Cross culture picture pointing

the world is a wonderful place if we want it to be. I sat at dinner tonight watching worlds collide in real-time, true unadulterated “lost in translation” moments. Picture this. Hanoi in the evening, crowds packing out the streets, motorcycles too numerous to count, everyone trying to sell something, and tucked away on a street a small, dimly lit restaurant with large windows – perfect for watching the organised mayhem as well as delightful eats.

The table besides becomes home to a small group of three Chinese visitors. I watch as a young Vietnamese waitress speaking broken english tries to communicate with them who are speaking chinese with one or two words of english throw in for good measure. But they have books with them – picture books. It’s great to see them try to figure out what the menu is using the pictures in their books, while the Vietnamese waitress is proudly holding onto her english as it’s the only plan she has. I offer my meal to them and link it to what is on the menu and then watch the group of three become four as the waitress joins them, taking them around the restaurant pointing at other people’s food and words on a menu. Words on the menu that become what they are in essence – symbols of communication – meaningless becoming meaningful through pointing at pictures and real life.

I sit amused at the show taking place before me, both inside the windows and beyond them. I realise how much I take for granted speaking english and wonder where I can get a book like theirs for when I travel to lands where english is limited. I wonder too if this is how the explorers of old did it – did they carry picture books too? Have we just lost this tradition?

Walking the streets of Hanoi

There is something about Hanoi, beyond the crazy traffic, millions of motorcycles, constant hooting of horns. It’s not that each time I come here I seem to be given the gift of the Hanoi hack and pollution throat…no, it’s more than that. There is something raw about Hanoi, about Asia as a whole – a combination of people striving ahead, optimistic about life and the future and frankly, seeing progress in their living standards, or of those around them. Sure inflation in Vietnam is 14.5% and food prices are skyrocketing, but there yet is this sense of progression, even destiny for some. There is an “earthy-ness” to life here – I walk the streets under the scorching skies, streets that are dirty, streets that are parking lots for motorcycles, dining areas for restaurants, hair salons for anyone with scissors and a mirror, and the playground for children. I weave my way through the heaving masses listening to callouts for my attention or simply the constant chatter of life amongst the hooting of horns and continual construction noise.

I see a young boy riding his bike on an open patch of the sidewalk or pavement – he’s smiling as he tears up his 20ft before slamming on the brakes to turn around. He practices riding with no hands which lights up his face with fat grin. And all the while, an old man, perhaps his grandfather, sits on the side chuckling to himself watching with a sense of pride.

I am taken back to the days of growing up on the farm – of the dirtiness of that, of everyday being in touch with the earth, of reveling in the sun, the outdoors, full of birds and butterflies. I reflect on how distant my life of offices and airplanes is from that. and perhaps, that’s the “something” of Hanoi. Perhaps the connection still here of office life, of business, of striving to provide for children and yet still have this raw mix of unfinished-ness, of dirty streets besides clean ones, of hair salons on street corners, beside makeshift restaurants and flower ladies, mixed with BMWs, Benz, and haute couture. Its poverty with richness, dirty, toothless elderly women walking beside women out of fashion magazines. Perhaps this is the “something”, perhaps its life in all its glory before its been “sanitised” called “development” and the annoying “health & safety” people have gotten their hands on life taking out any sense of personal responsibility and common sense.

And yet perhaps its me. Perhaps, it’s the reality that I want to see, that I have been looking for. Perhaps its my values shining through of life connected to the earth being true, of life full of its messiness being joyous. Vickers would be proud.

Social Media and Business in Asia

I find myself back in Asia again fascinated by how social media is being used here, not only for social purposes but for business transactions and communication. I am here working on a project creating awareness about the AADMER treaty signed by the 10 ASEAN countries about how they will help each other during times of humanitarian disasters. What I find interesting is that various discussion groups for ASEAN are being held on facebook. Years ago, during the Asian Tsunami, I spent a year and a half in Banda Aceh helping communities rebuild. I spent a lot of time on yahoo messenger with colleagues sorting out challenges and making decisions through that medium which was a wonderful way to reduce my inbox. Since then, I have moved on to using skype significantly more, but I notice YM still is very strong in Asia. But I have been surprised to see it and facebook used in such an official capacity in ASEAN. Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am. My surprise comes from the countries that are a part of ASEAN. I sit in Vietnam where facebook is partially blocked (many people have routed around the firewall to access it, but I think it is technically blocked). So it seems we have ASEAN using facebook for discussion groups, while some of its member countries have it blocked, yet these same countries still use it. Fascinating.

I talk with other other folk here who conduct business deals and trades through YM – that’s where the chatter happens, not between strangers, but between known people. I was surprised by this, yet on reflection why should I be? In one sense, YM is just another communication device, similar to the phone, and yet written. I wonder if the legal structures here in Asia have developed to allow YM history to be considered in a court of law.

Asia – it’s good to be back.