‘I’m happy I did’
“Hello, Mr. Huynh Minh Hiep, my name is Le Ngoc Phuong Trinh, my father was orphaned during the Covid-19 pandemic. I love to give you this piece of paper, so that you can save the painful memories of Saigon”…
Messages from Phuong Trinh
Phuong Trinh neatly wrote on the piece of paper that she was invited to attend a program for orphans because of Covid-19. Trinh folded neatly and sent it to Huynh Minh Hiep. This is one of thousands of pieces of memories about Saigon that he has kept and cherished as treasures.
People call Hiep a “giant”, a “crazy” when this man quietly collects each card to go to the market during the period of social distancing, travel tickets, handover papers for ashes, volunteer cards… He collects things related to the period when the whole country “fights” with Covid-19, marking the horror of an unprecedented pandemic.
Every memento is a story
– Reporter: In the past, people still remember Huynh Minh Hiep as a “two rice” guy, wearing a ba ba shirt to receive domestic and foreign record awards. Collecting antique coins, Saigon memorabilia… for almost decades, how was this passion raised?
Mr. Huynh Minh Hiep: My grandfather was originally from Bac Lieu, he kept sweet and romantic love letters for decades. Up to my father’s time, the collection of antique coins was what made him most proud. Just like that, I rekindled a passion for collecting.
In 1993, I went to perform magic for international guests at Tan Son Nhat airport. I received a lot of tips from all over the world and started collecting it. Gradually, I expanded my collection, from the first movie posters of Vietnam to the memorabilia that marked the life of the city people: Co Ba soap, the first stamp to the car. Honda’s mortobike…
Collector Huynh Minh Hiep (left)
I am very “bloody”! Once, there was an object that I “hunted” for nearly ten years before I could hold it in my hand. For example, Gia Dinh newspaper, a newspaper with an age of 132 years. I searched everywhere, asking archaeologists and collectors from all over the country. Finally, I booked a plane ticket to Hanoi and “begged” an uncle to give it up. Seeing that I was so sincere, he brought it back.
I have a coffee shop called Lua, that’s where I keep all my memorabilia, from the blocks of money from the reign of King Minh Mang to the old children’s movie projector… For me, every memento All have stories, marking the golden period or the ups and downs of history.
For me, each memorabilia has a story, marking a golden period or ups and downs of history.
– Reporter: But with Saigon in the days of the epidemic, it was a very different collection and stories?
Mr. Huynh Minh Hiep: I joined the anti-epidemic in the early days of August 2021. That was the period when the epidemic in the city was at its peak. You know, I was born and raised in Saigon. Nearly 50 years in this city, I have never seen Saigon “buckling” suffering so much.
Every day, I drive from 7 am, from this isolation area to that blockade point, I am present at field hospitals to transport medical equipment and return home at night. For months on end, I never felt tired.
There are things that haunt me, make me cry a lot. I decided to collect and preserve the memories related to the Covid-19 pandemic. When Ho Chi Minh City entered the “new normal”, I started “begging” and “receiving”, first the SP02 meter, the shopping vouchers, the passport, the volunteer card. , bags of rice supplied by the state…
Many friends from all over the country have sent him Hiep
Doctors and nurses gave me travel vouchers after months of fighting against the epidemic, housewives gave me vouchers to go to the market, and shirts of volunteers against the epidemic. I was even given a paper by farmers in Tay Ninh to “take turns cutting grass to feed the cows”. Each item is a memory of unforgettable days. Up to now, I have collected more than thousands of papers, memorabilia… of all kinds about the epidemic days across the country.
– Reporter: Was “picking up” pieces of memories for him an interesting experience?
Mr. Huynh Minh Hiep: Both interesting and difficult. Friends near and far know that I collect, they in turn send back each ticket, each shirt, each sheet of the funeral team’s paper, the paper to complete the isolation, the blockade cord… Now, I have enough wards. , district … in Ho Chi Minh City and are filled with memorabilia from provinces and cities across the country.
Finding tickets to go to the market in Can Gio district is the most thrilling. I spent a day in this island district, asking all over the houses, the market… Most of them left after using it. “Phu 89”, when I was about to get back in the car, I was called back by a lady selling ice cream. She gave me 7 vouchers to go to the market on the days of Can Gio “resilient” against the epidemic. I’m so happy I want to cry.
Preserve for the next generation
– Reporter: You said that every memento can tell a story. What kind of stories are those?
Mr. Huynh Minh Hiep: I have a friend named Dung, who accompanied me throughout my journey as a volunteer against the epidemic. Dung’s family lost 5 people to Covid-19, so terrible! I still vividly remember the day Dung and I stood in front of the field hospital where Dung’s relatives died.
Postcards sent from Da Nang
Dung sat down, built an altar right in front of the hospital gate and cried a lot. Phuong Trinh is Dung’s nephew, three children died of Covid-19. On the day of the end of the epidemic, he politely wrote on a piece of paper that the Red Cross invited him to attend a program for orphans during the epidemic.
“I am a child who has lost his father to Covid-19”, those scrawled childish words made me cry. Trinh gave me the piece of paper, marking a painful milestone in her life. There is so much loss these days.
Besides, I also received a baby care paper F0 from a volunteer. I remember that friend was a reporter, adopting a child because his family was all quarantined. Or a doctor at Trung Vuong Hospital, before leaving for Germany to work, also gave me your passport during the anti-epidemic days.
With all these papers in hand, I’m so happy!
– Reporter: This collection must have a very special meaning to you?
Mr. Huynh Minh Hiep: I want to keep it for my next generation. It reminds us that Saigon had such painful and resilient days. I keep memories with memorabilia, with pictures. There is a poem that I really like.
“Saigon has Chuong Duong wharf”
There is Independence Palace, there is Freedom Street,
Cho Quan ward, Cau Kho cluster
Luc Tinh bus station, Thu Thiem boat…”
On those days when the streets were empty, I took pictures of those moments, printed them into postcards and gave them away. I’m happy to be able to do things like that!
Thank you for this conversation!
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