(PICTURE: Dr. Huyen giving a lecture on science)
There should be a television show hosted by Bill Cosby called, "The Vietnamese Say The Darndest Things." A day doesn't go by that a Vietnamese person doesn't make a claim that is, well, not exactly based on science and facts.
One of the many benefits of dating a local is I'm privy to some serious information -- that's seriously hilarious information. About a month ago Huyen said something absurd to me: "Oh, do not eat so many bean sprouts." At the time I was putting bean sprouts into my bun cha. I naturally asked why I shouldn't eat bean sprouts and Huyen informed me that, "Bean sprouts are bad for men."
"They're just bad for men," I asked.
"Yes, they are bad for your [points at my mid section]."
"Is that based on science?" She just told me it was.
I then said, "You know America has been to space? I'll take my American science over your Vietnamese folk lore." This is when Huyen told me that a Vietnamese man had been to space too (he traveled with the Russians). I countered with, "Well, we've been on the moon!"
Anyway, since that day whenever Huyen makes a strange remark and I give her a look she immediately says, "It's science."
Some scientific things I learned recently:
Dr. Huyen: "You have white hairs because of your blood. It's science."
Dr. Huyen: "Eating salt is the best way for women to have boys. It's science."
Dr. Huyen: "Married couples must have a lot of sex to get rid of bad genes. It's science."
Dr. Huyen: "Drinking this (a strange white powder she brought over made from some fruit) will get rid of your pimples. It's science."
Dr. Huyen: "If your breath smells like garlic breath against a wall and it will smell better. Girls must do this 5 times, boys 7 times."
The truth is I was never good at science. But come on!
4 comments:
So you think that a thousand years of anecdotal evidence is pure fiction? Science often starts with trial and error as well as observation. This same thing is true of folklore.
I recently moved to Hanoi and was surprised when I had some minor health problems. My wife said it was because my body was too cold. Strange, I thought, since it is summer and 30+C outside. No, she explained. Cold as in eating too many 'cold' foods like ginseng, etc. can cause these problems. Eating too many 'hot' foods can cause other problems.
Of course 'science' does not recognize 'cold' and 'hot' energies of foods but you know what? When I changed my diet all of my symptoms disappeared.
Science is not hogwash but do not rule something out when a people have discovered it hundreds of years ago.
Hey, John. Thanks for reading! You stole one of my future blog entries about hot and cold fruits.I've been given that lecture by Huyen dozens of times.
I believe that many truths probably arise from folklore. However, this entry, like most of my blog, was meant to be funny.
Welcome to Hanoi!
The Chinese believe in the concept of "cold" and "hot" for thousands of year. Eating fried food like french fries is often considered as the worst because it generates 'hot' energy in the body. To counteract this, as I later learn, just drink plenty of beers...haha...its a 'cold' food (based on some unsubstantiated source).
Growing up in a Vietnamese household, I had my fair share of these scientific facts. I found them especially absurd since I was studying Western Medicine. It wasn't until I ventured into Eastern Medicine and learned about yin and yang, hot and cold etc that I found them to be clinically sound (this is turning out to be a pretty nerdy posting eh).
I've been incorporating these principles into my practice and have had great success. So yes, they are science!
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