Xin Chao (Hello) from Ha Noi

Posted by Amanda on October 16th, 2009

Greetings from Ha Noi, Viet Nam. I am midway through my placement with the Hanoi School of Public Health, where I am teaching some English lessons to first and second year students. The students are eager to practice their English, and I am focusing on conducting listening and speaking exercises with them! I can sympathise with the challenge that they face, learning a new and unfamiliar language. My Vietnamese is limited to those few essential phrases and words, and I am afraid that I won’t pick up too much more before I return to Canada. But I enjoy using what I do know to interact with people, and the use of gestures is really helpful too! I understand better how newcomers to my city in Canada feel as they try to adapt to a completely different place without being able to communicate.

Hanoi is a rapidly growing city, with a current population of about 6 million people. People say that there are about 4 million motorbikes! The infrastructure has not been able to keep up with the population growth, and this is evident to me where I live. The two-lane street becomes very conjested during the afternoon rush hour, and as I look around and see many of the people wearing masks across their mouths and noses due to the pollution being emitted from all those cars and motorbikes, I wonder what this city will be like 10 or 15 years from now. All of these vechicles are in addition to the myriad of activity happening on the “sidewalks,” (aka motorbike parking lot) which include people sitting on little plastic stools eating, individuals selling meat and produce, women plucking feathers from chickens, men playing checkers, among a dozen other things. There is not much walking happening on the sidewalks! Crossing the busy streets each morning and afternoon is sometimes a frightening challenge in itself, as there are few crosswalks with lights. One simply walks into traffic and dodges the oncoming cars, buses, and motorbikes! My roommate, Niema, and myself have seen a few accidents since we’ve been in Vietnam. We try to be as vigilant as possible!

Hanoi is a big city, but it’s not particularly known for its nightlife. Nonetheless, there are places to hang out and a variety of things to do. I have met other foreigners who are studying, doing research, or working in the country. I’ve also met Vietnames who have been able to introduce me further to the culture and way of life. The Old Quarter of Hanoi is the centre of the city, and it’s always a fun and interesting place to eat, shop, and people-watch. Hoan Kiem Lake lies in the Old Quarter, with a pagoda in the centre on a small island. Many couples get wedding photos done by this lake! Families picnic next to it! Overall, it’s a place for anyone and everyone, tourist and local. My roommate and I enjoy spending time in this part of town with the people we’ve met thus far.

I have had the opportunity to take two short trips outside of Hanoi. My first trip was to Sa Pa, a 12 hour train ride north, near the Chinese border. In Sa Pa town we stayed at a hotel with a great view of the tree-covered mountains, it was truly beautiful! We did some hiking with a H’mong guide, the H’mong being one of five tribes which live in the northern part of the country. She was a fascinating woman with a good grasp of English who enjoyed kidding with us. Many of the local people are used to visitors, and they’re savvy users of the internet and cell phones. But they still live in fairly traditional ways. It’s an interesting, perhaps a bit sad, example of how the modern world has reached essentially every part of the world.

I have also traveled to Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba Island. Ha Long Bay is well known, and has been declared a UN World Heritage Site. About 2,000 limestone karsts are scattered throughout the water. We spent a night on a junk boat and it was nice to be able to sit back on the boat and view this unique place. Cat Ba Island is the biggest island in the area, made up of limestone mountains, with a small town on the coast. From the shore we looked out on a floating fishing village. We did some hiking up to a lookout point with a great view. At the top of this mountain was a very rusty tower with steep stairs and many tourists climbing up and down. I went to the top feeling a bit nervous, took a couple of quick photos and then made my way back down. There are also a couple of beaches on Cat Ba Island, and I took a swim in the sea. Both of these trips were nice breaks from Hanoi, where the crowds and smog and noise can make it difficult to feel relaxed at times!

I am sure that the second half of my time here will prove to be as interesting and challenging as the first. I hope to learn more about Viet Nam and more about myself in the process.

Posted in In-Country, SWB, Vietnam