Life is just slower here in Vietnam. Patience is a skill that I've been trying to hone while living here. Nothing happens in a timely manner - or rather, it happens on Vietnamese time. There is absolutely no sense of urgency in anything.It took several weeks for me to get a bicycle after I moved here, because I had to wait for a Vietnamese person to go with me to translate. I've been waiting months for a skirt to be made, with still no sign of completion. People say: oh yes, I'll take you to that park/temple/mountain, but it never happens.
I'm trying to learn to be patient, to overcome my Western culture, which compells me to be productive & to expect others to be as well, but it's been difficult & frustrating nonetheless.
3 comments:
I know exactly what you're talking about. Someone says we're going out for ice-cream on Sunday and they're nowhere to be found on Sunday. One guy here told me he was going to teach me how to fish and I'm still waiting some three years later. I was supposed to go out for pizza just yesterday evening and wound up eating Froot Loops for dinner. There's really no good solution to this other than learning to not get your hopes up.
Good blog, by the way. I just stumbled into it recently and it has been an enjoyable read. Vietnam expat blogs are in short supply.
Nice cartoon! Made me laugh, reminds me of my nephew: I want to be awesome at [pick sport, skill, video game, etc], right now!!
I hear it is the same in Hawaii, "Island Time", but there usually you get used to it within a couple of days. What is your excuse? Haha! ;) Months does seem just a tad long for a skirt...
"I'll take you to that park/temple/mountain, but it never happens." That happens to me even in the US, although I'm sure not as much (we spend a lot of time talking about hikes that we never actually do). Anyway, I've heard similar comments about Costa Rica and Malasia.
Post a Comment