I don’t even know where to begin on this post. It is very bittersweet, a bit surreal, and well, in some ways very sad to say it. Diem the girls and I have called MT House home for a year now. Wow! A year. I found the apartment in a slightly desperate moment at the end of last year. The pandemic was looming large north of us in China, and I had to go back to the states to handle business. We had tried to find a home that checked so many boxes. Close to the girls’ school, a nice neighborhood, close to the beach, we had searched in vain and time had run out. I, and not very happily, tucked the girls into a hotel and made my way back to the US.
There I continued my search and while still in the US found what seemed to fit the criteria. Diem, in her just incredible, pragmatic strength, moved everything while I was away. As many know, time was ticking and it was beginning to look like I may not make it back before the world closed. I did manage to get back just before life around the world imploded and I arrived in Vietnam with Diem and the girls already settled in at MT House awaiting my return.
The Apartment
The apartment was perfect. We had the penthouse in a brand new building and were the first tenants. A beautiful rooftop patio, a spare room, plenty of top floor space to run around and stretch out in. I can’t tell you how many sunsets and sunrises I enjoyed on that amazing garden rooftop. The lady Buddha, always watching over the city. The often misty Son Tra mountain and the sea like mirrored glass always in view. It will probably linger in my psyche as one of the greatest places I’ve ever called home. But the view was only part of the wonder and joy that was MT House.
The Family
Anyone that is a regular reader knows who they are. Trung, Thu, and Tuấn Hoàng. Trung the father, Thu his wife, and their son Tuấn. There is also a younger brother Quân. Diem and I enjoyed watching him perform in a Mid-Autumn festival back in September. The family has become an extension of our own. Watching the girls when we needed them to, joining us for dinners, and of course our almost daily coffee visits in the morning.
Whether it was Trung taking me along for some fishing on the mountain, or helping us get a flat tire fixed. They became more than our landlords. They became our friends and even our family. I can’t fully express my gratitude to all they have done for us. They are truly remarkable people, and though we will see them again, they will be missed as a daily smile and conversation.
It’s Ups and Downs
Though the experience of living at MT House was far beyond expectations, it wasn’t always an easy time. In the year Diem and I lived there we experienced two 6 week lockdowns and I can’t remember how many storms. 12 or 13, it is hard to be sure. For months it seemed that event after event laid siege to us in our apartment. Trung and the family were always there supporting and helping us.
From checking in on us daily during mandatory quarantines, to coming to the rescue when the storm of the week sprung a leak in the new apartment building. Trung and the family were always there when we needed them. We even enjoyed fresh catfish together harvested from the rooftop patio pond. Tell me an apartment building that offers that kind of intimate experience. But no matter how difficult it was outside in the world, we always felt safe, comfortable and secure in our concrete oasis.
Packing for our Departure
And so with a little sadness and a heavy heart Diem and I began packing and preparing to move. It really was a sad day. The view, the laughter, the friendship, it would all be missed, and the time forever cherished. Such an incredible time, an amazing time 2020 in MT house had been. At a time when the world seemed to fall apart, we were enjoying the best of times. Departing for Saigon, or Da Lat, sometimes for over a month at a time. When we returned Mt house was always there, ready and waiting for our return home. As incredibly bizarre of a sentence as this may be to many, but 2020 was one of the best years I have ever experienced. Mt house had a lot to do with that.
A Heartfelt Thank You
I’m not sure what to do other than what I know how to do. Write about it. Again, to Trung, Thu, Tuấn, and Quân, we thank you. We thank you for always having a smile to greet us. For the coffee’s prepared by cell phone light when Typhoons knocked out the power. To those fresh fish dinners during the storms, and to those daily cups of hot espresso, and cold milk coffee. We thank you for taking care of us and our family for the wonderful year of 2020. It may go down as one of the most infamous years in history, but for us it was an adventure and a great year. You and your family are largely responsible for that reality.
But we thank you most of all for being our friends. Beyond an apartment to live in, you opened your lives to us and treated us like we had known each other our entire lives. We will always be friends and I will always cherish our time living at MT House. Thank you again for everything you have done for us, it will never be forgotten. All things come to an end however. We say farewell and an “I’ll see you soon”, for the story of our friendship is far from over.
A Little Advertising
For those that are traveling to Da Nang, or living there, and want to be close to the mountain. You will not find a better place than MT House Homestay. The family that runs the establishment is top notch, friendly, professional, and just all around lovely to be around. They will take care of your needs, and the coffee in the shop on the ground floor is delicious.
The location is strategically located near the northern section of the main beach. There, you can walk the fresh pop-up seafood markets for the day’s fresh haul or take a calming afternoon walk on the beach. There are plenty of street vendors for a delicious lunch or dinner, and right at the base of the mountain. The lady Buddha is a short drive away, as is the river and the bay. Tucked just off of Hwy 17 in a local section of town, it’s a great place to get a feel of a traditional Vietnamese way of life. If you’re interested in more expat-type experiences, that area is a short drive down the coast, about 15 minutes away. It is always nice, however, to retreat back to the quiet street and home that is Mt House.
Below you will see all the details and a link to get in touch if you need more information or to book a room. Again, I can not stress how incredibly wonderful the Hoàng family are. You will not be disappointed in your stay at MT house homestay. Thanks again to Trung, Thu, Tuấn, and Quân Hoàng. Thank you for opening your doors to us, and both figuratively and literally protecting us from the storm.
Click here for a direct link to Mt House
Or Click Here for more on Da Nang.
