After a day full of colors of autumn, cool in the morning, hot to dry at noon, cool in the evening, I also traveled nearly 10km from the office to 35 Trang Tien. Joining the line of people queuing to buy ice cream at the innermost stall of the store, I suddenly felt how familiar this place is, although my first impression of ice cream in my life was not Trang Tien ice cream.
In first grade, a couple of times a week, picking me up from school, my father would take me to a ice cream shop near Nga Tu So. That ice cream shop was not large, there was a banyan tree in front that was not very big. The ice cream tree here was white, probably due to many stones. I still remember the feeling of numbness at the tip of my tongue when placing the ice cream tree on the tip of my tongue, it took a few seconds to feel the sweetness of the sugar. Every time he came to the ice cream shop, he helped me down, then his father leaned his bicycle against the banyan tree, then pulled out a towel and rubbed it, folded it diagonally into a triangle shape, tied it off my neck to prevent the ice cream from flowing down my shirt. Waiting for me to finish eating the ice cream tree, my father folded a smaller towel, draped it high on my neck to keep me warm.
Later, my father occasionally bought ice cream from one of the stores in the Hoan Kiem Lake area to bring home for me. At that time, the ice cream was sprinkled with a few grains of salt and wrapped in several layers of newspaper to slow down the melting process. Therefore, the ice creams were both sweet and slightly salty.
2. Later, on the days of preparing high school graduation documents, I and my best friend went to Hoan Kiem Lake from 7:30 am to eat ice cream. Because it was only March at that time, it was still cold, the two of us cycled to Bon Mua ice cream shop on Le Thai To street, bought ice cream and then just bited a piece of ice cream and jumped to keep warm. After eating ice cream, it was also time for the International photo shop on Hang Khay street to open, the two of us cycled a short distance from Bon Mua ice cream to the photo shop (to take ID photos for high school graduation documents) and our teeth bumped into each other.
First year of university - Tet from 1994 to 1995, the weather naturally got hot in the days leading up to Tet. A group of close friends invited each other to Hang Luoc Flower Market. Not buying a peach branch or bouquet of flowers, but sweat was dripping. At that time, there were not many shops like now. The whole group didn't know where to go, so a friend in the group asked: "Going to eat Trang Tien ice cream?" The whole group nodded in agreement and then cycled together to 35 Trang Tien to eat ice cream. A group of more than ten people, one wanted to eat snail ice cream, one wanted to eat chocolate popsicles, one wanted coconut milk, one craved green bean ice cream. Now I can't remember how to buy the right flavor for each person at that time. I only remember that it was the first Tet and also the last Tet the whole group had fun with my friend inviting us to eat Trang Tien ice cream. He stopped forever at the age of 17 before finishing his first year of university.
Still knowing that the location at 35 Trang Tien is closed, there are Trang Tien ice cream stores opening in many places. But still want to go to 35 Trang Tien, queue to buy a favorite flavored ice cream, to remember childhood, youth, an unforgettable memory.
