Friday, July 27, 2007
My New Album on iTunes!
I'm thrilled to announce that my new album, "Under a Tamarind Tree" is now available on iTunes! The album is a "best of collection" and is being released digital only. It should be available on all popular music download services in the coming weeks. Click the button below to preview and purchase the CD, or songs individually (free iTunes software is required).
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Shot in Battambang
There’s an argument going on right now on the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree Forum (click there to read it), where someone claims to have been shot while in Battambang, Cambodia, last month, and no one believes them. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but I’m open to the possibility. There’s a common case of naivety with a lot of backpackers and even expats living in Cambodia who seem to deny there is any problem with crime or violence (or even any danger at all) in Cambodia any more. I guess they think that the NGO and tourism presence has brought Cambodia “out of the dark ages” since the Khmer Rouge left, and now there are no more problems.
The folks on the forum argue that if anything were to happen to a foreigner, it would make it all over the news and everyone would know within hours. Yet, several foreigners are killed every year in Mui Ne from traffic accidents, drowning, etc, and none of them have ever been carried in the news. Not a single one that I'm aware of. There was even a very gruesome murder in the area about 6 years ago (of a foreigner) and that was never published. I think it’s a bit naive to think every incident involving a foreigner makes it in the news in Cambodia, which is a much less developed country.
I think most of the time news does travel fast. But occasionally events do slip through unnoticed. I've never reported getting robbed to the police, although I've been robbed twice on the street, and several times in my home in Vietnam. I've been seriously ill or injured several times and only once sought attention at a hospital. In China someone tried to kill me but I didn’t go to the police then either, because I didn't see their face. I knew the police wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. Just because something happens doesn't mean people take it to the authorities.
I think all of us expats get very protective and defensive whenever someone encroaches on our territory and tells us something about our country or city that we disagree with or didn't know already. I know I sure do. There’s a tendency to dismiss it automatically and even get a little angry.
Folks on Lonely Planet often throw around the erroneous statement that “Cambodia is safer than most Western cities.” They forget that there was a considerable tourist and expat presence before the Khmer Rouge even took power. In other words, tourists, expats and NGO’s presence don’t mean much. Set off a few bombs, fire a few guns, and they’ll all flee the country.
As far as Cambodia being safer than most western cities, I think that's too much of a generalization. On some levels yes, but I can also walk around my city in the USA any time of night with no worries, just like I can my city in Vietnam. My city in the USA however, has never had a landmine problem, not had any issues with genocide or holocaust--at least not in my lifetime, doesn't have recurring problems with malaria, dengue fever, encephalitis, you don’t have to bribe policemen to get thing done, and will generally give good medical care at the hospital if I have an emergency. These however are not only problems in Cambodia, but have been problems where I live in Vietnam as well. People have actually been killed by landmines in the last few years.
I don’t mean to say that Cambodia is a war zone or anything like it was 20-30 years ago (I wouldn’t have any credibility if I did), but I think the Thorn Tree participants demand that all posts must conform to an unrealistically rosey concept of what its like in Cambodia today.
The folks on the forum argue that if anything were to happen to a foreigner, it would make it all over the news and everyone would know within hours. Yet, several foreigners are killed every year in Mui Ne from traffic accidents, drowning, etc, and none of them have ever been carried in the news. Not a single one that I'm aware of. There was even a very gruesome murder in the area about 6 years ago (of a foreigner) and that was never published. I think it’s a bit naive to think every incident involving a foreigner makes it in the news in Cambodia, which is a much less developed country.
I think most of the time news does travel fast. But occasionally events do slip through unnoticed. I've never reported getting robbed to the police, although I've been robbed twice on the street, and several times in my home in Vietnam. I've been seriously ill or injured several times and only once sought attention at a hospital. In China someone tried to kill me but I didn’t go to the police then either, because I didn't see their face. I knew the police wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. Just because something happens doesn't mean people take it to the authorities.
I think all of us expats get very protective and defensive whenever someone encroaches on our territory and tells us something about our country or city that we disagree with or didn't know already. I know I sure do. There’s a tendency to dismiss it automatically and even get a little angry.
