The Book of Hang Bot Street, a 'trivial' story to remember
Hang Bot Street, a "trivial" story that takes readers on a journey to discover the history of Hang Bot: from delicious food, Hang Bot people with a subsidy period of many jobs to make a living, to the games of children in the past.
The most typical features of Hang Bot are all in the book - from geography, customs to human classes.
Spend my whole life loving Hang Bot street
Ho Cong Thiet's memories of Hang Bot street are associated with Mrs. Quang's rice rolls, Mrs. Ba's vermicelli with grilled pork, Tuyet Hang Bot pho, the noodle shop in Van Chuong Hang Bot alley; houses on the street, doing all kinds of jobs...
Writing about the pen carving and ink filling profession of Hang Bot youth during the subsidy period, he humorously said: "In the early days when Nam had the additional job of filling ink for ballpoint pens, our group sometimes had to run out and stand behind him like bodyguards to prevent customers from... beating him.
Because sometimes, there are customers who come to demand compensation, holding pens covered in ink or sometimes even wearing shirts covered in ink.
Because the ink used was waste ink, it was very thin and kept flowing inside the pen, seeping out. At that time, Nam had no experience and did not know how to inject glue into the ink cartridge of a ballpoint pen.
It's called glue for show, but in fact, it's said to be made by mixing glutinous rice flour into a paste and then injecting it into the bottom of the ink tube. There's a glue that stops the ink from flowing and its reputation skyrockets."
When asked why he only wrote about Hanoi with the corner of Hang Bot street, author Ho Cong Thiet expressed that he wanted to write about his memories of this place: "I believe that like all the streets starting with the word "Hang" in Hanoi, Hang Bot street alone is enough for me to spend my whole life learning about and loving it."
Writer Chau La Viet commented: "Author Ho Cong Thiet has been attached to Hang Bot since his childhood, loves that street to the point of being fascinated by every roof and every alley to write this book. He understands Hanoi in great detail, and writes in great detail, captivatingly, and enthusiastically."
Mr. Viet also saw himself as a child many times when reading Ho Cong Thiet's writings about children's games, "typical of the streets" of the time, such as digging for bullets to make match guns, playing shuttlecock, playing marbles, playing marbles...
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/pho-hang-bot-chuyen-tam-phao-ma-nho-2025061009430478.htm
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