cheapculture

2007-10-29T00:21:00.000+08:00

Hoi Ann, how charming you are indeed!

Tag lined in guidebooks as "the place in Vietnam to take your time", I'd have to say that Hoi Ann lives up to expectations. Quaint, small, and oozing charm from every corner, I really can't resist the temptation to use the word cute in this instance.

With great food, cheap accommodations and wonderful markets, Hoi Ann also boasts a beautiful riverside walk. I found many lovely shops and restaurants to relax and live life just a tad bit little slower.

Hoi Ann is also the place to get clothes and shoes tailor made. There are many styles on display, as well as many stores with signs reading "we have internet! you choose, we make!" With debates in the fashion industry precisely concerning the infringement of intellectual property, a place like Hoi Ann would definitely add to the heat.

Given, they are no tailors of haute couture. But they sure can make lots of wonderful things. Pick your style and fabric, they will measure you head to toe for about 5 minutes, and you pick up your order the next day. I recommend not asking them to make anything too far from the styles in the store, because you probably won't get what you want. With many great cheap tailors in Hong Kong, I opted to have some fun and design my own dress for about $12. Check it out!

Me in my red creation, and my rented bike on the streets of Hoi Ann.

From here, I decided to fly to Hanoi instead of enduring the 20+ hours train ride. I would do it actually, but I'm kind of short on time. There's something very strange about domestic air travel in Vietnam. The national airline, Vietnam Airlines, is subsidized by the government and render the oddest pricing scheme I have ever experienced in air travel.

What is this oddity? It is that the price of tickets is the same everyday, no matter of the date of purchase. This complete disregard for consumer demand and preferences was shocking to me. My only suspicion for the airline's lack of interest to maximize their profits is that it makes it easier for the employees of the airline. No pricing model, no mess for anybody. It rather fits the socialist attitude, easy air travel for all. I paid $65 for a ticket to Hanoi for a flight less than 24 hours before departure without a wink. After all, I'm just a free rider on the perks of an inefficient system.

Plus, paying $20 more to save 20 hours sounds like a deal to me.

2007-10-28T23:43:00.001+08:00

How to travel 1000km in 14 hours?

Night train of course! Lock your bags, rest easy in the sleeper class and enjoy the train ride through the mountains. There's something extremely nostalgic and romantic about being on a train: the whistle at the station, the ka-conk ka-conk of the wheels hitting the rail and softly rocking you to sleep, the passing of beautiful landscape for hours on end.

The main plus of being on a long haul train in Vietnam, is that there is pho in the food compartment. Oh pho! (and it wasn't bad). I'm on my way to Hoi Ann, a small coastal town in central Vietnam on a tip that it is one of the most enchanting places the happy middle has to offer.

2007-10-23T01:31:00.001+08:00

Cu Chi Tunnels Trip, also known as the day I shot a gun

After the Cao Dai temple, we went onwards to the main course of the Cu Chi tunnels. Our tour guide, being a true Vietnamese of the South, went ahead to make fun of the communists and discourage us from paying anymore than the admission fee as the Cu Chi tunnels is an attraction ran by the army.

For anyone who has ever heard about the Vietnam war, the Cu Chi tunnels is a must hit. Of course, in Vietnam this is known as the American war (of course it would right!). The Cu Chi tunnels is a proud national park symbolizing the tenacious efforts of the Vietnamese in defeating the Americans. But actually, the park is more like a military diorama complete with mannequins, and demonstration of various traps and weapons used in the American war.

At the start of the tour, a fairly communist (and fairly hilarious) video depicting the people of Cu Chi region during the war is mandatory. I was very amused by the commentary: "With brave Vietnamese men and women fighting to the end from the amazing Cu Chi tunnels, the Americans had no idea what was going on!" (cue footage of Americans running around wildly)

Going into the Cu Chi tunnels, I could understand how confusing it would be to fight a war over the 200 km of complex tunnels stretching over the entire region. With trap doors at strategic positions, shooters could come out of nowhere. Without a map of the tunnels, you could have no idea when or where the enemy would show.

Interestingly, the Vietnamese place a lot of emphasis on the participation of women in the war. The images of women performing domestic activities with rifles around their chest were a stark contrast from the typical Western depiction of war time woman consisting of moms, nurses, and factory workers. Apparently Vietnamese women were out there, shooting it up like the men. Plowing rice fields with guns on their backs.

With that thought in my mind, combined my personal yearning for understanding such women, I went along with my Australian friend Lisa to shoot a gun as part of the Cu Chi tunnel tour. I have never shot a gun before. I despise American gun culture and I have personally never had the desire to touch a rifle. I allowed myself this time, not only because it's the only chance I'll ever get to shoot an M16, but to explore what it must have been like for those women in the war and the "say I've done it" factor.

So in the end it was actually pretty anti climactic. Perhaps I built it up a little too much in my mind, but it was very easy. You pull the trigger, a ear deafening bang follows, and gun powder sprays on your shirt. It is actually very safe, a member of the Vietnamese army has his hands on the mounted gun at all times so that no live ammunition goes flying where it isn't supposed to. If anything, the ease made the idea of guns much more disturbing to me, as all inventions that can take away life should be.

2007-10-23T00:31:00.000+08:00

Cao Dai's play at religious harmony
(oxymoron alert)

Being on a tight schedule in Vietnam, I reluctantly signed up for a tour of the famous Cu Chi tunnels through my guesthouse. These tours are very appealing for a couple reasons: a) pickup and dropoff at your guesthouse b) lots of other eager tourists without fail, so you're sure to pickup a few new friends c) they are dirt cheap.

If you're short on time, tours will not only save you money, but time and the hassle of finding a fair deal. Since tours are a dime a dozen in backpacker areas, prices are at equilibrium level. Though there are things to beware of, if it's too cheap you'll probably get what you pay for and be packed like sardines in a small van with a somewhat shady tour guide (but aren't they all a little bit?)

