Now how I use the word adventures in my life an adrenaline junky would give not so much as a blink. But…. I think there is joy and laughter (typically at myself) in the adventures that seem to just pop into my day. Such were two adventures my first week here in Hanoi.
I am living in a high rise apartment building across from Vin University surrounded by many similar apartment buildings. The ground floors of these buildings are filled with stores, mostly coffee shops, convenience stores crammed to the gills with everything from housewares to fresh vegetables to imported liquors, and small restaurants- typically pho shops, a rich broth based dish. Ocean Park is the name of the neighborhood and is was all built by the same company which built Vin University, the Vin Group. So, it has a planned neighborhood feel to it. Not my usual way of living, but it is convenient and housing was offered to me. I’m certainly not going to turn down a complimentary apartment with air conditioning!
On my third night here, I decided to walk a few blocks down a street to see what I could find for dinner that would strike my fancy. I saw a restaurants with tables outside/ inside, and the pictures of the food posted looked interesting. It was a pleasant night, a mere low 80’s (little did I know less than 48 hours later the temperature would skyrocket to 102.5!) and I requested (by pointing) to sit outside. To date, I have found only one restaurant with English translations on their menu, so my method for ordering is: Guess, Point & Pray. The waiter asked me if I wanted a “hot pot or order food”. Fortunately, I know what a hot pot is and decided to go that route. Okay. Allow me to say that my typical meal out is $5-7. I spent $10 eating Thai at a restaurant in a mall last night (pictures of my Thai meal below). But this meal????
Suddenly I was surrounded by 3 waiters that COVERD my table (maybe 3 ft. x 4 ft.) with platters of meats, vegetables, herbs, tofu and a large pot of broth on a heating element. I quickly realized that the hot pot was a sharable dish more appropriate for 3-4 people. Good grief. While I was hungry, I wasn’t THAT hungry! I started to lift items into the hot pot but was suddenly descended upon by the staff who were quickly typing into their phone. Wasn’t sure if they were calling the Hanoi version of 911 or what but I figured it was Google translate. That is probably one of the biggest changes I’ve experienced since first starting to work in SE Asia. Why learn English if you can use Google Translate? I’m not knocking it, just noticed that in my first 6 days here, it is rare to meet someone outside of the university, who knows English. Anyway, the wait staff descended upon me, “Madam”…. Writing out- Allow us! Okay. That works for me.
While waiting for the layers of flavors to be built- as no one and I mean no one simply dumps food into a hot pot. Layer upon layer of amazing flavors are “built” by adding the various elements…..(thank goodness this is not an English assignment)… so while waiting, I was provided a dish of salted peanuts and I was quite happy to realize that I have remained proficient in eating peanuts using chopsticks. Yep, it is not polite to use your fingers to pick up the peanuts and I developed the skill using chopsticks a long time ago. So, one by one, I enjoyed the fresh roasted, salty peanuts and a frosty cold Tiger beer until my dinner was ready and then…. The adventure.
Two waiters came over and one asked me, “You like duck eggs?” Well, yes, I do. I have cooked with them before in Cambodia and the eggs over here are generally richer in flavor and colors than ours in the US. So, I nodded and said “Yes, please”. No sooner had the words left my mouth when the catch phrase from the 1960’s TV series Lost in Space came to mind, “Danger Will Robinson! Danger!” The thought came one neuronal synapse too slow (must be my age), because with great aplomb, the two waiters cracked open the eggs and dropped 3 balut (3 well developed duck embryo) into the hot pot. Then one of the waiters presented me with the ladle with the same pride as a contestant on Iron Chef and the three waiters stood erect and proud in a line, looking at me expectantly to ladle the hot pot mixture into my bowl. I smiled, nodded my thanks and scooped the mixture into my bowl. I do not believe that a spoon has ever traveled sooooo slowly to my mouth. And no. The spoon did contain one of the balut. It was a delay tactic. Fortunately, a large group arrived and the three became quite busy. Whew! Saved!
So, I scooped up the savory mixture, sans balut, ate and reveled in the flavors. However, nearly half my table still had food left to be cooked and there was no way that I could eat all the contents of the pot that I had! Unfortunately, my apartment cooktop was inoperable most of this week, so I sadly had to leave behind the rest of the items. The cost of the lovely dinner? $27.00. Yep, I basically paid $27 for a very large bowl of soup. But what flavors and what an adventure! Worth every penny.
Postcard from Hanoi May 17, 2023,
Karen
These pics of your adventures help me to see what you're doing. Enjoy my friend