Folks on Lonely Planet often throw around the erroneous statement that “Cambodia is safer than most Western cities.” They forget that there was a considerable tourist and expat presence before the Khmer Rouge even took power. In other words, tourists, expats and NGO’s presence don’t mean much. Set off a few bombs, fire a few guns, and they’ll all flee the country.
As far as Cambodia being safer than most western cities, I think that's too much of a generalization. On some levels yes, but I can also walk around my city in the USA any time of night with no worries, just like I can my city in Vietnam. My city in the USA however, has never had a landmine problem, not had any issues with genocide or holocaust--at least not in my lifetime, doesn't have recurring problems with malaria, dengue fever, encephalitis, you don’t have to bribe policemen to get thing done, and will generally give good medical care at the hospital if I have an emergency. These however are not only problems in Cambodia, but have been problems where I live in Vietnam as well. People have actually been killed by landmines in the last few years.
I don’t mean to say that Cambodia is a war zone or anything like it was 20-30 years ago (I wouldn’t have any credibility if I did), but I think the Thorn Tree participants demand that all posts must conform to an unrealistically rosey concept of what its like in Cambodia today.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Streptococcus suis or Pig Flu in Vietnam
According to international news agencies, there has been a new outbreak of Streptococcus suis in Hanoi. This is the virus I mentioned earlier, that was blamed on a hemorrhagic fever that kills victims in less than 24 hours. The disease is airborn and much like ebola. It seems a little fishy that this virus is the cause, as it is common in ever country where pigs are raised in large numbers and doesn't normally have such severe symptoms. Another case apparently just popped up in Hue. It will be interesting to see where it goes.
............update..................
I posted a message on the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree with links to several articles about the outbreak, but it was apparently deleted by the moderators within a few hours. It still remains in their search database however, just not in the front where it can be found through browsing.
I debated posting it. I don't want to hurt Vietnam tourism, but I think it's important information - more important than the bird flu ever was. I don't think the LP moderators in Australia are qualified to judge that it's not.
............update..................
I posted a message on the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree with links to several articles about the outbreak, but it was apparently deleted by the moderators within a few hours. It still remains in their search database however, just not in the front where it can be found through browsing.
I debated posting it. I don't want to hurt Vietnam tourism, but I think it's important information - more important than the bird flu ever was. I don't think the LP moderators in Australia are qualified to judge that it's not.
Taking on Coke
Taking on Coke
By Suzanne McGee, MSN Money
view article here
This article is part of a series that MSNBC is doing on China. It discussed a company called Wahaha, which is a softdrink/beverage company that is hugely popular over much of Asia. It dominates the beverage market in China, at least in niches where coke or pepsi don't have a competing product.
As someone who's spent several months in rural China, and nearly 3 years living in S.E. Asia, I thought the premise of the article was silly.
McGee writes, "While Wahaha's milk and yogurt drinks are also on display, its new cola products, Future Cola and Coffee Cola, are nowhere to be seen."
This just doesn’t mesh with my own experience. I bought Future Cola all over Sichuan and Yunnan in 2003. My friends tell me they've been aware of it since at least 2001.
"Wahaha now has 36 subsidiaries in the provinces, producing and distributing everything from Wahaha's bottled water and milk-based drinks to Future Cola. In many of these areas, local residents have never been able to buy Coke's products -- or can't afford them."
This statement doesn't match reality. I've trekked through some of the more remote villages in China and all over S.E. Asia, and I have never seen a place that doesn’t have coke products in stock. Granted, in places like Vietnam, Pepsi is more popular, but you can always find Coke. Coke is most certainly affordable to the average person as well. In fact, the reason why coke does so well in China is because everyone wants to drink the “American” novelty drink, and frankly, future cola tastes bad, it’s too sweet, and it’s always flat.
"It doesn't bother Yang that Future Cola can't be found on the shelves of the big stores in Beijing or Shanghai."
Again, this is silly. The article states later that their products are all over S.E. Asia and even the USA in Asian food stores (I've bought them in these places myself). I've found them all over Beijing as early as 2003.
