Where's the Battle of the Sexes?
I have no insight into what goes on in homes, schools, businesses etc in Vietnam. I can't speak to partner/family/intergenerational relationships. But in public, I see no distinction of expectations and abilities between males and females. As many females as males zip around on their scooters, and they are talking, or reading messages on their phones like the guys. They drive as aggressively. I saw a granny in her 70s picking up 2 kiddies at school and she drove like the little old lady from Pasadena, giving no quarter to other traffic. Sometimes the female drives the scooter and her Mr rides behind. Some ladies drive with spike heels and in formal business wear. Females strap down pressurized draft beer containers or propane cylinders with bungee cords and join the "roadeo"; one lady had somehow managed to fold a single mattress to her ride. Or this lady..... left turns must be a bitch.
As I was writing this it occurred to me that despite the huge scooter population zipping in and out amongst cars, trucks, tour buses and bicycles and and lack of traffic laws, I have never been in a traffic jam. Everything keeps moving. And I have not seen a crash. I have had a few close calls. My main route is the equivalent of Weber Street in KW.
In fave restaurant #2, hubby does the dishes and sometimes chefs in the kitchen when needed, chopping, dicing and slicing. One of the wealthiest citizens in Vietnam was a woman. She was recently found guilty of fraud, money laundering and illegal cross-border money transfers in her real estate and other business ventures. The largest fraud ever in Vietnam. She was sentenced to death which has been commuted to life in prison. Talk about equal opportunity and equal consequences.
As in the class/property equality in neighbourhoods here, it seems on the outside looking in at least there is no battle of the sexes. I'm thinking recent history has something to do with it.
I am reading a fascinating historical fiction, "The Mountain Sings" by Nguyên Phan Qué Mai. It's a multigenerational tale based on her own family's history spanning the French colonial period, the Japanese WW2 occupation and the American War (as they call it here). Mai is a poet and her prose is lyrical in both the emotive good and bad times the author or other family members experienced. The war forced everyone, including children to be independent problem solvers - and survivors. Imagine - when the B52's dropped their loads, bomb shelters were holes in the ground, large enough to accommodate 1 adult and maybe a small child. Metal coverings were pulled over the holes. They were usually filled with water. Maybe some ice in winter. And when the air raid sirens went off it was every person for themselves, regardless of age. Her work defines the resilience and strong character of the people here.
An aside to Donna B at Indigo or any suspense genre lover. I just finished Stephen Hunter's thriller "The Day Before Midnight". Highly recommended.
Yesterday I met Mark, a Brit digital nomad. He is 41 and worked in the corporate world until he couldn't stand the greed for money and profit. He now works for a non-profit NGO, researching and designing cookstoves for the lower classes in Kenya. He is here for 3 months, and has worked in India, Thailand, Malaysia, Laos and the Philippines. He moves to other countries when his visa is up, but stays in SE Asia as he can get a direct flight to Kenya from Kuala Lumpur.
With 30 tribes in Kenya, all with cultural differences, resistance to change, the scarcity of various fuels, frequent long range blackouts, it is very difficult to find a solution that will convince his "clientele" to accept the least polluting forms of cooking. Some use wood, charcoal, ethanol. Solar is out as the evening meal is eaten later and the sun is gone because fficient solar powered batteries are still expensive. With little income, those people choose the least expensive choice, or go without.
While his NGO is not directly funded by the US there is American seed money through UN programs. So Mark is rather dubious about his employment future. He thinks if Musk created creative and efficient cookstove batteries it would go a long way to solving the hunger/disease problem in Kenya. Like that's going to happen! We met at a bicycle rental shop and talked for two hours under the overhang. The owner finally brought us two chairs and a bowl of sunflower seeds. How thoughtful!
Vinnie (my Vinfast scooter) was down to 16% yesterday. There are no receptacles in the courtyard and the charge cord wasn't long enough to reach inside, so inside Vinnie came. There is a step up to the doors. Vinnie is so heavy, I couldn't lift the front wheel up the step. in fact, I couldn't even get the tire off the ground! So I found a courtyard paver and used it as a ramp. Vinnie is at 100% capacity after an 8 hour charge.
Looks like last night's heavy rain is over for awhile. Time for some outside time. Looks like KC got smoked! My condolences Andrea.
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