Water Puppet Theatre

Water puppet shows are a Vietnamese entertainment begun long ago by farmers.  Once performed in natural waterways, water puppet shows can now be seen in special theatres.  The theatres feature a water-stage and a live band playing traditional instruments.  The puppets are wooden dolls set on long bamboo poles and tell stories about rural daily life in Vietnam. 

A closer look at the puppets can be found at many tourist shops throughout Hanoi.

He Said, She Said & Bride-Counting

A Vietnamese woman filled me in on the politics of the Vietnamese wedding. 

Weddings last a few days because the bride's family and the groom's family will each have a separate wedding party.  The wedding ceremony itself will usually take place with the groom's family.  Nowadays, many brides (and often grooms, too) choose to follow the western tradition of wearing white, but any color prom dress will do.  After the ceremony, the bride returns to her family's home and changes into red clothes to signify that she has become a married woman.  After three days, the groom visits the bride's family to report on the "condition and worthiness" of the bride and to tell whether or not he is going to keep her or discard her.

An engagement can be broken by either party.  If the groom calls of the wedding, then it is understood that the woman is tainted and unworthy as a wife.  She will have to move to another district or some place where no one has ever heard of her in order find a husband.  Her reputation is ruined! 

If a bride calls off the wedding, then she must pay back twice the wedding costs fronted by the groom's family.  So, if the family paid her $1000 for the wedding dowry and ceremony, she must pay them $2000 in order to call the whole thing off.  If she can't come up with the money, then she has no choice but to go through with the wedding.  Of course, the groom suffers no consequences should the bride call off the wedding. 

As a feminist, this pisses me off!  That such an inequal balance of power still exists in our world, to the detriment of women, is ghastly. 

So, with that nasty bit of information aside, I'll move on those couples that do tie the knot.  In Hanoi, it can be a regular weekend passtime to go bride-counting at any of the local parks.  In my neighborhood, this is especially true because I live by Hoan Kiem Lake (very historically important and lovely) and Lenin Park (with a big lake, swan boats, lots of lovely bridges, gardens, nooks, and crannies).  Both places attract many wedding parties hoping to capture the perfect wedding photo.  Here are some of the brides I counted on one Saturday morning on a stroll through Lenin Park:

Notice that this picture has two brides.

Looks like this groom's ready to get the party started!

This dirt heap is a beautiful setting for a wedding photo.

My Students

Kindy Class 1: 4-7 year olds

Kindy Class 2: 4-7 year olds

Conversation Class: 14 year olds (really big 14 year olds)

Easter in Hanoi

Easter is not a much-celebrated holiday in Vietnam, but the local Catholic church managed to produce crowds large enough on Good Friday and Easter to spill out into and fill the courtyard in front.  Here is the church (at least the part of it that fits into my camera frame) with its Easter clothes on. 

COCK!

Here's a craft store with a very unfortunate name! 

Night Lights

One of the features that makes Hanoi so colorful and lively is the use of lights throughout the city.  Here are some pics of the lights I photographed on the short walk between Hoan Kiem Lake and my apartment in Tran Quoc Toan. 

Colorful lanterns with Hoan Kiem Shrine in the background

Communist Building

A restaurant on the lake

Lights above night market in the Old Quarter

Street lights

Obama Sightings

I've been seeing a lot of Obama in Hanoi and have been able to snap a couple of pics of the President.  Apparently, his political prowess has allowed him to be quite a successful salesman in Vietnam. 



Chef Obama invites you to try his Vietnamese home-cooking at this neighborhood cafe.

Make sure Obama looks and sounds his best by purchasing quality media appliances sponsored by the President himself.

Van Tho or Van Gogh?

Kris spotted this painting in a gallery window.  We think it's very funny!  It looks like a Vietnamese version of a Van Gogh, except this one is by Van Tho. 

Vietnam's Got Talent: Singing

Here is the singing portion of the Tet 2011 celebrations at Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi.  I wish I could have filmed more of the talented singers, but my memory disk was too small to capture them all.  I was able to get two singing acts.  The man in the first video is actually pretty good.  The "talent" in the second video is questionable, but the women look really cool standing in a row with colorful Vietnamese dresses. 

Vietnam's Got Talent: Dancing

This talent show was performed at Hoan Kiem Lake as part of the Tet 2011 kick-off celebrations.  These lovely dances are versions of traditional Vietnamese dances.  I took the liberty of naming the dances since I don't know the Vietnamese names.  Enjoy!

Lotus Dance

Lantern Dance

Fan Dance

Basket Dance

Fanny

I love this ice cream place called Fanny, located directly across from Hoan Kiem Lake.  It's decorated in Breakfast-at-Tiffany's-esque fashion with neopolitan pink, brown, and cream stripes and Vietnamese girls in pink 50's-diner dresses.  The menu offers several different dishes of thoughtfully prepared desserts.  I have tried a few and plan to go back for more.  Kris thinks the place has a funny name because, of course, eating all that ice cream will give us big fannies!





Top: Banana crepe with whipped cream and chocolate sauce.
Side: Vietnamese coffee
Bottom: Five fruit sorbets atop a fresh fruit salad in a waffle cone with raspberry syrup. 





Strawberry ice cream with blueberry, strawberry, and melon sorbets with fresh strawberries, mint, and a chuck of dark chocolate with chocolate sauce at the bottom of the cup. 




Coconut ice cream served in an avocado with chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and fresh strawberries.




Vanilla and chocolate ice creams with berry sorbet, a chuck of dark chocolate, a white chocolate flower, a pink Pocky stick, and mint atop a bed of fresh watermelon, berries, and dragon fruit salad swimming in chocolate liqueur. 



Power Wheels: Cardboard to Carry

Cardboard is actually expensive in Vietnam and quite coveted.  It's about the only thing I've seen that is routinely recycled here.  It's gathered and carted off by motorbikes in towering heaps like this one.

Communist Propaganda Art

In Hanoi, giant communist propanda posters can be seen on nearly every corner.  I took the time to photograph many of the posters around Hoan Kiem.  After I thought I had them all digitally collected, they rotated them all for new posters!  Here's the pics from the first crop.  There are all in Vietnamese, but the artwork gives the general idea behind the posters.   

Poster stand north of the Hoan Kiem Lake 

The man in the top corner is Ho Chi Minh--a common feature to many posters.

The hammer and sickle are the ultimate symbols of communism.

Traditional dancing is featured at many public events.

A very Asian-style dragon

Business and industry are forefront in the Vietnamese consciousness.