"Nhâm nhi Hà Nội" in the heart of a deserted alley
The life of a journalist, working day and night, finishing work at midnight, and then finding a corner, a place somewhere in Hanoi to "indulge in Hanoi" until he falls asleep. The pleasure of "indulging in Hanoi" can only be experienced at this time, in a quiet space like a sheet of paper, Hanoi is soft, rich, and sincere.
Hanoi is also a city that never sleeps, with its own unique style, not noisy, not bustling. It has enough space to accommodate vagrants like us, sometimes it's a quick opening door like a flash of an eye, releasing a little light into the dark alley, just enough for our footsteps to enter and then fall back.
In a space like that in Phất Lộc Alley, the press corps - sometimes even the mobile police force also rush in after the night shift - sit around a rickety plastic table, on the table only a 65 Vodka Hanoi bottle, as transparent as a cat's eye, and a few cups.
The vodka just poured into the cup, a plate of chicken feet, a type of strongman, was brought out. This is a type of chicken feet that you will rarely see in ordinary chicken or barbecue restaurants. The chicken feet of old chickens, thick bones covered with a thick layer of skin like a duck's skin, similar to a goose's skin, which is larger than a chicken's.
I don't know why, a chicken foot only taken from the ankle down, never enough to be a whole foot. This is also a riddle that we have asked each other many times, but we have all given up, while the owner of the restaurant just smiled mysteriously like "the sky was born like that". In addition to a plate of sliced cucumbers, mint, coriander, and a bowl of quail sauce, that's all.
Frankly, that chicken foot dish was truly divine. Hold a foot up, admire it carefully, then carefully use your teeth to peel off the skin, the tendons, although thick, are very soft, but also crunchy. Almost no meat, but the chicken skin is enough to bring a sense of satisfaction to the act of eating. After peeling off a piece, I immediately chewed it, then ate a few fragrant leaves and drank a sip of wine. It was also a great pleasure!
When the ankle bone was smooth, it seemed that it could be made into a decorative item, only then did we switch to processing the foot. First, we peeled off the membrane between the toes, then peeled off the skin, the small tendons along the toes. We carefully did it like we were doing archaeological work, and after a while, the table was covered with a pile of clean, small bones, skin, and tendons.
Our press corps has eaten chicken feet for a long time, our movements are well-coordinated: peel, tear, chew, drink wine, and laugh heartily in harmony. To the point that, later on, if we see anyone eating chicken feet carelessly, such as leaving skin, or eating it roughly, we would smile at them.
The chicken feet dish gradually emptied, the wine bottle was almost empty, and stories about our profession, our lives began to flow out. The sound was very small, not escaping the small room, but it made us have a moment to escape life and go "indulge in Hanoi", live with a Hanoi that is not familiar to many people.
The owner of the restaurant was also very unpredictable, sometimes open, sometimes not. He and his wife were fond of dancing, so when they were busy dancing at night, the restaurant was closed. When they argued with each other, the restaurant was also closed. When his wife danced a bit "romantically" with a dance partner, the restaurant was also closed. In general, there were countless reasons, making many times "clink, clink, clink" but the door did not open.
Most of the time, he was very cheerful, good at chatting. Wearing a cò bird suit, a black leather jacket, he danced elegantly in the narrow space, holding a plate of chicken feet, a wine bottle, or a plate of fragrant herbs without colliding or stumbling, his mouth still smiling and welcoming conversation. A very urban, elegant, and sophisticated style, knowing how to enjoy life.
Then, the door opened again, we slipped out of Phất Lộc Alley, hearing the sound of our feet on the alley. The wind from the Hồng River blew in coolly, because from here to the river is just a dike. It was not that way that on a night in late 1946, from here, the Thủ đô Regiment was ordered to withdraw from the city through Long Biên Bridge.
In the wind, I heard the scent of the Hồng River, and it seemed like the sound of the waves. It seemed like that, but just vaguely. Out of the alley, we went to Hàng Mắm Street, then continued to Hàng Bạc Street, met Hàng Đào Street turning right to Hàng Ngang Street, Hàng Đường Street to take a boat to a phở shop with a spicy sauce to bid farewell to the day.
From the time of carrying a sword to open the alley
Phất Lộc Alley runs parallel to Nguyễn Hữu Huân Street, one branch connects to this street, one branch opens onto Lương Ngọc Quyến Street, and one branch meets Hàng Mắm Street. In the early days, the alley belonged to Dũng Thọ Village, Đông Các Ward, Thọ Xương District, now it belongs to Hàng Buồm Ward, Hoàn Kiếm District.
The name of the alley has been since the 18th century, because the people from Thái Bình who came to the capital to live brought the name of their old village to name the alley so they wouldn't forget their hometown. The people of the alley said that in the 13th year of Vĩnh Thịnh (1717), a scholar named Bùi came to Thăng Long to study at the Quốc Tử Giám and then settled in Tiên Hạ Village.
Later, the villagers also followed him to settle here, living densely and Phất Lộc Alley was formed. They built a temple at number 46, while number 30 is the temple of the Bùi family, every year their descendants still come to worship their ancestors. Bùi Tú Lĩnh - a representative figure of the Bùi family - is a notable figure in this line.
The center of Phất Lộc Alley is the Tiên Hạ Temple at number 46. The temple worships a famous figure from the Trần dynasty, Nguyễn Trung Ngạn (1289-1370), who was revered as the mayor of the Thăng Long capital during the Trần dynasty. Inside the temple, there is a decree from the Cảnh Hưng 4th year (1753) and a system of 5 stone steles, including a stele "Tiên Hạ linh từ trùng tu bi ký" erected in the 19th year of the Tự Đức era (1866).
The architecture of the temple is arranged in the style of the I character. The gate is built in the shape of a vaulted arch, on top of which is a wine jar, and on both sides are two bronze pillars, the top of which is decorated with a lotus flower. Through the gate is a small courtyard paved with Bát Tràng tiles. At the end of the courtyard are two Hộ pháp statues guarding the entrance, behind which is a worship area including: the front altar, the prayer house, and the rear palace.
The front altar is a small one-room house, built in the style of a roofed door, with a wooden frame structure consisting of 4 pillars made in the style of "giá chiêng chồng rường con nhị". The prayer house is a one-room house with a square shape, with a roof covered with wooden boards.
The wooden structure is placed on 4 square concrete pillars, 20cm x 20cm. The rear palace is a one-room house running across. In the middle of the rear palace, a 80cm high platform is built, on top of which two long tables with deity portraits are placed, placed in a sacred chamber with a dragon carving.
Aside from its historical significance, Phất Lộc Alley is also famous for its culinary delights, with a row of bun shops running along the alley, from bun riêu, bun chả to bun đậu mắm tôm. Most of the bun shops only sell until lunchtime, then close, making way for tea shops like a hidden business arrangement among the alley's residents.
Only the bun đậu mắm tôm shop is open until lunchtime, selling until the evening. This bun đậu mắm tôm shop is very famous, from when the owner used to sell on the street at Hàng Bè Market, it became famous and then moved to a house in the alley. That's why this bun đậu mắm tôm shop has been around for over 30 years, considered the first bun đậu mắm tôm shop in Hanoi, always crowded.
The land where the Bùi scholars once lived has now become a bustling area. The residents of the alley, if they don't sell food, also work in the tourism industry or engage in business. No matter how things change, the old houses are replaced by high-rise buildings, they still preserve their own historical and spiritual values.
Whatever it is, Phất Lộc Alley still has the sound of the Hồng River blowing in on quiet nights during the flood season like now. The alley is still a small alley in a small street where vagrants like us have a place to go.
