I went to Rite Aid this afternoon to purchase a Mother’s Day card for Me Gia (old mommy in Vietnamese). We are an Asian family that displays little affection so finding an appropriate card took about 30 minutes. Other Mother’s Day card shoppers came and went as I scanned practically every single card. The funny ones with animals turned out to be for kids to give their moms. The cards with music had American songs that my Vietnamese mother wouldn’t identify with. I finally found a simple one that spoke to her willingness to sacrifice and support her children – martyrdom is her motherly mantra.
As I drove home, I thought why not drag out some of her old photos and share them? Most of these are neat shots from Vietnam. My mom, Tuyet Thi Nguyen (Nguyen Thi Tuyet for purists who like to see the correct Viet ordering of a person’s name) was a real babe born in 1935 in Hai Duong, a town near Hanoi.
She and her most of her siblings migrated to Saigon in 1954 after the country split into North and South Vietnam. That’s her (on the right) in the above photo walking with her older sister in 1955 Saigon. They looked like they had a bit of attitude.
In 1958, she married my father, Hoang Quoc Nguyen (Nguyen Quoc Hoang) in Saigon at the Notre Dame Cathedral in District 1. The church looks very much the same today as it did over 50 years ago. Yikes, my parents have been married for a long time.
During Me Gia's first years of being married, she was a 'first lady' of sorts. My dad was the military governor of Phan Thiet province (renowned for its fish sauce) in the early 1960s. They lived in the governor’s home where Mom directed a staff that included two cooks, oversaw state dinners, and mastered Vietnamese and French cooking. She also had my three sisters. My dad retired from military service in 1963 and the family returned to Saigon. Below is the young family in Phan Thiet.
From there on in, my mother was a model superwoman before the term was ever coined. She worked at USAID, sewed her own clothing, and managed a household that included five kids, a cook, nanny, and driver. Back then, Mom drove a car through the streets of Saigon too!
As you may know, things got extra rough for Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s. My father planned an escape by sea so my mother stayed up late at night, secretly sewing life jackets for each of us. They were not sold in Vietnam at the time so she acquired the materials and made them herself.
We ended up leaving by plane so the jackets were not necessary. We arrived in California in April 1975 and my parents have stayed there ever since. My mother is one of the most determined, straightforward people I know. She’s a no-nonsense and no-apologies kind of woman. She maintains all of her grace and dignity through thick and thin. To this day, she wears her hair in a complex bun that echoes the style worn by traditional Vietnamese woman. She’s worn it that way ever since she got married.
My mother’s adherence to food traditions is what influenced me as a young cook. Learn and understand the basics before you get to fool around – that’s what she taught me. Nowadays, we trade cooking techniques and share knowledge. Every time I come home, she’s got some nifty dish that’s she’s keen on serving me. So while she champions traditional Vietnamese foodways, she’s always looking out for modern flavors.
So that’s my mama. Who’s your mama? Tell us a little something about your mom -- whether she is Viet or not!
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO EVERYONE!
A few past posts involving my mom:
- Mama Says: Collection of Viet cooking tips (from none other than my mother)
- My mother's kitchen quirks
- Mom's obsession with ice cream scoops and industrial cooking
- Vietnamese Rice and Pork Pyramid Dumplings (banh gio; my mom gives a little video cooking lesson; this post resides on AsianDumplingTips.com)
Crimsonfancy
she's beautiful. keep up the great work!
Rosa
A lovely post! Your mother is beautiful
Cheers,
Rosa
Laura from Silk Road Gourmet
That was a lovely tribute Andrea!
I hope your own brood honors you in such a way as well.
Laura
Sara
Thank you for this great post. I'm always blown away by the courage and determination of parents to give their kids a better life, especially if it means completely uprooting and starting over in a new home.
Pam Carlson
Hi, Giao. What a beautiful tribute to a very dedicated and beautiful mother. You made me ponder my own late mother's special attributes. Thank you.
