D-I-E Task

DESCRIBE 

Coming from Vietnam, a southeast Asia country whose culture and the way people behave are way too different from Finland's but here and now, the fact that I have been staying in Finland for over 2 months to study abroad and therefore is a very good way for me to experience and learn in a whole new environment. The only thing that impressed me the most when I first arrived in Finland is that there is no street vendor like we have in Vietnam. It seems that European countries in general and Finland in details for an example, people tends to have meals at home, schools, workplace or in restaurants rather than having their meals outside on the sidewalks, parks or public places whereas in Vietnam, there are a lot of street vendors which you can come across them anywhere on the streets, even in the parks or many other crowded places.  

INTERPRET 

In my opinion, the main reasons for this will be discussed as follow: Initially, Vietnamese culture is attached with agriculture for a long time in history so that people have tendency to live in a group and they like gathering together in one place to socialize; on the contrary, European countries and Finland highly recommend individual and independent life. That is why Vietnamese people like to choose crowded places to hang out with their friends and it leads to a need of street vendors. Moreover, while Finnish people would like to stay at home to have their dinner with their family, Vietnamese wants to go outside to eat with friends or cousins, et cetera and also to enjoy fresh air on the basic that Vietnam is really hot due to its tropical climate so people love wandering around on the streets, parks...to cool themselves. As a result, street vendors have become a very cheap way to offer all Vietnamese people what they need. That's it for the reasons of the difference but I have to admit one thing that street vendors' food in Vietnam is tasty, convenient and cheap yet it contains many implicit threats to out health because the way their food was cooked is not guaranteed whether they are safe or not so that in Finland, eating is a lot safer and we do not have to worry much about food poisoning. However, it is a remarkable point of Vietnamese culture and I also feel homesick anytime I think of Vietnam street vendors which Finland do not have since I usually went to such street vendors to meet and have good times with my best friends when I was in Vietnam. After having come to another country to start a new life, it is one of my best memories though.  

EVALUATING 

Every country has their own stories and culture so those are unique and irreplaceable. As a Vietnamese, remembering my origin is always my must-to-do but experiencing to adapt myself to many environments is also worth trying. Finland offers me a huge opportunity to challenge myself at another level and I can learn many beautiful things from people and Finnish society. This is such a wonderful time I've ever had in my life.