[STREET] FOOD JUNKIES

I think it's safe to say our favorite country to have street food has been Vietnam. The dishes are so varied that we never got tired of any particular one and everywhere we turned there was a vendor ready to satiate our appetite. 

When traveling, my preference is usually never to eat at the same place twice - so many options, so little time. What if this spot is good or that one is better? How would we know if we didn't try?

That all changed in Saigon when we made it our home for 4 weeks. We ventured out and tried some different places, but the ones that hit the spot were the ones where you could find us for breakfast, lunch, or dinner a few times a week. 

Our regular stops -  where the locals eat - in District 1:

Hủ Tiếu Nam Vang Quỳnh @ A65 Nguyễn Trãi
->hủ tiếu xương (rice noodle soup with pork) - cousin of the more popular phở (rice noodle soup with beef)
->72,000 vnđ / bowl
->open 24 hours daily

Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa @ 26 Lê Thị Riêng
->Vietnamese sandwiches with all the fixings
->32,000 vnđ / sandwich
->open daily from 15h00-23h00

Chè Ngọc Nhi @ Ngã 3 Hai Bà Trưng (Chợ Tân Định next to Cơm Tấm Tứ Quý)
->Sương sao hặt lựu (sweet soup)
->15,000 vnđ / glass
->open daily - not sure about opening hours

Cơm Tấm Tứ Quý @ Ngã 3 Hai Bà Trưng (Chợ Tân Định)
->cơm tấm sườn bì chả ốp la (broken rice with grilled pork chops, shredded pork, steamed egg, and fried egg)
->55,000 vnđ / plate
->open daily - not sure about opening hours, but you could be sure they're open from 9h00-21h00

Quán Cơm Bình Dân Số 7 @ 3 Nguyễn Văn Tráng
->variety of local dishes just like mom makes. You'll rarely find a foreigner here. Just point and choose!
->20,000 vnđ per serving
->open daily from 9h00 until 20h00, but they start running out of dishes towards early evening

Phở Hùng @ 241 Nguyễn Trãi (not to be confused with Phở Ông Hùng, which is all over the place and not nearly as good in my opinon)
->variety of phở (rice noodle soup with beef)
->50,000-70,000 vnđ / bowl
->open daily from 6h00-3h00

"Mango Lady" (any lady pushing carts or carrying baskets of mangoes)
->xoài chua muới ớt (sour [green/unripe] mangoes with chili salt)
->10,000-20,000 vnđ / mango

"Smoothie Lady" (no cart name to our knowledge) @ Hẻm 241 on Phạm Ngũ Lão across from Quán Ăn Anh Mập ̣(which is pretty tasty too, but more tourist-y)
->variety of blended fresh fruit smoothies - our favorite hands-down is coconut
->20,000-30,000 vnđ
->open daily - not sure about opening hours, but pretty sure she's there from 11h00-22h00
->disclaimer: not a local eat

ADVENTURE AWAITS

I haven't done it justice, but there's a wide array of mouth-watering food, savory and sweet. The people are warm and welcoming, friendly and genuine. The landscape is rich and diversified, colorful and breathtaking. The country is full of adventures at every corner. If you haven't been to Vietnam, put it on your list. More photos and stories from our journey through here soon, but for now, these will have to do.

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HUONG AT HEART

Dad saw the ocean for the first time at the age of 17 on a trip to visit his younger brother. His heart palpitated as they approached the beach of Thuận An just outside of Huế. Before even arriving, he could see the palms of the trees and smell the salty ocean air. His senses excited. When asked, he vividly remembers the softness of the sand under his feet, warm to the touch, the sounds of the waves and the white foam as they crashed onto the beach. He was mesmerised by the convergence of heaven and earth in the horizon. 

Growing up, my parents gave us as normal an upbringing as they could, marrying American culture - what little they knew of it at the time - with Vietnamese tradition. We built sandcastles on the shore, bathed in the sun, and floated on the water until our skin wrinkled like raisins. 

At home, I've always known dad to seek peace by the ocean's side. He could spend hours by himself watching and listening to the ebb and flow of the tide. He loves photographing nature's course. 

These photographs were taken a few days back in the coastal city of Nha Trang. His older brother was stationed there during the Vietnam War. Though this is my third time visiting the country, it's the most nostalgic I've felt. I see memories of my parents sprinkled in each place we stop by. I see their young selves running through the corridors, up and down the stairs of their homes, through alleyways and neighborhood markets they knew so well. Then I imagine the turmoil they went through, their lives turned upside down by war, their struggles for a better life and for a better future. 

Despite the hardships, dad's soul is youthful, his life fulfilled. Without the bad, you can't know the good, he says. These days, he goes where the wind blows and today that place happens to be Saigon. He should have already been on a flight headed home right now, but as if answering an unspoken wish, I get to spend my birthday with him.

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