Koreans aren't the only ones going to Vietnam for brides. This is also common in Taiwan, and if you pay attention in Taipei, their presence is obvious. There are language services and even advertising signage in Vietnamese here and there.
I would put these brides in two categories. The first are those who married guys who are much older, and it is obvious why such men would go to Vietnam to find a bride--no young, reasonably good-looking Taiwanese girl wants to marry some old wreck. Often these old guys have pension checks because they are military veterans, and if the wife can stick it out for a handful of years until the husband kicks the bucket, she can inherit his pension.
The other category are younger guys who are marriage-minded. These are found not only in Taiwan, but in other developed countries in Asia like Korea. Their problem is that women are increasingly no longer interested in marriage, seeing it as a bad bargain now that they have other choices. Many such men report that they must show clear evidence of prosperity before women of their own nationality will even agree to go out with them. Owning a house and a car is a good start.
But even in Taiwan there are still women here and there looking to partner up, especially with foreigners. My wife and I had what I thought was an amusing experience in Taipei 10 or 15 years ago along these lines. As we were leaving a large multi-story shopping plaza, a pleasant-enough looking 40-ish woman approached and addressed us in passable English. She said she was stationed in the lobby by the bank to pass out credit card applications, but then she asked me if I had any single friends; I can't remember exactly how she put it, but she made it obvious that she was interested in meeting someone. My wife and I were both around 60 years old at the time, so her obvious conclusion was that I must be a nice guy (since we were both old and still married) and might have some nice friends.
The dropped easy fly ball was something, an aberration perhaps from a big leaguer, but not covering first base on the grounder to first, that was bush league. And these people are paid millions...
Cole topped off his poor positioning by pointing Rizzo towards the unattended bag. Not good optics for the pitcher. Some players like Judge who are solid and humble, you feel sorry for at moments of misfortune. Others, who are full of themselves and transitory like Soto, you want them getting comeuppance.
Beautiful, insightful prose, Uncle. Many thanks! We are all fakes, frauds, and outsiders in this life, I am afraid.
Koreans aren't the only ones going to Vietnam for brides. This is also common in Taiwan, and if you pay attention in Taipei, their presence is obvious. There are language services and even advertising signage in Vietnamese here and there.
I would put these brides in two categories. The first are those who married guys who are much older, and it is obvious why such men would go to Vietnam to find a bride--no young, reasonably good-looking Taiwanese girl wants to marry some old wreck. Often these old guys have pension checks because they are military veterans, and if the wife can stick it out for a handful of years until the husband kicks the bucket, she can inherit his pension.
The other category are younger guys who are marriage-minded. These are found not only in Taiwan, but in other developed countries in Asia like Korea. Their problem is that women are increasingly no longer interested in marriage, seeing it as a bad bargain now that they have other choices. Many such men report that they must show clear evidence of prosperity before women of their own nationality will even agree to go out with them. Owning a house and a car is a good start.
But even in Taiwan there are still women here and there looking to partner up, especially with foreigners. My wife and I had what I thought was an amusing experience in Taipei 10 or 15 years ago along these lines. As we were leaving a large multi-story shopping plaza, a pleasant-enough looking 40-ish woman approached and addressed us in passable English. She said she was stationed in the lobby by the bank to pass out credit card applications, but then she asked me if I had any single friends; I can't remember exactly how she put it, but she made it obvious that she was interested in meeting someone. My wife and I were both around 60 years old at the time, so her obvious conclusion was that I must be a nice guy (since we were both old and still married) and might have some nice friends.
The dropped easy fly ball was something, an aberration perhaps from a big leaguer, but not covering first base on the grounder to first, that was bush league. And these people are paid millions...
Cole topped off his poor positioning by pointing Rizzo towards the unattended bag. Not good optics for the pitcher. Some players like Judge who are solid and humble, you feel sorry for at moments of misfortune. Others, who are full of themselves and transitory like Soto, you want them getting comeuppance.