But the more I travel and the more people I meet, the more I realize that each of us is actually living by our own “clock”. Not everyone is mature at 18, married at 25, and successful at 30. So, why try to follow someone else’s “clock”? Why are the moments of chatting with the people you love “wasted”?
Perhaps it is true as John Lennon once said, “Time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted.” I gradually enjoy the moments of loitering on the sidewalk.
Vietnamese sidewalks are full of interesting things, they have everything: bun cha, nem ran, com xao, cigarettes... In Hanoi, sidewalk iced tea has become a unique and proud cultural feature. The sidewalks are simple, but Vietnamese history is written on them. If you are superficial, it cannot be written or said correctly. If you don't believe me, try watching the movie Tro Doi (based on the book by Vu Trong Phung). Seeing the scene of cigarettes being sold all over the sidewalks in Hanoi is strange. During Vu Trong Phung's time, those things were reserved for Westerners or rich Vietnamese, where would they come from to sell on the sidewalks!
When I watched movies in the past, I liked the scenes of children carrying heavy pots (earthenware or tin pots) and bowls around the market, train station, bus station or on the train. Nowadays, no one sells iced tea for only a few thousand dong. Anyone who likes it can just go to a shop and sit. Sit until they get bored and then leave. No one will glare at them, sometimes the shop owner even doubles as a storyteller.
The iced tea shops are very interesting, an old-fashioned thermos, a tea pot and a few plastic chairs form a counter. The iced tea has nothing special, just a bland and fragrant taste, if the place mixes too much water it tastes like water. However, when in Hanoi, don't be so busy that you forget to invite each other to the sidewalk to drink iced tea, to slowly sip the stories of our town from the motorbike taxi driver, the nagging of the neighbors, the stories of children and adults...
Well, Hanoi is in no hurry!
Article: Pan Banana | Photo: Minh Q. Pham
