The journey of a South African man to Hue City to eat a bowl of beef noodle soup

Traveling to many places in Vietnam, seeing beef noodle shops everywhere, Robin Van Wyk thought this dish would be very delicious so he decided to go to Hue city (Thua Thien - Hue province) to enjoy it.

Walking with... the guitar

Robin Van Wyk (26 years old), from South Africa, is a street artist with more than 40,000 followers on YouTube. At the end of October 2023, the young man posted a video on his personal YouTube page about his journey from Da Nang City to Hue City to enjoy beef noodle soup with many interesting experiences.

Robin brought his guitar with him on his journey to Hue City.

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Starting from Linh Ung Pagoda, Da Nang City, Robin started his journey on foot to Hue City to eat beef noodle soup. To finance the trip, the South African man went to a market to earn money by playing the guitar.

Along the way, seeing Robin walking alone without any means of transportation, many people asked about him and helped him by offering free rides, taking him to the beach, drinking coffee and giving him water to take with him. Listening to Robin play, some people donated 5,000 or 10,000 VND, enough for him to buy a portion of rice and eggs to fill his stomach.

Robin said that by noon, the sun was hot and he was exhausted, so he stood under a tree to look for a ride. Luckily, he met a group of young people who were on their way to Hue City and agreed to give them a ride across Hai Van Pass.

"Honestly, I didn't think I could go to Hue City because it's 100km from Da Nang City, but my friends took me all the way here, and now I'm in the center of this city," Robin shared.

In Hue, Robin said that when he was seen walking on the street, many people asked him questions. Even though they knew he had no money, they did not hesitate to say: "I'll take you wherever you go, it doesn't cost anything."

"How old are you? Are you married? You look funny."

When he arrived in Vietnam, Robin learned Vietnamese so he could communicate with people at a basic level. On the way to Dong Ba market (Hue City), the young man said he met an elderly woman resting on the bridge, and the two had an impressive conversation.

"How old are you? Are you married? You look funny? Are there happy people in South Africa?", this person asked. Robin replied: "There are many, some are very poor, but have big hearts, have no money but have love. Just like in Vietnam, some are poor, some are miserable, some are rich. Is it good in Vietnam?".

The Hue woman replied: "There are good and bad people everywhere, just peace and happiness. Peace is a life without any unexpected events, happiness is a safe life, a stable career, not doing anything dishonest, not stealing, cheating, or engaging in social evils. And we help the poor."

Before saying goodbye to the old woman, Robin thanked her and took out some money to share with her. This was the money that everyone had given him for travel expenses earlier.

The chance encounter between Robin and an elderly woman in Hue City gives the young man many life lessons.

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In the afternoon, Robin said he continued to go to the market to play the guitar to earn money to buy beef noodle soup. This was a dish that the young man was looking forward to, because wherever he went in Vietnam, he saw beef noodle soup shops and thought this dish must have something very special.

When he had money for dinner, the South African tourist was taken by a man named Phu to a local restaurant to enjoy Bun Bo Hue. Robin said that the feeling of eating a bowl of Bun Bo Hue in Hue City was very delicious. He remembered that while eating, he kept praising: "So delicious!".

Robin wanted to invite Mr. Phu to this meal because he had earned a lot of money, but the man in Hue firmly refused. Mr. Phu told Robin: "If you have a lot of money, stay in a hotel tonight, don't stay outside, it's raining and cold, you might get sick, it's not good. Take good care of yourself."

After traveling about 100 km from Da Nang, Robin had a meal of Hue beef noodle soup with Mr. Phu.

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Mr. Tran Dang Trung Nam (30 years old, from Quang Ngai province), currently a freelancer, traveling to many places by car, said he met Robin about a month ago. At that time, Mr. Nam and his friend were traveling from Da Nang city to Hue city when they met a foreign guy hitchhiking.

"I often meet and interact with many foreigners in Vietnam so I'm used to it and not shy. When I met Robin, he was only wearing shorts and a tank top, with simple luggage. I asked Robin about the purpose of his trip. He said he wanted to walk and explore everywhere, but there was a pass ahead so he had to ask for help. I saw that he was going in the same direction as the group so I gave him a ride. This guy is also a pretty cool guest, he wants to do what he likes," said Mr. Tran Dang Trung Nam.

Mr. Tran Dang Trung Nam (far left) and his friends took a souvenir photo with Robin when they arrived in Hue City.

BISKO

After watching the video posted by Robin Van Wyk, in addition to the beautiful scenery and the young man's interesting journey, viewers were also impressed with the sincere feelings and enthusiastic help of Vietnamese people for the foreign guest.

Many people left comments under the South African guy's video: "The people are so emotional and sincere, everyone is really lovely"; "your journey is very genuine and simple, Vietnamese people are always friendly and willing to help if possible"; "so many positive images from people to landscapes"; "proud of the hospitable Vietnamese people, appreciate you for being honest and kind"...

Thanhnien.vn