Tieng Viet lovers club

[jackbl]

Is Tet determining an attitude?
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To describe the characteristics of Vietnam or Vietnamese people, their positive attitude towards future is often cited in Western countries. To my experience, people in Vietnam do not spent much time in looking back but are usually looking forward.


When feeling Tet approaching it becomes more obvious. You don’t really need to monitor your calendar to know the time is coming closer, you actually feel it. I do not mean the obvious appearance of motorbikes transporting huge trees of various kinds or the suddenly swelling traffic even at unexpected times of the day. Just through this you might get it that something is going to happen but this is by observation.

What I mean is, did you ever try to start something personally important closely before Tet? Before the last year’s Tet I wanted to start my little bit unusual hobby again and searched for possibilities and place where to practise. After some time of desperate research I got a precious contact, a high ranking, and as it turned out, very kind and helpful person. But he apologize that he couldn’t do anything for me at that moment and asked for understanding, of course with reference to Tet. When the time had come things went quickly to the point and appoints were made to arrange the right contacts. And I must say It was a good time to start. Coming into something new and meeting new people by saying Chuc Mung Nam Moi is just a good feeling, it creates a positive attitude.

But this postponing to the next year goes even further than one might think. A dear friend of mine is recently looking for a new job. Although he is somehow really in need he does not expect that anything is going to happen yet. Surprisingly, he’s not desperate. Instead, he is optimistically looking forward to when things get started for a new year which is expected to bring something positive.

To get back to the point, after some years staying in the country I feel my attitude changing as well a little. From my last visit I brought some dry twigs of my favourite berries back from my home country. Miraculously, they lately started growing small green leaves. My immediate first intention was to put them apart in bigger pots I have got any way around the house somewhere. But something was holding me back and I decided to postpone it until the new year. It’s any way the lunar year which corresponds with the natural course of the seasons. I will take one, the one with the most leaves now already, for Tet to my parents in law. We can set it into a suitable garden pottery together and being sure they will grow a lot better then, I feel that.

[jackbl]

Meeting the in-laws
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My kids never address my mother as grandma. She loves being called ba noi, and my Vietnamese in-laws are of course ba ngoai and ong ngoai. So now I sometimes use those terms too, just as I’ll call mom ba noi.

And so this was a special Tet for us, with the two ngoais journeying from Orange County, California to visit us and a Vietnam very different from their memories. Through my American eyes, I’ve come to think of Tet as Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day all rolled into one: a long holiday that is a pilgrimage of homecoming, a time devoted to family and generosity – and to continuity and renewal. And for some, perhaps, reconciliation.

Ong ngoai and ba ngoai were young parents with three children, my future bride being the eldest, when they left their homeland during the hard times after the end of what the Vietnamese call the American War. Before this visit, they had only returned to Vietnam once – and that was more than 20 years ago, to visit family in Saigon.

Things change, and so this time they would improbably and auspiciously arrive in Hanoi, where their daughter works as a journalist. Ong ngoai expressed pleasure upon seeing banners advertising Bia Saigon, thinking the name Saigon wouldn’t be used in Hanoi. We were with them for much of a journey to places they had never seen, first-hand, when they were coming of age during the war years.

The modernity of Da Nang, aglow for Tet festivities, dazzled them. They enjoyed the beach and a climb into the caves and temples of the Marble Mountain and the touristy charm of Hoi An. At the Citadel of Hue, ba ngoai found herself sympathizing with hundreds of women who in earlier times were plucked as wives by the emperors. Perhaps ba ngoai, who passed her beauty to four daughters, imagined what her own fate may have been had she been born centuries earlier, and not in 1954 as the French were banished from Vietnam and the Americans blundered in.

Saigon startled with its growth and vibrancy, while the familiar added sentimental notes. Ong ngoai pointed out a butcher shop advertising wild game meat – just as it had more than 40 years ago. “Remember me?” he called out in Vietnamese to an elderly woman in his old neighborhood. She did, from when this 60-year-old man was just a boy. And ba ngoai couldn’t stop smiling as she told me how they found the same restaurant near the spot where they first met, when she was a teenager selling sandwiches and he worked in the port.

But family, of course, mattered most. Ong ngoai’s mother and father and several siblings all left the country, but three of his maternal aunts remain in Saigon. We visited with ong ngoai’s aunts and cousins in Saigon, and also with ba ngoai’s half-brother and his pigs in a village on the northern edge of the Mekong Delta. Family values, Viet style, were on display in the way ong ngoai referred to his cousins as “brothers” and in how he seemed to hold special status as the first-born of his generation.

We spent time with ba sau and ba muoi – aunt No. 6 and aunt No. 10 – and the families united for to a day trip to Vung Tau, joining thousands on the beach. Ba muoi’s brood included two sons and a daughter who had come home for Tet from Australia. If Vietnamese Americans in our party represent one harsh passage of history, these nominal Aussies represented another phase of the later Vietnamese diaspora, an important source of remittances that go far beyond Tet’s red envelopes. They are the post-war generation in the land that ong ngoai, despite his hard-earned American citizenship, will always refer to as “my country.”

On another day ba ngoai’s gracious older brother, a retired school teacher, welcomed us to his home where he raises a small number of pigs and fish. The first time I met him, in 1999, it was a two-hour journey on country roads; now we seemed to be the far outskirts of Saigon’s sprawl. To him, ba ngoai will always be his baby sister, the only child of his father’s second marriage. As a child she doted on this brother who is 17 years her senior and who now, she says, looks exactly like their father. We visited their father’s tomb, across an ocean from where ba ngoai’s mother is buried. (I scored points with the ngoais when my uncle-in-law spoke of surprise in seeing my picture and column in Tuoi Tre.)

