The suburban land with a warm house on stilts, surrounded by green fields is a relaxing place for Ms. Van’s family every day.
Raising chickens, growing vegetables on the outskirts of Hanoi
In July 2022, Ms. Vu Le Van (37 years old, Hanoi) and her husband and children packed their belongings and luggage back to Quoc Oai – where a house on stilts was waiting. Previously, Ms. Van had never cherished the plan to “leave the town to go home”, but after a while, the peaceful life here made the mother of 3 children change her mind.
“Everything came naturally and very quickly. Starting from when my family bought a small piece of land in the suburbs, then built a house on stilts, there was a small garden to grow vegetables and flowers according to their preferences. Especially the air near the mountains is very fresh, cool, quiet…
This house on stilts was originally intended to be built for family and friends to come home for the weekend, but after a while, the couple decided to change their living environment and move back to their hometown, “said Van .
The house on stilts of Mrs. Van and her husband overlooks the “cool” green rice field view.
Van is currently selling goods online, and her husband is a construction engineer. The 14-year marriage of both has sweet fruit with 3 small members, Van’s oldest child is in 6th grade, the youngest is 8 years old.
The day she decided to move back to Quoc Oai, she and her husband prepared everything very quickly. The first is to apply for a transfer for your child, do the procedures at both the old school and the new school. Both of their jobs are not disturbed much except that Van’s husband has to work a little further.
After the important work was done, Ms. Van began to move the necessary furniture such as washing machine and air conditioner.
“My house left behind all unnecessary things and lived a much simpler life than before… This is actually not the hometown of both husband and wife, but when deciding to buy this land, my husband really liked it, and Only later did I see my husband’s “vision”.
It doesn’t take long to get to the center from here. Near where I live, there is a village “leaving the street to the forest”, many people still go to work in the street every day and return to their “hometown” at the end of office hours. My favorite is the fresh air, the view of the green rice fields, very chill, the school and the market are also close to the house,” said Ms. Van.
It is known that the two plots of land that Ms. Van bought next to each other, in which she and her husband have just built a house on stilts on a 400m2 piece, while a 600m2 piece is still growing trees.
Leaving the city to go home is not just a game for rich people
In the first days of moving to the suburbs, Ms. Van felt strange and began to get used to the garden life, growing trees and green vegetables. Because she has never worked as a farmer, she actively learns how to nurse, compost, and take care of plants online. The beautiful little house on stilts is decorated by the couple in every corner. Next to Ms. Van’s house, she dug a mini fish pond and planted water lilies. Van’s children are very excited about the new style of the house on stilts.
“The children love it, and they are lucky to have neighbors of the same age, so they get acquainted very quickly, play together and “explore” the games in the countryside.
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It’s only been a short time, but my daughter has already boasted that she knows how many names of the trees here ,” said Van.
In addition to the cost of the three children’s education, the monthly living expenses of Ms. Van’s family have also decreased significantly. When living in an apartment, the young mother had a headache with fees such as parking, water, expensive food and vegetables.
“The cost of meals in the countryside has decreased a lot compared to the day before in the street. I no longer spend as much on food as before. In the street, I often buy a lot of food in the refrigerator that is overdue, it’s a waste of money, but when I return home, it’s a waste of money. This has limited the excess of food. Moreover, the process of growing vegetable beds for the family is very hard, waiting for a while to be harvested, so when I eat, I appreciate every single stalk of vegetables,” said Ms. Van .
On her free weekend, Ms. Van opens a BBQ party, treats local specialties such as pig intestines eaten with doi leaves, grilled also served with doi leaves, sour meat, bamboo shoots, plain cakes… Simple life lasted for more than half a year. However, because Van’s husband often has to go on long business trips, he is not secure when leaving his mother and children in the mountains, so Van comes back to town, only visiting the suburban house for 2 days at the weekend.
The vegetable garden is an abundant source of food for the family
The young mother said that it is not necessary to be a rich man, or to have money, to leave the city and return to his hometown.
” I see a lot of people in the countryside who are on average income but they still live well, are healthy, happy, contented and happy with what they have. The villagers don’t have many high-end needs, have to wear expensive brands, cosmetics, expensive clothes…
The needs of the villagers are more simple, so they don’t have to spend a lot of money to return to their hometown. When I come here, I have learned to live more minimalistic than before, not buying wasteful, unnecessary things. Of course, if you have a lot of money, you will enjoy more advanced needs and enjoy life with peace of mind ,” Van confided.
Photo: Internet (Vinlove.net)