I'm glad that MSNBC is taking an interest in China, and I'm sure Ms. McGee is very capable at what she does. I wish however, that MSNBC would seek more insight from expat writers and journalists based in Asia for their stories. Please understand, I don’t mean to single out Ms. McGee for the following criticism, as it’s a problem in all the American media. So many of the stories in western media are so superficial and inaccurate because the journalists who are covering them either write them from their offices in New York, or at most make a trivial visit to Beijing for an “official” story without investigating the real story themselves. If they would instead be more open to consulting freelance writers and journalists (I admit, this is a selfish pitch), news stories would have a much greater depth, accuracy and less cultural misunderstanding.
By Suzanne McGee, MSN Money
view article here
This article is part of a series that MSNBC is doing on China. It discussed a company called Wahaha, which is a softdrink/beverage company that is hugely popular over much of Asia. It dominates the beverage market in China, at least in niches where coke or pepsi don't have a competing product.
As someone who's spent several months in rural China, and nearly 3 years living in S.E. Asia, I thought the premise of the article was silly.
McGee writes, "While Wahaha's milk and yogurt drinks are also on display, its new cola products, Future Cola and Coffee Cola, are nowhere to be seen."
This just doesn’t mesh with my own experience. I bought Future Cola all over Sichuan and Yunnan in 2003. My friends tell me they've been aware of it since at least 2001.
"Wahaha now has 36 subsidiaries in the provinces, producing and distributing everything from Wahaha's bottled water and milk-based drinks to Future Cola. In many of these areas, local residents have never been able to buy Coke's products -- or can't afford them."
This statement doesn't match reality. I've trekked through some of the more remote villages in China and all over S.E. Asia, and I have never seen a place that doesn’t have coke products in stock. Granted, in places like Vietnam, Pepsi is more popular, but you can always find Coke. Coke is most certainly affordable to the average person as well. In fact, the reason why coke does so well in China is because everyone wants to drink the “American” novelty drink, and frankly, future cola tastes bad, it’s too sweet, and it’s always flat.
"It doesn't bother Yang that Future Cola can't be found on the shelves of the big stores in Beijing or Shanghai."
Again, this is silly. The article states later that their products are all over S.E. Asia and even the USA in Asian food stores (I've bought them in these places myself). I've found them all over Beijing as early as 2003.
I'm glad that MSNBC is taking an interest in China, and I'm sure Ms. McGee is very capable at what she does. I wish however, that MSNBC would seek more insight from expat writers and journalists based in Asia for their stories. Please understand, I don’t mean to single out Ms. McGee for the following criticism, as it’s a problem in all the American media. So many of the stories in western media are so superficial and inaccurate because the journalists who are covering them either write them from their offices in New York, or at most make a trivial visit to Beijing for an “official” story without investigating the real story themselves. If they would instead be more open to consulting freelance writers and journalists (I admit, this is a selfish pitch), news stories would have a much greater depth, accuracy and less cultural misunderstanding.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Thoughts from the Thorn Tree
Busy morning on the LP Thorn Tree. I’m reposting some of my comments here.
In response to one of the endless complaints about having cloths made in Hoi An:
I'd never buy cloths made in Hoi An. It's just street after street of shops that exist solely to sell cheap souvenir cloths to backpackers, who they know will take their cloths and leave the country. When Vietnamese deal with foreigners, they never factor in the possibility of a repeat sale (why would they), so the quality is in the toilet. It's not just Hoi An--it's any city that has it's own special product that the tourists really dig. The best way to get really GOOD cloths, is to buy from a tailor in another city, who makes cloths for average Vietnamese people. I do that, and I've been wearing the same cloths every week for 3-4 years, and they are still as good as the day I bought them.
Regarding the pros and cons of living in Vietnam:
My positives:
- rainy season - everything is green and lush - no tourists
- freedom in my schedule, freedom and ease in my travel - motorbikes are the best!
- food. Lots of variety. I always feel good
- my allergies never bother me in VN
- cost of living
- good scenery/environment
- big fish in a small pond - I'm well-known & popular - I'm a novelty so everyone wants to meet me.
My Negatives:
- dry season - sand storms, drought, everything is dead - too many tourists
- holidays - most of what I'm used to is irrelevant - VN holidays seem boring
- people always trying to scam me. Even people I consider as friends can't seem to get over the $$ signs in their eyes.