We returned to Hanoi first, leaving the ngoais down south for more visits, including a poignant one with ba ngoai’s elderly sister, now in her 80s. Back in 1999, this tiny woman warmly greeted us in the small home that had electricity and a floor of hard-packed earth. An alter honored her late husband and Ho Chi Minh – a testament to a fissure in a family.

She now lives in more comfortable circumstances, with a son I hope to meet someday. He was born inside the jail where South Vietnamese authorities had placed his mother for words and deeds they considered treason.

But this time, our presence might have spoiled the moment. When the old woman met her little sister, she wept.

[jackbl]

Tet through New Zealand professor’s eyes
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When I became interested in Vietnam I decided that a good way to learn about the country, its people and their culture, would be to do research on Tet. In my experience, important national days like Tet are a window through which one can see many aspects of life. So from 2008 onwards I have come to Viet Nam for Tet every year, spoken to many people, and visited many homes in Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho, Hanoi, Danang, Vung Tau, and elsewhere. People have been very kind and generous in sharing their knowledge and beliefs with me.


My original belief that Tet allows one to see many aspects of Vietnamese history, tradition and culture was correct. Through studying Tet I came to realise many things about Vietnamese life, such as the importance of family, the respect people give to their ancestors, and the many beliefs that people have about gods and spirits.

It is also clear that not everybody is the same – different families, regions, cities and religious groups have different Tet customs and beliefs. For example, In Tan Phu and Tan Binh districts of HCMC, people who trace their origins to Quang Nam and other areas in centre of Vietnam have a custom called ‘cung xom’ which they perform 9 or 10 days after Tet. In this they worship all the gods and spirits associated with the land, and also the ‘homeless ghosts’ (co hon). Other people in HCMC do not know about this, and are surprised when I inform them about it.

It is also clear that although many Tet customs are traditional, Tet is also changing and developing from year to year, and this is normal, things do not stay the same. Travelling overseas, or to another part of Vietnam for a short holiday during Tet has become quite common, but usually those who travel also try to make sure that they spend part of the Tet holiday at home with their family.

Tradition and modernity can be combined – another example of this is the annual Ong Tao Ve Troi TV show. Many people send Ong Tao/Tao Quan to heaven in the traditional way on 25 December, and also watch this TV show a few days later.

[jackbl]

Why do city expats pay for sexual services?
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Note: Cathy Truong is a Vietnamese American who spent two years living in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. She submitted this story to Tuoitrenews from Vancouver, Canada, where she now lives. Truong discusses the issue of expats using sexual services in the southern city based on the personal experiences she amassed during her stay in Vietnam.

Within a few months of moving to Ho Chi Minh City, I was surprised to find out about the large number of male expats and travelers alike that pay for commercial sex in the city. When I was in the US, within the Vietnamese community, I would sometimes hear about how men would go back to Vietnam to choi gai, an expression with sexual undertones meaning ‘playing with the women.’ It wasn’t until I came to Saigon that I understood how readily available sex is and how frequently the men like to play.

I found out about these rarely spoken of services from many of my male friends, who were willing to trust me enough to open up about their sex life. As expats are visitors in a foreign country, they are likely to have fewer connections than in their home country. Hence a mere acquaintance or co-worker can quickly become a close confidante. I have developed friendships that have transcended age, gender, and social barriers which would have been uncommon in the West.

Since my fellow cohorts were receptive, I wanted to find out why they would pay for sexual services. Being a foreign male in HCMC almost automatically guarantees a lot of attention from the local ladies. So when it’s so easy to date, why resort to paying for sexual services?

One American English teacher, Matt, didn’t want to get attached in a relationship, so he went to prostitutes instead. Ironically, he would develop an emotional attachment to these women, much to his dismay. Like in Pretty Woman, Matt, too, had fallen in love with a prostitute.

Adam, an American Viet-Kieu who also teaches English, does not pay for sexual intercourse out of fear of catching STDs, however he does like to get his hair washed, or goi dau. This erotic service is performed by scantily clad women who brush their bodies up on their clients while cutting hair, shaving facial hair, and cleaning ears. Sometimes other services such as oral sex or intercourse can be negotiated for the right price. The typical price for this service is VND120,000 plus tips on Tran Hung Dao Street, D5, but prices vary according to location.

One of my Viet-Kieu friends from California, Vinh, travels to Saigon once a year. He was invited to a bia om on a visit, a bar where men can touch, fondle, and grope the waitresses for entertainment. These places are generally popular with the older Vietnamese generation.

A massage parlor is what Diep, a Vietnamese-German businessman, prefers. He likes to go about once a month. Diep told me that “you can take a woman out for dinner and she won’t even have sex with you. Rather than hunting for sex, I’d rather pay to get myself relieved.”

The most open of my male expat friends is Robert, an American professor. He is engaged to his fiancée, who doesn’t mind that he visits massage parlors. Sometimes, they even call for a girl to join them in their home. The typical price is $10 for a massage ticket at a massage parlor in Phu My Hung, where Robert frequents. The tip for extra services is around $15 for a handjob, $25 for oral sex, and $50 for intercourse.

Robert related to me that the girls at his favorite spa are all natural, unlike the working girls he sees at night clubs. According to him, the girls at the spa are good at sexual techniques. They are also consistent with using condoms.

When asked why he pays for sexual services when he has a partner, Robert said, “When I was single I would tend to go for a sexual massage less often as it is easy to meet women. When I’m in a relationship the massage is fast and there are no complications.”

