Yolanda Saayman Photography

Bac Ha Sunday Market – Vietnam
25 April 2010

Maybe not for the fainthearted, but definitely one of my highlights in North Vietnam.

Dannie could not stomach the smells in the market and was not keen to linger as long as I wanted to stay. I was in my element. I found everything intriguing. The photo opportunities are immense. There is no better way of getting to know the locals than to share a meal or a drink with them, mingle and become invisible.

This in itself is quite challenging as the Bac Ha Sunday Market is a very popular tourist attraction and half of the foreigners run around with heavy camera artillery and mega lenses. OK given, I took the best I have on this trip, but one should always respect the locals…

People from the minority villages literally walk miles to sell their produce at this market which runs until approximately 13h00 when the crowds start going home. You can buy anything from clothes, shoes, bags, coffee, chicken feet, live stock (water buffalo, horses, dogs, chicken) to a hair cut! Name it and you can buy it!

The one thing that stands out to me, is that everything revolves around food in Vietnam (I realise that this might be true for the whole world, but it is quite prominent here). Farmers, markets, shops, stalls on the streets, vendors, all focus on the production, selling, making and eating of food and they are everywhere! .

I would recommend a visit to any tourist – this market is a must, even if it is not a feast to your senses.

Yolanda Saayman

Sapa, Vietnam
25 April 2010

Dannie and I have been travelling for more than 36 hours without sleep… It takes some time to get to Vietnam from South Africa and the 5-hour layover in Kuala Lumpur was not fun either. I was delighted to find free internet on arrival in Duty Free though.

We made our way to Hanoi’s Old Quarter where we paid for the services I had booked, including the night train to Sapa. I slept restless and the rhythm of the train on the tracks did not help much to send me into a deep sleep. We had a busy day planned and I needed the rest. Destination Lao Cai. Lao Cai is the last main city in Vietnam before you cross the border into China. This was our gateway to the Indochina mountains and the minority villages.

Our trekking guide arranged a pick-up for us and we ascended the mountains for Sapa. We started our 13km trek to Ta Van after breakfast. Sapa reminded me of Cuzco and Phokara – the hub where all travellers and trekkers get together with many “merchants” trying to sell you their handicrafts.

Nothing in life is for free - we were followed by many locals with hopes of selling their goods to us. “I follow you, you buy!” were the parting words after we friendly declined various times… We walked through many villages before reaching the home where we would stay the night.

Garlic chips, sweet potato frittas and local Dalat red wine was to be enjoyed as the mist rolled in and the sun faded away to end the day. Dinner was a spread of fried rice, fried tofu, vegetable spring roles, pork and chicken stirfry and rice wine. The rice wine is home brewed and contains 40% alcohol. It has a similar taste to tequila which I don’t really fancy much… Presented in a 2 liter water bottle, no one would notice the difference.

After a hard sales day, the mothers/elders go home to cook and take care of the infants and the young girls and teenagers continue the sales process. Most of these people speak English which they have learned from tourists. They are farmers and considered paupers and work the land for a living.

What is your name? How old are you? Where do you come from? Do you have children? These are the questions you here over and over and over and that is the sum of the conversation. When I asked a young girl (I guess age 10) what her name was, she said A. I asked how does one spell that and she replied with A as in A – the first letter of the alphabet and how could I not get that! A is a bright girl and her English was exceptional compared to all the other people I had met. She had a future outside of the Sapa Valley. I wanted to support her and bought a keyring from her. Of course I negotiated the price and when I asked her if she was happy, she said: “It’s not a good deal, but it’s ok!” I laughed – she was witty too!

One of the other highlights for me was a ride on a moto. A moto for those who don’t know is basically a motor-cycle-taxi-driver and I have come to love this adventure! We hired one each to see Ta Phin village. I managed to wangle my way into a primary school and was very pleased with that. Ho Chi Min plays a huge part of Vietnam’s past and present. His face appears on all bank notes and with Independence Day on the 30th of April, he appears on many bill boards and in class rooms and literally all over the show.

The locals are friendly and the only annoyance to me was a well groomed student who tried to conn me out of money. It was not really the fact that she tried her luck, but more the derogatory way she spoke of the “poor people” as if they were the scum of the earth. My reply was that her actions give tourism in her country a bad name and that those poor people earn a decent, honest living. To me she was no more than a thief, snob and begger with no dignity. I guess I will always be on the side of the underdog…

Yolanda Saayman

Helena Hettema in cabaret – Cape Town
16 April 2010

I remember the first time I heard the voice of Helena Hettema…

She was sitting behind me in the Spur in Grahamstown – July 1992. She was very excited about performing at the National Arts Festival.

It was only that December though, when I saw her perform live for the first time, in a small curry restaurant in Observatory – Upstairs at Elaine’s.

The show was: “Piaf, Brel and just a little me”.

Her interpretation of the music of these two icons was and still is, in my opinion, unmatched. I was blown away by the sound she projected and the passion and raw emotion with which she performs. My great love for the performing arts and more specifically music has introduced me to many artists and I recall saying to her that night: “Sometimes in your life, one is very fortunate to stumble upon greatness… True, natural, talent. I have been blessed.”

Helena had a busy round-robin in Cape Town last week, kicking off with a show at Aan De Braak theatre, attending the opening night of The Stage Performing Arts School & Theatre, performing their first cabaret on the Friday evening and ending it all off with a private gig in Stellenbosch!

Previously I used flash photography to capture this artist (to most people’s annoyance), but nowadays I mainly focus on using available light and try my best to be invisible. The Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II lens remains my lens of choice. This lens makes it possible to keep the ISO as low as 400 on some shots and I never have to push it higher than 1600. My only real disturbance when using natural light, is the colour cast of the preferred cabaret lights – red, orange and yellow. Ironically, the irritating color blotches does not come into play when the images are transformed into variations of monochrome. Which is almost a blessing in disguise as I find the black and white images lend themselves to a more artistic feel.

Since I have had the privilege to photograph many of Helena Hettema’s shows, on stage and behind the scenes, I decided to use some of these images last year for a project I was working on – Heritage: The Art of Cabaret. (These photographs were on exhibition for a couple of weeks during the opening of the Cape Quarter Shopping Centre in De Waterkant, Cape Town – November 2009.)

I was very pleased to have attended both the shows at Aan De Braak and The Stage as this gave me an opportunity to extend Helena’s portfolio and discover a wonderful new, intimate cabaret venue.

Helena Hettema remains one of the greatest voices of our time! She is definitely not just a singer. Once you have heard her sing and forcefully have to close your mouth and lift your jaw from the floor, you will know exactly what I am writing about.

Yolanda Saayman