Vietnamese Beer

There is no drinking age in Vietnam. Alcohol and liquor are sold widely and not limited to only liquor stores......yeahhhh.....=D. Draught beer is the most popular beverage throughout the country. 

So, it is normal if you see people in Vietnam can drink at any age and at any time during the weekdays. Most male beer consumers drink it at least 4-5 times a week. 

And it’s really normal if you see a 6 year old boy buying a bottle of beer or wine for his father staying at home. 

It is all Vietnamese drinking culture. 

Whenever you pass by a restaurant or a street side food vendor, you will see people clinking their beer glasses and shouting “100%” or “bottoms up” all the time, no matter whether it is morning, noon or evening during weekdays in Vietnam. 

After “bottoms up”, everyone has to refill his glass at the same time. That’s why they always check everybody’s glass to make sure everyone drinking the same amount. 

It is common to see a group of four or five people with lots empty bottles on their table

A 4 years old girl is clinking her shot with her grandfather and her uncle :)

Soooo, another thing for you to add in to-do list in Vietnam is drinking BEER on the street anytime you want :)

Vietnamese Coffee Shop

There are probably hundred thousands of coffee shops in Vietnam, so it is easy to find a coffee shop on any given block in the city. Coffee shop in Vietnam is not only a place to stop for a drink but also a warm space for those who want to find the silence and relaxation in mind. 

Each coffee shop has a different style but all of them bring guests the comfortable feeling and the silence that attracts a lot of people by the fresh air and close to nature after a working day. Old people love coffee shop which has been around a long time, located on quiet streets while officers like coffee shop with romantic and quiet styles. Young people prefer the noisy and busy atmosphere of modern and luxury, or pavement with loud music while teenagers look for cute, colorful decorations to take pictures. So, different age looks for a different space and style for a coffee shop. 

Here are some of my favorite coffee shops in Vietnam

Paris Deli is very French land-house style designed in warm color creating a really nice, romantic place...

 Ciao is very impressive designed in luxurious lounge. 

 iBOX coffee

Sao Mai has beautiful decorations with warm colors and flowers followed a luxurious French style architecture

 
 Terrace coffee shop

Gac Hoa Coffee shop is a small world of flowers, leaves full of sunny and windy creates a close to nature for any one arriving here

MORE, MORE and hundreds MORE.......

We usually say “GO FOR COFFEE”, but ladies always drink Juice, ice-cream or smoothies when they are there…. but still “COFFEE TIME”....

Coffee shops in Vietnam are much larger and more comfortable than America because people come to seek for relaxing and socializing. Unlike American, they come to get their coffee to go or stay for one hour while Vietnamese can mostly stay 3 or 4 hours or even more. Every morning or evening, citizens spend a few hours lingering over one coffee or fruit drink. The real reason for going to coffee shops is they love to socialize. No matter weekday or weekend, the coffee shops are always full of people; however, college students and part-time employees are the most popular customers in the morning since they have flexible schedule. Weekend is the busiest times for all coffee shops with crowded groups of people.

When the Vietnamese go to have coffee, it is easy to see them in a group of a family or friends. They love to meet each other, to gossip, to talk about everything. Therefore, it’s rarely for you to see alone person in these shops. They’d rather stay at home than staying there by themselves unless no power or no Wi-Fi access at home :)

Besides these beautiful coffee shops above, many people enjoy sitting outside on the pavement to see people pass by...

Each coffee shop will bring a different atmosphere to make your day more beautiful....!!! 

Come to enjoy Coffee at one of beautiful coffee shops in Vietnam :)....and if you want to experience more wonderful things in Vietnam, just keep following my blog..... :)

Enjoy your day !!!!

Vietnamese Coffee

The first drink I want to talk here is Vietnamese Coffee, one must try drink for every visitors. Vietnamese coffee is black, deep, and very strong. Real Vietnamese coffee is best brewed the traditional way. Coffee grounds are placed on a filter that sits on top of a cup or class. Hot water is then poured over the grounds and the coffee drips slowly. This creates an extremely dense, strong taste that requires a few teaspoons of sugar or condensed milk, and served on cubes of ice.

