My Annual Farewell To Heels

[mlroseplant]

It's that time of year again, Lunar New Year, or Tết Nguyên Đán, as it's known in Vietnam.  We will travel on Sunday and be there for three weeks.  Again, my wife doesn't want me to wear heels while I am there, and that's fine.  Vietnam is considerably more conservative than most parts of the U.S., and I don't need the extra attention.  We are just there to visit family and friends.  Since it IS called the "World Wide Web," the trip most likely won't affect my participation on this forum (or lack thereof), but it will be weird to wear flat shoes for three weeks straight.

[ilikekicks]

You should see if they have any good shoes there . Might not wear them, but you could buy them for a later date!

[saudade]

You should see if they have any good shoes there . Might not wear them, but you could buy them for a later date!

 

True enough, I dated a girl from Saigon a while back. They freaking love their heels. That said, well, they aren't that big so probably won't be anything in your size. So probably a wash.

[mlroseplant]

True enough, I dated a girl from Saigon a while back. They freaking love their heels. That said, well, they aren't that big so probably won't be anything in your size. So probably a wash.

It's true! Vietnamese women do love their heels. I've found that to be true in Hanoi, as well. Not so true out in the countryside, but that's understandable. Shoe size would not be a huge problem for me here, but I'm sure the wife would freak if I bought high heels here. She was irritated enough when I bought a suit today and insisted that they didn't actually cut length off the pants, but merely roll them under and hem them. The sales people argued with her about it, but she would not tell them the reason why I want the option to make them longer at a later time. My feet look very strange and long to me. Give me back my shoes!

[SF]

Mlroseplant, Chao Ong..  

The nail salon that my wife and I go to is run by a very hardworking Vietnamese couple who emigrated here in the 80's to escape the tyranny of communism (sorry about that last part - gotta speak the plain truth sometimes!).  

All the gals working there wear heeled sandals and some of the shoes are really pretty.  I have gone there for pedicures many times in heels, and about half the time the gals will comment on my shoes.  There is a lot of talking going on in Vietnamese, and I have no idea who or what they are talking about - ha ha.  The female owner always says something positive about my heels - and comments when I come in wearing only flats.  On the other hand, her husband - not so much.  But a nice guy nonetheless.  

Too bad you won't be wearing heels in Vietnam, something to look forward to when you return to the USA.    sf 

[mlroseplant]

SF, thanks for the greeting, but you should not call me ông, LOL.  Ông is basically like "grandfather," reserved for the most senior members of the family.  You should call me "em," which is younger brother or sister.  The most formal way of saying this is, "Anh chào em," or "older brother greets younger brother."  Vietnamese language sucks in this respect. Whereas in English the word "you" covers everybody, in Vietnamese there are over a dozen forms of address, and often, you're guessing which one you should use.  It's not considered impolite to ask a person's age here, just for that reason.  In your case, SF, I just looked at your profile, LOL.

 

Nobody here likes Communism, and I'm in Hanoi, land of the former enemy, so don't worry about your comment. This is not the place to start a theoretical or ideological discussion about political theory, that could go so many places.  I think of it as coulda, shoulda, woulda, given the wisdom of hindsight.

 

I cannot comment on your individual situation with your nail shop people.  I have spent a lot of time hanging out at the Vietnamese owned and run nail shop in our locale. I knew them before I started wearing heels publicly. They don't say anything in front of me, because they realize I might understand a little of what they're talking about.  Little chance of that really, as on a good day, I understand 25%, and I don't deal with the Southern dialect well at all, but nonetheless.  .  .  They do say things to my wife, however. Things, like, "What is wrong with your husband?" She always replies, "Why don't you ask HIM?"  They never have. On the other hand, I have heard it through the grapevine that they really can't understand how I can walk in 5 inch+ heels, and I really get the idea they they would also like to wear the taller heels if they could.  They all wear 2 - 3" heels to work every day. Sometimes 4", but rarely. What I'm saying is, that chatter you don't understand may be more directed at you than you think. Then again, it may not be. Who knows? If they've been in California since the 80s, your nail shop people are probably a lot more liberal in thought than the people here in Hanoi.

 

In any case, I feel like a bit of a freak for wanting my shoes back. On the other hand, there's a LOT of eye candy around here. Many, many women in tight pencil skirts and fairly tall heels. Luckily, my wife understands my fascination with heels. She often points out a woman wearing "ambitious" shoes to me. Happy New Year! Chúc Mừng Năm Mới!

[SF]

Mlroseplant…  Ha ha, forgive my formality - not knowing you personally I deferred to the most dignified greeting!!  From now on, Anh chao em…  !!!!

I have some Viet friends that I work with and they have tried to 'splain the various forms of the language and yes, it is VERY confusing.  

I will just stick with Spanish since it is the predominant foreign language out here in CA, although Vietnamese is probably close second.  

 

As for your comments about the nail salon, I would imagine the gals are talking about me.  What do they think about a guy in heels?  I dunno really.  On one of my first visits to the salon, one of the gals asked me, "are you wearing your wife's shoes?"  I told her no, that they were mine, and the subject never came up again.  If they are talking about me, at least they are diplomatic and respectful.  No stares, laughing or that type of stuff.  Maybe the salon owner, who knows my wife very well and is OK with my heels, is keeping the gals at bay - who knows.  

 

Anyway, have fun over there…  Safe travels back to the US….   sf