Robert also took me to the massage parlor he frequents. I had the opportunity to meet and talk to the owner, Lan.

She said that most of the men who come to her spa work in high paying positions. Some are executives of multinational companies. The majority of her clientele are usually Korean, but there are also Americans, Europeans, Japanese, and other nationalities.

The workers at the spa pay Lan a VND2,000,000 fee to work for her. On average, they make VND40,000,000 in tips per month.

I used to resent my male friends and relatives who did engage in prostitution or attitudes or behavior that degrade women. As time went on, I came to accept what they did in their pastime, though I still didn’t approve of it. Men have urges and are not perfect, and after all, prostitution is the world’s oldest profession and will continue to exist.

Several years ago my Vietnamese language teacher back in Orange County said that she doesn’t want Vietnamese culture to be represented by rows of coffee shops in Little Saigon, California, where the waitresses are half naked. I agree with her. I don’t want people to think of Vietnamese women as prostitutes who say “me love you long time” or who chase foreign men for ulterior motives. I believe our people deserve better.

As HCMC is a bustling financial center, many things can be bought. Just make sure that what you get for your exchange is worth it, whether it’s VND120,000 or VND40,000,000.

* Note: The names of the individuals in this story have been changed.

[jackbl]

"Vultures" at cemeteries
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VietNamNet Bridge - In cemeteries, behind the cold graves is the underground world with “odd” tricks to make money. Except for honest people who make a living through their own labor by digging and exhuming graves, these "cemetery vultures" must be inspected and removed by the authority.


Rare burglary

Some people saw a small piece of paper sticking on the grave. They picked up the paper to read and all of them were appalled. "Your grandfather’s head is in our hands. If you want to get it back for reburial, you must redeem with VND50 million ($2,500). Preparing the money, we will call to tell you the place and time," the piece of paper wrote. Some family members jumped into the grave in a hurry to check and they did not find the head.

It is one of the numerous cruel “affairs” that the group of “vultures” at this cemetery has made. The day before, the tomb of Mr. T was dug up. The sorcerer told the family to open the coffin for a night before reburial. The next day the dead’s head disappeared.

A family meeting was held on the spot. This is a rare extortion and the blackmailer might be a local man and perhaps a drug addict who needed money to buy drugs. The family secretly informed the police.

About an hour later, Mr. Pham Dinh Hoang, the dead’s grandson received a phone call from a stranger. He intimidated and suggested that the family quickly prepared the money otherwise he would throw the head to the river.

Hoang begged: "Our family could only prepare VND10 million ($500). Please return our grandfather’s head!" The 30-minute negotiation ended and the stealer agreed at the ransom of VND21 million ($1,000). The location for "delivery" is behind the local cemetery for martyrs.

The two drug addicts were arrested in this case but since then, all families when perform reburial rituals appointed family members to guard the graves.


The story in a cemetery

When I told this strange story to a friend, he laughed and said: "Not only that. Just hanging around cemeteries, you will see a lot of interesting stories. Nowadays it is the easiest to make money of the dead because the living do not dare to bargain about things related to their dead relatives."

The Yen Ky is one of the largest cemeteries in Hanoi. It was built in the 60s, located on a 37ha campus, in the village of Yen Ky, Phu Son commune, Ba Vi district. Currently, Yen Ky has 15.000m2 of bare land which is available for reburial in the next three years. Therefore, this cemetery is always busy with the people who come to visit the graves.

These people are the prey of the so-called "cemetery vultures."

The Yen Ky Cemetery on a summer morning, playing a man who was seeking for a lost tomb, I entered the "world of the dead" here. In front of the cemetery is a row of shops with the signs "tomb building service with long warranty," "Building graves - carvings stone steles,” "Building graves from A to Z" ...

When I was bewildered, a group of about 10 people surrounded me, pulled my shirt, my bag, and invited: "Brother, let me paint and clean the grave," "Which tomb do you want to find? Let me help you," "If you want to find a plot of land to move tomb, I’m the best service provider in this region...”

I had to try my best to escape from the crowds and got into the coffee shop in the middle of the cemetery to relax. Looking at my stagger, a customer in the cafe, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hai Sinh, from Ta Quang Buu Street, Hanoi, said: "You must come here for the first time. Any time I come here I was also disturbed like you. This cemetery is in a stir like a coach station. Let’s check your bag!" I startled and hastily checked my bag. It was lucky that I did not lose anything.

I was still lucky because I came here at the year end, when people flocked to the cemetery to clean and decorate the tombs of their relatives. During this time, the cemetery is always crowded and visitors are quite safe from drug addicts or robbers.

I entered the block D1. Immediately I was surrounded by dozens of people, including those who were building nearby tombs. I was like a prey and they are predators. I said: "I come here to visit the grave of my relative. On this occasion, I find the tomb of my friend’s grandmother. This tomb was lost since 1982. Her name is Le Thi Thom". The group immediately spread out to search for the tomb.

A woman who looked kind approached me and whispered: "If you do not bargain at all, they will ask you to pay at least VND300,000-VND400,000. I’ve just paid them VND400,000. It hurts!"

I thanked the kind woman and chuckled because it was just a fake name that I made up. But about one hour later, that group of people returned and said they did not find any name like that. A man looks like a gangster told me: "Please give us VND200,000 ($10). We did not find the tomb but we tried to search for it. If you really want to find it, we will look for it in the cemetery’s record book for you. But you have to pay." I had to give him the money.

The man, named Son, continued: "Give me your phone number, if I find the tomb, I will call you. Just give me several hundreds of thousands dong for a drink. It is so cheap because there are tens of thousands of tombs in this cemetery. It will take you at least three days to find the tomb."