With a stop at the Cao Dai temple, the tour started on a early bright Saigon day. The Cao Dai temple ended being a very very interesting place. I ask you, where else can you find a congregation that worships Buddha, Jesus, Confucius, and Muhammad AT THE SAME TIME. Saints also include Pericles, Julius Caesar, Joan of Arc, Victor Hugo.

Think I'm kidding? Check out this mural, they're all there.

In addition, Cao Dai also worships the all seeing eye. The temple wasn't short on colors at all, contrasting the pale palette of most western religions the temple was filled with wonderful pinks, yellows and blues. In a world where religious conflicts have caused much hatred, the harmonious synthesis of faith at the Cao Dai temple was truly a refreshing eye opener.

In fact, Cao Dai claims that "religions are not different and if we take enough time to study deep --deeply enough in each religion, we would see that they have one same principal, if not identical principal. That's the reason God has founded Cao Dai, in order to bring harmony to different religions."

Truth that this is a fairly simplistic, not to mention idealistic, view. But with the core belief that the purpose of life and existence is in fact peace, Cao Dai fusion strangely seems to make sense. But only for a moment when you're there.

2007-10-20T11:24:00.000+08:00

Saigon stories

Saigon is a tough town. I totally got burned by a cyclo driver this morning, as we had agreed on 15,000 (about $1) when I got on but he tried to charge me 150,000 ($10) when I got off. Lucky for me, some other cyclo drivers came to my rescue as my cyclo drive made a scene screaming on the street that I was a cheating lying Chinese American.

That did it. That crossed the line for me, I paid him $5 just to make him leave in peace.

So there goes a quarter the money I saved from haggling earlier today over art, bags, train tickets, food and moto rides. But really I had a couple funny encounters in the morning amidst the insanity that is Saigon traffic.

Moto traffic in Saigon, where there are reportedly over 3 million motorcycles.

My guesthouse thinks I'm an American Vietnamese and thus they really don't try to rip me off too much. In fact, when I showed them my passport for check-in they looked at me like I was one of the Vietnamese boat people who escaped and had made it bigtime. The manager is very eager to do business, but is unfortunately not very good at it. He tells me he doesn't bargain, that's not the kind of business he wants to run. He wants a solid business with fair set prices. "Just like the Westerners," he would say.

And it's true, I saw him quote the same price for many customers. Although when I nearly bought the night train ticket from across the street for $15 less, he definitely did a double take and stepped up to give me the same price.

Southern Vietnam is full of anti Viet Cong sentiments. (read: Vietnam Communists. Or as Vietnamese seem to think Americans like to say, Victor Charleys). Locals often told me to "becareful" around national buildings. Or joking about cultural differences by simply saying "but that's because we're communist!" In fact, Saigon has outgrown the old world post-colonialism flavor that once filled its streets. Instead, I found rapid capitalism spreading in the veins of good natured locals.

My luck in cyclo drivers came later. I met a toothless man who spoke very good English, and drove a cyclo. I immediate suspected that he was one of the educated Vietnamese men who Viet Cong stripped of their rights and citizenship on grounds that they sided with Americans. And it was true. Traung refuse to call Saigon by it's current name, Ho Chi Minh city, and he use to be work for what he calls a "respectable American firm" back in the 70s. He was then arrested, jailed, and sent to reeducation camps for 2 years. Now he's technically an illegal immigrant in Saigon, working as a moto driver because it's the only job he can do.

Traung shows me a photo from 1972, when he was a war photographer for the South.

After a tiring day of sight seeing, Traung brought me to an amazing local pho restaurant in the back streets of Saigon call Pho Boa. The food in Saigon is truly amazing. Freshly made, with the aroma of nature and more than adequate flavor make for the best bowl of pho I've ever had. Traung refused to let me buy him dinner because "You're just a girl," he said. "Plus my wife would kill me if I didn't eat her dinner!" With that, I laughed approvingly and instead bought him a beer. Traung also said he had a fun day with me, and almost didn't accept all of the money I had promised him. Fully appreciating his old world kindness, I sent him off with $13 for the day's work. These are the characters you meet on the streets of Saigon.

2007-10-11T08:42:00.000+08:00

Sihanoukville

A beautiful ocean side beach town in the south coast of Cambodia, Sihanoukville is the place for vacation for Cambodians. It's become a bit of a tourist spot, but in low season where the sun isn't exactly shining (instead, a couple hours of sunshine and mostly crazy rain) it was a nice quiet town to swim out and ride the wild storm waves on rented inner tubes.

Doesn't a nice quiet town sound nice? Not to Cambodians really. And now, not really to me. Even though I enjoy the luxury of unspoiled tourists spots, the people in Sihanoukville were much pooerer than those I saw in Siem Reap or PP.

I had a very interesting conversation with a Spanish humanitarian worker name Nuria in Sihanoukville. The often unseen reality of nice quiet towns is the people. Truth be told, I thought the people in Sihanoukville seemed pretty happy. But they live in the past, a time reality different than mine. I still remember how shocked Cambodians are every time I take out my contact lenses. They looked like they just found out I was really a robot.

This is a concept I kept struggling with while in Cambodia, that I felt like someone turned back the clock on this country. The traditional quality of the people, their way of life, and the things they cannot buy even if they had the means. The reality I live in, is not only drastically different from theirs, but utterly unavailable. I myself am guilty of romanticizing the past, but when I think about the availability of technology to me, I must agree with Nuria that a nice quiet town, isn't very nice at all. Equality is impossible, but equal opportunity isn't.

Now comes my rant on prostitution. I didn't see much of it in Siem Reap or PP, but Sihanoukville is the beach and seeing beautiful 20 something Cambodian girls with old foreign men still gets my blood boiling. It reassured me that this bothered Phil and Tola as well, but they couldn't understand how poverty could cause more prostitution. Phil felt sorry, he said something like: "Even if I was a girl, I wouldn't sell my body no matter how poor I was."

