This image was shot in January 1995 in Saigon, Vietnam. Because of the unbearable heat (well, unbearbale for somebody who came fresh from the European cold winter), I used to wear this straw hat during daytime, and I wondered why the Vietnamese laughed at it so much, but didn't care too much since it was the only remedy against the high temperatures. I suspected that they simply found the combination of a bearded and strange-looking foreigner and traditional Vietnamese hat design funny.

Only several days later I learnt that straw hats were worn only by countryside people and farmers, and mostly by women (Vietnamese are very class-conscious, you know ...).