According to him, just two days ago, a woman from Ho Chi Minh City paid him VND2 million ($100) to find four lost tombs of her parents and grandparents. This woman and her elder sister had conflict. The elder sister moved the tombs of her parents and grandparents to this cemetery without telling her younger sister. The woman only knew the names of the dead so she had to ask for the “help” of these “detectives.”



Underworld after tombstones

Escaping from this group of “detectives”, I was again followed by a group of four people. They begged me to use their tomb cleaning and decorating service. They offered VND200,000 ($10) for each “service” like cleaning the tomb, painting the scripts, planting flowers around the tomb, etc.

A woman named Nu said: "I’m willing to take care of these four tombs for the year round. You just need to give me VND500,000 ($25) a year."

When I said that that price is high and I would take care of the tombs myself, a man in the group said: “You are so hard. Don’t regret your money. Your grandfather’s tomb is nice. Do you want to recognize it the next time?"

I was angry so I said: "Are you threatening me? Well, just do it." The man smiled: "Who know! Let’s see the tombs over there. I do not know why they are cracked and damaged. This is where we earn our living. If everyone is as hard as you, we will all be starving!"

Many people who come to this cemetery for the first time are very surprised seeing a group of strangers who rush to cut the grass, clean the tomb stele and plant trees for the tombs of their relatives. They even took soil of the nearby tombs to bank the tombs of their relatives. After that they ask for money for the job that nobody hires them to do.

Even kids of only 13, 14 years old also come here to make money. There are two jobs for them here: seeking tombs and collecting citrus peels to dry and sell to Vietnamese traditional medicine shops.

All people living around the cemetery flock into this place to earn their living in the early or at the end of the year, when people come here to clean and burn incense for their relatives. Only visitors are the sufferers because they dare not to do anything. They do not fear for themselves but they are afraid that the tombs of their relatives will be harmed by the locals if they do not use their “services.”

In this cemetery, the "service suppliers” are the inferior. There are some “barons” in this cemetery. Anyone who wants to seek land to move tombs in this cemetery has to negotiate with these “barons” and pay them “service fee” from VND8-12 million ($400-600) for a tomb.

When I said I wanted to move the grave of Mrs. Le Thi Thom to a better location, a "baron" said: "Let us help you! It will take you a lot of time for fulfilling procedures with the cemetery management board, but we can do it very quickly. We can exhume and move the tomb at night to avoid the eyes of the cemetery managers. The fee is only VND2-3 million." It seems that these people dare to do anything.

According to our survey, these phenomena have existed for many years and have been increasingly sophisticated and blatant but the cemetery management board and the local authorities have not made definitive reactions.

Mr. Phung Van Vinh, Director of the Yen Ky cemetery said: "We know the situation and we have tried to cooperate with the local police to prevent these phenomena. But because this cemetery is too large and does not have a fence, anybody can enter this place. We have only 16 persons in the management team to manage tens of thousands of tombs. Each year thousands of families want to repair the tombs. We can only manage the tomb size.”

Vinh confirmed that only when the Yen Ky cemetery has fences, he can better manage the cemetery."

In some cemeteries in Hanoi, there are several 3-4 shops selling garlands for the dead. All garlands look the same, except for the color of the tripod to distinguish the garland of each shop. What to do? When the families of the dead leave the cemetery, these shops will carry their garlands back to sell to other customers.

Nang Luong Moi

[jackbl]

Couple’s pants stolen during sex
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Police in the southern coastal city of Phan Thiet are investigating a case in which a male thief stole two pairs of trousers from a couple who were indulging in pleasure at a deserted embankment area.

The young man and woman, whose names are yet to be publicized by the police, reported to investigators that they came to an embankment section on Road 706B in Nui Ne Ward and sat there to “exchange confidences” on Monday night.

Before embracing and cuddling each other, they took off their pants and underwear and then placed them on the edge of the embankment, the victims told police.

While they were indulging themselves, they found a strange man who came from nowhere and took their pants and ran away.

Since the couple could not run after the thief with their lower bodies naked, they only shouted for help in vain.

The young man later found out his briefs thrown nearby and put it on, while the young woman had to borrow a pair of pants from a local resident.

The young man reported to police that there was a wallet in the pocket of his lost pants. The wallet contained VND5 million (US$240), the papers of his motorbike and some personal papers.

Meanwhile, the young woman said she had only VND50,000 in her lost trousers.

[Honey Boon]

could it be any of our sbf brothers here who visited Mui Ne recently

Originally Posted by jackbl

Couple’s pants stolen during sex
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The young man and woman, whose names are yet to be publicized by the police, reported to investigators that they came to an embankment section on Road 706B in Nui Ne Ward and sat there to “exchange confidences” on Monday night.

Before embracing and cuddling each other, they took off their pants and underwear and then placed them on the edge of the embankment, the victims told police.

.

[Goalie]

Originally Posted by Honey Boon

could it be any of our sbf brothers here who visited Mui Ne recently

Wonder who ha?

[jackbl]

Not My First Vietnamese Wedding
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Columnist Richie Humphrey takes a look on the differences between Vietnamese and American wedding styles.

Last weekend I was excited to attend what I thought was my first Vietnamese wedding. But when I arrive, déjà vu hits. I remember a time right after I moved to Hanoi over two years ago, a large dinner party for a couple who had recently been married. Now I’m realizing that “dinner party” was the wedding. I’ve since learned, most Vietnamese ceremonies of matrimony are attended by immediate family and close friends only. The wedding for everyone else is basically dinner at a banquet hall.

