Homeless Hanoi - Mui and Pha

This is very special.




My good friend Chris told me about a homeless Vietnamese woman, Mui and her son Pha. For the last 5 years, Mui has been living homeless in Hanoi with her five-year old son Pha. They face many challenges, Mui is HIV positive and has a mental disorder.

The Vietnamese family culture dictates that when a woman is married, she leaves all to live with her husband's family. When Mui's husband was institutionalised with a mental disorder, Mui was rejected from the household.

The key word here is HAPPINESS. Although they have very little to survive, Mui and her son have love and happiness and refuse to let their situation get them down. Mui teaches Pha how to look after his environment, to recycle and all about LOVE!

Below are some photos from 'Companion in poverty' by Justin Maxon, you can find the full story and his comments on the photos here

Mui is a practicing Buddhist and said she is teaching her son happiness comes from within. They find their happiness in their simple affection for each other. Even though Mui and Pha face many daily challenges, they have an overwhelming sense of hope for the future.

Mui, carrying all the valuable possessions she owns in one bag, walks ahead of her son, Pha, while he runs to catch up with her.

Mui, a Buddhist, said she is teaching her son that keeping his head shaved is part of living a simple life which leads to greater happiness.

Mui recognizes how difficult Pha’s life is without a home and says that she likes to play with him as often as possible to keep his spirits high.

As she picks up a pile of old rice she found on the Long Bien Bridge, Mui said she is teaching her son how to pick up trash because she wants him to care about his environment.

Mui remains naked though it's not been explained why. I like to think it's because as a woman who has had her identity taken away, she believes she no longer needs to show the world she is a woman. She is simply a human. As a Buddhist she is pure. As a mother she is blameless. As a woman she is. She lives clothed in honesty.

Homeless in Hanoi - Week 3

Did you know the homeless tell the best stories?
A guy on the street just told me he has travelled to the UK, Ireland, and most of the 'stans. He said he had a great job and an excellent career and lots of money. Then his family took his money and he lives on the street. But it was hard to understand him, because he had no teeth.

The homeless in Hanoi creep the streets. They work as shoe shines, basket women, hawkers, pickpockets, beggars and bag slashers..they are old, young, male, female, beautiful, ugly, friendly, rude..

They come out to sleep at 11 in the morning when the parks empty of joggers and aerobics grandmothers. I never figured out where they sleep before 11am..

People on the streets live without an identity. They cannot get an ID card, the kids cannot go to school. It's a system that pushes down the people already marginalised and in need. The police here are no better, beating people, holding them in custody and generally scaring the shit out of them.

God, I'm lucky not to be Vietnamese. I'm still tired. Drinking too much. Staying out too late. My friends think I'm strange and elusive and are getting annoyed. It makes me feel even more alone.

Going to find a shower now, Josh says he will be back in a few hours, I'm going to mooch around his place..and wait.

Homeless in Hanoi - Week 2

I'm tired. For almost two weeks I've been roaming this city like a hungry cat. Dragging my feet, my bags and weary self through the streets, sniffing out comfortable corners and wriggling my way into potential floors, couches and beds..

I smell..I'm tired, really tired and I feel desperate.

Day to day has been a focus on finding a place to sleep for the night. I've crashed on couches and floors. Sleeping on park benches to make up for the lack of sleep trawling bars or pubs in the late evenings.

I feel like a hunter...and it all sounds so melodramatic..but it's true! Sleep is ALL I think about!

It's all subjective, obviously I have friends who don't want me on the street and contacts and places to stay..but still, I have this tangible feeling of aloneness..I'm rootless..and unloved.

Of course, it's crazy because in actuality I AM wanted, cared about! This state is self-created and can be stopped anytime, but now, right now, I feel alone. Miserable. And it seems I've stopped looking after myself.

Since I don't want friends or people who know me well to know I'm in the midst of a bizarre experiment, I haven't had much contact with friends, except a surprise here and there to ask for a shower. I've been sitting outside apartments waiting for hours until someone comes how from work, simply to take a shower in their house. I've been sleeping above cafes and restaurants (hidden from staff) or using friends couches to crash out in.

I'm tired and never want to be homeless again.

How to be Homeless

You no longer exist to society - you are outside it - you are rejected by it...

But remember, there are people routinely homeless. And not in the ways we think. Disaster survivors, travellers, new divorcees, financial crisis sufferers...and people simply living an alternative lifestyle!

People think it's lazy to be homeless, but that is far from the truth. Homelessness is very hard work. They also think that many are veterans, mentally ill or retarded, these stereotypes simply don't fit many of the homeless in Australia or around the world.

There is stigma attached to being homeless. Even if the person it living homeless well. There are even laws prohibiting it. Imagine. There are laws against being homeless. Let me say that one more time. There are laws against being homeless.

"Imagine yourself as an 8 year old child. You come home from school, the door is locked. You knock. A stranger answers the door and sends you away. You do not know where your parents went. All you have are the clothes on your back and a backpack. How do you feel? Where do you go? What do you do? If you have relatives, you might seek them out for help. You might go to a friend's home and ask for assistance. If you can picture yourself as that 8 year old, you will begin to know what it is like to be homeless...or..."

More from What is it like to be homeless?

1. Learn to travel light. Keep a postbox, find a safe place for your possessions if you can't keep them with you all the time.

2. Scout for good bathrooms, places with hot water so you can wash, friendly staff so you can take your time and visit many times

3. Carry nuts, peanut butter or foods with high protein

4. Always get enough sleep. The truth about being homeless is sleep deprivation. Carry a blanket with you and nap anytime you can.

5. Keep a positive mental attitude. Things always change! For better or worse, remember your current situation won't always be the same, so tuck into your food - when you have it. Sleep when you can. Be thankful for small kindnesses!

For more stories from the homeless check out Hear My Story

Homeless in Hanoi

My beloved brothel packed in two hectic weeks, now the paint peeled walls and cavernous spaces are empty and bare. My possessions, scattered to the four corners..walking out with an interesting stream of people. It's possible I'm almost ready to say goodbye to this tangled nest of a city.

Hanoi rushes over itself, jangles and honks, has broken edges that assault the senses and skylines that confuse the mind. After almost two years living and breathing Hanoi..and as beautiful as it is, I want a clearer picture. But what about the underbelly..

Now is a good time as any for a social experiment. If my apartment made me at home in Hanoi..what will being homeless do?

I don't have a fixed place to stay..and I intend to keep it that way. There are many homeless in Hanoi. Mostly sleeping in parks and on benches or on the streets and in alleys. The homeless and itinerant here are many..

Crime is high and many young kids are brought up on the streets. They come from many backgrounds, but they say children of rural families coming to the city to look for work have the worst time of it. The government is not kind to these families, sometimes detaining them for up to 6 months.

So I want to get a different perspective, as such. Take a nap on the bench of someone less fortunate and experience what it's like to have no attachments, to your city, your possessions and or your society. I've put these posts up 'post' experiment...enjoy my trials and tribulations.

And wish me luck. I'm eying off those benches in a park near you!

Meanwhile, a friend works for Volunteers for Peace they have a centre for homeless kids in the Ha Dong district of Hanoi. She's looking for volunteers to teach English or educate kids on HIV/AIDS. There is also temple work and orphanage work too!