returned from Kamu Lodge, 3 hours up river from Luang Prabang, eager to have lunch at JOMA, a great coffee shop and bakery – quite possibly my favorite in Asia. Just before ducking in the shop, the thunder started clapping and the dark gray clouds rolled in.
The rainy season storms are quite spectacular with lots of loud thunder, flashes of lightening and buckets and buckets of water dropping from the sky. In about 45 minutes, the storms pass and everyone goes back to their tasks for the day as if the storm had never been there. Me, on the other hand…well, I take pictures. This sunny San Diego chick is still impressed!
Rainy season is good
One of the things I love about the Kamu Lodge (one of the properties in the portfolio of the hospitality group I work for) is the gorgeous nature surrounding the accommodations. It takes three hours by boat to arrive at the Lodge; it’s located on the banks of the Mekong River int he Lao forest. The Kamu Village, an authentic and ethnic village, share the grounds with the lodge, and I always look forward to a visit to the village, as well.
I went to Laos to oversee the photo shoot of all three of our Laos properties. I really wanted to spend more than one night at the Lodge, but didn’t due to our boat schedule and other activities happening at our sales office in Luang Prabang. It’s such a shame, as I loved taking pictures of all the green rice fields, the butterflies, lotus flowers, other bugs and plants….all the lovely nature which is so lush and lovely during rainy season….so green!
GLOWing in Bangkok
Yesterday I made my way to Bangkok where I will spend the next week on sales calls. I’m here with my Sales Manager from Laos, which will be our main focus. Since the riots and violence in May, travel to Laos and Luang Prabang has severely slowed down. Most of the flights to Luang Prabang come from Bangkok. The number of flights per day has been limited and the people on the flights are few. Bangok flights from Hanoi have also been limited to just 4 per day across two airlines. An while Hanoi has a direct flight to Luang Prabang, the cost remains $340 round trip. A bit expensive to just zip over for the weekend.
I happen to love Bangkok and Thailand. The traffic and the rainy season my put a damper on running around town for business, but I’ll stay through the weekend to get a health check-up and do a wee bit of shopping.
The photo I’ve included is my hotel room, the Glow Trinity Hotel. It’s pretty cute and comfy!
HSBC still sucks
Today was a bit busy as I had a memorable meeting in the morning before running some errands to prepare for a business trip to Bangkok. I had to get some Thai Baht and so headed to my “favorite” bank, HSBC.
Because my company pays me in Dong and not US Dollars, I have a few restrictions on how I manage my money. In order to withdraw foreign currency, I have to provide my ticket, passport and any relevant visas. I always have this prepared.
On this particular occasion, I wished to pull about 35,000THB which is about $1000USD. I need this for a new digital camera and my yearly check-up at Bumrungrad Hospital. This is really not an earth-shattering amount of cash either, in Dollars or Baht.
But as I submitted my papers, the clerk said, “Oh, this is from your US Dollar account?” I had to say, “No, I have a Dong account.” “Oh,” was her response. And then she picked up the phone to call a manager. You see, if my company still paid me in dollars, I would not have to present any of these papers and I could take whatever amount of Baht I wanted. But because my company pays me in Dong, I have to jump through hoops to manage my money. After a year of being paid this way, I have really grown tired of this nonsense. Whether it is pulling money from my account here or trying to transfer my funds overseas, it is never a smooth process.
After the clerk hung up the phone, she said to me, “Um, I’m sorry to say, but we do not have enough Baht to give you.” You can imagine my face. So I collected myself and said, “Let me make sure of something. This is a bank, correct? And you are telling me that you do not have the equivalent of $1000USD in Thai Baht? That’s absolutely ridiculous. I do not believe you. I suppose that if I had a USD account, this would not be a problem.”
She replied, “You are right. But actually, Thai Baht is not that popular of a currency so we cannot give you what you ask for.”
“What? Thailand is practically your neighbor and people travel back and forth there for business and leisure very frequently. This is absolutely ridiculous. How am I supposed to get money for my trip, when I cannot exchange Dong outside of Vietnam?” I couldn’t wait for her response to this.
“You can go to the gold shops ma’am. They can change the money for you.” She looked at me as thought she was proud of her answer. Yes, very helpful.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. An employee of HSBC, one of the largest banks in the world is telling me that it is better for me to go to a gold shop to exchange money because it is better than the bank? HSBC seriously does not have enough Baht in reserves to give $1000USD worth? Again, this is ridiculous.”
“We are sorry ma’am. I hope you can get your money. Thank you for banking with HSBC.” I rolled my eyes at her and left the branch. Seriously!!!
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