Woman: Hear Me Roar

For the past seven weeks we have been traveling to countries where women are not given a very strong position in society (with the exception of Singapore). It has sometimes been difficult for me, as I have had to change some of my behaviors.

In India I was very good - I covered up with my shawl every day for 16 days straight. In Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia, I have not covered up for day-to-day walking around, but would almost always carry a shawl or long sleeve shirt with me in case we were going somewhere religious/sacred. I am happy to respect the local culture. The thing that gets me, is when I, as a woman, am required to cover myself up because my sex is seen as too sexual, but shirtless men walk the grounds of a sacred place.

In all the guide books we have, each one has a section for women travellers, telling me what to do and what not to do. Again, I'll abide by what is said, but that doesn't mean I have to be happy about it!

It has been interesting to see what positions women work in throughout the different countries. In India, rarely did you encounter a woman at work - in restaurants, men waited on us, in hotels, men cleaned our rooms - men filled most service positions. The only place we regularly saw women were as flight attendants (but sometimes still outnumbered by male flight attendants). In India, their place seemed to be more as private maid or cook, or staying home to raise and take care of the family. This surprises me, as the country has at least one very powerful female politician. We often saw signs on the back of tuk tuks saying "Women Empowerment." I doubt the drivers fully understood this concept.

In Vietnam and Thailand we saw women playing a larger role in society. They filled stereotypically female roles, and were also included in other roles such as construction. I was also really surprised (and delighted) to have a female tuk tuk driver in Sukhothai, Thailand - the first and only woman we've seen driving a form of transportation. Cambodia has also been similar, with women cooking meals in street side restaurants, while men filled more "important" roles like tour guide or front desk help.

I've chaired Women in Leadership Conferences and am part of councils for MBA women, so it's hard for me to swallow my pride and know my place is these countries. It also reminds me that I do have it pretty good in the States. We certainly have our own problems (don't get me started), but they still don't compare to where Southeast Asia is in terms of women advancement.