Two war-torn countries

Long back I read an anecdote. A teacher was trying to teach a life lesson to their students. They heated water in three pots. In one was added an egg; in the other a carrot and in the last one a few coffee beans. After a while the teacher asked the students to check the condition of the three things. They used them to explain three ways in which people react to adversaries. 

Carrot: It was tough and firm before the hardship (i.e. boiling water) and was converted to something soft and pulpy. 

Egg: It was soft and brittle at the beginning. It became hard and tough. 

Coffee: It was ordinary before. The hardship not only made it aromatic rather it made the hardship (boiling water) aromatic as well!

Wars destroy generations; wars destroy spirit; wars destroy humanity. I was privileged to visit two countries which have had been the stage of a lot of violent wars in the last hundred years. I visited Serbia in April and Vietnam in June. 

Serbia has been a small but extremely powerful nation throughout the history. Being squeezed between two big powers (Ottomans to the east and Austria-Hungary to the west) it got the favour of neither and was the ground of frequent wars. The last war to hit the soil was, of course, the Balkan wars. Wars have made the Serbs rough and admire "masculinity". Strong spirits (pun intended) were in abundance. The common Serb is proud (and rightly so) of their glorious history. The present is not very glorious though. Infrastructures are dilapidating, houses and apartments are in need of maintenance (most apartments looked really ugly with peeled off paintings) and roads were full of potholes. I found the following click very symbolic of the present day Serbia. 

A toy tiger guarding over a garbage bin with potholed roads and Soviet style buildings in the background.

That being said, the country is trying its best to improve things. Heavy investment and aid from the EU is creating islands of fine building and architectures. 

A sculpture by the banks of Danube in Novi Sad.

Buildings of a specialised research facility (biosense.rs) focussing on the use of technology to solve challenges in agriculture.

And yes, if you are in Serbia do not miss the amazing food it has to offer. Being in the middle of two civilisations has its own benefits one of which is the emergence of some very unique and amazing foods. Cafes are in abundance and the meat you get in Serbia is one of the best in Europe. (No offence; but the meat in western Europe is just disgusting!)

One of the numerous road-side cafes.

Now, let us look at the coffee of our story (pun intended), the country which is the second largest producer of coffee, Vietnam. In spite of decades of war the common Vietnamese is extremely hospitable and kind. Everyone you meet will greet you with humility (for no reason) and a kind smile. The place is not very developed. But, unlike Serbia the infrastructure is in good condition. Even rural roads have no potholes. It is an extremely safe country. In a walk in the morning you will bump into elderlies (in 60s and 70s) exercising, meditating, practicing dance and Tai Chi. Cafes are in abundance and the coffee is really of very high quality. Road side places keep serving Pho from early morning till late night. 

The quintessential Pho :)

Your common Vietnamese is humble for no real reason. Because they are one of the most aware and educated masses I have come across. They know about their history and culture. They know about science and facts. The guy serving me coffee in a cafe knew of the scientific reasons of why there are so many small hills in Halong Bay! A digital marketing guy I met knew a lot about the artefacts in their national art museum.  In India or South Africa, even highly educated people would know nothing about art museums!

A lacquer painting (sơn mài) from Vietnamese Art Museum (Hanoi). Vietnamese artists are well known to have mastered lacquer painting. On the top left part of this painting you can notice the great leader Ho Chi Minh.  

A wooden statue of Avalokeswara Boddhisatwa. Avalokeswara is the Boddhisatwa of compassion. He was so compassionate that he decided not to achieve enlightenment and rather help all the suffering sentients. He was granted a thousand arms (by Amitabha Buddha) to help him in his endeavour to help thousands of suffering sentients.

Overall, it was a very pleasant experience. I loved to get drenched in the vibes of Hanoi. I felt relaxed. I felt rejuvenated (even in their heavy traffic!). Not sure if it were the kind people. Not sure if it were the extremely sweet tender coconut water. Not sure if it were the old couple running a fruit shop who insisted on taking less money from me for the juice I drank at their place everyday. Not sure if it was the coffee! Not sure if it was the sunset. Not sure if ......

Super sweet tender coconut water in the morning. In the background is a scooter which is the main mode of transport for millions of Vietnamese hoi poloi.

Sunset from West lake (Hanoi).