- no matter how long I'm here, I'll always be an outsider. Even if I speak the language fluently, get married, have kids, own property, it won't matter.
- lack of reading material, movies and TV
- medical care. When you have a problem, it can be hard to get good treatment in a timely manner
- big fish in a small pond - I have zero privacy - I can’t go anywhere and be alone - I'm unique
- noise, pollution, too many people, no wildlife
Random recommendation on local customs:
- How to greet people you meet: Shaking hands is fine, but girls in the countryside may be shy. Hugging is very uncommon. If you speak any Vietnamese, pronouns are very important. Accept any gifts, business cards or other items with both hands. Always invite people at each stage (please come in, please site down, please try some...)
- How to address the elders: With smiling, bowing and nodding. Always make sure you greet the elders and say goodbye to them explicitly before you leave the room, even if you were not otherwise engaged with them.
- Table manners: Food in Phan Thiet is often spicy. Unlike my experience in China, it seems ok to leave food behind or refuse some items. In general, you can slurp, put your elbows on the table, and spit bones on the floor. Raising the bowl to your lips is fine.
- tipping: If it's an establishment that serves foreigners normally, then you should tip. If foreigners rarely visit, then tipping is not necessary.
- Lineup at the counter: Observe what others are doing around you. If there is a line, stay in it. If it's a mob, then push your way to the front like everyone else.
- haggling: Vietnamese merchants are stubborn. If they don't budge and it seems too expensive, it's better to walk away and try someone else than waste their time and yours.
In response to one of the endless complaints about having cloths made in Hoi An:
I'd never buy cloths made in Hoi An. It's just street after street of shops that exist solely to sell cheap souvenir cloths to backpackers, who they know will take their cloths and leave the country. When Vietnamese deal with foreigners, they never factor in the possibility of a repeat sale (why would they), so the quality is in the toilet. It's not just Hoi An--it's any city that has it's own special product that the tourists really dig. The best way to get really GOOD cloths, is to buy from a tailor in another city, who makes cloths for average Vietnamese people. I do that, and I've been wearing the same cloths every week for 3-4 years, and they are still as good as the day I bought them.
Regarding the pros and cons of living in Vietnam:
My positives:
- rainy season - everything is green and lush - no tourists
- freedom in my schedule, freedom and ease in my travel - motorbikes are the best!
- food. Lots of variety. I always feel good
- my allergies never bother me in VN
- cost of living
- good scenery/environment
- big fish in a small pond - I'm well-known & popular - I'm a novelty so everyone wants to meet me.
My Negatives:
- dry season - sand storms, drought, everything is dead - too many tourists
- holidays - most of what I'm used to is irrelevant - VN holidays seem boring
- people always trying to scam me. Even people I consider as friends can't seem to get over the $$ signs in their eyes.
- no matter how long I'm here, I'll always be an outsider. Even if I speak the language fluently, get married, have kids, own property, it won't matter.
- lack of reading material, movies and TV
- medical care. When you have a problem, it can be hard to get good treatment in a timely manner
- big fish in a small pond - I have zero privacy - I can’t go anywhere and be alone - I'm unique
- noise, pollution, too many people, no wildlife
Random recommendation on local customs:
- How to greet people you meet: Shaking hands is fine, but girls in the countryside may be shy. Hugging is very uncommon. If you speak any Vietnamese, pronouns are very important. Accept any gifts, business cards or other items with both hands. Always invite people at each stage (please come in, please site down, please try some...)
- How to address the elders: With smiling, bowing and nodding. Always make sure you greet the elders and say goodbye to them explicitly before you leave the room, even if you were not otherwise engaged with them.
- Table manners: Food in Phan Thiet is often spicy. Unlike my experience in China, it seems ok to leave food behind or refuse some items. In general, you can slurp, put your elbows on the table, and spit bones on the floor. Raising the bowl to your lips is fine.
- tipping: If it's an establishment that serves foreigners normally, then you should tip. If foreigners rarely visit, then tipping is not necessary.
- Lineup at the counter: Observe what others are doing around you. If there is a line, stay in it. If it's a mob, then push your way to the front like everyone else.