There are two things here. First is poverty we cannot understand, I think this is self explanatory. The second is that the idea of the prostitute lives with every woman from the moment we hit puberty. Maybe even earlier.

In our presentation of self, women must decide how much of the prostitute they want to embody. No matter our social status, when we put on a particularly revealing outfit or socialize with men we are face to face with the idea of the prostitute. Is this outfit too sexy? I don't want to seem like a prostitute. Or from the other side, rebelling against society's female conventions for equal sexual liberty. Just listen to Nelly Furtado's Promiscuous Girl, it's absolutely about the negotiation of the prostitute and the modern woman.

The prostitute haunts and liberates the modern woman every moment of everyday.

With that said, it's easier to see that being a prostitute isn't a far stretch for some women as it is a concept society has put us up against since the beginning of time.

2007-10-08T13:59:00.000+08:00

Why Phnom Penh is a ballin' town

Going back to Phnom Penh after being in the country side, I realized what a wealthy town it was in the great scheme that is Cambodia. Siem Reap, despite its massive tourism industry, has managed to stay clear of big supermarkets and malls with escalators. In fact, there aren't many tall buildings in Siem Reap save for the 5 star hotels. The local town consists mostly of wooden houses and small huts.

Reaching to outskirts of PP by bus, I saw many large houses built from cement. Some complete with garages, gates, and fountains in the front yard. And it hit me: PP is a ballin' town.

We went to my favorite restaurant in PP, around the corner of 130 street where a waitress name Ah Ling spoke Cantonese. I was a little shocked at the $10 bill, having been spoiled by $3 meals (for 3 people) in Siem Reap. Phil quickly reminded me that this was the restaurant we nicknamed "the baller restaurant" last time we were in PP. The nickname spawned from our first time here as the tables near us popped down Benjamins for football bets, leaving us shocked in the midst. They also demanded Ah Ling to bring them every single item we, the foreigners, had ordered on top of their food. These were shot callers my friends.

I was quickly reminded of how cruel the city is, when Ah Ling laughed that it was Tola's first time in PP. City dwellers have forgotten about the country side; where there's no houses, no electricity lines, no AC or hot water, and no way make it to the city.

With Tola, our tuk tuk driver from Siem Reap, with us we rented a moto to get around town. Tola sat still as the rental service guy explained to him in English how to drive a moto. I could hardly contain my laughter, as Tola is a professional moto driver who speaks perfect Khmer. With us, Tola was no longer viewed as Khmer. People now saw him as a Canadian tourist, which was very strange but always hilarious.

I asked Tola why he's assuming the role of a Canadian. It was such a curious thing to do. He told me: "It's the chance to be a tourist in my own country! To see how tourists are treated. And now I can understand."

Not a bad reason at all.

Do you want to go to a Cambodian wedding?

2007-10-05T21:40:00.000+08:00

Do you want to go to a Cambodian wedding?

What do you think? Of course I do! And we did! There goes why we spent another 4 days in Cambodia.

Adee and I outside her house in Angkor park.
Her in modern Cambodia party robes, I chose to go old school.

The bride and groom get ready to cut the cake at the conclusion of the wedding party.

2007-10-05T21:36:00.000+08:00

The Rundown

A few other interesting places to note in Siem Reap:

The Floating Forest - a forest near the Tonel Sap which is submerged in about 3 meters of water during rain season. It's incredible. More expensive and much less touristy than the floating village, but so worth it. You take a small boat for $5 through the dense forest areas, it's like nothing I've ever seen. You can even go swimming, as two monkey boys I know did. It's something between swimming and climbing trees. I simply did the tree nymph thing, sitting on a branch, dipping my feet into the cold water (unusual for Cambodia).

FCC - a bit touristy, but I found the FCC really nice! I was spoiled by the sangria (during half price happy hour), the butternut squash soup, and the fantastic desserts. Some baller Cambodian tour guides also drink here. The pool table and Bangkok Times are free. Though there really weren't any foreign correspondents anywhere, rendering the place a little phoney and simply a nice fancy post-colonial enterprising relic.

Zone One - THE place to dance in Siem Reap. Yes, they might play the same music night after night. You might see a couple tourists, and even a couple lady boys. But shit, Zone One is so much fun.

2007-10-05T21:14:00.000+08:00

Gem...or Jam as he calls himself

We met a guy name Gem. I found Gem very interesting, and not only because he continually urged us to call him Jam.

Gem is a tour guide for Capitol Tours, a well-known tour company in Cambodia. He was quick to chat us up the minute we sat down to drink our beers outside a snack shop.

Gem told us many things. His rags to riches story of how he went from a tuk tuk driver to a traveling gentleman who has girlfriends in various parts of the world. How he has a son with a Japanese woman. And the many languages he knows (5 no less). But really, Gem is really a gem. He is part of the nouveau riche who rode the tourism train all the way to the last stop.

Gem told us all about the transformation of his attitude in working in the Siem Reap area. At first, he was like anyone else: "I was like, fuck it, give me the money." Now, after years of working in the tourism industry, Gem only works for people he likes. He's selective with his clients and he has political affiliations. He has some kind of personal work ethic.

"You know," he said. "I know so much about Cambodia and that's why I don't do business with certain people. You know our history? No more business with Thais! No more business with Chinese! And no more business with Vietnamese!"

He's of course talking about all the countries that have invaded Khmer territory in the past. I was almost shocked that in this impoverished country, you can find people like Gem who does business with politics. Something you don't really see in modern cities in the world these days. Most of us just say, that's history. We've got to work with them anyway.

And that's good. Because that's how we forget grudges. Business makes us cooperate instead of being independent states because we can't function that way. We need each other to be efficient.

