No one in the neighborhood has air conditioning, even in 40 degree heat, they are still "healthy"

Living familiarly is "addictive"

After 1pm, the traders living on Tran Xuan Soan Street (District 7, Ho Chi Minh City) started their lunch break. Some people hung hammocks on their boats to sleep, others took advantage of the quiet time to leisurely prepare their goods. Along this road, in the water, there were boats moored close together, and on the shore were fruit stalls of the traders.

Xóm dân cư không nhà ai có điều hòa, nóng 40 độ vẫn khỏe re - 1 — The merchants' boat docked at the Te Canal (Photo: Nguyen Vy).

All their activities take place on the boat, no different from life in houses on shore.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Mai Lien (45 years old) sat peeling the jackfruit with the skin still on, separating each segment, neatly arranging them in a box, waiting for customers to come buy.

Xóm dân cư không nhà ai có điều hòa, nóng 40 độ vẫn khỏe re - 2 — Ms. Lien makes a living under the hot sun in Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: Nguyen Vy).

Constantly wiping the sweat from her forehead, Ms. Lien frowned and said: "It's been so hot these days, sitting outside selling goods for too long makes me feel dizzy. Sometimes I have to let go and crawl into the boat to avoid the heat for a while."

Ms. Lien has lived on a boat docked near the Te Canal for 13 years. Ms. Lien's family's boat has two rooms, divided into upper and lower areas. During the hot season, the upper "floor" is a bit more stuffy, but the "ground floor" is extremely airy and cool.

Xóm dân cư không nhà ai có điều hòa, nóng 40 độ vẫn khỏe re - 3 — The lower compartment of the boat can avoid the heat, is close to the water surface so it is very airy and cool (Photo: Nguyen Vy).

Although there is a fan on the boat, she rarely turns it on, partly because the wind blowing from the river is cool enough, and partly because the family wants to save electricity. Mrs. Lien smiles, "The merchants here spend their whole lives… without needing to install air conditioning."

"Here, if we want to use electricity, we have to connect the power line from the local people's house to the boat. The same goes for daily water use. The family also connects the water pipe from the local people's house down, and we pay the money every month," said Ms. Lien.

Xóm dân cư không nhà ai có điều hòa, nóng 40 độ vẫn khỏe re - 4 — Mr. Nhon, a merchant on Tran Xuan Soan Street, connects a water pipe from a house to a boat (Photo: Nguyen Vy).

Not far away, Ms. Phuong (43 years old), a merchant on Tran Xuan Soan Street, was also taking a break. Pointing to her boat, Ms. Phuong said that during the peak of the hot dry season in Ho Chi Minh City, her family installed a misting machine on the corrugated iron roof of the boat.

At this time, the shipper called and was standing at the house opposite Ms. Phuong's stall.

Waving for the shipper to cross the street and come to her place, Ms. Phuong said while receiving the goods: "Living on a boat, I don't have a home address. If I want to buy things online, I have to ask my neighbor for the address."

Xóm dân cư không nhà ai có điều hòa, nóng 40 độ vẫn khỏe re - 5 — Many traders also take advantage of the hot season to sell filtered water bottles, delivering 50-60 bottles per day (Photo: Nguyen Vy).

17 hours of naked work every day

This woman said that before, from her hometown Ben Tre, she and her husband decided to buy a boat and head straight to Ho Chi Minh City.

At first, because she was not used to life on the river, Ms. Lien confided: "If you are not used to living on a boat, you will find it very difficult, because of the lack of living conditions and all kinds of inconveniences.

When it rains, water splashes into the "house", the monsoon season from the surface... is overwhelming. But after living there for a long time, you get used to it, and then become "addicted". Living on the river is comfortable, cool, and doesn't cost much to rent, it feels very free".

Xóm dân cư không nhà ai có điều hòa, nóng 40 độ vẫn khỏe re - 6 — Life on the boat for Ms. Lien is absolutely comfortable and free (Photo: Nguyen Vy).

Ms. Mai Lien said that at 5am every day, the traders here wake up and prepare for the new day. It is not until 10pm that they pack up their goods and officially rest.

According to Ms. Lien, business is not always smooth. During the dry season, although it is a bit hard, she still earns a few hundred thousand dong each day, saving to raise her children.

But every time the tide rises, Tran Xuan Soan Street is flooded, and merchants cannot trade and have to stay in the water for 17 hours.

"You get used to it, you can't stand it anymore. Life is like that, each person has their own destiny, their own job, if you want to make money you have to accept it," Ms. Lien confided.

Xóm dân cư không nhà ai có điều hòa, nóng 40 độ vẫn khỏe re - 7 — Merchants rest on boats during a hot day in Saigon, without even needing an electric fan (Photo: Nguyen Vy).

Understanding the hardships of making a living, Ms. Lien told herself to try to earn a lot of money so that her two children could go to school without missing a day. For her, the couple worked hard to have a better future for their children.

Therefore, whenever someone discusses admissions, admission scores or exam methods at universities, Ms. Lien always knows everything because she has researched very carefully.

Speaking of this, she suddenly became pensive.

"Living on a boat is great. But if I win the lottery, I would like to buy a townhouse. I can endure hardships, but I want my children to have a full and stable life like everyone else," Ms. Lien laughed.

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