Despite having their own house, Ms. Hue and her husband have remained attached to a “room” of only 5m2 under the stairs of An Quang apartment building (District 10, Ho Chi Minh City) for the past 34 years.
An Quang Apartment, District 10, Ho Chi Minh City was built in 1968, now there are about 900 households living here. Many people, because they cannot afford to buy an apartment or a house, choose to live under the stairs of apartment blocks, in which the family of Mr. and Mrs. Pham Quang Lieu (56 years old) and Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hue (53 years old). the age).
In 1987, Mrs. Hue used 2.5 gold thread to buy back the area under the stairs of block C of An Quang apartment building until now.
“In the past, I did not have enough money to buy an apartment, so I decided to buy under the stairs of a person who lived before to live, and did not have any purchase or sale documents, people agreed to sell and move, then the My family moved in, it’s been 34 years,” said Ms. Hue.
For more than 20 years, Mrs. Hue and her husband have been selling crab cakes. After many years of accumulation, they also bought an apartment on the 3rd floor of the apartment building a year and a half ago. However, for the convenience of business, they only live under the stairs, while the apartment is for the wife and daughter and the elderly mother to live.
“Several times when I moved to the apartment on the 3rd floor to live, but I was not used to it, and it was inconvenient because I had to go up and down for business, so the couple decided to stay under the stairs for convenience. My wife and I took turns going up. The family brought food and water, took care of the elderly mother, and then came down,” said Mr. Lieu.
Under the stairs, there are already solid walls, Mrs. Hue’s family just made a temporary wooden door for the entrance. The couple’s room is less than 5m2 wide, where they eat and drink every day. When it was time to cook, Mr. Lieu had to stand outside to save space inside for Mrs. Hue to process.
“Because I live under the stairs, I always beg for electricity and water to use with my family next to me, paying about 300,000 VND per month for them,” said Ms. Hue.
When she first moved to live under the stairs, Mrs. Hue’s family had difficulties because the room was cramped, but after many years, they gradually adapted. Every time he sat down to eat, Mr. Lieu had to crouch to avoid being hit under the bridge.
“Only the necessary items can be brought into the house to use, but too much piled up, there is no room for the couple to sleep,” replied Mr. Lieu, who bent down to put the electric stove on the iron shelf.
Although the room was cramped, Mr. Lieu still reserved a place in the corner of the altar to burn incense every day.
Instead of ordering bottled water, Mr. Lieu and his wife cooked boiling water and put it in small plastic bottles placed in the corner of the drinking room every day to reduce space and save money.
To make life convenient, Ms. Hue bought more televisions, refrigerators, and air conditioners. “It’s very hot under the stairs, so I have to install an air conditioner to sleep, each item is collected from the money from the business to buy,” the woman said.
“Many times when I go in and out of the room in a hurry, I bump my head against the wall, the edge of the door.. I get used to it. I’m old, plus I have to walk, stand and sit with my back a lot, so I have a herniated disc, and my wife has bone pain. Arthritis must take medicine every day,” said Mr. Lieu.
Mr. Lieu and his wife used the sidewalk in front as a place to wash dishes, while cleaning, bathing and washing clothes went to the apartment on the 3rd floor.
Before the epidemic, Mrs. Hue and her husband used to go to bed early to get up at 3 am to prepare food, cook and then push the cart to sell. However, since the outbreak of the epidemic, their habits have changed a bit, after dinner the couple sat down to watch TV and watch the news.
“Since the day Mrs. Hue’s family lived in An Quang apartment building, they have been supported by the ward and the apartment management board with rice, food, etc. to maintain them through the epidemic, like all households living here,” Ms. Tran Le Thu – Head of An Quang apartment management board said.
The width of the room is about 1.5m wide, just enough for Mrs. Hue and her husband to fall back. “Maybe in the future, if I stop doing business, I will move to the 3rd floor to live with my children, but now I still stay here because I have been with my wife and I for decades, become familiar, I don’t want to go,” Hue said. Follow Dân trí