Another thing I found funny in Cambodia is how people live as though they can afford lots of leisure time. In Hong Kong, where my friends work until 10 pm and on Sundays too, leisure is a great luxury. In Cambodia, it's mandatory. They work hard, but they also relax a lot. As one tuk tuk driver told me: "You know I work for a day, then I can take three days off and I just drink and play!"

You know, that kinda sounds familiar. Sounds like one of the catchphrases of my generation.

2007-10-05T20:54:00.000+08:00

Adventures in Siem Reap

Honestly, being in the Angkor ruins makes you feel a bit like an adventurer. Taking a tuk tuk the first couple days had us spoiled, but we quickly bounced back. Renting bikes from the guesthouse, I went on my own to Angkor Wat.

It's a completely different experience. Without the comfort of knowing where you're going, and peddling hard through the streets of Siem Reap, when I got to Angkor Wat I felt like I deserved it. It was quite easy navigating actually, all you have to do is follow the fancy Lexuses that tourists hire to go to the park.

So I biked to Angkor, about a 20 minute ride, and went to Angkor Tom. They say that Angkor Tom use to be a big town, with thousands of people in and around the main temple. I rode through Angkor Tom, stopping occasionally to look at temples, and being ever careful of the elephants in the area.

Eventually I was caught by a park policeman, as you're not really suppose to take a bike into the ruins, and had to sweet talk some food stall sellers to watch my bike. I was exhausted after 5 hours and headed to West Barey to swim and spend the afternoon in a hammock with our Khmer friends from Angkor Wat. Ahhhhhhh.

2007-10-05T20:43:00.000+08:00

The Pilgrimmage to Angkor Wat

We decided on a little spurge to take the $25 boat (instead of the $4 bus) across the Tonel Sap to Siem Reap. I kind of think it was worth it, but maybe only because I accidentally befriended the captain of the ship and spent much of the boat ride in the cockpit. I even got my hand on the steering wheel for an exciting 3 seconds.

Siem Reap is very very different from Phnom Penh. With no tall buildings around, and most guesthouses without hot water, it is mainly "the town beside Angkor".

Angkor Wat. What's not amazing about it? Approaching I felt my heart beat as the temple came into view. Cambodians are very very proud of these ancient ruins. Sensing our excitement, our tuk tuk driver stopped dramatically in front of the temple to announce that we had arrived at Angkor the Great.
The Angkor ruins are truly amazing. One wonders how this ancient civilization lived, and how the enormous stones were put into place for the giant temples. The best day to go to Angkor Wat is actually on a cloudy day. With the low clouds in Cambodia, the great temple looks like a palace in the sky. You can feel the wind carry the clouds to you as a fantastic cold gust hits your face, leaving a light dew, at the very top of Angkor Wat.

There are nearly a hundred temples in the entire area. Why? Because each emperor just had to have their own temple. This was part of the belief that divinity passed through blood lines. So when you became king, you had to build a temple for yourself as well as your parents to maintain royalty with the gods.

I made another spurge for the $60 seven day pass. A deal to me since the day pass is $20. Let's see how many temples I can hit before it's over.

2007-10-04T23:22:00.000+08:00

Phnom Penh

In a country that has been plunged into hell, it's ironic that it seems like we can touch the clouds of the heavens in Cambodia. When our plane landed in Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital, we were looking for the airport. Finally we saw an orangish pink strip mall like structure, and there it was.

Going from Bangkok to Phnom Penh, I thought it was a bit smaller than I had expected. Low buildings by the Tonle Sap river, markets and motos everywhere, and streets numbers that don't quite make sense.

Forced to spend one day in Phnom Penh before heading to Siem Reap by boat, I went to the Killing Fields 15km from town. In the middle of the field, a pagoda structure stood tall. There was something inside, the only remains of the killing fields is a tower made from human bones and skulls, locked in glass inside the memorial pagoda. The killing fields is a soul wretching lesson in Cambodia history.

In a small field no bigger than the park near my house in Canada, over 20,000 people were executed by the Khmer Rouge communist regime. The revolution for a farmer utopia executed families of intellectuals, engineers, teachers, basically anyone with education. They killed men, women, children, and even babies. Everything in the field has been excavated, but documents reveal approximately the number of people who died along with how they died. These tales of horror were told to us by our Khmer tour guide, who added "this is was very very cruel, very very sad" after almost every sentence. Cambodians are still recovering from the trauma of the Khmer Rouge days.

I asked the tour guide how he does his job. I not only admired his emotional restraint, but was shocked by how calm he could say the shocking things he said. He told me that he couldn't at first, but then he realized that this story was something he could give. And if he doesn't give, people will never know. Just like the Cambodian people never got an answer from Pol Pot as he died naturally without any arrest. And now, all the ex-Khmer Rouge officials put the blame on the dead man.

Many people lost their families and ex-Khmer Rouge soldiers or officials keep their past as quiet as possible, although they are not actually in any danger. I asked another Cambodia in Phnom Penh why they don't confront the well known Khmer Rouge officials still living near the Thai border in Cambodia. His answer was as poignent as it was moving. He said: "We all want answers, and some of us might want revenge. But we are so grateful now that there is some law and order in our country that we would not break the law for our own cause."

I have never been to such a sad place in my whole life. I was moved to tears. In fact, I couldn't stop crying at all the entire hour I was there.

Coincidentally, that night Nick informed me about "Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea's arrest that day. I told the news to our friend Vuthy, whose internet cafe we frequented in PP. Seeing him print out the Reuters article and traslating it excitedly to the other Cambodians at the cafe gave me only a little reassurance after the day's hard lessons.

2007-10-03T12:41:00.000+08:00

Last day in Bangkok: Magic on Maharaj street

Finally it's time to leave Bangkok. 5 days and the hustle and bustle of this town has already gotten to me. No, I haven't lost my soul. I'm just longing to be somewhere quiet and serene. That's why I left Hong Kong in the first place. But Bangkok has been a great stopover to gain some travel goods I know I'll be thankful for later. I'm still not sure what's available in Cambodia.

