The rain at night caused Ho Chi Minh City to miraculously transform. The air filled with cool and pleasant steam, bustling to replenish oxygen to the capital, replacing the dust, the excitement and heartbreaking sound of the day.
The road surface suddenly turned black like the luxurious velvet hair that the Hong girl had shared after the bath. That hair is fragrant, projecting tens of thousands of drops of lilies carrying the wheel's wheel, attracting the yellow light of the street lights shining down to create a fulcrum "bokeh" effect.
The night has passed very deep in the sleep of millions of people finding vitality for a new working day that will come in just a few hours. However, the night also contains a life of those who need to rush to sleep or wake up to prepare for a revolution.
People say that Ho Chi Minh City is a city that does not sleep at night. Many shops are still open all night to serve citizens of the city who love the rhythm of the night. However, in that lifestyle, there are not only those who are "fer off work, leave early in the morning" but also many people who are busy with their work.
whose clock has just stopped at 4 o'clock, major streets such as Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Ly Thai To, Dien Bien Phu are almost as quiet as leaves, with nothing but a few taxis or technology motorbike taxis running back and forth in late vehicles. However, turning into Nguyen Thien Thuat residential area in Ward 1, District 3 from any alley on other major streets, you will see a strange scene.
It is no strange that this 4-section residential area has had more than half a century of ups and downs and ton tai, because this place preserves a piece of Saigon's soul, from the past to the present, from war to peace, from dividing the country from the river to unifying the country.
That piece of soul contains a typical lifestyle that is longer than the milestone of 50 glorious years that the whole city is celebrating. A Saigon of the working class but full of the affection of a gentle, simple and sparkling neighborhood.
After more than 50 years, Nguyen Thien Thuat residential area with 11 lots of houses, including more than 1,000 households, is a temporary or permanent residence for working people. Here, in the yellow light shining with the night rain, the more the old and nostalgic form of the mist emerges.
In the middle of a 3-land district of sublime flowers, few people expect that there is still a beauty imbued with the "nostalgia - nostalgia", with blocks of boxy houses, painted in light blue lying symmetrically, surrounded and connected by rows of corridors, roads with chessboard lines creating a community.
Here, the pace of life always flows regardless of day or night. Most of the apartments on the ground floor (1st floor) are shops, selling hundreds of things to serve the people's lives. The space between the house blocks is constantly maneuvering, when it is a market, when it is a gathering place for eating, with all pubs, bars, cafes or people who sit in the wind, eight love talks.
To understand partly, to touch partly the life and soul of Saigon people, should wander in that residential area in the moments of the devastating night. The white neon lights splashed on the luxurious pastel blue shirt with moss and cracks, creating frames that softened people's hearts.
On the ground, around the houses, a daily life is taking place, despite many changes, they are always conscious of maintaining absolute silence, avoiding disturbing those who are sleeping. Passersby were silent, the car was slow and could not hear the engine or the horn. Like a film.
Then from the house, under the stairs, mobile sales cars were pulled out, and umbrellas were stretched out to ward off the morning rain. The kitchen is brightly boiled with broth for breakfast dishes that have been familiar for decades such as: Banh canh, hu tieu, pho, pain, vermicelli, broken rice, banh mi...
Thousands of people living here will have breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dinner, so it is easy to understand that the accommodation area is also a culinary paradise serving local residents and backpackers, with 24/24 service hours, with prices of only two, three, or ten thousand but still meeting the usual demand for delicious and cheap food,
In this corner, a group of women sitting with their faces down on the sides of the chili basket and the flower baskets for the drinks. In that corner, a middle-aged man who is barely dressed on the axis is sitting tirelessly grinding coconut rice and squeezing coconut milk while another man is busy cooking ginseng.
There was almost no talk, only eye contact. If we had to make a noise, it would be the loud noises, no louder than the strong wind from the Saigon River blowing in. They are used to being speechless in their actions because these things have been repeated every year or for decades, because a small banh canh tay nghiep at the top of the stairs has also gone through 3 generations of transmission.
When the sky started to re -ear, the roadlights, neon lights along the corridor fade, it was also the time when the life and work that night gradually ended. There is a change in this place, when new faces appear to take care of sales or buy breakfast, with sound no longer have to preserve.
As for the old faces, they can drop into the coffee cup chair early or disappear into the house to fall asleep. The work is done, the sunrise is about to rise, let's go to bed! Another new day in the city.
