Thịnh lives above her family's grocery store in Saigon. She shares the space with her parents and two younger brothers. At night the room is dark except for the glow of her phone as she studies for university entrance exams.
“It's the only time I really have to myself,” laughs Thịnh as she gulps down bubble tea at the shop where we're meeting.
“It's ok. My friends are out working too. We hang out on our phones.“
Thịnh shows me the screensharing app she uses to hang out with friends. It's like video chat, except that instead of faces you see what's on everyone else's phone screen.
“We show each other funny messages and videos. It's like we're sitting next to each other,“ Thịnh explains.
“It's pretty quiet most of the time. We're all just doing homework.“
Kağan manages a branch for Ziraat Bankası. He's swiping through English and Arabic news headlines as he drives to work from the outskirts of Istanbul where he keeps a house. The dash reads 5:49am.
“Situations can change overnight,” explains Kağan.
“I like to move first.”
Kağan shows me the international news app he's using. He selects an article and presses play. A deep male voice begins reading the article in Arabic.
“My friends to the east,” jokes Kağan.
“They've been waiting for me.”
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