Stills ladies night

Viet Nam News byTrần Thị Diệp 9:30 pm. The street, strewn with rustling dry yellow leaves coming down from the trees, was ready for a strong wind after this breeze in the small township of Phu Sa. A stem of purple orchids hanging down like a screen seemed to cover part of the table where Thiên An was silently watching her hot coffee drip into her cup drop by drop from the percolator. “One hundred and seventeen, now eighteen, now one hundred and nineteen,” she counted. Suddenly a roll of thunder crashed in the sky and startled her. From the balcony, close to her place, she looked at the dim street lamps below while above her head the sky turned overcast. Then suddenly a ray of lightning burst across the darkness while the thunder kept on rolling from afar. From the coffee house, Thiên An rang her husband. “Are you ready to come home right now and pick me up on the way?” she asked. “Of course, I might reach home in thirty … [Read more...] about That rainy night

Viet Nam News By Paul Kennedy Mirror space is at a premium at a bar on the edge of the Old Quarter. But only on one particular night. There’s a single bathroom on the ground floor of the Mojito Bar where a pretty large queue formed outside last Friday night. Ten minutes into the wait and the person at the head of the line became concerned. He need not have worried. After a few polite knocks, the door finally opened and out stepped a six foot plus tall (aided by heels) ‘lady’ into the bar. An elaborate wig adorned the top of her head and she was dressed in a tight fitting silver number. Her make-up had been applied to perfection and she strutted confidently past those waiting in line without a care in the world. “Perfection takes time darling,” she told the man at the front without actually looking him in the eye. This is downtown Hà Nội. And this is a Drag night. Men dressing in women’s clothing is relatively new to Hà … [Read more...] about Life’s no drag for the Queens of Hà Nội

Viet Nam News By Hồ Anh Thái It would be a waste to stay inside during a Northern European white night, the writers tell each other. They have come to attend the International Writers’ Conference being held in the old quarter of Stockholm. Alright. Gaggles of writers surge out of the hotel, cross Kungsgatan or King Street to Drottninggatan or Queen Street, then walk along the latter to get to the Royal Palace.  Ten in the evening and the sky is still as bright as midday, the sun shining radiantly. Midnight: the sky still blue, the clouds still white. As time moves towards morning, the air remains luminous, the leaves in the surrounding trees glowing incandescently as the sunlight shines through them. The writers sit on a bridge behind the Royal Palace, talking all night in reverent murmurs. Would the sun that has shone so brilliantly all night long ever stumble, relent even a little bit to allow a transition into a new dawn? She remembers her first white … [Read more...] about The Sun Never Sets

Viet Nam News by Cát Lâm   After an early dinner, I washed up then went to bed. Yet, I was unable to sleep straight away. I tossed and turned on bed for a long while like I was sick. Whenever I returned to my native village I felt as if I had taken ill. Strangely enough, leaving the place I returned to normal again. I kept this a secret because I was afraid it would make my mother worried. “Why does my summer vacation last so long?” I asked myself. Since the days I went to district boarding-school and then worked for a provincial establishment I had rarely come home for nearly a decade. I thought it might be unwise due to the generation gap between her and me. Whenever facing her I got an impression that I stood on the other side of the wide Mê River without bridges spanning its two banks. When I felt stressed due to work, I stayed in town for months partly because of her and due to being afraid of living in the country. Then suddenly one morning … [Read more...] about Pilgrims Crossing Mê River

Viet Nam News By Văn Châu For history lovers, few places in Việt Nam can match Huế, the former royal capital, in the central province of Thừa Thiên - Huế. As a southerner from Bình Dương Province, I was intrigued to visit the city for the first time recently. Upon arrival, I was impressed by its quiet and deliberate lifestyle as well as the kindness of local residents. Whenever I asked anyone where I should go first, the answer was always “the Citadel”. The UNESCO World Heritage Site is justly famous. Huế Citadel was founded as Việt Nam’s capital city by King Gia Long - the first king of the Nguyễn Dynasty in 1802. The dynasty, which had 13 Nguyễn kings, reigned until 1945. The massive complex features hundreds of monuments and ruins, including the residence of the royal family, which was badly damaged by time and wars. Trần Thanh Toàn, a 48-year-old visitor from … [Read more...] about Former capital of Huế a historical gem

Viet Nam News “So your aunt and I will be gone for a few weeks. You’ll take care of the shop. In the evening Vân will be home and review the day’s trade. Don’t worry about business. You’re better off here anyway, because you don’t have anything else to do while waiting for a job offer other than wandering around inhaling traffic smoke or sitting at cafes ogling unemployed girls in short skirts and high heels. It wouldn’t be fun. You’d better look after the shop for us, or else we’ll have to close it and lose customers. Look, we can’t let customers walk away. Is there any house on the street in this whole city that isn’t used as a shop? We have to sell things. Everything. This big market which is our city is perhaps one of a kind in the world. In other cities people set aside a little land for gardens and lawns and green trees. They sell things in separate zones. But here we’re filled with shops. Which is very … [Read more...] about Crossing the street alone

The World Cup is finally here again. Vietnamese people are just as in love with the sport as any other country, and many people’s lives will revolve around the ball for the next month. VTV has spiced up its coverage by inviting beautiful girls into their studio for analysis before and after each match. Men nationwide drooled over the women, to the point where they suggested it would be better to mute the TV whenever the analysis was on. One girl, supposedly a hardcore fan of Brazil, appeared for the match of Brazil against Switzerland on Sunday night. The blonde-dyed girl in pink expressed her love for Brazil by telling the host that she cheered for the South American team since she was in primary school in the early 2000s. That was the time of Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Pele, she said. Netizens couldn’t believe their ears. Pele retired decades earlier in 1977, they screamed. But some tried to stay calm and reminded others that at least she was right about Pele being a … [Read more...] about Own goal

Viet Nam News by Nguyễn Quang Sáng On the 100th birth anniversary of the painter Foujita of Japan, his works become the most sought after by art fans worldwide. Based on his adventures, art connoisseurs came to the conclusion that a few of them were left in Việt Nam. From the USA, France, Australia, Canada and so many other countries, they contacted Vietnamese galleries in Hà Nội and Sài Gòn, by phone, email and letter, trying to secure the paintings at any cost, especially the one portraying a cat. Every artist has a typical work bearing the stamp of his or her talent for posterity. For Foujita, it is none other than the oil-painting of a cat. I was lucky enough to witness one of those chases. From Sài Gòn a few men took express trains while others flew to Hà Nội. In the southern megacity a lot of art hunters searched high and low for Foujita’s works in many galleries along Đồng Khởi Avenue, or in a … [Read more...] about Painter Foujita’s Cat