- haggling: Vietnamese merchants are stubborn. If they don't budge and it seems too expensive, it's better to walk away and try someone else than waste their time and yours.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Banh Bao with Cardboard and Lye
CNN has a new story on their website about steamed buns in China made with cardboard and lye fillings (with pork fat and seasoning for flavor). I’m not terribly surprised. Banh Bao has a bad reputation around Phan Thiet, whether it is true on not. My friends tell me it has rat meat in it. I’ve bitten into plenty with cardboard-like fillings that were just too tough and chewy to be merely pork and quail eggs. The desert variety with beans also seems to end up with an ammonia-sulfurous taste that’s a little alarming. Still, most of the time they are good, and I do buy them a lot in the Phan Thiet market and downtown at night. In Mui Ne a couple of guys also sell them on bicycle carts, much like the ice cream and baguette sellers.
Toxic additives in food are not uncommon. Formaldehyde is a known ingredient in some Vietnamese beers, and borax shows up in some of the pickled meat products. Not long ago there was a scandal in China over chalk in the baby formula. Babies were losing weight and dieing from malnutrition and no one knew why for the longest time.
What bothers me is the unrelenting number of stories CNN and other news agencies with anti-China bias keep throwing out to us about China. I don’t doubt all the stories about dangerous food additives in products—I’ve lived there after all—it’s no big secret. It’s only a revelation to the poor saps in the USA. However, I think it’s unfair to level all these accusations solely at China. The truth is, you’ll find exactly the same issues in any other developing country in the world—whether it’s India, Cambodia, Uganda, Bolivia or France.
Furthermore, you’ll find the same things in the USA if you look hard enough—at the risk of a lawsuit for exposing the truth. Up until very recently, “fiber” in the list of ingredients was a way to disguise a healthy scoop of sawdust. The sad fact is, all foods made in bulk in factories are permitted “acceptable levels” of inedible ingredients.
The hypocrisy bothers me—especially the way we Americans go ape over “all the MSG” in Asian foods, conveniently forgetting it’s in all our foods back home too. We get upset about the MSG shaker on the table with all the other condiments in Vietnam, but we don’t realize MSG is dumped in all our potato chips and vacuum-sealed cupcakes. Even worse, we use known carcinogens like aspartame which deposit deadly formaldehyde in the brain.
I suspect that as we get closer and closer to the Beijing Olympics we’ll see more and more negative, hypocritical articles about China from our biased news media.
Toxic additives in food are not uncommon. Formaldehyde is a known ingredient in some Vietnamese beers, and borax shows up in some of the pickled meat products. Not long ago there was a scandal in China over chalk in the baby formula. Babies were losing weight and dieing from malnutrition and no one knew why for the longest time.
What bothers me is the unrelenting number of stories CNN and other news agencies with anti-China bias keep throwing out to us about China. I don’t doubt all the stories about dangerous food additives in products—I’ve lived there after all—it’s no big secret. It’s only a revelation to the poor saps in the USA. However, I think it’s unfair to level all these accusations solely at China. The truth is, you’ll find exactly the same issues in any other developing country in the world—whether it’s India, Cambodia, Uganda, Bolivia or France.
Furthermore, you’ll find the same things in the USA if you look hard enough—at the risk of a lawsuit for exposing the truth. Up until very recently, “fiber” in the list of ingredients was a way to disguise a healthy scoop of sawdust. The sad fact is, all foods made in bulk in factories are permitted “acceptable levels” of inedible ingredients.
The hypocrisy bothers me—especially the way we Americans go ape over “all the MSG” in Asian foods, conveniently forgetting it’s in all our foods back home too. We get upset about the MSG shaker on the table with all the other condiments in Vietnam, but we don’t realize MSG is dumped in all our potato chips and vacuum-sealed cupcakes. Even worse, we use known carcinogens like aspartame which deposit deadly formaldehyde in the brain.
I suspect that as we get closer and closer to the Beijing Olympics we’ll see more and more negative, hypocritical articles about China from our biased news media.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Anthony Bourdain moving to Vietnam?
