In the house of the film producer Hung
N 21°02'09.5'' E 105°52'01.1''
Date:
11.10.2016
Day: 473
Country:
Vietnam
Region:
Delta of the Red River
Location:
Hanoi
Latitude N:
21°02’09.5”
Longitude E:
105°51’01.1”
Daily kilometers:
Covered 300 km by car
Total kilometers:
19,762 km
Soil condition:
Asphalt / gravel
Total altitude meters:
54.661 m
Sunrise:
05:50 h
Sunset:
5:36 pm
Temperature day max:
35°C
Temperature day min:
24°C
(Photos of the diary entry can be found at the end of the text).
“Hai and Hung are only free tonight. So it would be good if you could end your stay in Nim Binh a little earlier,” says Manh Do when I call him. “Actually, I would have loved to stay here another day,” I say to Tanja. “Things usually turn out differently than planned,” she replies, shrugging her shoulders. A week ago, we had already arranged to meet Manh Do in Hanoi to discuss the future e-bike elephant expedition. As we believe that the filmmaker Hung and the senior government official Hai can make a difference in this matter, we see this further meeting as important and take the bus to the capital of Vietnam in the afternoon. As in the last few weeks, when we stay in Hanoi, we check into the homestay where we have already spent the night a few times. As soon as our bags and Ajaci are in the room, Manh Do picks us up in his four-wheeler to chauffeur us to Hung. “I hope you had a pleasant journey,” the government official Hai greets us amicably, who was also picked up from home by Manh Do and is sitting in the car with us. “It was an exhausting drive,” I reply, dog-tired. “I also had a difficult day,” he says, explaining that he only arrived two hours ago from Ho Chi Minh, 1,600 kilometers away. “Ho Chi Minh? Wow, that’s really far. What did you do there?” I want to know. “Government business,” he replies, not answering my question in detail. Manh Do mentioned some time ago that Hai travels all over Vietnam throughout the year because of his position. “And I’m moaning about the four-hour bus ride,” I say, making myself comfortable in the back seat. “Why didn’t you bring Ajaci with you?” Manh Do wants to know. “Hung is inviting us to dinner, isn’t he?” “Yes.” “I don’t think it’s good to take a dog to a good restaurant. Some restaurant owners don’t like it,” Tanja explains.
An hour later, we reach Hung’s house outside Hanoi. It is a new four-story building where several families could live. “Hung must have a big family,” I wonder. “Only his mother lives in this property,” Manh Do’s answer amazes us. “Just his mother? And where is he staying?” “Hung owns a large apartment in Hanoi. I think he only had the house built here to invest money,” he explains. “Hello Tanja, hello Denis!” the film producer greets us with a friendly hug. His old mother also smiles respectfully and leads us into the large house. “Hello,” calls Two, the architect and co-owner of the Nature Lodge, also hugging us. “Didn’t think I’d see you here,” I say happily. “I took some time off work to see you again before your trip,” he replies with a laugh.
As decorum demands, we take off our shoes and follow our host. We pass the brand new, ultra-modern fitted kitchen. A plate is on the sideboard. “Would you like some?” asks Hai, grabs a handful of the little white things and puts them in his mouth, chewing with relish. When I take a closer look, I recognize the maggots. Apparently a delicacy for the Vietnamese. “Oh, no thanks,” I reply, and as I’m feeling a bit queasy from all the driving through Hanoi’s crazy rush hour traffic, the mixture doesn’t exactly help to calm my stomach. We climb one floor higher via a modern residential staircase. “Have a seat,” Hung asks us, settling us on an expansive couch. Tea, water and a few cookies are served immediately. “You don’t like maggots?” asks Two with a grin. “God forbid,” I reply honestly, whereupon he almost collapses with laughter. Two speaks perfect English and was in a relationship with an Austrian woman. One reason why he knows that we don’t necessarily like insects. Before we go to the restaurant, Hung proudly leads us into his altar room. To show our respect, we pause for a few minutes and pray. Then we all leave Hung’s house together and drive to a special, exclusive restaurant. Not only is fine food served there, but rich guests are also treated to a singing and dancing performance by selected artists. Hung, who picks up the tab for his friends, gets into top form. He grabs a microphone and sings a song with the singer. “Super! Great!” everyone praises the karaoke performance.
When I come to the actual topic after dinner, the four partners of the Nature Lodge listen to me attentively. “It would be good if you could compile a list with detailed points of your plan and present it to us at the next meeting. Then we will think about it and forward your ideas to the right address, perhaps even to the President of Vietnam,” Hai ends the conversation…
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