Generally, people are very friendly and nice in Vietnam. They are also very patient, obvious contrast from my previous trip in HK. Well, with traffic like this everyday, I think it's probably a good way to train one's patience. Not many people speak English and many times I met with the local speaking to me in Vietnamese. I feel bad as sometimes I didn't even know that they were talking to me and so I didn't answer. Even when I do answer, I can only smiled and said in English that I don't speak Vietnamese. They will usually smiled back and apologise. Sometimes if they do speak English, they will tell me that I looked like Vietnamese. Yes, when I go to Bangkok, people speak to me in Thai, in Taiwan, in Chinese, in HK, in Cantonese, in India, in Japanese... blah.
Vic's parents do not speak a word of English, but they are very nice and through Vic's broken english translation, they introduced us to many delicious food and culture practice of Vietnam. We met 2 of his Aunties and some cousins too. They tried to speak English to us and they are also at a practising stage. I appreciate their kindness and considerations.
Somehow, food is the common language between cultures.
Because of the meeting with the families, we had a chance to see how Vietnamese really live in HCMC. We went to Vic's Auntie, Xuyen's house for dinner and she cooked us a dish from her home town. The warmth from the family is felt as we listened to them talk and laugh over a nice steamboat of chicken soup.
The houses in HCMC is in a way, built-what-you-want because you have the money. They are usually narrow and deep-in like the houses in Holland. You can build it as tall as you want to. Usually, they are of 4 to 6 storey high. Each level serves a different purpose. Level 1 is the kitchen, motorbikes and storage places. Level 2 is the living room, dinning room. Level 3 and up will be bedrooms. And depending on how many bedrooms you need, your levels go up.
Xuyen's house is in an old neighbourhood and as we alighted from the car at the main road, we have to walk into this small, winding lane, to get to her house. The narrow lane is only wide enough for a motorbike. On the way in, we can see other people's houses. Some are very very old. The neighbours are mostly at their front doors, enjoying the light breeze of the evening. The roads are uneven, and occasionally you will step into a puddle or two. The street lights are dim and it's mostly lit by the lights from the houses around. A very strange mix of neighbours they have there.
Vic's house is on the main road, so it's a different experience.
We met with Vic's 4 cousins, from his 2 Aunties. The 2 elder ones (17 and 15 yrs old) are able to communicate in English pretty well. The younger ones (8 yrs old) are 2 shy boys who hardly say a word to us. Vu and Linh are friendly teenagers who are lucky to have such a good family. To be able to go to school and maybe a chance to go abroad is not what every Vietnamese child gets. Vu is really into English literature and he learns to read English books on his own using dictionary. We are impressed.
vic's parents brought us to nice Vietnamese dinner on the first night. As usual, his mom stuffed us with food.
Vic's youngest Auntie. She is the same age as me and she has 2 children, Linh (15 yrs old) and Hui (8 yrs old). A very friendly young mother who is determined to learn her english so that she can speak to me. This is at her shop. The family owns a good number of such shops called Viet Tian. They sell Polo Ralph Shirts direct from the factory.
At Xuyen's house with her son, Vu and Vic's other cousin, Linh
And of cos, the funny Vic and his dad and mom. They spent time with us almost everyday during this trip. Without them, we would not have seen or experienced authentic Vietnamese life style and eat to our heart's content :)
reader k | 12/16/2008 04:15:00 PM |