Anthony Bourdain is one of my favorite travel personalities. He pulls no punches and with his signature off-color humor tells you exactly what he thinks (well, I presume anyway) about where he is, what he’s doing, and often, what he’s eating.
From everything I’ve read, Vietnam is his favorite country. He has one show in his series, “No Reservations” based in Vietnam, and from what I’m told, several episodes of his previous show “A Cook’s Tour” featuring Vietnam, although I haven’t had the pleasure of viewing the latter. I greatly enjoyed his book, “A Cook’s Tour,” which has several chapters devoted to Cambodia and Vietnam. I’m currently reading “The Nasty Bits,” in which he references Vietnam numerous times.
Anthony tries Trung Vit Lon (duck eggs with babies in them)
I was really intrigued to read in a number of old interviews that Anthony Bourdain was intending to move to Vietnam and essentially have the same sort of experience that I’ve lived for a few years in Phan Thiet.
In one interview, Bourdain states, “Something really happened to me in Vietnam. I think I instinctively knew it, and I think a lot of people around me knew it, but Asia ruined me for going back. Vietnam in particular ruined my whole life. My expectations for what I see when I open my eyes in the morning, or even little things like the condiments on the table when I sit down. That bar just went so high and so different that there was no going back… when we got back and Chris called me up and said, “Tony, is it like weird for you now, is it flat?”
I know exactly how he feels. I don’t think anyone who’s been in Vietnam (or any of the countries in the region) for a long time can go back and easily re-assimilate. I lost all interest in my old hobbies and habits after I spent a few months in Asia. I stopped caring what I was missing on TV, what the latest movies were, or what the current events were back in the USA. My perspective completely changed.
In April 2005, for the Financial Times, Anthony wrote, “A year from now, I plan to live here. I will move to a small fishing village in a coastal area of Vietnam near Hoi An. I have no idea what I'm going to do there, other than write about the experience. I plan only on being a visual curiosity, the lone westerner in a Vietnamese community; to rent a house, move in with few, if any, expectations and let the experience wash over me. Whatever happens, happens.”
Of course this is exactly what I’ve done, and I can highly recommend the experience. “Visual curiosity” is exactly what we are. Even after living in the same town for a couple of years, I still got flagged down and waved back to the highway, toward the closest strip of resorts. People always assume I’m a tourist who’s gotten lost—not realizing I might actually live in my own house in the next village. It really stuns people when I start talking to them in their own language, trying to explain that.
Apparently Anthony has been to Vietnam several times, and as part of an international film crew, I have no doubt he’s assembled a few well-connected contacts who can arrange all his visas and housing permits. For a nobody like me though, arranging housing permits outside of the usual tourist hangouts can be a royal pain. I’ve had to go to the local police station on a monthly basis to get my papers signed. It means showing up with boxes of cigarettes to hand out, and occasionally inviting the good ol’ boys out for beer and seafood. It also means putting up with lots of surprise police visits from old guys who forgot the war is over, and a barrage of questions about what I and my forefathers all did and where we were during the “American War.” Unless his friends really get the point across to all the local police that Anthony should be left alone, he’s bound to experience those joys for himself too. But then it’s all good fun and part of the experience.
In May 2005, for IceCulinary.com, Bourdain responded to a question about whether his move to Vietnam was intended as a Sabbatical, material for a new book, or even a new TV show, “It's all of the above. First and foremost, I'm passionate about Vietnam and from the first time I went there I said I just need more of this. I sold a book based on the simple concept of me going to live in Vietnam for a year and writing about it, and I could continue to make shows. Since it's an international travel show I could certainly meet the crew anywhere in the world. It would be probably shorter from Saigon, where we're planning on shooting, than it would be from New York. So I might be able to pop out for a few weeks at a time and do that but largely, I don’t mind the idea of disappearing off the grid for a year.”
Anthony downs the beating heart of a cobra
It’s hard not to be jealous. I’ve tried drumming up interest in my own adventures, and it’s such slow going. If Bourdain is buried in some little fishing village, hopping in and out of the country on short notice can be problematic. There’s a lot which can be done remotely from right in Vietnam though, as I can attest. Vietnam’s telecommunications systems are all 2-5 years more advanced than in the USA. That’s because Vietnam is a testing ground for new gadgets and technology. He could do a lot over the net and by phone without ever leaving his village.