In Vietnam, cash is the only accepted wedding gift. The wedding invitation comes in a reusable, red envelope that doubles as a money holder. When I arrive at the wedding, I am greeted by the bride and groom who stand next to a cardboard house with a slot in the roof like a mailbox for red envelopes.
In the U.S., many people (especially my people, the W.A.S.P.’s) feel uncomfortable giving cash. Etiquette requires guests buy something for the happy couple’s new life together, something useful like a microwave oven. Before the internet, it would not be uncommon for the bride and groom to receive four or five microwaves. These days, thanks to online wedding registries, friends and family choose from a pre-approved shopping list. With a few clicks of the mouse, the gift can be wrapped and shipped directly to the newlyweds. I’ll never forget the time I waited until the day before their wedding to check my friends’ online wedding registry. By that time, most items on the registry had already been purchased by other people. The few items left were expensive, and the only thing I could afford was the Silver-plated Toilet Brush. I had it gift wrapped for an additional $4.99 and was allowed to write a gift message up to 80 characters. Congratulations! May you always be joyful and happy, let your toilet be white and not crappy.


The funny thing about the whole wedding gift giving tradition in the U.S. is that most young couples actually just want the dolla-dolla-bills-yo. Fortunately for them, most gifts these days come with a gift receipt. So when the boxes from Potterybarn.com arrive, they are promptly returned for cash. Vietnamese is more direct than English. “Sorry to bother, but do you think you could possibly give my dear friend John a ride back to his house?” is properly translated to the equivalent of “Give John a ride - please.” And when it comes to wedding gifts, the Vietnamese bride and groom want Đồng, not a microwave. Here’s an envelope.

Traditional Vietnamese wedding ceremonies at the home of the bride or at churches are reserved for immediate family. But in U.S. weddings, it is expected that all guests go to the church for the ceremony, then on to the reception which includes cocktails, dinner, and dancing. Aside from everyone speaking Vietnamese, I don’t see many differences between the Vietnamese wedding and the dinner portion of an American wedding reception: white tablecloths, flowers, photos of the bride and groom, and a big sign in front with the names of the happy couple so you can make sure you’re in the right banquet hall. An MC announces the family and offers some witty opening remarks. The bride and her white gown enter the room, and everyone rises to take a photo. The father of the groom makes a toast, and dinner is served. They even have the same overcooked chicken I’ve enjoyed at countless American weddings. And that’s it. After the last course is served, I am surprised to see people make for the door. Wait, we can go home now? No dry wedding cake? No drunk Aunt Mildred making a scene? What about the Chicken Dance?

I’m not trying to make any statements on marriage. A celebration of two people’s love for each other is a beautiful thing, and I’m glad I went to this wedding. From a guest perspective, I like the succinctness of the Vietnamese wedding. You can drop off the red envelope, eat dinner, toast the bride and groom, and still make it home in time to watch the Euro Cup on TV. Everyone’s happy. Maybe the shorter Vietnamese style wedding celebration is one reason Vietnam recently ranked #2 on the HPI Happy Planet Index.

[jackbl]

The money-making formulas of Vietnamese celebrities
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VietNamNet Bridge - Hiding behind the halo of beautiful girls in the Vietnamese showbiz are the two popular “formulars” to make money or to earn fame.

Besides the wrong lifestyle of a few long-legged girls who are beautiful but lack of knowledge, some girls earn others’ respect by their wisdom in every move to build up reputation as well as in using their reputation to earn money.

Many people often wonder, they just play in a few movies, perform in several shows but why many girls in the showbiz have a lot of money to buy big houses, fancy cars and luxurious clothes?

After some sex scandals involving models and actresses, they thought that most of these girls get rich from working as “kept women” or even “call girls.”

But in fact, once they have a little-known reputation in the showbiz, they can earn money very easy.



Make money by going to the party

Going to party is now no longer so strange in the Vietnamese showbiz. This is a relatively relaxed profession that can bring about huge amounts of money in a short time.

With a little reputation, some girls are invited to events organized by the firms that sell wine, fashion and beauty products. Just appearing in a party, with a charming smile on the face and clinking glasses with other guests, some models and actresses like Thanh Hang, Tang Thanh Ha, Huong Giang, Ha Anh and Mai Phuong Thuy can earn from $1,000 to $2,000 from an event.

They are paid because thanks to their reputation, these brands can appear on the media. It is part of the answer to the question why these women do not involve in many art programs but they still have abundant money.



Make money from advertising contracts

The more "difficult" occupation than attending party is playing in commercial advertisements. This is one of the money-making professions of famous actresses and models. People are stunned when they know that the pay for singers, models and actresses in advertising clips or photos is tens of thousands of dollars.

The most favored names in the advertising industry are Miss Vietnam Mai Phuong Thuy, actress Tang Thanh Ha, singer Ho Ngoc Ha, singer Minh Hang, actress Ngo Thanh Van and singer Thuy Tien. Some senior singers like Phuong Thanh and My Tam also signed big contracts with the world's most famous brands.

However, along with the hefty remunerations are strict conditions. Typically, firms often choose celebrities with “clean” images who are also “attractive” to the public because no big company wants to invite a scandalous face to represent their brands.



Doing business based on their reputation

Many Vietnamese celebrities develop business based on their reputation and their relationships in various fields. The most popular businesses for celebrities in Vietnam are opening clothing stores, restaurants, coffee shops and beauty salons.

Based on her beauty and her good taste in fashion, model Ngoc Trinh recently launched a brand of fashion shops, spas and restaurants of her own.