Pam
Nancie McDermott
Love this idea, these photographs shimmer with feeling and meaning, even though I don't know a soul in them, except little Andrea of course, and came up on another chunk of this planet earth. They sound the bells, though, for me and my people and places, and what a moving and precious gift on a spring morning in 2011. Your tribute to her dual gifts (keeping traditions in the kitchen and also enjoying exploring new kitchen paths) says it all in terms of what I love about food and cooking. Happy Mother's Day to her and all the moms.
Autumn
These photographs remind me of my mother's, which I have begun to sift through in an effort to scan and preserve some of these precious images of her so young. She came to America from Vietnam with my older sister in 1974, just the two of them. She's the best lady I know, who worked hard her whole life to make ours a better one.
Love the photographs!
PS. I read about your mother's kitchen quirks, and laughed out loud since my mother has many of the same habits!I didn't even know how to use a dishwasher growing up--I assumed everyone used theirs for storage!
Andrea Nguyen
So glad that you all enjoyed the photos and story. We were a lucky, well-fed family! It's definitely a time to think about moms, being a mother, women we admire -- all those good things.
I think my mom will be reading this as my dad prints out pertinent posts for her!
Angel David
wonderful tribute, we need to thank our mom for the things they done to us. Their love and support are priceless.
Lalitha
She is very beautiful
Tina Pham
Your mother is beautiful!!! I love your blog and your books! You are are a true inspiration!
James M
really enjoy this blog. I work in catering also so interested in the food side of things.
chopinandmysaucepan
You have a beautiful looking family Andrea.
I want to put up some old pis of my family too, just a reminder of how far we have come and those days just seemed like yesterday, yet another reminder of how time flies!
Safety glasses
I can see here so many best photography.These all are family Photos with Mom and Dad.I like to see these all one.
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happy mothers day, i think that it should be a week or month instead of a day..!!the choice and content of topic was great...i like it..thanks for the nice share..
embroidered polo shirts
Happy Mother's day.These all photography are very best with whole family.Happy for it.
Na
wow. your mother is beautiful. True beauty indeed
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Such Great and Awesome sharing it is and i like to see these all Family Pictures too much.Its good for the Mother's Day.Best One.
mbt online
That was my thought,too.
Thu Trang
Your mom has the exact same name as my mom 🙂
QUI TRAN THI Trần Thị Quí
Happy for you have a wonderful MẸ GIÀ (old mama). She is a very nice and distinguished lady that i admired her from the first moment i met her,i love her too.
You shoud be proud falling softly all around her,shining gently deep within you.
QUI TRAN THI Trần Thị Quí
Happy for you have a wonderful MẸ GIÀ (old mama). She is a very nice and distinguished lady that i admired her from the first moment i met her,i love her too.
You shoud be proud falling softly all around her,shining gently deep within you.
QUI TRAN THI Trần Thị Quí
Happy for you have a wonderful MẸ GIÀ (old mama). She is a very nice and distinguished lady that i admired her from the first moment i met her,i love her too.
You shoud be proud falling softly all around her,shining gently deep within you.
QUI TRAN THI Trần Thị Quí
Happy for you have a wonderful MẸ GIÀ (old mama). She is a very nice and distinguished lady that i admired her from the first moment i met her,i love her too.
You shoud be proud falling softly all around her,shining gently deep within you.
Andrea Nguyen
Dear Bac Qui, Thank you for posting a comment on Viet World Kitchen. You have known my Me Gia for a long time. Thank you for all the information and tips on Viet food over the years.
I am very flattered and honored to have your contribution to this site and elsewhere too!
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we talk much,we love only a little,and we hate too much.
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Love can neither be bought or sold.
Christian Louboutin
Not to advance is to go back.
Mr. Cooking Grill
You have to believe in yourself. That’s the secret of success.
marlon
They were not sold in Vietnam at the time so she acquired the materials and made them herself.
TankTNT
Was there no affectionate cheek-sniffing in your family? (The cheeks on the face, btw!) We all nosekiss each other so much I will forever have my family's smell ingrained in me, and we're a big affectionate family as a result. I always thought it was a weird Vietnamese thing, but I guess it isn't as common as I'd thought.
james l
my parents are from phan thiet as well! as soon as i saw that famous building in the background of one of your pictures i knew right away. 🙂