In September 2004, for AskMen.com, Anthony stated, “I could never be one of them. That's one of the principal metaphors of Graham Greene's The Quiet American . The main character, Fowler, is a Westerner in love with the orphan girl Phuong. He loves her. But she could never love him back. I have never been made to feel more welcome than I have in Vietnam, or been treated more graciously, or with as much kindness. I'm going to try to put this delicately but the fact is, you're talking China, Japan, Cambodia, Vietnam, these are deeply racist cultures. A Westerner marries a Vietnamese girl, the family is pretty horrified. I think what I'm saying about Vietnam is that I could never flatter myself to think that I could become Vietnamese. I would like to be thought of as a welcome guest and as a true friend. But I could never, I mean, I'm 6'4", I look like a big ugly freak to them.”
Wow, he gets it. He articulated the biggest frustration of any expat living here. No matter how long we are here, no matter how well we speak the language, even if we get married, buy a house and have our own clutch of little bi-racial children, we will always be outsiders. We will always be a strange, rich American tourist. Anthony, as well as myself, always try to point out how gracious and kind people are to us here, but the sad fact is, there’s always a significant portion of the population that endeavors to take advantage of our “Rich American Tourist” status too.
I don’t know if Anthony ever managed to make it over to Vietnam, or if it’s still on the menu. In June 2006 for BookSlut.com, he stated, “Initially it was going to be two years in a fishing village in Vietnam. Now I’m thinking start out in Vietnam and work my way through some of my favorite places in Southeast Asia, and maybe end up in Indonesia. I just went to Indonesia for the first time, we did a show there. I really, really fell in love with Bali and Java. Just incredibly beautiful, and the food… I knew it was going to be great but I had no idea how good.” You could tell he really dug Indonesia and Malaysia in the episodes he made. I can’t fault him if his plans have changed. I know how frustrating it is to tell people what you are doing over and over again, only to be redirected in a new direction. Life is what happens while you are making plans.
If Anthony ever does make it over to Vietnam for a stay, I hope he’ll swing by Phan Thiet to visit us and enjoy the great seafood and culture.
From everything I’ve read, Vietnam is his favorite country. He has one show in his series, “No Reservations” based in Vietnam, and from what I’m told, several episodes of his previous show “A Cook’s Tour” featuring Vietnam, although I haven’t had the pleasure of viewing the latter. I greatly enjoyed his book, “A Cook’s Tour,” which has several chapters devoted to Cambodia and Vietnam. I’m currently reading “The Nasty Bits,” in which he references Vietnam numerous times.
I was really intrigued to read in a number of old interviews that Anthony Bourdain was intending to move to Vietnam and essentially have the same sort of experience that I’ve lived for a few years in Phan Thiet.
In one interview, Bourdain states, “Something really happened to me in Vietnam. I think I instinctively knew it, and I think a lot of people around me knew it, but Asia ruined me for going back. Vietnam in particular ruined my whole life. My expectations for what I see when I open my eyes in the morning, or even little things like the condiments on the table when I sit down. That bar just went so high and so different that there was no going back… when we got back and Chris called me up and said, “Tony, is it like weird for you now, is it flat?”
I know exactly how he feels. I don’t think anyone who’s been in Vietnam (or any of the countries in the region) for a long time can go back and easily re-assimilate. I lost all interest in my old hobbies and habits after I spent a few months in Asia. I stopped caring what I was missing on TV, what the latest movies were, or what the current events were back in the USA. My perspective completely changed.
In April 2005, for the Financial Times, Anthony wrote, “A year from now, I plan to live here. I will move to a small fishing village in a coastal area of Vietnam near Hoi An. I have no idea what I'm going to do there, other than write about the experience. I plan only on being a visual curiosity, the lone westerner in a Vietnamese community; to rent a house, move in with few, if any, expectations and let the experience wash over me. Whatever happens, happens.”
