I am now living in Hanoi for the month in a beautiful apartment with my 4 best friends in my program. Finally having independence is both a blessing and a curse. I do love being on my own, but I also really miss my mom (aka our director, Co Thanh).
I hate being an adult. I’m not fit for this whole 9-5 business.
Just kidding (kind of). My internship is amazing and I am really learning a lot.
I am working for a research NGO called DEPOCEN. As an english speaking intern, I do various jobs. My first few days consisted of editing papers and sitting in on meetings. Everyone here speaks english fluently (probably better than I do), but they appreciate having me here to edit papers and emails for them.
I was kind of expecting as an intern to be doing work that just took up time, and did not really carry much weight in the organization.
Wrong.
I am currently in the middle of a 20+ page literature review where I am researching illicit tobacco trade in both Vietnam and Asia. I never thought that would be something that interested me, but I find it pretty fascinating. I think what’s the most interesting about the topic is the motive of Vietnamese people. The illicit tobacco industry is thought to be so prevalent because people can just commit tax evasion and buy illicit cigarettes just to save money. However, that’s not the case, especially in Vietnam. Illicit cigarettes are on average 51% more expensive than legal cigarettes. I have been trying to figure out why that is, but it’s a pretty hard concept to discern. Part of me thinks that it’s the Vietnamese attitude in this day and age; you buy the expensive things because you CAN, not because it makes sense.
Because of the illicit tobacco industry, Vietnam loses on average about $700,000,000 USD a year. So the government does not really know what to do about the problem. Raise taxes? Illicit consumption will increase dramatically. Lower taxes? Accessibility to cigarettes will increase, AND so will illicit tobacco consumption. The problem is pretty multi faceted, and I am both struggling and thriving researching this topic, and enjoying the process all the while.
It’s actually pretty cold in Hanoi, but I could NEVER say that out loud. This entire semester I’ve prided myself on being “New England tough,” and the only cold I can complain about is in the dead of winter in Maine. So now, when I’m cold in Hanoi, my pride prevents me from saying anything. My light sweatshirt is not exactly sufficient, but I can never let any of my roommates know.
My friends found a deli in Hanoi that is going to deliver us a full thanksgiving meal tonight, so we are going to celebrate thanksgiving, which is hopefully going to mend a little bit of the homesickness we were all feeling today when all of our friends were posting photos and videos, and that sad feeling when my entire family called me at 3 am to wish me a happy thanksgiving.
I hope you all had a great thanksgiving. Though I am not home, being in Vietnam has given me a lot to be thankful for. Not only for this opportunity to study here, but for the life I have, my friends, family, and education I have been blessed with my whole life.