Hey, guys.
I'm making a trip home to America.
That was faster than I thought.
Since I'm home now,
it seems like a good time to continue exploring the topic "Normal in Vietnam, weird elsewhere."
That is, I'm going to talk once again about things like showing off your belly,
drinking beer with ice,
and going to extra classes,
which the entire Vietnamese community have accepted as completely normal,
but which an American like me can't help finding a bit odd.
The point of this video isn't to criticize the Vietnamese way of life,
nor is it to praise the American way of life,
but rather just to explore the differences between the two places.
And our exploration is going to begin at the cinema.
"high-class cinema-going"
If you were to ask me where to find the best-dressed people in any given town in America,
I . . .
wouldn't know,
because Americans typically make the effort to dress up about once or twice a year.
However, if you were to ask me the same question about a town in Vietnam,
I would know the answer instantly:
the movie theater!
I mean, really, just look at how fabulous these people look.
And they don't just dress up. They also get their cameras out and pose for a bunch of pictures,
like they're at some big, memorable event.
A movie theater here in American doesn't look quite the same.
To give you an idea of just how different things are here,
my cousin and his family have a tradition of going out to the movies on Christmas day.
And what do they wear?
Their pajamas.
So this is what their pictures look like.
"fast choice" restaurants
I've mentioned in some previous videos, I love the food in Vietnam.
But sometimes Westerners like me feel a little uncomfortable eating at restaurants there,
because the servers always bring the menus over,
and then just stand there waiting for you to choose.
Here's how it goes in America:
The server brings the menu over, says:
"I'll give you a few minutes to decide."
and then walks away while you choose.
It seems like a pretty reasonable system,
and I can't really figure out what's going on in Vietnam.
Like, is it that Vietnamese people have some preternatural ability
to instantly choose that they want out of a menu?
Or is it just that they don't mind being stared at by a stranger for a few minutes while they decide?
Whatever the reason,
if you happen to work in a restaurant and you ever get Western customers,
try doing what I just mentioned:
Say,
"I'll give you a few minutes to decide,"
and then walk away.
They'll think you're the coolest server in all of Vietnam.
"misplaced street lights"
When I first started riding a motorbike around Hanoi, it was fun but also stressful, for a number of reasons:
other motorbikes carrying big loads of steel,
idiots texting while riding,
and also, stopping at intersections and looking around like:
"Wait, where's the light? How do I know when to go?"
I'm not sure, this might be something you only find in Hanoi, and not other Vietnamese cities,
but there are a surprising number of intersections there
where the stop light is installed on the near side of the cross street,
so if you're stopped right on the stop line in the middle of the street,
you can't see the light at all.
Now, most of those intersections do have that little red cross thing on the far side,
so you can see that,
but that just makes the whole thing even stranger to me,
because someone obviously realized that there needs to be something on the far side for people to see,
so why not just install both stop lights on that side to begin with?
There must be some reason for it that I just don't know about, like . . .
feng shui?
"cannabis clothes"
Probably the funniest thing about living in Asia
is seeing people wearing clothes printed with ridiculous English that they don't understand,
like the time my wife's sister was wearing a shirt that said "FAT DOG."
But something that's stranger to me are all the clothes and hats you see in Vietnam that are printed with pot leaves.
And you typically see, like, high school students and really innocent-looking girls wearing them.
For a long time, I just assumed that they didn't know what that leaf was,
but then one time I asked my wife's other sister:
"Do you know what leaf that is on your bag there?"
And she said:
"Yeah, it's marijuana."
The thing is, if you wear clothes with pot leaves on them in America,
people will assume not only that you smoke pot,
but also that you really, really like it
and identify with the culture of smoking pot,
like this guy.
So if you're planning on traveling to America at some point,
and you don't want people to think you're a pot smoker,
you might want to leave your favorite pot leaf hat at home.
"ultra-specific universities"
Over the past four years in Hanoi, I've had a lot of English students—
more than I can remember—
but while my students are in my class, I try to learn some things about them,
like where they're from and what they do.
But when it comes to university students and the schools they go to,
it's really hard to keep track.
I study at the University of Industry and Commerce.
I study at the University of Technology, Industry, and Economics.
I study at the University of Economics and Commerce.
