Vietnam Museum of Ethnology

• http://www.vme.org.vn/index.asp
• This place is dedicated to the 54 ethnic groups in Vietnam.
• About 20 minutes out of the city by taxi. Each way should cost about 60-63K dong.
• Admission is a “whopping” 20K dong per person (compared to the 5000 dong for the other places). Get your tickets at the gates. At the entrance of the building, present your ticket to the counter staff to the left and you’ll receive a brochure in whatever language (English is available)
• We went there on a Sunday – there were LOTSA kids running around.
• Here we are!
• I’ve seen some photos of a man on a bicycle laden with rattan fish traps. Here it is in the “flesh”. Never mind how he cycled with the fish traps – how on earth did they get the fish traps on it?!

• Conical hats! They’re everywhere!
• A little write-up on water puppets. Water puppetry is supposed to be a Northern Vietnamese thing. See section on water puppet show later.
• Musical instruments. I bought 2 flutes from a shop on Hang Manh- one to be played transversely SAO NGANG (they have both the plain bamboo types; I bought the dark,rosewood-ish type with mother-of-pearl inlays), the other to be played vertically (the mouth piece is attached to a small gourd) SAO BAU.
• A whole section was devoted to “bao cap” -the period of the “Subsidy Economy”. Strangely enough, this was the only section that was air-conditioned. See the excerpt below (from VietnamNetBridge)

An exhibition on Life in Hanoi in Subsidy Period (1975 – 1986) was launched on June 16 at the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology in Nguyen Van Huyen street, Cau Giay district, Hanoi, reflecting the community’s voice through stories and people’s thinking about life before the renovation process.
The exhibition presents objects and documentation of Hanoi from 1975 to 1990, when the Renovation policy started to come to life. The exhibition, not only reflects people’s life under the subsidy economy, its
historical context and mechanism, but also creativity, self-motivation and dynamism of ordinary people to overcome difficulties and manage their lives. It is, in part, their motivation and creativity that have contributed to the successes of the Renovation today.
The exhibition displays original objects donated by common people and collected by the two museums, together with recreations of daily life under the subsidy economy. The objective of the exhibition is to raise the voices of communities through their own stories, memories, thoughts, and assessments of their life on the eve of Doi moi. All these aspects are vividly illustrated through a number of topics, such as The
Distribution System (coupon system, food shops, stalls selling Tet’s goods), The Social and Cultural Management (films, arts, radios, bicycles, etc.), and A Family’s Space in a cramped apartment, especially Creativity and Activeness and Dreams of Hanoi people at the time. The exhibition ends with images of the
country under the Renovation and integrating into the world. The two films, "Hanoi – A Time in Difficulty" and "A Time to Remember," made by incorporating communities’ participation, have portrayed diverse views of different social classes on the subsidy period.
Associate Professor and Dr Nguyen Van Huy, director of the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, said that the exhibition was aimed at sharing the thinkings and memories about a difficult time before the renovation period and helping younger generations learn about the country's past. As the Doi moi (Renovation) has been carried out for the last 20 years, Vietnam has experienced many important changes and people’s life has been constantly improved. However, for the elder generations, different memories of the subsidy
economy, be it happy or sad, are always visible in their minds. Meanwhile, it can be difficult for younger generations born in the 1980s and later to reconstruct the images of that time and understand what the elder had experienced.
Meanwhile, Professor and Dr Do Hoai Nam, chairman of the Vietnamese Academy of Social Sciences, noted that the subsidy period was a significant historical period, leaving many valuable lessons for the present
time and the future.

The exhibition is held with support from the UNDP (United Nations Development Program), the SIDA (Swedish International Development Agency), the Ford Foundation, and the Project of “Reviewing 20 Years of Doi Moi” led by the Vietnamese Academy of Social Sciences.

Food & other necessities had to be "bought" with coupons

• See also this lady’s thoughts on bao cap (note what she used to do). There were many other plaques bearing people’s tales. Many of them are still alive since this period only ended 20 years ago.

• In one of the mini videos, a man was recounting how the family would be happy if the rice they got wasn’t rotten or smelly. Yet they were told that rotten, smelly rice was a sign that the food stores were plentiful and fresh, clean rice meant that stores were running out. Good grief!

• It was an interesting section. All the more so, actually, since it’s so recent.

• A little something on the Chinese in Vietnam.

  
• Outdoor exhibits : mainly the various types of houses that the various ethnic groups live in. Since it was a Sunday (I assume), there were many activities for the kids.
• We saw a couple using brightly coloured rice paste to create dragons and roses and pretty much whatever you wanted on a stick. The paste looked really soft. Am wondering if it’s meant to be eaten. Anyway, the man, in particular, was really deft with his fingers.
• Also saw 3-4 couples in their wedding garb around the exhibits. Didn’t faze the brides that their gowns were getting soiled or clambering up and down the houses could tear their frills.
• Giarai tomb - amusing.