Growing Youth Culture

During the first two weeks of school, I was having a really conflicting time in Vietnam. I thought that I wasn’t a good “traditional, Vietnamese student” because I always wanted to go out and drink, be spontaneous, run in the rain, go dancing, and all of that. And part of it is probably because I have the privilege of being able to spend that sort of money doing those activities. But also, there was an attitude towards people that wanted to do that all the time. It made me kind of sad because I knew that I wanted to “fit in” with the lifestyle of Vietnamese people here.

But after finding about new venues, such as Solace or Heresy, I think I somewhat found my niche. There’s a whole scene of people that go out late all the time. All the way till 5am. There’s this growing youth culture of rockers, rebels, queer folks (YEE YEE!), and probably really rich Westernized kids that tend to break the traditional rules. And it feels like home.

I know its not typical of Vietnam in any way. I know that most stores close by 11-12am for a reason. But for now, these new friends that I’ve been making at Heresy and Solace makes the transition here easier. And its not all about drinking and partying either. We have great conversations over food, beer, cigarettes, etc. and we enjoy each other’s presence. And they don’t judge me for my ways.

At the same time, I think I need to be critical of this culture. While its great that so many people are being subversive, at the same time, I only understand it with an American lenses. Maybe its not as good as I think. And what does it mean when a lot of them prefer to listen to Western music and downplay Vietnamese music? Or what does it mean when these are usually just the ones that can AFFORD to go out in the way that they do? But for now, I am enjoying being in their presence. To live and to learn.