Our host again prepares us a delicious breakfast of sticky rice with coconut that is both salty and sweet. Alongside are sweet potatoes and an agar jelly.
We are stuffed after this morning's feast, so we settle into the flat for the morning, giving ourselves a break from the frenetic city. Albeit on a main road, Vo Thi Sau, the apartment is a quiet haven away from the traffic and is artistically decorated by Oanh, a journalist in art and culture. The front door opens out onto a small room with a wooden floor. The flat is on split levels, with a mezzanine lounge, a sunken kitchen at half height to the main room and bookcases that double as steps. The dark wood is brightened by a colourful and eclectic range of knick-knacks, mostly with a vintage aesthetic to them. Cheerful and life-affirming phrases adorn various surfaces. This is not a place in which one can feel unhappy for long.
Just as we were about to set out for some time in Le Van Tam park, a heavy rain started to fall. The weather picture at the moment looks like this:
This is because it is monsoon season. However, the guide book informs us that Vietnam has a tropical monsoon climate, with a southwesterly monsoon from May to September and a northeasterly monsoon from October to April, which leads me to believe a completely dry visit to be highly unlikely. However, despite the gloomy forecast, the rain thus far has not proven to be a problem, coming only in short-lived daily downpours, if at all.
As quickly as the rain came, it stopped again. We ventured out towards the park, but the rain was determined. We took refuge in a Highlands coffee shop - part of a chain, with outlets all over the city. In appearance it is similar to other western chains, such as Starbucks or Costa Coffee, with much the same level of soulless service. Unlike the independent cafés, this is a sealed, noisy space, with no table service, no complementary water or green tea and yet higher prices. Altogether, it was an uninspiring visit. Even the iced coffee lacked the strong flavour of those I have tried elsewhere. K opted for the 'classic' jelly freeze.
Somewhere between a drink and a dessert, this concoction comes with lumps of flavoured agar jelly in the mix, which are sufficiently delicate as to break apart and travel up the straw, resulting in a slightly chewy mouthful. It was an odd-good experience.
Opposite the café, a billboard featuring a communist soldier asked us to celebrate the 60 year anniversary of the battle of Điện Biên Phủ, during the first Indochina war, at which the Viet Minh defeated the French, eventually leading them to withdraw from the Indochina colonies.
As the rain eased, we took a stroll through Lê Văn Tám park, so named after a (possible Viet Cong propaganda) story of a child who used himself as a human torch to destroy French munitions during the first Indochina war.
After our cookie-cutter coffee experience this morning, we went in search of somewhere with a little more character. Down an unassuming side street we stumbled across a cluster of unusual places, including one offering phở chay (a vegetarian version of the Vietnamese noodle soup typically eaten for breakfast). We noted it for later and selected Gao Coffee for its low wooden tables and benches and laid-back atmosphere. LPs lined the walls and relaxed music played. There was no clatter or chatter. This was much more our speed. Why would anyone opt for the chain coffee experience over this?
In the evening, Oanh cooked dinner for us all. K helped to prepare some of the vegetables, while Oanh expertly and efficiently assembled several dishes at once. When time allows, she runs a cookery class from her home on weekends. It showed in her confident handling of the ingredients. In no time at all, we were sat down and presented with our meal.
Simple but flavoursome. Fried tofu in a fresh tomato sauce (đậu phụ sốt cà chua) pak choi sauteed with garlic, and straw mushrooms braised in a deeply savoury sauce, featured alongside steamed rice. Followed by dragon fruit and choux pastries filled with crème patissiere and green tea, we were extremely sated by this home-cooked fare.
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