Hanoi

Our reporter in Vietnam – Food is celebrated on the streets – Souvenir from the cookshop.

“The Vietnamese eat everything but the table and chairs, since they’re so hard to digest.” When I confronted Hung, my colleague from the Vietnam newspaper Tienphong Daily, with this statement during his visit to Germany, he laughed ... and nodded. I was alarmed to read about boiled dog, spiders and snake hearts, which were cited by my travel guidebook as Vietnamese delicacies. Shortly before leaving for Hanoi, I considered masquerading as a vegetarian...

The truth as I’ve experienced it so far is, of course, somewhat different. Yes, the Vietnamese eat snakes, dogs and even chicks that have been pickled overnight in cans of cola. But a self-sufficient individual can certainly say what they do not like. How must it sound for others when they hear that we eat sausages made of animal entrails?

In Vietnam, food plays a central role. Every meal, even a breakfast of pho, steaming noodle soup, is warm. The foods are zesty and fascinating. Having a giggling waitress explain to me how to fabricate a delicious roll out of rice paper, meat rolls and lettuce (with chopsticks!) also has a bonding quality. Here, eating is an event that is celebrated on the streets since community is so important. The Vietnamese crouch on tiny plastic stools, eating from steaming pots. It’s better not to think about their cleanliness... After a few days in Hanoi, I ventured into one of these cookshops. Everything tasted great: dumplings, rice, vegetables, I even tried snails (albeit for the last time). My courage was not rewarded: I got food poisoning. That’s also a sort of souvenir.