Ngoc Trinh’s friend, actress and model Quynh Thu has just opened a fashion shop. Model Trang Tran is getting rich with her noodle-tofu shop.

Singer My Tam suddenly released her first fashion collection and opened a coffee shop combined with a fashion shop. Singer My Le also launched her own fashion brand for children. Actress Ly Nha Ky is the owner of luxury diamond shops.



Working as impresarios

The job that requires more efforts, time and money is working as impresarios. This is not an easy job and it requires the artist to have their own calculations and strategies to recruit and train young artists and singers.

Among artists-impresarios are actress Ngo Thanh Van with the 365 band and singer Ho Ngoc Ha with the V.Music band. The two bands are now very popular with young people.

Actress Phi Thanh Van, singer Dam Vinh Hung and singer Ung Hoang Phuc have also revealed their plans to train "young bands."

As impresarios, these artists will earn money from the performing activities of their bands, from music royalties of the bands, etc.

In addition to the above jobs, many stars can earn extra income from their participation in reality shows as judges or guests...

It is easy for celebrities to get rich. But ultimately, the main task of the artist is art activities to serve the public. It is expected that they know how to make harmony between money making and art activities.

Compiled by P. Linh

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Experts speak about same-sex marriage
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VietNamNet Bridge - Same sex marriage is a controversial topic in Vietnam, especially when some same-sex weddings were held recently. At this time, when public opinion is relatively "open" for gay marriage, the legal barriers for this should be uninstalled? VietNamNet talks with experts on this issue.


The law does not recognize same-sex marriage, but it needs serious research

Lawyer Tran Ngoc Quy, from the HCM City Bar Association, says that, according to Article 1 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2000: The Law on Marriage and Family is responsible for contributing to the development, improvement and protection of progressive marriage and family regime, inheriting and promoting the good moral tradition of Vietnamese families to build prosperous, equal, progressive, happy and sustainable families.

Therefore, in order to achieve the above purpose, Clause 5, Article 10 of this Law "prohibits marriage between persons of the same sex." Therefore, the current law does not allow, not recognize and not protect marriage between people of the same gender.

According to the lawyer, although same-sex marriage is not recognized by law, but in fact there are still weddings appearing between people of the same gender.

For an objective perspective on this phenomenon, it requires thorough and comprehensive research of the competent authorities, sociologists, psychologists ... to consider comprehensively, completely the phenomenon and its arising impacts on family and social life to have adapted rules.

Open-mind and altruism needed!

Lawyer Tran Cong Li Tao, another member of the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association, says that the issue of same-sex marriage "is not new, but new" in the current situation.

He explains that this issue is not "new" and homosexuality has existed for a long time, but it is "new" because whether the law accepts them or not is still under consideration.

According to lawyer Li Tao, a number of countries around the world with the progressive legislation still recognize same-sex marriage. Vietnam is an oriental country and according to oriental culture, one of the most important purposes of marriage is to maintain the breed. It is the tradition but gay marriage does not achieve this goal.

However, gays cannot decide their gender; that is their nature. They are human beings and they have the right to have their personal emotional needs and we need to empathize with them.

According to the lawyer, the research and issuance a mechanism suitable for homosexuals or even recognize the marriage between them is now necessary.

However, this mechanism must be suitable, not too loose and not too harsh and it is the responsibility of the legislators.

Should respect tradition but ...

Lawyer Nguyen Van Duc, from the East Sea MTV Ltd. Co., analyzes: The Law on Marriage and Family 2000 does not recognize same-sex marriage. In the process of the Ministry of Justice’s consultation experts on the amendments to the law, many experts suggested the laws recognizing same-sex marriage.

However, the opposite view says that the recognition of same-sex marriage will generate unanticipated legal consequences. This matter will be still a debate in the near future.

Currently, the demand for marriage of homosexuals is real and it becomes a social phenomenon.

A small number of countries around the world have recognized same-sex marriage. However, the recognition of legal marriage for people of the same gender in Vietnam should be weighed carefully in many ways.

Personally, lawyer Duc says that Vietnam should not recognize same-sex marriage at the present time because homosexuality is unnatural relations, inconsistent with the Asian notion and ethics. Even some of the more developed countries are also quite cautious with this issue.

However, the need for the living together of homosexuals should also be recognized and controlled by the laws to avoid discrimination against homosexuals when they live together and create gradual social change in thinking about marriage.

In the short term, the state may issue a legal document in the form of a decree, forcing homosexuals who live together to register with the competent authority.

According to lawyer Duc, this is a model of legislative technique that is "separate but equal" and it has been applied by some countries, such as Austria, Brazil, England, France, Germany, Finland, etc. This model does not affect traditional marriage, but still create equality for all people in society.

M.Phuong

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Bachelors with two university degrees also stay redundant
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VietNamNet Bridge – There are very few job opportunities for new school graduates nowadays. A lot of young bachelors, including the ones with two or three university degrees, have to lay by their degrees in wardrobe and take the jobs as blue collar workers.


“It’d better not say you have university degree”

Tran Ngoc Vinh, who finished the Hanoi Trade University, only accepted to meet the reporter for an interview after the reporter contacted him the third time.

Vinh seemed to be reserved when meeting strange people in his small rent room in Thanh Tri district in the suburbs of Hanoi. He feels the inferiority complex because he is now just a freelance construction worker, who only earns a little of money just enough to pay for the room rent and the basic needs.

Vinh finished the Hanoi Trade University in 2009, but he has not found a job since then, though he introduced himself as an industrious worker. Finally, Vinh decided to lay by the university degree in the wardrobe and take a job as a worker on the construction site of a project in Ha Dong district.

