Quintessence of Vietnam – The Land of the Dragon

 

Keen travellers size up a new land through all their senses – sights, smells and sounds. I did the same during my nine-day sojourn through Vietnam. This is an earnest attempt to box a proud and resilient nation into ten bullet points. Individually, some of these attributes may not be exclusive to Vietnam, but taken collectively they should provide a good mindmap for the curious.

1.    Two Wheelers

On the way to the hotel from Ho Chi Minh City airport, our bus halted at a traffic intersection. A wave of two-wheelers surged past the bus window. Later that evening, I had the hair-raising experience of paddling my way through a rushing river of two-wheelers. In HCMC, two wheelers probably outnumber the registered population. For Vietnam as a whole, the ownership of two wheelers is a staggering 86%, second only to Thailand. Motorbikes and scooters are the only feasible way of navigating The Hẻm – the unique labyrinth of narrow lanes and alleys that constitute the urban sprawl of HCMC and accounting for as much as 85% of the population. A similar system exists in Hanoi, where it is known as Ngõ. Motorbikes are not only the primary mode of personal transport; the city’s economy has evolved around the motorbike. They are also used for ride-hailing and delivery services. Because the lanes are so tight, most commerce happens at the street level. The low gasoline price of 18,600 VND ($0.7) also helps. Also, cars are steeply taxed. Honda dominates the two-wheeler market, a domination so powerful that it has become the generic name for motorbikes; a reputation that was forged during the war years of the 60s.

 

2.    Coffee

Vietnam is a dyed-in-the-wool coffee country. It is available to drink everywhere. And much to my delight, most places serve freshly ground and brewed coffee and not the insipid instant. Though I had heard and read a lot about Vietnamese coffee, I didn’t know that Vietnam is the second largest producer of coffee in the world after Brazil. Moreover, it is the world leader in Robusta coffee, most of which is concentrated in the country’s Central Highlands providing abundant red volcanic soil. Coffee is Vietnam’s second largest agricultural export after rice. The coffee culture was brought to Vietnam by the French. Robusta beans are stronger, more bitter and contain more caffeine than Arabica. Because Robusta is bold and intense, the traditional Vietnamese coffee is served with condensed milk; the sweetness of milk balancing the bitterness. The traditional Vietnamese coffee is brewed in a “phin”, which resembles the South Indian coffee filter sans the lower compartment. The “phin” is directly placed on the cup to receive the brew. The “phin” makes for a great souvenir and gift.

 

3.    Plastic Stool

The tiny plastic stool, barely a foot and a half high, in fire engine red, electric blue, or fluorescent green, is ubiquitous on the sidewalks of HCMC and Hanoi after sunset. This is where people sit down to be served street food.  Laid out in a row against the wall, they conserve space on the already narrow sidewalks. The street-food vendors operate in a legally grey area and the lightweight and stackable stools get cleared in a jiffy in case inspectors come sniffing around. The plastic can also be easily and efficiently scrubbed clean. These plastic thigh-high thrones are a democratic and incredibly efficient way of enjoying Vietnamese cuisine, while immersed in the hustle and bustle of street life.

 

4.    Bánh mì

Meaning bread in Vietnamese, it is a popular and iconic sandwich. The bread used for the sandwich is a modified version of the French baguette, made from a mixture of wheat and rice flour. The result is a crackling crisp crust with a roomy interior for the filling. The filling is customisable and the options are various kinds of meat. Vegetarian options are also available. Bánh mì is an omnipresent and ultimate “grab and go” street food and can be enjoyed for breakfast, lunch or whenever hunger strikes. The Bánh mì is a symbol of gastronomic decolonisation. The Vietnamese took the baguette, a quintessentially French bread, and stuffed it with their local ingredients and flavours. Alongside the Phở, it serves as a culinary ambassador of Vietnam on the global stage.

 

5.    Check-in Culture

From Independence Palace in HCM City to HCM Mausoleum in Hanoi, you seem them at every site of national importance. Their concentration is particularly dense at the Imperial Citadel in Hue and the Temple of Literature, Hanoi. They are young women typically under 25. Dressed in the traditional calf length silk “Ao Dai” gowns, they pose for pictures against the backdrops of historical buildings and monuments. Armed with tripods and reflectors, the photographers are professional. They are a distraction for the tourists. It is virtually impossible to get a picture without them creeping into the frame. This is the “Check-in” culture that has taken Vietnam by storm. These young women are not mere hobbyists. They are part of a professional ecosystem. Some of them are established Social Media influencers with large followings; others aspire to become one. The authorities are quietly supportive of this movement as it helps in boosting tourism.

