Nana, you would be proud!

Yesterday Ms. Linh came to my room to pick up my passport and have me sign various visa renewal papers (progress?! I sure hope so!). As she was leaving, she noticed my new pair of boots which were casually perched (and by that I mean prominently displayed as the nicest article of apparel that I currently own in Vietnam) on my chair. She gushed about how much she loved them, and asked if I brought them from home or got them in Vietnam.

I told her that I had actually just bought them in Hanoi. And, naturally, like all Vietnamese people (and Senegalese people, and perhaps all people living in haggle-based economies), she asked how much they cost.

When I told her 200,000VND (~$10), she was flabbergasted and checked several times to make sure I had said the correct number. Then she asked if I had bargained for them, and I said yes. She asked how much the woman started at, and I told her 500,000VND (~$25). Again, she was flabbergasted.

Then she asked if I had gone alone to buy them, or if I had been with a Vietnamese person (in other words, she was checking to see if I had truly haggled for them myself, or stood silently while someone spoke for me in rapid, thrifty language because I am incompetent to do it on my own). But no, I bought those boots 100% by myself, and entirely in Vietnamese.

In Hanoi, oftentimes vendors in high-traffic tourist areas will offer prices in English, as it is the one function of the English language that is economically advantageous for them to master. Out of politeness and stubbornness to prove that I am more than a transient tourist and should not be treated as one, I always respond with Vietnamese numbers and phrases, both in hopes of getting a better price, and in hopes of demonstrating that I care a bit more for and know a bit more about the Vietnamese culture than someone who is just passing through and looking for a cheap souvenir.

I can only infer from Linh's reaction to a 60% mark-down on the initial price that this tactic proved to work in my favor. I feel proud that Linh was so impressed with my haggling and my ability to fend for myself in Vietnamese, and I feel proud that my boots truly were a good find.

The other (less superficial and materialistic) news from my meeting with Linh was that she dropped my passport and various paperwork off at the Ha Tinh Provincial Government Office and received a confirmation paper that says that she can expect to pick up my passport (complete with visa) on January 11. This gives me two days of wiggle-room before leaving for Hanoi to catch my flight to Thailand, but things look promising for the time being.

Also, it turns out that the criminal record papers that my Dad painstakingly obtained and rush-FedExed for $67 (because we were told that the visa could not be written without the original hard copy of them and that an electronic photocopy would not suffice) are actually not necessary at all. So now I have possession of a very valuable hard-copy of my CORI form, and nobody seems to care any longer that I am indeed not a criminal.

I think I would have more of an emotional reaction to this (somewhat comical) change of events if I wasn't so emotionally spent re: the visa and work permit. I simply no longer have the emotional wherewithal to react to situations like this, so I will just post it for you, my loyal readers, to read the irony and silliness of this situation, and you can have humorous reactions for me.

However, the other great news from yesterday is that I spent all afternoon researching hotels and flights for my upcoming trip to Thailand, and now everything is booked. I will arrive in Bangkok and fly right to Chiang Mai where I will spend three days hiking and getting Thai massages. Then I will return to Bangkok and set off immediately for Ayutthaya (about an hour's drive) where I will spend three days cuddling and playing with retired elephants and their newborns. Then I will return once more to Bangkok where I will spend three days wandering, exploring, and eating street food.

This is my first large-scale entirely solo vacation, and I'm both nervous and incredibly excited.