Hi Hiver,
Today Da Nang has nice sunny weather, suitable for going to coffee, meeting some friends, or finding a quiet corner to listen to familiar music. Da Nang is like Da Lat in that there are many coffee shops with spacious, airy, close to nature, or for those who want to find a bit of nostalgia. Sometimes a space with lots of trees around it, and some old music up there, is something we can hardly find in the hectic pace of life today.
Today I want to take you to a small very familiar corner in Da Nang – NAM House Coffee.
Every item, every corner at NAM's house is a storyteller, a place where beautiful memories of the past are kept, a place for people to think about a time gone by.
This coffee shop is particular in that it is a family of 3 generations attached to coffee. They opened the coffee shop right here in their old house. Therefore, the decoration of the house is in the old style, with the red moss roof last year, the yellow walls faded over time. The young people come here to enjoy their delicious coffee and have space to meet friends. So they all have something in common about finding a place to store familiar things close to their childhood, things that are very difficult to find again.
The coffee shop is located in a small alley on Le Hong Phong Street, right in Hai Chau District, the city center. That makes the cafe even more special and attracts customers. The 2-floor house, which is a space displaying artifacts, tables, chairs, paintings in the style of the early years of the 20th century, is an ideal place for those who like old things and look nostalgic. Taking the idea from houses with the ancient style of Vietnamese people, the owner uses the materials available in life to make decorations.
The house is not just a place to stay, but also reflects people's thoughts and way of life. According to the flow of time, the old house has changed many times. However, no matter the era, the intertwining between architectural hardware and life software needs to be enhanced, associated with Vietnamese cultural identity.
The village is quiet, the house is therefore small, hidden. Not coincidentally, houses, fences, banks become images of peaceful villages, very typical of rural Vietnam. The traditional house fold, derived from the need for accommodation and living, is very rich and diverse, each region often has some type of structure.
Compared to today's structure, traditional Vietnamese houses are small in size. This size expresses his father's aesthetic conception. First of all, if you put the space in the house in relation to the architecture of the village, village gates, temples, temples..., all are small, hidden. This is very important. His father used to take grace and discreet beauty to show off to his life, so the stalls were often hidden in the overall architecture of the garden. Because it is small, everything becomes graceful, beautiful, it is an Asian aesthetic.
When talking about the old house, it is impossible not to mention the great beauty in harmony with nature. The house is now a deposit of human love for the outside world, more specifically, it is human with nature. In the olden days, his father thought, the man was a subuniverse, always in the grand universe was the outside world.
The house is designed to be both open and spacious without dividing between the spaces and between the house and the outside. In winter, the house lay in silence as the wind rushed through the roof, gliding through the garden. In summer, the house is open, there are hundreds of places to take in the air, catch the fresh wind passing through the garden.
Stepping inside the house, bare feet of mocking sweat touched the floor of the house and the ground was both cool and showed harmony and exchange with nature. For those reasons, the image is considered rich, self-existent in the eyes of the ancient people: in the morning, sitting at the main booth enjoying a cup of tea or green tea; at noon, a hammock between two rows of columns to rest; in the afternoon, the whole family gathered; in the evening, bring the bamboo chair to the terrace to watch the stars and the wind.
It is the elegant pleasure of the countryside that today is becoming a luxury. The house, thus becoming an inheritance passed down for generations, for hundreds of years. This also reflects another, very beautiful aspect of Vietnamese spirituality, which is the convergence of minds, talents, and ideas of many generations in a material structure. Heir often lives in appreciation for the conception of the previous generation.
This inheritance has made the traditional house sustainable for thousands of years, even if the house is renewed, the old concept remains preserved. Well, the yin and yang roofs are simple, not fussy, the porch is modest and simple but all are hidden inside the source and tradition. From here, it can be called, the house is a piece of soul, a memory, a family sentiment pampered from the life of the Vietnamese.
It is clearly shown from the color of the walls or the pattern on the glazed stone floor. Gives the viewer a sense of return to his childhood, the days tied to every little corner of the house, to the trees in front of the yard, to the neighboring friend. The first steps when you enter the South House, you will come across familiar images like televisions, radios, cameras, books...which are now mementos of time, displayed at the reception desk, or at the window.
On the wall are black and white photos of the authors and artists of the time. NAM House brings guests the closest, simple but simple things from old-time wooden chairs, sewing machine tables, dry vases, black and white photos, or straws placed in the corner of the shop have a very old, casual, and unusual decoration style. All decorative styles are exquisitely arranged to create a multi-style picture for each perspective. The bar also has a bookshelf on which are stained old books, for those who want to bury their head in the page while sipping a cup of coffee.
Distinguished by lightness and tranquility, it's where guests look as a stopover to go back in time, to find something that's passed. It's like a point of connection, a point of connection of space and time, between the present and the past, and as a time machine that brings us back to ancient times. Another special thing is that Zheng often plays music here, which is deep and lyrical music, through the years with Vietnamese generations.
Music is not only to be enjoyed, but it also contains lessons, deep philosophies within. If this life is an endless school of poetry, then perhaps, the sharing, giving lifestyle is forever a deep note containing deep human values about human behavior.
And the familiar lyrics of the late musician Trinh Cong Son conveyed such a respectable message. Giving is how we share, help someone materially or spiritually. Giving makes us happier, loves our lives, makes ourselves more complete, feels more meaningful in this life.
This life has many unhappy pieces, they need a lot of fire from us, sometimes it's just a tight fist, shoulder clap, comfort, encouragement that also helps them. How wonderful life will be when every human being is willing to give, to share with those around him. Happiness will last forever if every day we are willing to spread love and help people around us.
And how much better life would be if everyone could carry such a love in their heart and be willing to give more. Drinks in NAM House are quite plentiful, the price as I see it is quite affordable in accordance with the excellent location of the bar. I have tried the peach milk tea here, generally drink quite well, the peach is very fresh, drink with a fresh taste and sometimes do not get tired. Try coming and enjoying a drink with these novel combination recipes. Visitors are mostly people who like nostalgia and old things. Sitting in the idyllic space together with listening to carefully selected old music, Nam House will give you the feeling of sitting on a time machine going back to the past. Go to NAM House as a way to go back and remember the past in the noisy and hectic life.
I really enjoyed my time at NAM House Coffee. I hope to be able to share with you more interesting places.
Thanks for stopping by, see you soon!