Handsome Westerner addicted to fish sauce, fluent in three regional accents: North, Central and South

(Dan Tri) - Joshua Ryan (Tran Luan Vu) is often jokingly called "Vietnamese of Western origin" by his friends because of his ability to speak Vietnamese fluently and his deep understanding of culture.

Childhood and memories of Vietnam "Hello, I'm Luan Vu". On the evening of July 7, during a livestream that lasted nearly an hour on TikTok, Luan Vu continuously spoke Southern Vietnamese to everyone. In some cases, he could also speak Northern and Central accents. The American guy admitted that in more than 10 years living in Ho Chi Minh City, he only used English when teaching students, the rest of the time he spoke Vietnamese.

The Portuguese-American guy can speak Vietnamese fluently (Photo: NVCC).

In a small house in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, he skillfully cooks Vietnamese dishes, from fried spring rolls, sour soup, braised pork to steamed mackerel wrapped in rice paper in the Central region style. "I eat Vietnamese food every day of the week," Luan said. He also rarely calls himself Joshua Ryan, wanting people to know him better by the name Tran Luan Vu that his adoptive mother, a Vietnamese living in the US, gave him. Tran is his mother's last name, and Luan Vu is the reverse pronunciation of the name of the cai luong artist he loves. However, to make it easier for foreigners to pronounce, he wants them to call him Luan. His love for Vietnam has been ingrained in his heart since he was a 10-year-old child in Oregon, USA. He was born into a Portuguese-American family .

Luan Vu during high school in the US (Photo: NVCC).

"My mother gave birth to me when she was 15. At that age, she really didn't know how to be a mother. My parents often argued and couldn't take care of three children. I had to eat instant noodles so much that I had to be hospitalized," Luan recalls. The city of Portland where he lives has a lot of Asians. Luan's class has 50% Vietnamese students, and he quickly became friends with them. At the age of 14, Luan applied for a part-time job in the school's costume factory, where he met a Vietnamese woman from Hue . She also had a daughter about Luan's age. He remembers that the first time he went to her house, she made him fried chicken wings with fish sauce and tapioca dumplings, which made him exclaim "delicious". She often listened to reformed opera, introduced him to some Vietnamese literary works and taught him how to cook rice. "She was gentle and full of affection. For the first time in my life, I felt the warm care of a mother. She was also the first adult who really took the time to listen to everything I shared," he said.

Luan Vu in an English class in Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: NVCC).

Since then, he has had a good impression of Vietnamese people. He imagined this as a country of friendly, sincere and warm people. Luan secretly thought that he would come to Vietnam one day. During this period, he often went to Vietnamese temples to chant sutras and learn Vietnamese by talking to nuns. "I have been fluent in Vietnamese since I was in America, even though I have never been to school," Luan proudly said. Vietnam is home At the age of 18, Luan graduated from high school and spent all his savings to buy a ticket to Vietnam. After deducting the cost of the airfare, he only had 1,000 USD left for the expected 3-month trip. Luan shared: "I was quite worried because it was my first time coming to Asia, without any relatives around. I also did not know if Vietnamese people would welcome me or not? Would there be any robberies or thefts?"

American guy on a trip to Long An in August 2022 (Photo: NVCC).

In the summer of 2012, when he arrived at Tan Son Nhat airport, those thoughts were quickly erased. He felt the friendliness and warmth of everyone, they always had smiles on their faces. Some friends invited him to the West, where there were vast fields. Together they raised ducks, caught fish... to entertain guests. Life was difficult but people were always generous and kind. Luan said, that was the first time he knew that money was not the only thing that created human happiness. He decided to stay in Vietnam, but Luan's family was not happy but still accepted. So instead of traveling for 3 months, he stayed in Vietnam for nearly 11 years. In Ho Chi Minh City, Luan experienced many jobs such as MC, model, English teacher. In 2018, Luan decided to do business and rented a space in District 4. However, the person who transacted with Luan was not the homeowner, he tricked him into signing a contract for more than 80 million VND.

Vietnamese dishes he cooks himself every day (Photo: NVCC).

The next day, when Luan came to receive the house, the key the other person gave him could not open the door, and they had also "run away". After that, Luan felt disappointed and returned to the US. After nearly two years of living in the US, he had a job but did not feel happy. "My childhood in the US was very lonely, living in discrimination and violence. I moved out very early and had almost no connection with my family. Returning from Vietnam, I brought with me the image of Vietnamese mothers who spent almost their whole lives taking care of their children. I suddenly wanted to reconcile with my biological mother and appreciate family values more", he said. In 2020, he began to miss the rainy days in Ho Chi Minh City, he always stopped by empty cafes and listened to Bolero music; the bustling atmosphere at sidewalk eateries... Luan thought that Vietnam was always present inside him, he decided to come back here again.

He especially loves Vietnamese cultural customs (Photo: NVCC).

The Covid-19 pandemic was a difficult time for Luan. He had to "take" the cost of renting the premises of the English center even though there were no students coming to class. "Americans are very independent and individualistic. My family could hardly help me during that time," Luan said. However, during the most difficult time, he received help from a friend in Quang Ninh. He sent Luan money to cover the expenses and did not ask him for anything. At the same time, his Vietnamese friends also constantly encouraged and asked about him. "I feel the unconditional kindness of the Vietnamese people," he said. Currently, Luan is having a happy life in Vietnam. His lover is from Phu Yen . Occasionally, the two of them take each other to Tuy Hoa city to eat grilled corn with perilla leaves, fish cooked with salt, spring rolls... "I have never regretted choosing Vietnam," Luan happily said.

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