On the corner of Nguyen Trai Street in Ho Chi Minh City, an 81-year-old woman known as \"Ba Hai\" sells banh mi. She trades words with foreign customers in fluent English and French, and her character and language skills have won over travelers. She learned English and French at school as a child and has kept honing them through years of conversation with foreign customers.<\/p>\n
She opens the stall around 8 a.m. each morning, and the 30 to 40 banh mi she makes herself sell out by about 9. She remembers faces and preferences, and her service\u2014swiftly handing regulars their usual order\u2014has earned her a reputation.<\/p>\n
The stall stands on a corner of Nguyen Trai Street in Ho Chi Minh City. It opens around 8 a.m. every day. She wakes at 4 in the morning to prep ingredients, gets everything ready at home, and then carries it to the stall. She makes about 30 to 40 a day, and they sell out by around 9.<\/p>\n
Ba Hai's charm lies in her language skills. She learned English and French at school in childhood and has kept her abilities sharp through daily exchanges with foreign customers ever since. She remembers customers' faces and favorite orders, and sometimes even receives gifts from regulars. One customer, an Indonesian who teaches English in the An Lac district, first visited in 2012 and moved to Vietnam in 2019.<\/p>\n
The prices and contents of the banh mi can be summarized as follows.<\/p>\n