Western people eat cake and drink tea

From the ancestral altar, the evening porch corner, to the lively conversations, tea is present everywhere, like the breath of home.

Eating cake and drinking tea is a cultural feature imbued with the countryside, a bond that connects generations of people in the swamps and seas.

Người miền Tây ăn bánh uống trà - Ảnh 1.

Since childhood, I have been familiar with the taste of tea through the pot of sweet tea brought to school. As I grew up, the aroma of tea became more intense, like a picture of the countryside drawn from memory.

In the summer afternoon, my mother would turn the cakes over the wood stove, and brew fragrant pandan tea, just like my grandmother did in the past. The pandan tea was stored in an old Guigoz milk can. My grandmother often told me: "After brewing, the tea must be kept in a coconut shell pot to keep the heat and aroma longer." That pot was a keepsake left by my grandfather. Therefore, my grandmother treasured it and was attached to it.

I remember clearly the moment when the whole family gathered together, sharing each piece of crispy cake, sipping a cup of mildly bitter tea. The taste of tea lingered on the tip of the tongue, mixed with the sweet and fatty taste of the cake, creating a feeling of comfort and delight. The cheerful laughter, simple stories from the countryside over a cup of tea and a piece of cake, became a family tradition, a link of love through many generations.

Over the past five years, without my grandmother, the moments of eating cake and drinking tea are no longer complete. But my mother still maintains the old tradition, always adding fresh pandan leaves to the tea, and putting it in a coconut shell pot. Each sip of tea reminds me of my grandmother, of the warm old days.

Not only my family, but also the neighbors, everyone drinks tea as an indispensable habit. Westerners go to the fields, down to the garden, always bring a pot of cold iced tea, and hot tea lingers on the porch.

No matter where I go, I cannot forget the taste of family affection wrapped in the aroma of tea and cake. Family laughter, the mild bitterness of tea, the rich sweetness of cake - all are profound, like a nostalgic song about a Western region filled with love. They keep coming back in my memory. Deep. Unforgettable.

( Entry to the contest "Impressions of Vietnamese coffee and tea" under the program "Honoring Vietnamese coffee and tea" for the 3rd time, 2025 organized by Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper).