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a little more about hanoi by ciara reybet degat

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1 part culture shock itself st

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definition of culture shock the feeling of disorientation or trauma experiences by those exposed to an environment culturally different from their own to which they are accustomed to the stages of culture shock 1st stage the euphoric stage this stage is also known as the honeymoon phase at this stage you will be amused and delighted by the shocking new and unfamiliar aspects of the new culture during this stage the new and recent country moved to will be constantly compared to your home country or the country he or she recently left 2nd stage the hostile stage new families students individuals and so on will start becoming quite antagonistic and unfriendly to the aspects of this new culture previously intriguing the daily cultural differences may be very frustrating to the individual or family affected the individual affected will constantly compare this unaccustomed country to their own or try to reconnect with it some way or another for instance by watching movies looking at pictures or photographs talking with friends or family somewhat connected to he or she s homeland at times you may feel slightly lost or uncomfortable as the feeling of homesickness may be very overwhelming 3rd stage the acceptance stage during this stage you will by now be familiar to the way this new culture operates some examples would be you would know where to shop for certain goods which restaurants to go to how to socialize or interact with locals understanding the currency and much more 4th stage reverse culture shock stage in most cases you will return to your home country after a while whether it s for a holiday or a definite travel back this is called the reverse culture shock stage normally you will be overwhelmed with happiness to finally return to your own country however the changes that occurred whilst gone will take time to adjust and familiarize with.

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the symptoms of culture shock there are many different symptoms depending on the person affected by culture shock however there are more common symptoms than others for instance mild uneasiness the feeling of homesickness or unhappiness often you will not exactly understand or know what the matter is but you will know that something is wrong in most cases that would be culture shock how to live in a culture different than your own when you are moving abroad you may start to feel homesick or initially just get a shock to the thought of this new area becoming your new home a great way to feel as comfortable as possible in this new environment would be to learn about this culture beforehand this means that you will know what to expect from this new environment and how to act amongst others in this new atmosphere once you ve arrived in this new country simply having an open-mind and thinking of this journey as a one in a life-time adventure will help your adjustment immensely use this opportunity to try at new activities food and so on that weren t available in the previous country lived in you ll be grateful for the change in lifestyle as a family dealing with culture shock as a family is much easier that you think since you would have each other if one would need support a great way to deal with culture shock would be to rely on your own family since they will always be willing to help and will always be there for you if you are a child entering a new school then you will no doubt find amazing friends if you are a parent with children enrolling in a new school you will no doubt meet other parents or teachers in this new school you will probably be entering a much wider community than you would think also joining any activities clubs groups or sports will help you to get a better feel of the place you ve just moved to furthermore making new friends is a great way to make you feel more comfortable in a new place!

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on your own college university etc most of the advice given above can apply for individuals travelling abroad without their respective family with them too and vice versa join expatriate communities or clubs giving you the chance to meet new people being a tourist around this new city can help you get a sense of the new culture and the new place moreover doing something familiar every day that you may have been used to doing in your hometown can make you feel more comfortable in your shoes and closer to home also from personal experience going for walks or runs is the best way to clear up everything on your mind for one it s very healthy for 2 you meet new people and get to socialize and finally you find yourself much less worried and stressed out about this new change.

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2 part hanoi s culture nd

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little introduction hanoi is a lively big capital city situated in the north of vietnam it is located on the bank of a famous river in this country the red river put picture of red river currently there are about 4 million people residing in this very interesting city hanoi approximately and 85 million in vietnam hanoi has recently celebrated its one thousand years of existence also known as its millennial anniversary and where a ceramic mosaic mural was created for this occasion it is known to have been in the guinness book of records for the longest ceramic mosaic wall in the world hanoi is known for european ­ style public squares and tree-lined boulevards in the old quarter as it was a french colony of the french indochina from 1858 to 1945 the temple of literature temple of literature is located in hanoi also known as vàn mieu add accents in vietnamese situated on nguyen thai hoc street it is the first national university of vietnam in vietnamese known as quoc tu giam add accents in 1076 teaching and education in this university began under the ly dynasty then proceeded to the le dynasty during the 15th century education in this famous university were for royalty mandarins and other elites the different courses of study were ancient poetry and literature and chinese history these students studied from three to seven years in the temple of literature they had minor tests every month and four major tests every year if they passed a certain amount of these exams these results were approved to the ministry of the rights to qualify for the national exam and be tested by the king himself any of the students who graduated from this university would have their name engraved on a rectangular stone that rests upon a turtle you can still visit this fantastic temple and university where the stone turtles still remain.

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hoan kiem a little history hoan kiem lake is also known as the lake of the restored sword which was once part of the famous red river however throughout thousands of years of geographical modifications shifted creating a lake now known as hoan kiem there is a very famous vietnamese legend about this lake the turtles of hoan kiem and this wellknown sword in the 15th century the emperor le thai to would have found a scrap of metal in the quite familiar to the shape of a sword itself whilst fishing in this lake he decided to keep it and on his way home found this handle on caught on a tree branch which seemed as though it would be a sword handle once retrieved he realized that they both fit perfectly together creating a fantastic extravagant sword once connected one another the words thuan thien appeared meaning harmonious with heaven the emperor then knew that this was a gift from heaven to help battle against the ming invasion from china with the help of this gift they fantastically won this battle and peace was restored when the emperor travelled back to this lake known as hoan kiem nowadays a tortoise appeared out of the lake and asked for the sword to be returned to the dragon without any hesitation the emperor threw the sword to the turtle whom returned back into the premises of the lake this is why the lake is now named the lake of the restored sword nowadays there is still a turtle living in the premises of hoan kiem lake ever since this famous legend hoan kiem lake has been a sacred area for the vietnamese community.

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the turtles the turtles of hoan kiem are very important and sacred to the vietnamese as this turtle has lived longer approximately 500 years they feel as though it has taken great part in the vietnamese culture which is true this giant turtle unfortunately lives in the filthy polluted water of hoan kiem lake there has been some talk about cleaning the lake up however this option was soon denied as the sudden change of environment may have an effect on the turtle s health as you may have noticed the vietnamese would do anything to keep this giant turtle alive during winter from october to december the turtle is brought to russia to have medical examinations in order for it to be as healthy as possible and to live as long as it could possibly can if walking by or around the lovely hoan kiem lake you may notice this silhouette popping out of the lake it most likely would be the turtle if you see a sudden rush of vietnamese running towards the lake side driving their motorbikes on to the pavement a sudden crowd overflow and the traffic coming to an end it most certainly would be ngoc son temple this ngoc son temple is situated on the northern side of hoan kiem and supposedly dates back to the fourteenth century this temple is dedicated to a hero named tran hung dao who defeated an attack of the mongolian forces whose emperor was kublai khan against vietnam in order to cross over to visit this beautiful temple you have to cross a famous red bridge named the huc and in english known as

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traffic motorbikes the overflow of motorbikes on the streets of busy hanoi has become part of this noisy dangerous disorganized traffic furthermore it has become a great part of the vietnamese culture compared to other western countries where cars make out the majority of the traffic motorbikes are the main transport used around these noisy streets the fun aspect of hanoi is that you have the possibility of seeing all the different objects animals utilities transported on these vehicles below are pictures of common or quite humorous animals or objects transported if any man asks a ride on their motorbike most of the time they are in fact xe om s these are motorbike taxis they are very cheap and the driver should normally provide you with a safety helmet however if you know you will be using one of these xe om s bring a helmet with you as you cannot be a hundred percent certain.

