The strange changes of the city I love!

(Baonghean) - If my brother and sister had not explained it in detail, I would never have recognized the small city of Vinh that I have been attached to since I was a baby. After 21 years away from my homeland, I have returned to the arms of my relatives! After the emotional tearful moment when my brothers and sisters, uncle and nephew met at the airport, I kept going from one surprise to another, because of the images of Vinh today. Surprised by the strange changes of my homeland!

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Where are the winding, dusty dirt roads with the hot Lao wind of the scorching summer afternoons? Where are the rows of red-leafed banyan trees, the brilliant royal poinciana trees, the cicadas chirping in the alleys and schoolyards every summer? Where are the bamboo bushes in the heart of the city of my childhood?

A wedding procession through Vinh Citadel. Photo: Sach Nguyen

Where are the small ponds – born from the time of bombs and bullets, where I used to fish? Where are the simple and affectionate thatched roofs? Where are the silhouettes of the Thong Nhat and Phuong Hoang bicycles that we used to “plow” on every street of the beloved Vinh city? Where is the fragrant eel porridge shop of Mrs. Luong (Ward 4)?

Where is the Vinh market with its noisy, half-provincial, half-rural style at every market session? Where is the Cua Dong cinema where we sometimes stopped by to watch the “hot” movies of that time: “17th Parallel Day and Night”, “The Flip Card Game”, “Lights Out”,…?

Where is the People's Theater along the way to Ben Thuy that we used to sneak into to "watch music shows" when we were playing street soccer? Where is the fragile Cua Tien bridge with its two towering pillars, where there is a hamlet of 3 with thatched houses and bamboo walls where, when we were children, every time we listened to Hue songs, we still felt nostalgic for the fishing village by the river.

My Vinh now is modern, fresh, and also overwhelming, bustling… I feel like I am lost on the streets of Hue, Da Nang, Saigon. No. That Vinh. The city has truly transformed! Towering buildings with dozens of floors, 4, 5-story buildings like weaving. Shops and restaurants are full of lights with colorful billboards of all kinds. Magnificent offices. Vinh Train Station, Vinh Bus Station… are also completely different from the past.

Trading scene at Vinh market. Photo: Nguyen Sach

The green trees along the road were neatly trimmed and eye-catching. The streets were wider and more spacious than before. Motorbikes of all colors, both domestic and foreign, crowded the streets. And there were a lot of cars, luxury cars, high-end cars.

Vinh now is no longer the Vinh of more than 20 years ago. There was a time when I did not even dare to think about finding the houses of my old friends. Because this is extremely difficult, the traces of the old years have faded with time. It is truly unimaginable!

As my friends abroad told me after returning to Vietnam: “You will be very surprised when you return to your hometown! After being gone for so long, now you are back, confused, like a country boy going to the city?” At that time, I laughed and said: “Hmm, Vinh and I can find the place we need to find even with our eyes closed! Is there any place in “Thuong Cau Ram, Ha Ben Thuy” that doesn’t have my footprints?”

When my classmates in grades 9 and 10 heard that I was returning to the country, they organized a lively reunion to reminisce about the past and the present. It seemed that everyone was mature and had become grandparents! They also teased me: If you return to Vinh now, aren’t you like a Martian visiting Earth?

My brother said: “Vinh is now a first-class city, expanding to several communes of the two neighboring districts of Nghi Loc and Hung Nguyen…”. No wonder. Many streets are so strange. The roads are as horizontal and vertical as a chessboard, very different from the past. Luckily, there are still students who love street football like us when we were children. Unfortunately, we have not had the opportunity to go to the city stadium to watch the Song Lam Nghe An football team play. There are probably no longer the large wooden boards that used to be used as seats for spectators, and every flood season, we students made rafts to play mock battles!

My sister smiled and said: “You haven’t come back for a long time, Vinh has changed his clothes!” For example, Ho Chi Minh Square is so spacious and majestic that it covers the whole view… Then Chung Mountain, a replica of the statue of Uncle Ho, is also a work with great effort. The Labor Club, Quang Trung apartment building, 12/9 cinema… nestle modestly next to the youngest high-rise buildings, but “the younger generation is formidable”.

One thing that I can easily see is that people's lives have improved a lot. Daily meals are less difficult than before. It seems that food and clothing are no longer constant concerns like when I was at home. However, there are still people who are really worried about making ends meet every day when their salaries are still low.

Quang Trung apartment complex in the season of falling leaves. Photo: Viet Son

The transformation has made the face of Vinh city, my hometown, much more beautiful. The Lam River still flows gently and slowly as it has for generations... Ben Thuy Bridge has a "younger brother" next to it, although it is not as magnificent as its "older brother", because in my personal opinion: Why don't we add a wavy bridge that is both beautiful and ensures safety for vehicles?

Our country has never been so beautiful! My heart is still filled with indescribable emotions as I count each step up the steps of the Temple of Emperor Quang Trung - Nguyen Hue… on Quyet Mountain!

When I and some of my close friends from grade 9 and 10 in Vinh high school stood respectfully bowing before the statue of King Quang Trung (next to his father and mother) in the main hall, many thoughts arose in my mind about him. I kept thinking that if he had lived a few more decades, history might have been different. Vinh would have been a new capital of the country. It is a pity that he passed away so suddenly, leaving behind so many unfinished works.

…Walking around the spacious streets of Vinh city today after many years of separation to make a living in a foreign land, my heart is filled with so many emotions that are hard to describe…

Vo Hoai Nam

(Overseas Vietnamese in Moscow - Russian Federation)