For the rest of this blog I want to spend a bit more time explaining some things from Vietnam. I'll start with trash. I am curious to learn about different daily routines for the people living in the countries I visit. I know it's not necessarily the most exciting thing to write about, but I do find it interesting to learn about how people live in different parts of the world. So I am going to explain a little about the trash collection in Vietnam.
I guess in America, it doesn't seem like anything special. We put our trash in bags, roll-out the dumpster and man driving a big truck comes around and takes it far away from us. Well in Vietnam, it's not too different, except they just throw the trash on the curb. I saw it bagged, but also just lying spread out along the street. I was told people leave their trash on the streets at night and then someone comes around collects it early in the morning. Again this doesn't seem too fascinating. However it was just interesting walking around Hanoi seeing trash lying in the streets, and then being informed that this was the system put in place.
Trash collection in Vietnam
Of course both systems are a contrast to Taiwan. In Taiwan the big garbage truck comes around in the evening, playing a very loud, repetive tune. Upon hearing the sound, people run out of their homes and toss their bags into the truck as it slowly rolls by. It often reminds me of an ice cream truck for adults. The tune is very similar sounding to one that an ice cream truck might play, and wherever it is heard, people run to try and catch it.
Not the ice cream truck...it's the trash man!
Finally I did want to share a little bit more about proganda. I had written earlier about propaganda posters. Another common site in Hanoi was posters commemorating events in Vietnam's history. One of particular note was the poster celebrating the shooting down of American jets in the 1970's.
Remembering the jet that was shot down.
Several posters similar to this hung around a scenic lake in Hanoi. The area is kind of set up like a park where you can stroll and enjoy being by the lake. These and other posters hang up, remembering that jets had crashed into that very lake.
I don't want anyone to be confused about the treatment of Americans in Vietnam. I had no problems at all, and I felt safe and accepted by the people their. Many places took American currency, and the people were friendly to me. So it's nothing personal, but it is the government celebrating their past victories.
As I understood it, the war with America was just a small portion of many conflicts that Vietnam has had over its history. In fact, for some the war became a source of profit. Near my hotel there were a couple of stores that were propaganda stores. They sold old propaganda posters that were from the war. They had authentic prints, re-prints, and even t-shirts, mugs, and shot glasses. I bought a couple of smaller prints of posters from the war. One is a picture of an American plane shooting at a school child, and the Vietnamese message talks about the atraucities fo the American enemy. The second poster I bought was promoting the greatness of the communist party. I thought both were fascinating, and I hope someday to be able to use them in a history classroom of mine.
Finally, I also had the chance to visit the Hanoi Hilton, which is the POW prison that held American soldiers during the Vietnam war. Much of the museum is dedicated to the time when the French controlled the prison. At this time, they used it to keep Vietnamese prisoner. The prison showed models of how the prisoners would be chained up, starved, and it even had a guillotine that was used for executions. All of this was to show the horrible conditions for the Vietnamese when the French were in control.
Conditions during French control
Michael, beware of the guillotine!
Of course the other part of the museum showed highlights from when it was used in the Vietnam War. This was the POW prison where John McCain was held. They had an air force pilot's suit, that was supposedly his. They also had a couple of pictures of him, one of which spelled his name "Mc. John Cain". We got a kick out of that.
John McCain's Suit
In addition to McCain's stuff, the Vietnamese showed the luxurious life that American prisoners enjoyed during their stay. There were no pictures of starving soldiers, interrogations, or rough conditions. Instead, all of the men were healthy and smiling. They showed pictures of the soldiers playing basketball, worshipping at a church, even cooking a Christmas dinner. These were the only types of pictures they had to describe the prison when the Vietnamese controlled it.
I was about ready to go out and rob an old lady, so I could leave my hotel for the resort that is Vietnamese prison. :)
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