Lotus (bong sen)

My server has been down all weekend, so here's something nice to make up for the hiatus.

The lotus is the national flower. It is on the tail of the Vietnam Airline planes. It is a major buddhist symbol. It is a source of food. And it is associated with women: Vietnamese women, like the lotus, are lovely things that grow in dirty water. Needless to say, that is a male viewpoint.

In the central planning period the Vietnamese began to manufacture tractors. Two of the larger models are known as Bong Sen (lotus) and Hoa Mai (apricot blossom). They are noisy, filthy things grown by beautiful Vietnamese people.