I had a magical day on Maharaj street, the street that runs along Wat Po and the Grand Palace. By the way, the Grand Palace and the Emerald Buddha temple is an amazing place of gold and mirrors. It's probably the most stunning attraction in Bangkok, as it's literally blinding during bright daylight. A must see along with Wat Arun.

On Maharaj street I really got to know some local Thais. Eating lunch in a food stall restaurant, the owner treated me to a free coke. I was so touched. Thais are very eager to approach anyone by themselves. Then, being caught in a heavy rainstorm, some tuk tuk drivers I had a beer with drove me home for free.

Sometimes I wonder if strangers know how much their kindness is appreciated.

2007-09-30T10:13:00.000+08:00

Cheapculture's Bargaining Handbook

Culture is cheap, just like everything you buy in Thailand could be cheaper. A well learned lesson in SE asia is that of bargaining. On an average day, I probably made at least 15 transactions with at least half involving bargaining. Prices are almost never set (food being an exception), not to mention that most new comers don't know what prices should be anyway. Whether you are actually cheap, or just don't want to feel like a sucker tourist, you should try your hand at bargaining. Not only that, Thais are actually very fun people to bargain with. Price discrimination is everywhere and heavily depend on the way you look, speak, and react. But it's really a guessing game both ways: of the seller guessing what you'll pay, and you guessing if it's the right price. Not getting into game and auction theory, I'm going straight to tips:

1. The basic one first: never accept the first price they give you. Make some facial expression to show your discontent. This is the initiation of bargaining. Don't give yourself away by considering the price, a moment's hesitation is enough end the game!

2. Say no to the price, but make no intention to walk away....not yet anyway. Wait for the next price they give you.

3. Now it's your turn, always be fast and bid a bit lower than you're willing to pay. Why? Because you won't get the price you bid unless you're lucky. At most, I'd say bid about a third of the initial price.

4. You'll be cross bidding for a while. To speed up the process and minimize time cost, make sure you bid fast. I can't emphasize speed enough because pausing the game almost always makes the seller more sure of your non-information - that is, that you don't know the real price, your biggest weakness in the game.

5. If you buy more, you can almost always bargain down a lot more. I can't tell you how much extra baggage I've acquired because I've used the "Ï'll buy one more" tactic one too many times in order to get things at nearly half price. (Umm, yeah. I know that this doesn't make that much sense, because it throws out the initial price completely at the game's end. But once a girl asked me to buy a scarf for $1. I jokingly said why don't you give me at $0.5 each and I'll buy two. This has happened many many more times.)

6. Don't say please. While you should be polite, it's not really about that. Do feel free to use other phrases such as "come on" or "for me your special customer?", and we all know a smile goes a long way.

7. Keep small bills around. This is really helpful because you can take out what you want to spend (even if it's way below market price), and just say it's all you have. It's kind of a cheap shot, so I only use this when I actually only have so much money. On quiet days, stores and tuk tuk drivers rather sell something with a little profit than nothing at all.

8. Show that you really will walk away. This works best when other competing merchants are around, but for me it's also worked for monopoly sellers. So put down that scarf you love - afterall, you don't really need it.

9. Many touristy places have learned one of the most skillful bargaining tactics - guilt. Sellers will often complain about why you're bargaining when you're a rich tourist, or why you're giving them such a hard time when you're in their country. They prey on our catholic upbringing!

Okay, so what they say is actually pretty true, which is why it works so well. It's up to you whether you want to be a sucker and pay to be released from your guilt (a lots cheaper than emotional stress on a trip in my opinion!) Or just ignore them and keep bargaining. Don't make it political, this is afterall a market transaction.

So before you call me a heartless guttersnipe, let me just say I have complete certainty that guilting is a game tactic. Once a tuk tuk driver guilted me into paying him 100 baht more (about $3, and double the original 100 baht price we agreed on) on the basis of expensive gasoline prices that day. When I took out the bill he literally took it from my hand, laughed a great jolly laugh before giving me the you-sucker face. Seriously. And yes, it's happened more than once!

Endnote: Thais are really fun people. Smile and be playful with them. Don't take bargaining too seriously, because it can be really enjoyable and fun instead of stressful and a pain. At worst, you don't buy it. Trust me, you can definitely get the exact same thing somewhere else (I might even tell you the secret for this later)

2007-09-29T12:58:00.000+08:00

Mai Thai, now and then

The first days I leave for a trip anywhere starts with a bout of homesickness. Distance is something felt through culture, people and space. The withdrawal symptoms of those elements on familiar terms happens almost without fail anywhere I go with anybody. And then I realized it's something that's in me, it's been creating stewing and making itself stronger for a long time. Homesickness is something created throughout years, realized in minutes, but curiously cured in moments.

I always had the perception of Thailand sold to me by travel agencies and tourists who just love Thailand. Most of my images I had of Thailand were probably much like anyone else's: good food, fantastic service, cheap 5 star hotels, massages, exotic beaches, lady boys and prostitutes etc. These preconceptions are a double edged sword. While they are very much what outsiders see of Thailand, they are also the real Thailand in some ways as tourism make up a huge part of their industry and thus contemporary Thai local culture. Locals also partake in most of these services, and many more locals work them.

In the days following a lot changed, and I began to like Thailand for a number of reasons. My father's college friend took me to two very good meals, and quickly my disdain for Thai food from my college days changed sides. I never knew Thai food could be so good! At Baan Khanitha in Sukhumvit, a nice but touristy restaurant in a traditional Thai house, I experienced the best coconut concoctions in my life.

Still visiting national monuments, I was still yet a beginner in Bangkok. Near Wat Po and Grand Palace, I stumbled upon hip young Thais from Thammasat University in cafes drinking, smoking and living the hipster life. They were pretty fun too, quick to socialize once I entered on their territory.

