Bánh Trôi Nước (Floating Rice Cake)

Bánh Trôi Nước (Floating Rice Cake) - by Ho Xuan Huong

Bánh Trôi Nước (cake that floats in water) is a little sugary ball of sticky rice with either red-bean-paste or coconut-paste center. As a metaphor, bánh trôi nước is used to speak about a woman's fate in Vietnam during the old days. The poem was written by Ho Xuan Huong, who is known as "The Goddess of Vietnamese Nom Poem".

An illustrated portrait of poet Ho Xuan Huong (source: Internet)

Poem "Banh Troi Nuoc" in Vietnamese (on the left) and English (on the right). Illustrated by Quang Phan (the background is from the internet).

P.s: A recipe for bánh trôi nước can be found here in case you are interested! :D

Comments

Hai Bà Trưng: The Story of Vietnam's Elephant-Riding Warrior Princesses

M any women have been instrumental in resisting foreign domination throughout Vietnamese history. Hai Bà Trưng (the Trung sisters) are among the most renown. They are considered as the two first national wartime heroines. They are forever etched in the hearts of the Vietnamese for having led a rebellion against the early Chinese domination of the country. Their story below is introduced by The Cultural trip. The original version can be found by this link . Hai Bà Trưng in the battle with the Han Empire The peaceful Trieu Dynasty of Nam-Viet was defeated by the Chinese in 111 B.C., and the Han Empire sought to annex all of Nam-Viet as part of its territory. They divided the country into smaller districts and assigned a puppet Vietnamese leader for each, all of whom were to answer directly to the Chinese governor, To Dinh. The two Trung sisters, Trung Trac, and Trung Nhi, were born to a general of one of the districts, Giao Chi, in rural Northern Vietnam, and despite Chinese ...

Chơi Chuyền - Bamboo Jacks, Game of Every Vietnamese Girl

I remember when I was still in elementary school, we did not have a lot of access to technology, so as video games or social networks like kids these days. Vietnamese traditional games were still popular back then, and they were our only choices for entertaining during the breaks. I hardly played the following game – Chơi Chuyền , because it was supposed for girls (please do not say I sexually discriminated, it was like it used to be though). Chơi Chuyền is now a popular activity at some festivals, but not in daily lives. Source: internet Chơi Chuyền includes ten thin, well sharpened, round bamboo sticks and a ball, which traditionally is a fig, a miniature variety of eggplant, a small rock or a clod of clay. Nowadays, tennis balls are used instead. The player tosses the ball into the air. While the ball is in the air, she must quickly pick up the sticks and then catch the ball. Players often sing along a nonsense rhyme: "Cai m...

Women of Vietnam

Search This Blog