Vinh said that some friends of his, including the ones who finished schools with excellent marks, still have not found jobs. One of them is now also working together with Vinh, for which they both received VND3 million, enough for them to stay in Hanoi to continue looking for jobs.

In fact, Vinh is not alone. Analysts said that the Job Day in 2012 gathered thousands of participants, the highest ever number. These included the bachelors who wished to find any kinds of job, provided that they could bring money.

Hong Nga, a graduate from the Hanoi Labor and Social Affairs, said she has been staying jobless over the last two years, since the day she finished the school.

Unlike many other bachelors, who only want the jobs in Hanoi, Nga returned to the home village and applied for a job at the culture division of the Binh Giang district local authorities. Since she has been refused, she has decided to come back to Hanoi, where she planned to take any jobs to earn her living.

“I feel ashamed that I have to take manual works though I have university degree. However, I cannot continue living on my parents and stay jobless. I need to work to earn money to feed myself,” she said.

When asked why she was refused by employers, Nga said they were all too demanding. They wanted the candidates with experiences and fluent English skills.

Sometimes, Nga got so discouraged that she decided to return to the home village to work on the rice fields like her parents. However, she then changed her idea, promising that she needs to find a good job to deserve the money paid by her parents to fund her university study.

Nga now works as a forwarder for a company in Bac Thang Long Industrial zone in Hanoi and receives VND2.5 million dong. However, her parents still believe that she works for a private enterprise for a high monthly salary.

Still staying redundant with two university degrees

Tran Nam Ngoc, Director of Blue Company, a labor supplier, said that a lot of university graduates come to see him to seek the jobs which don’t need high qualification such as house maid, salesman, waiter or coffee makers. However, Ngoc does not accept the candidates, because they would only take jobs for some time and would leave immediately if they can find better jobs.

Ngoc said that even those who have two university degrees have also been waiting for jobs at his company, because jobs are not always ready for them to take.

Dan Viet

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Hoi An: World’s favourite destination
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VietNamNet Bridge – Ancient Hoi An town wins the hearts of tourists with its laid-back lifestyle and the sincerity, plainness and enthusiasm of its residents.


Located in central Quang Nam province, Hoi An was ranked first in the world’s top 10 favourite cities by Wanderlust, a well-known British tourism magazine, on January 31, 2013. It beat Cusco city in Peru, Kyoto in Japan, Copenhagen in Denmark, Italy’s Venice, and even New York and San Francisco in the US.

An attractive ancient town

Hoi An is located on the northern bank of the basin of the Thu Bon River, 25 km southeast of Da Nang city and 50 km northeast of Tam Ky city in Quang Nam province.

It lies in a coastal estuary area, where big rivers, including Thu Bon, Vu Gia, Truong Giang and De Vong, meet before flowing into the East Sea through Cua Dai estuary.

Thanks to these rivers, people from Hoi An can go upstream on the Thu Bon River to Dien Ban, Duy Xuyen, Que Son and Dai Loc districts or downstream on the Truong Giang River to Thang Binh, Tam Ky and Chu Lai districts. From Cua Dai estuary, people can reach all regions in the country and the world by sea.

There are not many places rich in relics like Hoi An. It has more than 1,350 relics, including 1,273 civil architectures (houses, bridges, wells and markets), religious architectures (pagodas, temples and family houses of worship) and specific architectures (such as tombs).

Each type of architecture contains particular features, contributing to Hoi An’s cultural diversity. Of which, its architecture complex is considered a “live museum” as the residents of Hoi An have “lived in the town, lived with the town, and lived for the town” for generations. Their daily lives go on within the ancient town; each piece of architecture is imprinted with the residents’ particular lifestyle and culture.

Hoi An is inhabited by people from various strata, origins and ethnic groups. It is from where Catholicism and Buddhism spread in southern Vietnam, one of the two birthplaces of Vietnamese script in the 17 th century (the other is Hanoi), and the crossroads for Champa-Vietnamese-Chinese-Japanese-Indian civilisations and western countries.

Cultural features of different origins have formed unique aspects of Hoi An’s intangible cultural treasures. The main stream is the system of customs and faiths of Vietnamese and Chinese-Vietnamese communities.

Traditional festivals take place around the year in Hoi An, such as fishermen festivals like the Cau Ngu (praying for a good fishing harvest) festival, the whale worshipping festival, boat races, and festivals to worship the ancestors of carpentry, tailoring and pottery.

In recent years, modern festivals together with cultural and tourism events, and big ceremonies have attracted a large number of local residents and tourists.

Heroic tradition

Besides distinctive historical and cultural features, Hoi An also owns rich traditions of patriotism and revolution.

It is the homeland of Nguyen Duy Hieu – leader of “Nghia Hoi Quang Nam ” – and the glorious uprising against French colonialists from 1885 to 1888, as well as a number of patriotic scholars including Tran Trung Tri, Luong Nhu Bich in Cam Pho village, Nguyen Binh in Son Pho village, and Chau Thuong Van in Minh Huong village.

Following the Can Vuong (Aid the King) Movement (1885-1889), revolutionary movements associated with the names of Phan Chau Trinh, Huynh Thuc Khang, Tran Quy Cap and Phan Boi Chau broke out.

Hoi An was the centre of patriotic movements at that time and the location of secret meetings between patriots from the south and the north of Vietnam . It was the key location of the anti-tax movement in 1908 and the uprising led by Thai Phien and Tran Cao Van in 1916.

In October, 1927, the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth League was established in Hoi An. It was also the birthplace of the Quang Nam temporary provincial Party Committee, which was founded on March 28, 1930, and the location of the provincial People’s Committee.