Just as I began to think that all Thailand nightlife had to offer were crass hostess clubs and sleezy sex tourists places, I landed on RCA.

Royal City Avenue. Now, I think I deserve a few local points for this one. Some well travelled tourists told us about it, a well known local club district about 100 baht taxi ride from town. I've never seen it mentioned in a guidebook and it's amazing. One street, tons of clubs, no cover (but remember to bring ID to show you are over 20), cheap drinks, great live and DJ music and Thais partying until the 3 am closing time. Everyone is friendly, I barely felt pretension, and all the party goers are just trying to have lots of fun in a wild dance party fashion.

Was I impressed? Let's just say I'm finally convinced that Thai youth culture has something going for it.

2007-09-28T00:01:00.001+08:00

First Days in Bangkok

I had the pleasure of flying into Bangkok's spanking new airport. And here's what I thought of it: Star Wars futuristic. No joke. Grey decor all around with electronic walkways and acrylic white supports. It kind of sucks the only way to the city is an expensive shuttle bus or taxi. Both of which are actually horrible options because the traffic in Bangkok is INSANE.

I assure you that the caplocks was actually necessary. If you have ever (or when you do) go to Bangkok, there is bumper to bumper traffic in every part of the city at all hours of the day. After nearly 3 hours we checked into the wonderfully quaint Suk 11 guesthouse. For cheap sleeps in Bangkok, you have the option of staying on the backpacker happy Khao Sahn road or a slew of guesthouses scattered all over the city. 5 star hotels are also more affordable in Bangkok than anywhere else in the world. So go figure, you can go as high as you want or as low as you want.

I found this to be a reaccuring theme in Bangkok, extreme highs and lows. Beside a luxury mall selling Hermes and LV, you'll find MBK (left). MBK is popular mall where the locals and tourist go to shop for everything they need. It's the cheapest place in Thailand to buy clothes, shoes, bags, etc. Haggling is encouraged, even at official stores.

Also for transportation, depending on how much you have and how well you bargain, you can pay a lot or a little for the same tuk tuk or moto ride. While taxi drivers usually agree on a price or run the meter, tuk tuk and moto drivers are their own boss. More to come on tuk tuk and moto etiquette soon, there's a whole street culture here that more than deserves its own post.

One thing I will note: the sky train in Bangkok is extremely cheap and convenient. It runs at all hours and it's a sky train!! You can get a great aerial tour of the city while on your way to your destination. Today, that happens to be a Thai massage.

What is a Thai massage? It's suppose to be a massage that targets your pressure points to release tension. It also reminds me of yoga, as the masseuse will strech you in order to improve circulation. I went to two very official places for Thai massages, Health Land and the Wat Po School of Thai massage (the institute that issues masseuse licenses). Health Land was like a modern Western spa, complete with private suites and tea. The massage was great, and it was very affordable! It's a local treasure frequented by many wealthy Thais. At Wat Po, a famous temple with a massage school, it felt a lot more authentic though not necessarily better. I have two words for Wat Po: no mercy. Given the choice, I would go back to Health Land.

And oh yeah.... a lady boy lives on our street! He/she is so funny. I wave at her everytime I see her, but she shooes me off everytime telling me she doesn't like girls. My inappropriateness will continue.

2007-09-26T21:36:00.000+08:00

To Bangkok!

No hate or anything, but actually I've never been a huge fan of Thailand. Maybe it's because I've been there when I was a kid. Maybe it's because everyone and their mom has some kind of exotic fascination for the place. Or maybe because I overdosed on Thai food during my U of C days.

However, to travel cheaply through the South East Asian region, it is almost absolutely necessary to stop in Thailand. Here, all roads lead to Bangkok. In the air, on the ground by car, and even by boat. My ultimate destination for now is Cambodia, for which there isn't a direct non-chartered flight. I'm mostly flying Air Asia, and don't freak out when I say no-frills airline, because Air Asia is huge in its own way. In fact, they're doing so well that the Malaysian government gave a subsidy to the official airline, Malaysia Airline, to give up it's unprofitable domestic routes to Air Asia. It is now Asia's leading low cost airline operating over 200 flights a day in 10 countries. And they go to all the places you want to go. For cheap.

How cheap you ask? Check it out yourself. Buying a ticket 2 weeks in advance, you can get a flight from Macau to Bangkok for about $30 US. And unlike Ryan Air (the leading low cost carrier in Europe), Air Asia doesn't fly into remote airports or make you take some $20 bus to that remote airport. You fly out and into major airports, with planes that could have been old American Airlines jets (in fact, I can remember flying worst AA jets). The downside: no assigned seating, no free food or drinks, delays *this I've only heard, my flights were all very punctual* and selective routes. General low cost carrier things, but I have to say that Air Asia is much better than any other low cost carrier I've taken.

Wat Arun, temple of the dawn, in Bangkok on Sept 15

So this is how I ended up in Bangkok. I thought why not? Save some money, check if Bangkok has anything that thrills me, and of course, go for one of those famed Thai massages.

2007-09-21T22:24:00.000+08:00

Cheap Culture is back!

Okay, I know I've said this before. Actually I've said it a couple times and I've also said I'd do it earlier. But despite my questionable behavior this summer regarding this blog, I am in fact....BACK!

History repeats itself, and fall is always the time when exciting things happen and the need to write resurges in the form of, well, this blog. In an unexpected fated turn of events, CheapCulture is now living in Hong Kong until January 2008. Thus, as my friend Fred points out, comes the ramblings, thoughts, and analysis necessitated by ex-pat life.

