We left the hotel early... 7.00 am is an early start by most standards, especially on a Saturday. We were dressed for the start of the conference and so made our way down the now familiar main road in District 2, cautiously. I was suddenly aware of the downside of wearing in pretty but not the most practical shoes for street walking. I always appreciate mornings where the streets wake slowly, welcoming the new day with a big stretchy yawn, knowing it must get started but not in any rush to do so. Shutters were opening slowly and even the street dog looked mostly asleep, half lying across the side walk and half onto the road. The odd car drove by and we walked ahead hoping to find a local cafe for some breakfast. Why eat in the generic hotel buffet when a world of delicious freshly made Vietnamese food awaits right outside your residence?
The first place we stopped at was certainly full of character,.. its said 'cat cafe' out side and had a look of cosiness with low wooden furniture and cushions strewn around with dressed in the typical bright green and red Vietnamese fabric. It promised an array of coffee with everything from Yoghurt coffee to egg coffee and traditional black coffee with condensed milk. It had promise. We walked up to the counter and began looking through the menu and suddenly my eye caught sight of the tiny doll sized cupboard on the floor with 3 cats inside it and clear plastic doors ( with holes). They looked calm but cramped and it made me very uncomfortable. No, this was not going to be a good spot to stop.
We kept walking and there it was- the beautiful navy blue outer walls of Tywi B., House of Croissants and Baguettes were hard to miss. That and the brilliant bright yellow door. We walked over, and as we opened the door were accosted by the aroma of freshly baked bread - who can resist that?! The majority of the shop is taken up by the open plan kitchen with a small space in front for customers. The shelves were stacked with delicious fresh pain au chocolates, croissants, raisin studded Danish pastries, mini baguettes with bacon and lettuce ...you name it they apparently bake it! 5 mins alter we were outside again and found our seats- small but perfectly designed wrought iron chais with a mini table in front. Sitting facing the street gave us the perfect view of this street coming to life. 20 minutes to take it in as the street slowly came to life- watch the toddler playing with her mum, smile at the dad who stopped on his motor bike while his son rushed in to buy a treat. I ate my baked treats and drank my freshly squeezed orange juice in peace. Delicious.
So much to be grateful for.
District 2, Ho Chi Minh City
No comments:
Post a Comment