I've only watched a small snippet of this film, but the attention to detail is great. Especially the scene where the old grandmother-like servant is cooking. You literally smell the food she is stir frying. The film captures the sounds of Vietnam very well. Vietnam is really noisy if you are quiet. You can always hear something whether it be a fan buzzing, an air conditioner humming, a motorbike whizzing, a Vietnamese neighbor (người hàng xóm) blabbering about the drama in her family, birds, crickets, everything is always talking.
Here's a good review of the movie.
Here's a good review of the movie.
The Scent of Green Papaya:
Full length version (no subtitles):
Vertical Ray of the Sun:
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Half the Sky. Women are part of the solution not the problem.
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Just completed CAY project's 4th health workshop for trafficking survivors. It's going well, the pace is much slower. Change can't happen over night, but at least maybe we can try. Today we talked about "burdens" and ways in which we can release that "burden" so we can be healthy.
I saw them build a tree today. We were working with wires.
"I can't do it"
"This hurts my hands"
"There is no way (to make it tall)"
"This is enough"
"I can't cut this"
One of them kept shaking her head from left to right very quickly, as if to say "no" but she never did say it. We were building a box in order to "warm up" before we build the bigger tree. She had made two squares, and tossed them on the ground. "Bó Tay" (tied hands) you might say. I was getting a bit frustrated at her giving up so early.
"Why do you keep shaking your head like that?"
"Can't do it"
"Do you have a shaking head disease? Stop doing that" I begin to shake my head too.
I took up the two pieces.
"Now you have these two squares, now what, how can you connect them?"
We begin to connect the two squares to make a box.
I knick my hand with the wire while I am helping her. It begins to bleed a bit but I keep going.
She sees that I am bleeding. She takes the half finished box from me.
"Here let me take it" She finished the box.
Another girl tells me she can't finish the box and wants help.
"Come here and sit next to me"
"Alright what do you do to connect the two boxes?" I repeat. Guiding her. I've never built a box out of wire before. She completes the box.
The next task was to build a tree as tall as you can with the wires.
Two of the three girls sat idly to the side. Slowly though, I am unsure what suddenly clicked in their head, but all three worked together to build the tree and it stood tall. It was a beautiful sight to see, both the tree and the girls working together to build it. You can tell they were beginning to really believe they could build it. Seeing that transformation was a wonderful feeling for me. For them to be able to step up (bước lên) and build the tree together and communicate from not even wanting to touch the wires is at least to me a small step forward.
We were painting ideas of how to "relieve our stress." One girl put down her paint brush and then dipped her fingers into the paint and painted her hand. I loved the spontaneity. I think you have to understand that here, spontaneity is rare.
"I like to paint, be messy with paint"
"I liked the painting because it helps relieve my stress"
"I painted a house because I miss my home. I miss my mom. I miss sleeping next to her"
I personally forgot how much I love the texture of paint. Especially how it feels on a brush and when it gets on you. I don't like to wash off paint when it gets on my clothes. I think it gives it more character.
It's because all their lives they've been told they could not do anything by society. That they are at the bottom. Now they stop themselves before they even try. I hope to change that. They are so capable and able, I want them to believe it and know it. This is so hard to do.
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Flies in Vietnam are ferocious and behave differently from flies in America. In America we kill them. In Vietnam we don't. Fly swatters aren't readily available. I think this makes the flies more tenacious. The flies in America, if you swat at them they run away. The ones here don't and they buzz in your ear.
There is a stupid fly in my room right now and I am scared.
Mosquitos in Vietnam are smart. They bite you before they buzz in your ear. The ones in America buzz in your ear before they bite you.
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In Vietnamese there is a distinction between Vietnamese grandparents on your mom side and Vietnamese parents on your dad side.
ông nội: Grandfather - Dad's side
bà nội: Grandmother - Dad's side
ông ngoại: Grandfather - Mom's side
bà ngoại: Grandmother - Mom's side
Familial lineage is strongly linked to the male, so much so that even the name implies it. When referring to grandparents on the mother's side the word "ngoại" is used which means "outside."
There are many distinctions in the language that I don't comprehend. There are many words for the color of red and black.
Stir-frying is distinctly different from frying.
Lots of euphemisms that go over my head.
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Pop song fun. I love catching up with pop culture. As of recently pop songs are beginning to delight me - maybe Vietnam has simplified my expectations of music. I suppose it's a guilty pleasure of mine (save me now) I can't help but love the following songs:
"Pop culture is my religion" - Lady Gaga
I really like this gaga song.
This kid is pretty damn talented. Add him to my list of kids my age who are "pretty fuckin' accomplished." My affinity towards talented musicians is no exception to Jimmy (Chaz who? Hahaha.)- a self-employed musician and artist currently living in L.A he spends his days making two videos a week. His remake of Britney Spear's new single is SO GOOD. He also makes a good response to that ching chong ling long girl from U.C.L.A.
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Can't wait to come back to go to shows. SHOOOOOOOOOOWS.
I usually only enjoy shows where I know the songs/artists. Pre-party for the ears!
If I can have an ideal life it would look something like this.
1. go to shows. 2. have a nice house decorated like the movie "Scent of a Green Papaya" in a cool, airy place 3. work at the radio station. 4. be near/accessible to my family 5. have the ability travel
I've gone to shows by myself before. That's how much I love them.
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Sharpening my
My friend Patricia recently gave me this awesome tiger balm stuff that is from Thailand. It makes my hands all warm. Helps with the carpel tunnel? Well I'll type anyways, even if it's the death of my hands.
It has come to my attention that I've been making many solecisms as of late. Poor writing, learning a new language, and trying to fix people's passive voice has lead to my writing abilities demise. (I think that was passive).
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Things that make me extremely happy:
Damn Vietnamese coffee.
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