Hoi An’s first Communist Party cell, set up in April, 1930, guided the people’s revolutionary struggles. On August 18, 1945, the uprising in Hoi An was victorious, and made it one of the first four localities to gain authority control during the August Revolution.

In the resistance wars, the struggles of the town’s army men and people grew strongly and achieved resounding success.

Thanks to its outstanding development achievements and the preservation of its heritage values and revolutionary tradition, the State presented Hoi An a number of noble titles, including Hero of the People’s Armed Forces and Labour Hero of the Renewal Period.

Upholding the values

The ancient town was recognised as a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO on December 4, 1999, and presented four awards in heritage management, protection and promotion. In May, 2009, the Cu Lao Cham islands’ ecosystem was officially added to the list of the World’s Biosphere Reserves.

To uphold its values, the ancient town has taken audacious measures. It has banned motorbikes and the use of electricity during certain hours. It has provided free wi-fi service across the locality. These make Hoi An’s rhythm of life “slower” but more colourful, attracting greater numbers of tourists, especially from abroad.

Tours for visitors to experience farmers’ life and discover the Cu Lao Cham Biosphere Reserves and nipa forests are also available. In addition, the town has organised cultural events like Vietnam-Japan cultural exchanges, international choruses and heritage journeys, drawing the participation of representatives from various countries and popularising Hoi An to the world.

Thanks to its continuous efforts, Hoi An welcomed 1,375,000 visitors last year. The town’s Cu Lao Cham recorded a year-on-year increase of 41 percent in visitor numbers (97,000), demonstrating that it was the right decision to develop other types of tourism, such as sea and islands tourism.

Chairman of Hoi An People’s Committee Le Van Giang said that it is the city’s honour to possess a World Cultural Heritage. Hoi An has always tried its hardest to create a comfortable atmosphere for tourists.

Winning “The world’s most favourite city” title is a honour and also a challenge for the city. Hoi An will continue its efforts to promote its heritage and maintain its position as a leading and attractive draw to both domestic and foreign tourists, he added.

Source: Vietnam Plus

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Vietnamese children get confused with too many English certificates
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VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese parents urge their children to attend foreign language training courses and attend the exams for certificates, even though they don’t understand the meaning of every certificate in the “forest” of certificates.

English centers in HCM City have opened a lot of training courses to help students prepare for exams for Cambridge certificates at different levels – Starters, Movers, Flyers, KET and PET.

According to the centers, the certificates are very important for students who plan to go studying abroad or work in an international environment. These are the internationally recognized compulsory English certificates for primary and secondary school students to shift to follow the intensive English curricula as required by the HCM City Education and Training Department.

The certificates have also been advertised as bringing the opportunities to students to obtain international education degrees, which would be very useful in their future lives.

The tuitions parents have to pay for their children’s attendance at the training courses are relatively high of between VND1 million and VND3 million. One would have to pay fees to attend the exams for certificates, about $20 for Starters, Movers and Flyers levels, and $32 for higher English level certificates such as KET or PET.

Despite the high tuitions, the number of learners at foreign language centers has been increasing rapidly. In general, children begin attending exam preparation training courses at the ages of 7-12, striving for the certificates of higher and higher levels.

Hoai Sa, a sixth grader of a leading state owned school in HCM City, said he has four English certificates from Starter to KET, and now he goes to CA English center to prepare for the exam for PET certificate, slated for March 2013.

Sa said that his mother has set up an English learning plan for him, under which he would have certificates of different kinds of up to PET level by the time he enters the ninth grade.

He complained that he does not have free time, and he has to learn hard even in summer holiday. Though Sa has got tired of learning, he still keeps going to class every day, because his mother said English certificates are very important in his future life.

What’s it for?

Most of the parents said that obtaining international English certificates in Vietnam is a preparatory step for their children to go studying at foreign universities in the future. However, they don’t have sufficient information about the meaning of every kind of certificate.

A parent has admitted that she brings the son to the foreign language school because she has been advised to do that.

Hoang Hoa, who has a 9-year-old daughter going to a foreign language center in Hanoi, said several million dong for a training course is a small sum of money for her family, and it would be better to bring the girl to class than staying at home.

Ha, a parent, also said she heard that international English certificates are compulsory for those who enroll in foreign universities. “If my child can obtain necessary certificates now, she would be able to go abroad any time she wants,” she explains.

Meanwhile, Doan Thi Thanh Nga, an education consultant, said obtaining as many certificates as possible is not the “best way of investment.”

Nga said different countries and different schools set different requirements on their students. Therefore, it would be better to let children learn English as per their capability. Later, when students decide what schools and what countries to go to, they would attend the exams for suitable certificates.

NLD

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Woman attempts suicide after cutting her husband’s penis
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VietNamNet Bridge – Knowing that her husband has a child with another woman, Hong was very angry. She cut his penis to throw to the river.

On the morning of March 8, the General Hospital of An Giang Province, treated a 27-year-old woman named Hong, who attempted suicide by drinking rat poison.

A few hours earlier, Hong’s husband was also hospitalized after his penis was cut off by his wife and thrown into the river in front of their house in the city of Long Xuyen, An Giang.

The family said that after more than five years of marriage, Hong unexpectedly discovered that her husband has a child with another woman. At around 9pm on March 7, this woman suddenly used scissors to cut off her husband’s penis, while he was sleeping.

While her husband was at the hospital, she drank three packs of rat poison to commit suicide. Currently, this woman is in deep comatose.

The husband's health is stable but he has lost his penis because his relatives could not find it.

In latest news, doctors could not save the woman and died yesterday, March 11.