Culture Shock Part Deux - October 22nd

Today is...interesting. I wandered into the hotel-heavy part of Haiphong and found a number of restaurants where the servers speak English, which is, unfortunately, exactly what I need right now. I'm finally hitting that second wave of culture shock that I was warned about in Ghana but never quite reached while I was there. The first wave is simple amazement. Everything is new and exciting. The second wave consists of simply being overwhelmed...by...everything...The novelty wears off and suddenly you find that you're half way around the world, alone, and in a place where you can barely communicate with people. Locals stare as you walk by because of the color of your skin and uniqueness of your face and when you do something wrong, they have no way of telling you what it was or why. I've had quite a few Vietnamese women shout at me as though, the louder they speak, the more I will understand. I'm not deaf, I'm American! These women never mean any harm; in fact, I'd take Vietnamese women over most Ghanaian women any day. Vietnamese women, especially mothers, are always looking out for you, offering you rides home and making sure you don't get cheated. Many Ghanaian women, especially those in their 20's, somehow see you as a threat to their way of life.

That being said, I've had a rough few days and it's taken all my strength not to go out and buy a puppy just to have something to come home to (and I've not yet completely ruled it out...).

On a better note, my Vietnamese is slightly improving, which is making things better. At least that's true when I can remember the phrases. I've "learned" How are you? How much is it? 2, 3, I/me...but my tone still allows for a good amount of confusion. The other day, instead of calling a female student by her name (An'h), I called her "brother" (anh)..Do you see very little difference...? Me too...