Ho Chi Minh City - In five years, Inoue Keiichi has visited Vietnam 30 times. On one occasion, he had just returned to Japan when he booked a flight to study in the country because he "fell in love with it so much."
Inoue Keiichi's love for Vietnam began in March 2018 when the 25-year-old Japanese man traveled abroad for the first time.
Upon landing at Tan Son Nhat airport, his Vietnamese aunt was waiting for him. Keiichi immediately felt a sense of familiarity because she was very friendly and thoughtful, taking care of him in every way, from transportation and accommodation arrangements to suggesting places to eat.
On his first day in Ho Chi Minh City, Keiichi was captivated by the banh mi sandwich. The sweet and sour chili sauce, the grilled meat filling, the pate spread, and the pickles made him want to eat three sandwiches a day without getting tired of them.
"In the following days, I got to try more varieties of bread, from Hoi An bread, bread dipped in milk, to pillow-shaped bread. They were all delicious, despite the differences in sweetness and saltiness," he recounted.
Because time was limited on that trip, Keiichi regretted not being able to try more dishes. Even so, when he boarded the plane back home, he still managed to grab a few loaves of bread.
Upon returning home, he searched for places selling Vietnamese banh mi. But even after trying more than 20 shops, Keiichi still found none that tasted as good as the banh mi sold in Vietnam. Three months later, he bought a ticket to return to the country.
Keiichii traveled to Ninh Binh in June 2022. Photo: Provided by the subject.
This time, he decided to travel alone from South to North Vietnam for a month to fulfill his desire to "eat authentic Vietnamese food," focusing on signature dishes of each region such as noodle soup, mixed rice paper salad, crab noodle soup, pho, snail noodle soup, and draft beer. "Some days I eat 6-7 meals, other days I eat rice rolls while drinking more than 6 cans of Hanoi beer, and eat three or four cups of sweet soup at once without getting tired of it," he said.
Keiichi said he loves Vietnamese food so much that even dishes with strong smells like bun dau mam tom (vermicelli with tofu and shrimp paste) and durian, which almost made him vomit the first time he tried them, are now addictive. "I have to eat one durian every month now; I can't go without it," he said.
But Keiichi said that food was just a guide to his love of Vietnamese culture, especially the Vietnamese way of life. He was surprised by how many people commuted by motorbike, causing traffic jams; the sight of goods piled high on tiny motorbikes; and even the Vietnamese habit of taking afternoon naps—things he had never experienced in Japan. "In Vietnam, there's even a matchmaking culture; I feel embarrassed whenever adults introduce their daughters to me," he said.
On his last day in Vietnam, he spent a few hours sitting at a sidewalk cafe in Ho Chi Minh City before reluctantly returning home with the ao dai he had just bought. "I miss Vietnam so much every time I have to leave this place. Sometimes, after only a few days back in Japan, I buy a ticket to go again. I love how Vietnamese people are so close-knit and supportive of each other," Keiichi said.
Keiichi takes a cyclo ride around Ho Guom pedestrian street in Hanoi, December 2022. Photo: Provided by the subject.
And so, Keiichi's love for Vietnam grew stronger. His visits to Vietnam became more frequent. Since the beginning of 2023, he has been coming once or twice a month because he enjoys interacting and chatting with Vietnamese people.
Despite traveling extensively, what displeased the Japanese man was his limited Vietnamese language skills. Whenever he wanted to speak Vietnamese or compose and sing songs clearly, he felt helpless due to his lack of fluency. Finally, in September 2023, Keiichi decided to settle in Ho Chi Minh City to study and better understand the local culture.
Having been infatuated with Vietnam for over five years, he became widely known as Vietnam Kun through videos that garnered millions of views, featuring him enjoying Vietnamese food, admiring the beautiful scenery, and singing popular Vietnamese songs in Japanese. "In Japanese, 'Kun' is used to address a boy by his name. Instead of 'Keiichi Kun,' I wanted to use 'Vietnam Kun' so people would remember me as a guy who loves Vietnam," he explained.
Keiichi said he celebrated New Year's Day in Vietnam instead of returning home to reunite with his family. The sight of crowds gathering in the city center for music events and watching fireworks together made him feel like everyone was one big family, and he felt a sense of warmth and happiness spreading through him.
"I've lived in Vietnam through all four seasons—spring, summer, autumn, and winter—but I've never celebrated the traditional Lunar New Year. This year, I'll stay here to celebrate," he said. Previously, on Valentine's Day (February 14th) or Vietnamese Women's Day (October 20th), he would often give roses to Vietnamese people he encountered on the streets of Japan. He also dressed in Grab uniforms and challenged people to give away Vietnamese instant noodles and Japanese sweets to hundreds of Vietnamese people.
Keiichi organized a flower-giving event for Vietnamese women in Japan on October 20, 2023, to celebrate Vietnamese Women's Day. Photo: Provided by the subject.
The young man admitted to feeling a little anxious upon hearing that the Lunar New Year is a time for rest, shops will close, and everyone will return to their hometowns to be with their families. However, thinking about participating in the experience of making banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes), eating jellied meat and pickled onions, or watching traditional festivals—things that only happen during Tet—made him happy again.
"I might ask to spend Tet (Vietnamese New Year) at the homes of some close Vietnamese friends. Seeing the streets bustling with activity as Tet approaches, with people buying peach blossoms and decorations, fills me with excitement and anticipation," Keiichi said. "This culture is completely absent in Japan, making me appreciate my time studying in Vietnam even more."
"I am happy to receive so much love from Vietnamese people. Through these videos and my experiences in Vietnam, I hope to be a bridge connecting Vietnamese and Japanese cultures, both now and in the future," Keiichi shared.
Thanh Nga - Vnexpress.net
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