 

6.    Tube Houses

Stepping out of my hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, I was struck by the oddity of the building across the street. It took some time to register that its proportions are all topsy-turvy - small frontage but lot of depth and height. I then started noticing that they are all over the city. These are the iconic “tube houses” (nhà ống). This unique architecture dates back to the French colonial period, when property taxes were calculated based on the width of the house’s frontage and not the floor area. So, people constructed slimmest possible buildings that extended deep into the block and soared into the air. This also had the advantage of fitting in more shops and businesses along a single street.

 

7.    Conical Hat

The Nón Lá is the ultimate totem of Vietnam. Its triangular silhouette is instantly recognisable in the world. The 45-degree angle allows water to run off instantly in the intense Vietnamese monsoon. The conical peak traps a large volume of air between the top of the head and the hat, thus acting as an insulation against the harsh sun. It is an essential contraption for toiling long hours in the paddy field. The Nón Lá is Vietnam’s “Swiss Army Knife” with multiple imaginative uses. Dating back to 3000 years, it still uses natural materials like bamboo for the rigid frame and dried palm leaves for the covering. The use of Nón Lá is dwindling in the urban setting because it is mandatory to wear helmets on two-wheelers. Only the itinerant food vendors are keeping the tradition alive. The conical hat is a geometrical nightmare to fit inside the suitcase, and hence I had to regretfully abandon my plan of getting one as souvenir. Perhaps they should think of producing boxed miniature sets.

 

8.    Phở

This is the national dish of Vietnam. December 12 is celebrated as National Phở Day. Phở (pronounced as fuh) is a noodle soup – rice noodles served in a broth typically made from beef. The secret to the dish is long hours of simmering with choicest herbs. It is quintessential Vietnamese breakfast to power through a morning of physical labour in the field. The dish originated only in the early 20^th C, as a result of the French demand for beef. This created an abundance of bones which the local people used to upgrade their soup. Born on the streets as an egalitarian food, it was delicious enough for the elite. After the end of the war in 1975, the boat people and refugees took the Phở to the rest of the world. The Phở has many variants including a vegetarian option. But it made no sense to try a signature beef dish minus beef. Interestingly the Vietnamese word for street is Phố (pronounced fo), a tonal trap of the Vietnamese language which has six different tones.

 

9.    Red Flags

They are everywhere. A constant reminder that Vietnam is a communist country. The national flag is often seen paired with the party flag, apparently as part of an established protocol. Both are red. They are identical in size and hoisted to the same height to show the equal importance of the state and the party. While the party flag has the insignia of hammer and sickle at the centre, the national flag has a 5-pointed yellow star at the centre.  The star symbolises the 5 main classes of people in the Vietnamese society – farmers, workers, intellectuals, traders and soldiers. For me, it is the star that vanquished 50 stars.

 

10.  đòn gánh (Shoulder Pole)

This evoked childhood memories. This is how vegetable vendors went door to door with their wares in Mumbai during the 50s and 60s. They were called “vasaiwalas” since they brought the produce from there. The wooden pole balanced across the shoulders with a load at each end is a clever bit of ancient engineering. It relies on the flexibility of the wood (often bamboo) to act as a shock absorber, making it easier to carry heavy loads over long distances. Unlike the rigid wooden yokes found in Europe, the Vietnamese đòn gánh is almost always made from a specific type of bamboo. The bamboo is treated to be incredibly flexible. Skilled carriers walk with a specific rhythmic gait that matches the "spring" of the pole to momentarily reduce the effective weight on their shoulder. The đòn gánh is often used as a metaphor for the country itself—a long, thin strip of land (the pole) connecting two "rice baskets" (the Red River Delta in the north and the Mekong Delta in the south).

There is so much more to Vietnam. I hope the above bullets have piqued your curiosity to explore Thăng Long – the Land of the Dragon.