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taxis unlike many other countries taxis here are very commonly used to travel from one place to another after motorbikes talking from personal experience some expatriates go years without having any car or motorbike but would use taxis or bicycles as methods of transportation taxis are very commonly used in some cases to go to school to go out into town coming back from the airport and many more for instance in my case i would use taxis to go to school for any activities to go to a friend s house or to go into to town as mentioned earlier the reason why this way of transport is used so commonly is that it s much cheaper to a taxi in france for instance nevertheless there are different companies to choose over others there are very common taxi groups that most people used such as abc hanoi taxi taxi group thanh loi and mailinh nevertheless you should always be cautious for instance do not travel in a taxi without another individual in the car hanoi is a very safe place however a little caution could always do some good abc is quite easy to recognize with its bright pink banners and inscriptions present on their cars hanoi taxi is a white taxi covered with blue stripes and letters covered on the car thanh loi is a small green taxi with the words thanh loi in brown airport taxi this taxi would only be used for travels to the airport or back from the airport and not on any other occasion.

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bikes bikes are another typical method of transport used around hanoi before motorbikes were so commonly used bicycles were the number one method of getting around even though nowadays there is an overflow of motorbikes bicycles are still quite common vietnamese ladies on the side of the street selling fresh fruits vegetables or flowers travel around on their bicycles expatriates very commonly use bicycles as a family trip to go hang out with friends to go to town some even to go to work or school many vietnamese children use bicycles as their main method of transport as they have not yet attained the age to drive however many teenagers still use motorbikes to travel even though they are legally not permitted to.

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cars as opposed to what you may be used to cars are not commonly used around hanoi the main method of transport is as a matter of fact motorbikes cars would be mainly used as taxis in some cases you may own a car in others the company you for or your parents work for would offer you a car throughout your stay in hanoi however there are a little amount of cars compares to european countries for example around hanoi streets are quite hanoi especially on the side streets which can cause a lot of traffic jams as the motorbikes will be desperately maneuver to get pass whatever is blocking their way ­ some even will go on the pavements this can sometimes result to frequent injuries.

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traffic safety as described above hanoi traffic is quite chaotic to say the least the roads are pretty much constantly busy apart from the week of tet where there is not a single trace of any human being safety is quite an issue here in hanoi since the vietnamese in some way don t think in the same way as westerners do and having a different way of getting around things as one could describe the h noi traffic as the art of perpetual movement they adapt themselves to the movement of the others helmets were quite an issue a few years ago as there was no law commenting on the use of helmets meaning that no one would even consider wearing such object nevertheless once a law was created whereby the helmets were mandatory the vietnamese immediately began to wear helmets shortly after this new law took place a rumor spread around the town where the helmets on children could cause brain damage or brain ma functions meaning that since then none of the vietnamese children toddlers or babies wear any helmets whilst on the motorbike nevertheless they would have a strong grip of their parent s arms and in some cases they would have a veil covering up their faces 1 2 3 4 walking across the street in hanoi is quite an experience especially if you have never been in such wild traffic there are a few rules to learn and know in order to cross the road as safely as possible first of all walk slowly and at a steady pace most motorbikes or cars will avoid you and go around you nevertheless you should always keep your eye out since there are always some exceptions do not stop whilst walking across the street unless you absolutely need to you should always be careful while walking across the street or even on the pathway motorbikes tend to go on the sidewalk when there is a lot of traffic in some places in hanoi there are no pavements meaning you would walk on the side of the street in this case the best way is to walk in single-file lines even if you are with friends since you will have to move out of the way in some way or another since there will always be a lot of traffic no matter what.

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famous street food pho ph gà ph gà as a matter of fat is pronounced fuh gah in a western or american accent this is a very famous vietnamese dish and street-side food this dish i must say would be the commonly eaten dish in hanoi this dish can be taken for lunch dinner and even though it might seem rather bizarre breakfast it is a simpleenough soup however it is exquisite with the different taste of broth we are accustomed to no matter what restaurant or country you will visit the best pho dish you will ever get will be on the streets of vietnam here are the ingredients for this famous chicken noodle soup one stewing hen around 5 pounds two pounds chicken bones neck four quarts of cold water one ounce fresh crushed ginger two teaspoons of salt 0.5 pounds rice vermicelli 1 whole cooked chicken breast 8 to 12 fresh cilantro sprigs 4 to 8 basil sprigs 4 fresh mint sprigs 2 cups fresh bean sprouts 2 limes cut into wedges 2 to 3 sliced fresh jalapeno or thai chile peppers.

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