To this point, I can actually hardly call this an ex-pat life as I use to live in Hong Kong. Currently I'm not even there! I'm travelling through SE asia, and this blog will serve as a travelogue of sorts. I'm a bit backed up but I will try to get up to date. Internet access is amazing fast and easy. Like the African countries which skipped the telephone phase straight to the cellphone generation, internet is much more prevelant than phones here - readily and cheaply available. So imagine me sitting in net cafés writing and being eaten alive by gigantic mosquitoes. No matter, the blogging continues....

2006-10-07T03:46:00.000+08:00

Blogging Hiatus

Sorry I haven't been a good blogger (though I'm super-glad to see that hits are nearly at 500! ). It' been really busy but I will resume when I eventually get internet in my Southside Chicago apartment, a source of daily conflict which I hope to resolve quickly. In the meantime read my other works:

U of C falls short on civic education, says survey

Controversy, innovation take center stage in Toronto

The Uncommon Interview: Ben Parr

2006-09-10T23:05:00.000+08:00

TIFF Review: The Host

The TIFF booklet tells me that Korean horror movies are known for it's lack of monster. Therefore, The Host attempts to make amends by giving us one really big monster. The rain and thunder outside the theatre that night seem to create the perfect prelude for a Korean monster horror flick. With people sharing brollies in what must have been a line of hundreds, snaking around many corners (my friend Alison and I arrived 30min early too!), the doors opened and we all ran into the theatre hoping what happened last night at Borat would not repeat tonight.

Director Bong Joon-ho took the stage at 20 minutes past midnight in front of a nearly full house at the Ryerson theatre. Dressed in all black, he flashed us a big boyish smile before saying in a very heavy Korean accent: "Thank you......for....coming to see my film. I hope.......you will enjoy."

I was thoroughly charmed at the modesty of a director who Olivier Père hailed as the "one of the greatest directors in the world" at the Cannes this year. The Host has been called a masterpiece by many, broke "all the records" in Korea this summer and reportedly already raked in millions in foreign distribution rights. I don't think he had a speech prepared, but the crowd (with a large population of Koreans youths) roared, ready to take on The Host.

For a movie born from a photoshopped picture of the Loch Ness monster, The Host sure looks a lot better. Bong collaborated with graphic specialists from Weta Workshop (Lord of the Rings), Creature Workshop (Babe) and The Orphanage (Hellboy) to create the hulking monster known as The Host (or in Korean, simply The Monster).

However, at the heart of the film is not the Host, it is a dysfunctional family trying desperately to stay together. Gang-du, played by Song Kang-ho (JSA, Memories of Murder), is a loser-father character whose determination will stop at nothing to rescue his daughter who has been abducted by the Host. After a cellphone call from her confirms that she is still alive, Gang-du along with his swindler father, college-educated alcoholic brother and bronze-medal (only bronze!) Olympic archer sister go on a free-for-all rescue mission in the tunnels near the Han river to rescue Ah-Sung.

The hijacked truck and 80s mafia weapons screamed Little Miss Sunshine, but instead of a beauty competition, we have a big monster. Bong does a fantastic job keeping us laughing, screaming, and rooting for the family despite their tendencies to behave nothing short of what any normal person would consider crazy. It's also great to seen Bong put the brakes on genre conventions; the fact the first Host attack occurs in broad daylight you know you've got a true auteur.

The much talked-about political subtext of the movie is evident from the very first scene. Though there's been wildfire about this, it is certainly a sideshow to our lovable screwball slap-stick family. Sure, it screams of South Korea anti-US military sentiments, but as Bong noted in the Q&A any monster film has political subtext, and his is no exception.

Bong Joon-ho (right) start the Q&A, Sept 9 at TIFF.

The Q&A was tough, with Bong's struggling translator scribbling madly onto a pad while he spoke. But they toughed it out, and if I knew Korean I am sure I would have roared at all the jokes that most of the audience couldn't stop laughing about. Unforunately, as of right now there are no plans for a sequel (Bong answered in the Q&A that the spor that fell off the Host near the end is a fish, not a spor).

Bong's boyhood fantasy that a monster lived under a bridge in the Han river is a full out hit. With an imminent US release and remake talks in progress, The Host has already gained the instant cult status it deserves.

UPDATE: Here is the trailer on YouTube. The movie has been picked up for US distribution by Magnolia Pictures but the release date is unknown. If you know Korean there is a funny bit on Naver blog on 16 things will change in The Host if the movie gets a Hollywood remake (4. The monster has claws the size of a grown man's fist, and many, many teeth. ) Very funny, I read the translation at ImDb

2006-09-10T06:17:00.000+08:00

TIFF Review: Brand Upon the Brain!

Guy Maddin's new movie is not just a film, it's an experience. With 11 members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, an original score, foley artists, a narrator and a singer, Maddin took the stage and declared this a formal attempt to bring silent film back.

Overacted in the classic silent film style, the story is about a boy who owns an island, Guy to be exact, who goes home to reminisce his strange childhood at his mother's request. Shot over 9 days in Seattle in beautiful high contrast black and white cinematography, and camera work like an experimental film, lively and full of movement, Maddin creates an aura that reminds me of the Maritimes. The memories of Guy's boyhood are presented in 12 chapters, each one more absurd than the last.

The story follows young Guy going back to the island and orphanage his family once owned and trying to relive and resolve the eerie and odd memories of his childhood. From his overbearing mother, who sits in a lighthouse to spy on her kids; the aerophone, a device which runs on the fuel of emotions that Guy's dad invented for the family to keep in touch; his wilting flower sister, Sis, with whom Guy is in the bermuda triangles of romantic triangles involving a young detective with ambiguous sexuality.

I think what I liked the most about Maddin's film is that it speaks to the value of memory. Though viewers can laugh and see the holes in Guy's childhood, young Guy cannot. Thus at the climatic moments, it is simply "too much for Guy!" As Maddin presents his most-likely fictitious childhood, he along with the audience can see in hindsight the obvious oversight of our once young naive and tragic self. He even laughs about it (now), squeezing every last giggle out in the most absurd situations: most memorably when a block of butter gets stuck to the wall.

