The heat of April and a day with Mút - a hot boy!

It was very hot in Saigon in April, the temp. up to 36-38oC, unbearably hot that I didn't want to do anything, to go anywhere....Yeah, it probably explained why no post on this blog since my last one in early April! But in this April's heat, if going out, it could be better than just sitting like a dead man in the room, even with the air-con. Anyway, I got a call from my friend, he suggested to spend the holiday at his "dacha" (a holiday house in the country), by the lake. I was happy to say "Yes, i'm on my way!".

                 Our little hero of today story - Mút, 5 year old, welcomed me, in front of his chicken kingdom. 


I have been  in my friend's "dacha" few times, but every time I got there, I always found something new: the trees getting taller, greener and started giving fruits: a lot of mangos, papayas, plums..., the chicken seemed happier as they got a freedom to walk around the garden...and Mút, our little hero, already learnt how to ride the bike, speaks better French...But first let's have a quick look at what I found new around the house by the lake with Mút.

             
The pond full of water, a lot of gold fish in here, along the lake...last time when I've been here, the pond was still under construction, looked like a big mess...

                     
And here the pond, the bridge...this view from where I was standing by the lake...it was so peaceful in the morning!

                   The house behind the trees...

I haven't seen Mút since his birthday party last July. He grew up, looked very fit with his tanned skin, always full of energy, he was so happy to see me as his friend, he followed me everywhere like my shadow but when his other little friends came, I quickly became a forgotten side dish! He got his little bike and loved to race with someone! His father was tired to run after the boy, so decided to get a bike for himself. Father and son in the race!

I told Mút "if you want to race with me tomorrow morning, you should be up at 6:30 sharp!" Next morning to my surprise this little boy amazingly was up even at 6:00, ready for the race! Usually it was almost impossible to get him out from bed earlier than 7:00 by weekend. Kids love to play!

                        Mút was excited to show how he did a "fast furious brake" on his bike!  

I took my friend's bike, Mút's father, and rode on it, together with this young boy, we did a bike race around the farm...Cu Mút was perfectly riding on his bike, he knew how to do every turn safely! He seemed love the speed same as his father. He asked me to send the photo I took when he was on his bike, to his little girlfriend in the class. No idea how to send it! Mút still loved to play "Police and Criminal", he was a policeman and chased after me - a criminal...and this young boy could cry if I tried to escape from him!

                       
Afternoon, it was hot, we tried to get a nap after riding, later we decided to find a new game - feeding the fish in the pond, Mút quickly ran for the fish food and he generously threw a whole big bowl of fish food into the pond ! I also took a small boat, tried to ride in the pond but I finally gave up - not a good rider!

                         Mút looked like a model on catwalk...    

                          and quickly turned into a kungfu master! 

Living by the lake was awesome: the fresh air, the evening cool breeze, the water sound, the sunset right in front of your house, the midnight boat riding, the night fishing, the swimming in the lake...my friend has some big canoes, jet ski that from time to time he loved to ride with friends. I experienced once...I quite liked it! Mút surely will love to sit on it, behind his dad, to enjoy the speedy ride.

                        Mút followed his dad into the lake for swimming, he seemed never get tired! 

                        Ready to swim...

                  And once he was in the water, his game seemed never ended... 

               

Mút loved those Haribo candies that I brought him...and he also told me "You look at the dog, uncle, the dog always keeps some leaf on his snout", I paid attention to this dog, during my stay there and it was true - the dog never seen without the leaf"

Time for diner. Cu Mút's mom is a terrific chef, she loves to cook and cooks many good dishes, she's very keen on details, quality foods...The rice noodles with grilled pork was so delicious... 

                        Rice noodles with grilled pork 

                           just to pour the fish sauce over it and...ready! 

                        Mút was a kid that used to have a problem while eating.... 

                     but to my surprise, now he could eat by himself and quickly finish his meal...

                     His favourite dish was beef noodles in Huế style - and look at his big bowl! 

                                Preparing for the night ride...

My friend loved to ride the boat in the evening, he got totally four boats: two big canoes and two wooden boats with engine. We did a midnight fishing last year, but this time, during the heat of April, we prefer to ride the boat at night, then turn off the engine, let the boat floating freely by the stream....and we either sit or lay down to enjoy the cool breeze, the fresh air, the music sound from the water...and the moon! I did ask my friend how deep the lake, he said "along the shore - 2-3m deep, but here, where we were in the middle of the lake, 20-30m! Oh dear, I better sit still!