Saturday July 20th, 2024, we were on the way to Sam Son beach. It’s a popular destination for local tourists, mostly from nearby northern and central provinces. It’s about a three-hour drive from Hanoi.
My sister sponsored this trip. My mom was very excited about it because she loves to be photographed. From the day we planned it, she looked through her wardrobe everyday to pick out items that she could mix and match. I love how she does things, even the smallest tasks, with such diligence and without stress or intensity. I’m the opposite; I prefer to pack as little as possible that fits in my backpack. However, her enthusiasm made me want to prepare more myself. So, I packed nice clothes, skin care and make-up products, etc in case I wanted to look good in photos; all of them fit in my medium-sized suitcase. However, ironically, it’d been almost three days since I got there, I hadn’t worn any nice clothes. I was in shorts, tank tops and T-shirts, and wore flip-flops the whole time. It just takes too much energy to pull everything together for a good look: nice clothes, make-up, hair style, matching shoes and accessories. So, I decided not to bother and just focused on having a good time. I also hadn’t gone into the water because I had a procedure just over a week before. I wanted to avoid potential infections. Plus, the beach was super crowded, especially on the weekends, which made it less appealing to swim or relax there.
Despite not swimming, I still enjoyed the trip. I’m a big fan of seafood and interested in trying local dishes. The seafood there was so fresh. We ate crabs, clams, calamari, oysters, fish and mantis shrimp cooked in different ways. The mantis shrimp (“Bề bề” or “Tôm tít” in Vietnamese) was amazing and crawfish doesn’t even compare. This shrimp has much more meat, is easy to peel, and has a juicy texture. I think it’s always delicious, whether it’s cooked in any way or served on its own or with other foods. If this shrimp is marketed seriously, it could become even more popular than crawfish.
One evening, we stopped at a food stand famous for sweet soups, drinks and street foods. You can find all different types of sweet soups from all over Vietnam here. The soups are typically sweet and creamy, with various toppings such as tapioca pearls, jelly, nuts, fruits and other ingredients, depending on which soup you order. About street foods, they serve “Bánh xèo” (Vietnamese crepe). It’s loaded with a variety of ingredients, including shrimp, bean sprouts, carrots, onions and more. The crepes are cut into small pieces, ready to be wrapped in rice paper together with veggies and herbs. While I don’t know all their names, there are plenty, such as lettuce, mustard greens, cucumbers, and some exotic ones like ming aralia (đinh lăng), lolot (lá lốt), and skunk vine leaves (lá mơ). I love eating rolls though it takes a bit of time to make them ready. “Bánh xèo” is dipped in fish sauce, mixed to be sour, sweet, and spicy. I was amazed how delicious the food was the first time I tried it here, so I was really excited to go back. However, the second experience wasn’t as good as the first. “Bánh xèo” didn’t meet my expectations this time. It seemed like they’ve changed ingredients; I didn’t like the green beans and sweet potatoes that they added. Interestingly, while we were eating, it started raining hard. Since the place didn’t have a roof, we had to stand shoulder to shoulder at the covered counter and wait for the owner to set one up. The rain then lightened up and the roof was ready, we’d hoped to continue our meal. But soon, the rain intensified again. With the wind blowing it from the sides, the roof couldn’t keep all the rain out. To make matters worse, the electricity went out. I got a little wet, and we had to cut our dinner short and planned to head back to the hotel. But when we left, the rain stopped, so we went to AHA coffee shop instead to enjoy the rest of our evening.
We wanted to find a local cafe with some unique character instead of a chain like AHA, but the choices here are pretty limited. Just like 99% of the time when I visit a coffee shop in VN, I ordered “Nâu nóng”, a traditional hot coffee with condensed milk, rather than choosing other drinks. I love its aroma and sweet, bitter taste. Sipping it while chatting or just enjoying my time alone is a favorite activity of mine. However, due to a miscommunication, the order taker brought me an iced coffee. I told him about the mistake. He took the cup away reluctantly and returned with a different one. I was disappointed when the new coffee arrived because it looked different from the usual coffee I get at this chain – the color, texture, and even the cup.
I tried to stay positive, thinking maybe this is how they prepare condensed milk coffee at that specific place. I took a sip, but it was disappointing; the coffee wasn’t thick or rich, and the flavor was light. It seemed like hot water had been added to the original cup, or they just removed the ice, rather than making a fresh cup for me. I called another waiter and told him it was the worst coffee I had ever had at AHA. He took my cup away and returned with the correct one. Finally, I could enjoy the coffee, but I couldn’t drink much, especially Vietnamese coffee as it contains a lot of caffeine, which I should limit during my IVF treatment.
During our time there, we visited Sunworld water park, a temple and planned to see a water show, but it was canceled because the country’s leader had just passed away. So no public events were held during that period. We felt a bit disappointed as we were very excited for our parents to see the show, which I have never seen either. We also went to a play area at Hai Tien beach, around a 1-hr drive from Sam Son beach at night, but again it was closed. On the way there, we checked out several places to try local foods such as eel noodle soup, fried eel noodles and chicken salad. My sister even looked for grilled eggs but she wasn’t lucky. I’d tried them before in Saigon. The liquid inside an egg is extracted, mixed with salt, garlic, and pepper, and then injected back into the egg.
On the way back to Hanoi, we had lunch at Ba Cửa Restaurant in Ninh Binh, where we enjoyed goat meat.
I loved citrus-cured goat salad, grilled goat meat, and goat sausage. Well, too much protein throughout the vacation. We then drove back to Hanoi in the rain; it wasn’t as bad as we’d feared. We were expecting worse because of the storm forecast. It rained everyday while we were there, but whenever we needed to go out, it magically stopped. Overall, the trip was great, but there were a few things I didn’t like, such as a power outage at our hotel from the afternoon until 1 a.m., water hygiene concerns where we stayed, and a foul smell in some areas near the beach after the heavy rain. But above all, I truly cherish the time with my family, which is more precious than anything else I’ve experienced on the trip. I’m not sure when I’ll have another gathering like that. It reminds me of how important these moments are and how grateful I am for the chance to have shared them with my family.
Begin life at forty 