The Prince of Bac Lieu

Not the Prince of Bac Lieu, but the last representatives of Viet Nam's royalty in Hue

B-Boy, k8 and I were having a late, late supper in Chinatown, when I remembered a song from the latest Thuy Nga’s Paris By Night Show, about "Công tử Bạc Liêu" [http://preview.tinyurl.com/y5l2pq]. Knowing B-Boy’s interest in all things Vietnamese, I told him and k8 about the legend of that rich man called the Prince of Bac Lieu, who used paper money as fuel to cook an egg, to flaunt his wealth. B-Boy and k8 were delighted by the story and practiced the Vietnamese pronunciation many times to make sure they got it right.

We visited my mother on Sunday as usual, and just as we were getting ready to leave, B-Boy casually told her how his brother Asparagus was installing a DDR mat in the kitchen, much to the annoyance of K8, who shares the first floor of our duplex with him. B-Boy said to my mother: «Who does he think he is, crowding K8 out of her kitchen like that, that he’s Công tử Bạc Liêu?».

My mother's amazement was priceless: her jaw dropped, her eyes bugged out: How on earth did her grandson know about the Prince of Bac Lieu? Her surprise was soon replaced by delight. She wouldn't let us leave until she told B-Boy all about the Prince's extravagant ways. When one of his girlfriends dropped a nickel on the ground, the Prince lit up a 20 dollar-bill, using it as a torch to look for the nickel. Whenever he goes out, he used five rickshaws: one for himself, one for his hat, one for his cane, one for his fan and one for his servant. Etc..

No, this is not the Prince of Bac Lieu either

That's when I dropped another bomb on her: would she agree to teach us Bai Tu Sac, so we can all play together during our next visits? After protesting feebly that it's too complicated for B-Boy, she accepted. When we finally left, she was smiling from ear to ear, and her eyes were shining.

Thank you, Prince of Bac Lieu!

The Prince of Bac Lieu's palace