I Went to Vietnam and All I Got Was…
… um, let’s see … a lousy 13 handbags?!?
Two weeks, six cities, 13 handbags. Sounds about right, no? It started with a scarlet red raw silk bag with a handmade, round wicker handle. I saw it at a stall in a silk-making village on the outskirts of Hanoi, and I immediately imagined myself carrying my beach reading in it on a summer day. How much, I enquired. Thirty thousand dong, I was told. Quick calculation in my head… approximately 16,000 dong to a dollar, so… less than two bucks. Sold! (You instantly feel flush in a place where a quick trip to the ATM makes you a millionaire… in dong. It’s like the good old days of the Italian lira.)
At a market in Hue a few days later, I saw the same bag — this time in more yummy colors. I couldn’t help myself, and besides that, I figured they’d make cute gifts; I picked up a maize yellow one, and a crimson one (different from the first one, truly!). This time they cost a whole 35,000 each — a little over $2.
The next day, in the old quarter of Hoi An, I spotted more colors, and after spending the whole night before regretting not buying the light purple bag at the market, I jumped at buying the first one I saw. I was almost bitter about the markup — 40,000. Okay, not really. That’s what, $2.50? Then, a few streets over, I was buying $1 straw flip-flops when I spotted in the store yet another one of those silk bags, this time in an autumnal orange. Beautiful! And at 25,000 ($1.56), the price was right.
With five of the same bag in my suitcase, I didn’t stop there. I kept thinking, who knows when I’ll be in Vietnam again? Once I’m sitting at home in New York, I’ll be kicking myself for not buying enough. And besides, I was helping their economy. I didn’t feel the slightest bit bad that I was paying tourists’ prices. That was fine by me. And as much as you are supposed to bargain — some merchants are insulted if you don’t — I just couldn’t get myself to haggle over 50 cents.
So I found myself in Saigon, digging through all the bags — little and big, strap or no strap, pockets or none — decorated with the bright, quirky embroidery made by the ethnic minorities living in the northern mountains. Long story short, I cleaned out the joint. Then there was the Japa Sapa boutique across the street from my hotel (clearly priced for the tourists and not locals) that combined Japanese kimono fabric with the same ethnic Vietnamese embroidery in such a novel way. Special fabrics + whimsical styles = the biggest purchases of the trip, four items (two bags, a skirt and a top) for a mere $154.
No, there would be no non-buyer’s remorse on this trip — and despite all my shopping (including for an extra suitcase to take home the goods), there would be no fear going through customs back in the U.S. It’s a beautiful thing when, unlike on trips to Italy, you (1) don’t have to have crisis talks with your conscience over whether to fib on your declaration form, and (2) still know you’re nowhere near the limit anyway. Oh, the joy of an unburdened conscience!
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December 30th, 2005 10:44
If you haven’t done so already (and perhaps you haven’t - I know that Space and Storage are major issues for you, as they are for us all), you might consider just breaking down and doing what I’ve been doing: buying professional storage for your clothes and accessories. No, not bunches of cute boxes from Cute Box Land; going onto the web for the same manufacturers who supply stores. For me, it started with hats; I have hats the way you have shoes. I gave up and now I have 3 commercial hat stands, the same kind that you would see at Bloomie’s or Bonwit’s. This weekend I’m ordering a commercial belt rack; I’m sick of the chaos that ensues with belts snaking across all the solutions that never work. There’s a reason why shops store and display their merchandise the way they do: because it works. After spending Good Money on the kind of totally worthless garment racks that can be lugged home and collapse under three blouses, I’m ordering the same kind of double-rail wheeled garment rack that salesmen in the garment industry use to show pieces. I’m going for whatever works, and the professional solutions seem like the best to me. I’m thinking with 13 new handbags on top of what you own, you may want one of those commercial handbag stands.
December 30th, 2005 12:51
Thanks for the tip! I’ve been in the same apartment for almost 7 years now and I never thought I’d be there that long. If I had, I might’ve invested in a total closet renovation. And now I’m thinking I’m gonna move in the next year (yeah, yeah, famous last words) so it’s not worth making my closets perfect… for the next tenant to enjoy. Bah!!
January 5th, 2006 16:17
The nice thing, Alex, is that you’re not making the closets nice for the next tenant to enjoy. Did I say anywhere that these were permanent fixtures? Please. So I can knock plaster off my landlord’s walls? He would so thank me. The solutions I’ve suggested are portable. They’re freestanding. Although “portable” is a bit iffy when you’re lugging those steel hatracks up the stairs, let me tell you. They’re not affixed anywhere - you lug them with you, including to the next apartment or house. And if you want to pretend your bedroom is separate from the rest of the apartment, you just line up your racks in front of the bed. I’m pretty sure these racks would never, ever fit into a New York closet - they sure don’t fit into a Philly closet. What fits into a Philly closet, apparently, is a fine selection of … umbrellas. About that size and width. I can’t even put a hanger hanger-wise in my closets. So these free-standing diverse racks are my own solution. Plus, I can pretend they’re sculpture!
September 5th, 2006 02:18
Hi- I am in Hoi An now- but I didnt find any bags—- where were they???
September 5th, 2006 11:06
Hi Heather- Most of those little shops in the old district - the ones with the silk lanterns in the front - had some bags too. You might just have to look inside… Good luck!!
February 13th, 2007 17:15
What store did you get the slingbacks from?
They must feel great on barefoot!