Of course this is exactly what I’ve done, and I can highly recommend the experience. “Visual curiosity” is exactly what we are. Even after living in the same town for a couple of years, I still got flagged down and waved back to the highway, toward the closest strip of resorts. People always assume I’m a tourist who’s gotten lost—not realizing I might actually live in my own house in the next village. It really stuns people when I start talking to them in their own language, trying to explain that.
Apparently Anthony has been to Vietnam several times, and as part of an international film crew, I have no doubt he’s assembled a few well-connected contacts who can arrange all his visas and housing permits. For a nobody like me though, arranging housing permits outside of the usual tourist hangouts can be a royal pain. I’ve had to go to the local police station on a monthly basis to get my papers signed. It means showing up with boxes of cigarettes to hand out, and occasionally inviting the good ol’ boys out for beer and seafood. It also means putting up with lots of surprise police visits from old guys who forgot the war is over, and a barrage of questions about what I and my forefathers all did and where we were during the “American War.” Unless his friends really get the point across to all the local police that Anthony should be left alone, he’s bound to experience those joys for himself too. But then it’s all good fun and part of the experience.
In May 2005, for IceCulinary.com, Bourdain responded to a question about whether his move to Vietnam was intended as a Sabbatical, material for a new book, or even a new TV show, “It's all of the above. First and foremost, I'm passionate about Vietnam and from the first time I went there I said I just need more of this. I sold a book based on the simple concept of me going to live in Vietnam for a year and writing about it, and I could continue to make shows. Since it's an international travel show I could certainly meet the crew anywhere in the world. It would be probably shorter from Saigon, where we're planning on shooting, than it would be from New York. So I might be able to pop out for a few weeks at a time and do that but largely, I don’t mind the idea of disappearing off the grid for a year.”
It’s hard not to be jealous. I’ve tried drumming up interest in my own adventures, and it’s such slow going. If Bourdain is buried in some little fishing village, hopping in and out of the country on short notice can be problematic. There’s a lot which can be done remotely from right in Vietnam though, as I can attest. Vietnam’s telecommunications systems are all 2-5 years more advanced than in the USA. That’s because Vietnam is a testing ground for new gadgets and technology. He could do a lot over the net and by phone without ever leaving his village.
In September 2004, for AskMen.com, Anthony stated, “I could never be one of them. That's one of the principal metaphors of Graham Greene's The Quiet American . The main character, Fowler, is a Westerner in love with the orphan girl Phuong. He loves her. But she could never love him back. I have never been made to feel more welcome than I have in Vietnam, or been treated more graciously, or with as much kindness. I'm going to try to put this delicately but the fact is, you're talking China, Japan, Cambodia, Vietnam, these are deeply racist cultures. A Westerner marries a Vietnamese girl, the family is pretty horrified. I think what I'm saying about Vietnam is that I could never flatter myself to think that I could become Vietnamese. I would like to be thought of as a welcome guest and as a true friend. But I could never, I mean, I'm 6'4", I look like a big ugly freak to them.”
Wow, he gets it. He articulated the biggest frustration of any expat living here. No matter how long we are here, no matter how well we speak the language, even if we get married, buy a house and have our own clutch of little bi-racial children, we will always be outsiders. We will always be a strange, rich American tourist. Anthony, as well as myself, always try to point out how gracious and kind people are to us here, but the sad fact is, there’s always a significant portion of the population that endeavors to take advantage of our “Rich American Tourist” status too.
I don’t know if Anthony ever managed to make it over to Vietnam, or if it’s still on the menu. In June 2006 for BookSlut.com, he stated, “Initially it was going to be two years in a fishing village in Vietnam. Now I’m thinking start out in Vietnam and work my way through some of my favorite places in Southeast Asia, and maybe end up in Indonesia. I just went to Indonesia for the first time, we did a show there. I really, really fell in love with Bali and Java. Just incredibly beautiful, and the food… I knew it was going to be great but I had no idea how good.” You could tell he really dug Indonesia and Malaysia in the episodes he made. I can’t fault him if his plans have changed. I know how frustrating it is to tell people what you are doing over and over again, only to be redirected in a new direction. Life is what happens while you are making plans.
If Anthony ever does make it over to Vietnam for a stay, I hope he’ll swing by Phan Thiet to visit us and enjoy the great seafood and culture.
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