Here is how it looks

Vietnamese famous franchised coffee brand name "Trung Nguyen"  

We enjoyed some ice tea instead while waiting for slow-drips coffee about 7 mins…

Vietnamese Iced Milk Coffee: 

Tasting some first drips coffee, you will feel totally different between Starbucks and Trung Nguyen-Vietnamese coffee. 

You can find Vietnamese coffee at here http://www.amazon.com/Trung-Nguyen-Vietnamese-coffee-can/dp/B000F17AKC

Vietnamese Street Food

Eating is about more than the food, it's about taking in a culture. Therefore, a trip to Vietnam is not complete without tasting the street food. Food carts can be found on almost every street corner, at pavement eateries with fold-up tables and chairs. It is cooked on the spot, right before your eyes, on the street, by someone who has been making that one particular dish over and over, for years, decades, quite possibly, generations. Street food provides convenient, delicious and cheap meals to the locals.
I will introduce some of my favorite dishes that I think a foreigner will love it. Remember to try one of them if one day you come to any Vietnamese restaurants. 

The 1st one  is called Pho-Vietnamese Noodle. This iconic Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup or Pho Bo is probably one of the most well-known noodles in Vietnam. Although plenty of restaurants serve “Pho”, the best bowl is usually found right on the side of the street. A steaming hot bowl of vermicelli noodle soup served with medium rare beef slices, or tender, thin pieces of flank steak, meatball on top of the noodles. Together with some fresh veggies and herbs, spice it up with some chili peppers, a squirt of lime juice, flavored with traditional Vietnamese spices. This is very tasty and nutritious soup in the morning as it is for lunch and dinner…

Another one is “Banh mi”, or Vietnamese baguette sandwiches. A crispy baguette stuffed with your choice of several kinds of Vietnamese pork ham, grilled or roasted pork, liver paste, and pickled shreds of carrots. Veggie choices vary but usually include slices of cucumber and tomato, cilantro with a sauce of chili or buttered mayo, or both. 

The Vietnamese Grilled pork wrapped in rice paper or “Nem nuong” is another dish that is closely associated with the country. What made this version unique is the addition of shaved ripe mango and deep fried rice paper. The rice paper is deep fried and wrapped inside the normal wraps with normal rice paper. This means that with every bite, you get this delicious crunch, smell of grilled pork, little sour of mango and little sweet and spicy of peanut sauce.

If you want the roll looks beautiful and neat, ask them to wrap it for you. Or you can do it by yourself as this guy tried to do….=D

Another wraps is called “Goi cuon”, or spring rolls. It contains pork, shrimp, lettuce, vermicelli noodles and fresh herbs. All together are wrapped in rice paper and served with peanut sauce. Most of Vietnamese restaurants here serve it and I saw many many foreigners ordered it, so I think you may like it to (but I don't =D )

Here is one of my favorite dishes all them time, "Vietnamese steak" or "Vietnamese Shaking Beef". It contains beef cuts with sautéed onions, lettuce, and rice, tomatoes, topped with pickled onions served with extremely special sauce.

Rice or dry noodles served with marinated grilled pork is another delicious one. It is basically the same, but different choice of Rice or Dry noodles. The dish consists of roasted peanuts, carrots served with special sauce.

Of course there are more and more delicious dishes, but i tried to choose some of the best dishes I've eaten. They are seriously delicious.... :))

The next post will be covered about Vietnamese Drinks. It does not as simple as it sounds "Drinks"....=D

So, if you want to know about it, keep following......

Enjoy your weekend...........!!!!

Vietnam Motorbike (2)

Here are some amazing pictures of people riding motorcycles with interesting stuffs like chickens, pigs, fresh chicken eggs, tires 

You may not believe it until you see it.

 Hello Ducks....=D

Pig strapped to motorbike: 

 

Can I drive daddy? lolzz

 

Different clothes for different weather  =))  

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie ride on a motorcycle in dowtown Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam