Hi there!
These last 5 weeks have been, and continue to be, very busy with friends and family coming to visit me here in Hà Nội. Besides of course being delighted to see them all again, it also makes me realise how different Vietnam really is. Things that I slowly have gotten used to, are once again marvelled over. So time for another post about the curious things out here.
One of the things for instance that I already didn't notice anymore were the slippers and how people wear them over here. Because people seem to.. Well.. Not care about the size that much.
It is a very common thing to see people wearing slippers that do not fit. Now you could argue it is because this is a developing country and people cannot afford new slippers when they grow out of the old ones. But I don't buy that argument. People have an iPhone over here. A scooter. And slippers are really cheap to buy.
And yet. Even older women. Who definitely know their own shoe size. Still wear slippers that do not fit at all!
These slippers from the picture above are super famous in Vietnam. They call them the Bee Hive Slipper, because of the pattern. They are made from rubber and you can see people wear them all over the country.
I have my own pet theory on why this is happening.
When you enter a house in Asia, you take off your shoes and slippers. And I think people are just too lazy to find their own slippers that fit in between all the other ones from their family and housemates.
Vietlish
"Let me know in the comments below.."
Only in Asia
Now I know I have been sharing many things that seem weird to me. And trust me. Many does seem weird to me. But. There are plenty of things where I think: 'Hey. Now that's smart'.
South-East Asia is often portrayed as one big chaos. But people over here are often way more practical in their thinking than people in the West. So I want to start dedicating a part of my blog to the good ideas. The things that work. And are only in Asia.
I want to dedicate the first one to one of my favorite products in Asia. The Bum Gun. Can't live without it anymore. You can see it hanging on the left. No more wiping shit around. Blast it all away. Why fancy people in Europe have a whole second toilet, the Bidet, for this, I really don't know. This works perfect. And helps you calm down that Asian ring of fire as a bonus.
But the bum gun only helps out at the end. How to cool your self during the fight? Well this restaurant wants to help its customers out.
Smart. I want one too.
Scooterfolk
When I was young my fish always died. Maybe I should have taken them out on drives ones in a while like this fellow.
Funny Football Fans
Lately I noticed a lot of youths wearing their own custom football shirts. Usually it is with their own name written on the back, which is just like in any other country. But quite a lot use the back to write something weird on. And almost always in English.
I really wonder where he got the word 'enchanted' from.
Or FBI for that matter. Interesting choice out here in Vietnam.
But the shirts represent another example of Vietnamese people being very relaxed about life. Not taking things too serious.
And you know what?
