Baptism

It’s incredible how easily we lose track of time and how naturally we adapt to a new routine: it’s only a week since my arrival and I feel like it’s been ages!  It’s almost too late now to start talking about my first day in Hanoi, but I feel like I must dedicate at least a post to this decisive moment.

The first thing I had to do on Monday morning was present myself at the United Nations Volunteer’s (UNV) office for a briefing on basic administrative and security issues. After the briefing, I was requested to go to the bank and open a local Vietnamese bank account.

Although the bank is physically very near to the UNV office, the infamous Vietnamese driving immediately created a crevasse between me and my destination. You look at the street and think to yourself “now, how do I cross?” At first sight it can be a source of anxiety: you look left, and then right; left then right again; left… and all you see is an almost homogeneous flow of cars, motorbikes and bicycles; you start to doubt if you’ll ever make it to the other side! Instantly something as menial as crossing a street becomes an excruciating task and you wonder if you should even do it at all. “Maybe I could go to the bank some other day?”

I then recalled a friend’s wise advice: “just cross slowly while maintaining a regular pace, you’ll see how the traffic avoids you”. But did I really want to play Moses on my first day in the country? I looked around and observed. Indeed, people were crossing with a calm gaze, as if they were out in a prairie picking wild flowers. They just crossed with a carefree stride, undisturbed by the honking and swerving of motor vehicles around them. Incredible.

Suddenly, my feet started to take the lead, and I followed. I didn’t think twice, just went ahead exclusively thinking of my final target. The muscles on my face relaxed, my heartbeat slowed to its resting pace and a slight grin marked my face. I was on the other side.