Like other Maddin's film, it is erotic and distinctly Canadian, delicious and bold. Get tickets now for the New York performance, when Isabella Rossellini will be the narrator during the New York Film Festival. Those in Sydney, Australia might also be in luck, as I overheard a couple high power executives banter about bringing the performance there.

UPDATE: Just got this week's Time magazine in the mail, there is a fun piece on Maddin in their TIFF coverage.

2006-09-09T17:37:00.000+08:00

Day 1 at the TIFF

Standing in line at the festival, my dad and I had our gameplan for the Elgin. We had the hottest ticket of the night, the world premiere of Canadian director Guy Maddin’s attempt to bring silent film back in Brand Upon the Brain! with 11 members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.

The Elgin is historic and beautiful. I jumped out of the car to join the already forming line just over an hour before the show. In front of me, a Bay Street banker type power woman name Fay chats me up about the French Riviera. She was waiting for her photographer husband Ray to show up. We decide that we'll both go to the Cannes next year, her husband shows up and they skip the line.

Others are buzzing about last night's midnight madness at Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. British comedian Sacha Cohen, better known as Ali G, showed up with goats and villagers on the red carpet. The projector breaking down after 15 minutes, director Michael Moore trys to fix broken projector, Michael Moore fails to fix projector.

Behind me are some college kids and a festival guest (they all have these passes with green lanyards). They’re pissed about Visa, being the official sponsor of the screening room in Elgin, allowing its gold and platinum members to enter first.

“What fucking bullshit elitism!”

It makes sense to me that Visa would let its members have special treatment. After all, they are shelling out X-amount (a couple million at least) to sponsor the festival and they are just taking advantage to give some TLC to their precious Gold and Platinum (fee-paying) card holders.

Economically speaking it's good that VISA sponsors, art needs money. Any film needs a whole lot of money, from production to distribution. Though the VISA policy at the Elgin is pretty elitist, at least it's just at one screening room. Now what confuses me the most is why Bell Canada, the official sponsor, isn't cashing in on this. They could sell a lot of cellphones or something with the line skip incentive.

It's 4am and I'm exhausted from my first TIFF day, will write about Brand Upon the Brain! and The Host in the morning.

2006-09-08T22:30:00.000+08:00

What Torontonians call the Most Wonderful Time of the Year....

That's right, and it's not Christmas. It's just like us Canadians to celebrate during the time when maple leaves turn red and we welcome the world to our town during the Toronto International Film Festival. After Labour Day it's all film fest talk and rage in town. Lucky for me this year, my trip to Hong Kong has been postponed tentatively to Christmas time so I'm hitting the TIFF.

Though my noble father has denied me a press pass, I will nevertheless venture on my own. For the first time this year, the TIFF is offering online sales so no more standing in long lines on Yonge street. Wednesday morning at 6:30 am I dutifully woke up to click refresh repetedly on my computer at the TIFF website. Still had to wait pretty long, but it paid off as I got all the films I wanted/could afford. This year I'll be hitting Guy Maddin's Brand Upon the Brain!, Korean horror hit The Host, South African's youth culture in burger name film Bunny Chow, and French New Wave Paris Je t'aime.

Depending time I'll try to rush a few more. The beauty of this festival is that a) it's public b) rush tickets are almost always available if you show up an hour early c) meeting & talking to perfect strangers in line. The weather's cool, the sun is shining, I'm super excited and it sure feels a lot like Christmas!

UPDATE: Maybe it is Christmas in Toronto. My blog has been listed by the official TIFF site as a festivalgoer-blog!

2006-09-08T10:00:00.000+08:00

Let the blogging begin...

At some point I'll do a summer wrapup, but right now it's high time to blog on the Toronto International Film Festival. I'm back in town and going to see some films. I would appreciate any feedback about this blog and to know what everyone's been up to (your summer wrapup). I've quit facebook, so here's where it's going to be from now on. Check back often before school starts I'll be blogging and making changes before the madness of senior year begins.

2006-09-07T08:36:00.000+08:00

Bye bye facebook

Today said goodbye to a good friend, Facebook. I've decided to somewhat quit: not as in cancel my account, but I will not use it anymore to post things and will keep actions minimal. A couple reasons: 1) I now have a blog 2) Privacy issues, I might need a job at some point 3) Facebook's new face-lift

The facebook has finally pushed me over the edge this time. What was once harmless cyber narcissism has turned into all-out-creepiness when facebook added its News Feed feature this week, which allows the user to see every change which has occurred within their network (ex. has now friended so-and-so, or John is now single)

Of course, the facebook community is in complete havoc. With slogans thrown around like the "panopticon" and "big brother facebook" along with student groups for and against facebook nouveau, Harvard alum-creator Mark Zuckerburger wrote this blog entry to try to console the angry college (and high school) students:

Stalking isn’t cool; but being able to know what’s going on in your friends’ lives is. This is information people used to dig for on a daily basis, nicely reorganized and summarized so people can learn about the people they care about

That's the thing, what I enjoyed the most about Facebook was the dig. I felt like I was secretly gossiping, and with the information organized, all my fun is gone. I don't know Mark, but summarizing people's facebook activity makes me feel like a creep. Facebook was once a guilty treasure chest filled with social secrets for you to discover, Zuckerburger has taken away his business' most valuable asset by giving us a roadmap to greet us upon login.

Marky Mark also notes that the privacy features haven't been removed, and that our lives online are still intact despite appearences. I think people will still use facebook, but not to the extent they use to. With so many options (most notably MySpace), Facebook might be in some serious trouble, both as a business and once harmless fun.

2006-09-06T11:26:00.000+08:00

A blog is born!

I have finally started my own blog after much contemplation, procrastination, and finally creation. Thanks for peer pressuring me friends. Here's looking at you, blogosphere!