Okay, I kind of made those ones up,
but, seriously, Hanoi has so many universities,
and they're so specific.
I mean, just look at these.
The University of Fire Fighting and Fire Prevention.
The University of Social Sciences and the Humanities.
The University of Transport Technology.
Jesus!
Is is really necessary to have separate universities for each of those things?
I mean, if you look at a large city in the US, like New York,
there are a lot of universities and colleges,
but they tend to have pretty general names:
And they tend to be pretty general in nature.
Like, at Gonzaga University behind me,
you can study accounting, education, nursing, or theater arts.
But, hey, if the super specific universities in Vietnam are working for you guys,
I guess there's no need to change anything.
I have been thinking, when I get back to Hanoi, I might open . . .
Anyone want to apply?
"pizza with tomato sauce to the second power"
Okay, I just got this pizza delivered to my front door here in Hanoi,
and even though I haven't opened the box yet,
I can still tell you something that's going to be inside, other than just pizza.
Ketchup, oooooooh.
Now let's go look at a pizza in America.
Okay, I just got my pizza from Bennedito's, a local Spokane favorite,
aaaand . . .
no ketchup to be found.
Now, I've been told that there are some other places where people often put ketchup on pizza.
but I had never seen it until I came to Vietnam.
And the reason it seems particularly weird to me—
despite the fact that I just don't like ketchup very much—
is that pizza already has tomato sauce on it,
so putting another tomato sauce on top just seems redundant,
like dipping apples in honey
or wearing a raincoat while also using an umbrella,
or watching a movie on your laptop and your TV at the same time.
This is awesome!
"beautiful numbers"
I still remember, there was a really exciting time in my journey of learning Vietnamese
when I could start to understand signs out on the street,
like, "Oh, 'eyeglasses,'"
or, "Oh, 'low prices,'"
or, "Oh, 'pissing prohibited.'"
But there was one thing that I kept on seeing and kind of understood, but didn't really.
"Beautiful numbers."
"Beautiful numbers?" What?
I had to ask my Vietnamese teacher what it was all about,
and when she explained it, I only found it stranger,
because, first of all, where I'm from, you never choose a phone number.
You buy a phone, you get a number, and that's it.
And the idea that someone would pay extra for one of these "beautiful numbers?"
That's even stranger.
And compounded upon that is I often find these beautiful numbers really hard to read.
When I see a number like this, for example, I have to look really closely, and be like:
"Wait, how many 8s is that?"
So, personally, I find that your "số đẹp" are in fact
"số xấu" ("ugly numbers").
"drinking warm water"
Water, of course, is the source of life,
but you might find that different countries enjoy it in different ways.
For example, most Westerners in Vietnam have probably had the unpleasant experience
of asking for a glass of water in someone's home
and getting something about as warm as bath water.
Most of us have grown up drinking water that's always cold, or at least cool.
But the thing that's even stranger to me than the warm water itself is the supposed reason for it:
Oh, if you drink cold water you'll get a sore throat, Dan.
What?
Okay, probably every culture in the world has some superstitions and misconceptions about illness—
like some Americans still believe that a cold is actually caused by cold weather itself, rather than by viruses—
so please don't think that I'm judging Vietnamese people when I say this,
but I just want to tell you guys, in case you don't already know,
sore throats are not caused by drinking cold water.
You can read it right here:
"Most sore throats are caused by viruses, and the remainder are caused by bacterial infections
or exposure to chemicals."
I'll make you this deal to prove it:
I'll drink this entire cup of really cold water,
and if tomorrow I have a sore throat, I'll send each of you five dollars.
Now, I know some of you are going to say:
"But you're a Westerner, Dan. You're used to it."
No. As far as I know, there's nothing in the world that works that way.
If you breathe ammonia fumes every day of your life,
you're not going to get immune to it.
You're going to get a sore throat every time.
And eventually you'll probably die.
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This video was also supported by viewers like you on Patreon.
If you're interested in contributing a small amount of money for each video I put out,
just go to patreon.com/danhauer.
The support I've received from my patrons on Patreon
helped make possible this trip home to America for me and my wife.
So I want to send a sincere "thank you" to all my patrons for their support,
and thank you for watching, as well.
Oh, by the way,
it's now the day after I shot that bit with the cold water.
No sore throat,
so no five dollars.