Free Aperture on the East by Meris Lee Page B

up the big fish to make a traditional Vietnamese stew
with tomatoes and coriander. For the small fish, she would just
deep fry it whole in a wok and serve it with a lemongrass sauce.
Occasionally they caught shrimp, crab, or crawfish, and his mother
would prepare them in a boil with cayenne pepper, potatoes, and
corn on the cobs, a recipe she learned from her Cajun
neighbors.
    Vo was already hungry after an
afternoon of snorkeling with eight very energetic students, and
reminiscing about his mother’s cooking made his stomach growl even
more. He wiped himself down with a wet towel, changed into a white
linen shirt and a pair of khaki shorts, and confirmed that he no
longer carried the smell of ocean and sweat with a quick sniff of
his elbow. Then, he tied up the boat, got on his motorcycle and
headed to Quan Bien Dong.
    When he arrived, a large group of
tourists were in the middle of selecting their dishes with the
assistance of all three waiters currently on duty. Vo could tell
that they were speaking Chinese, because he also had encountered a
fair number of Chinese tourists at the Institute of Oceanography
and at the Sailing Club. Mr. Tran was busy chatting with the
group’s Vietnamese tour guide as well. Ana saw Vo come in and
signaled him to take a seat in the back of the restaurant. He sat
and waited patiently for the Chinese tourists to finish. It was
another fifteen minutes before all the waiters left the group and
went to the kitchen. Mr. Tran came and greeted Vo with a hand
shake, and then hurried into the kitchen, too. Vo was starting to
get antsy when Ana finally emerged again.
    “ Sorry about that,” said
Ana, nodding her head toward the Chinese tourists.
    “ It’s no big deal,” said
Vo, smiling at Ana. “They got here first. At least there is no one
else here yet, except for me.”
    Ana smiled, but didn’t say anything
right away.
    “ So how’s your day?” said
Vo.
    “ Not bad,” said Ana. “I
started teaching Russian and I got three students already. Well,
one of them is Mai, you know, the head chef here.”
    “ You should consider
teaching me and my associates at the Sailing Club, too. We get a
lot of Russian customers. I’ll recommend you to my
boss.”
    “ I don’t know. If it’s too
technical in terms of diving, I may not know how to say it in
Russian, or English, for that matter.”
    They were silent for a moment, and
then Ana said, “I totally forgot to ask you what you’d like to
have.”
    “ I’ll have two fried
spring rolls, the grilled snapper, stir-fried pumpkin flowers with
garlic, and a bowl of steamed rice.”
    “ Do you want a Saigon
Beer, too?”
    “ Not tonight,” said Vo. “I
only get a beer occasionally when I’m out with a friend. I’m really
not much of a drinker. I’ll just have a glass of iced water,
please.”
    “ Good. Alcohol only gets
people in trouble. I will be right back with your orders. Wait, I
need to take care of those people first.” Ana nodded toward the
Chinese tourists again, and then disappeared into the
kitchen.
    Vo was peering at the Chinese tourists
who were all engaged in animated conversations when McKenzie came
in and sat down in front of Vo.
    “ Hey. Mind if I join you?”
said McKenzie.
    “ Of course not,” said Vo.
“What brings you in here?”
    “ Same as what brings you
in I suppose.” McKenzie chuckled. “What’s on the specials tonight?
I am famished.”
    “ You are going to have to
wait till those folks there get served.” Vo looked toward the
Chinese tourists as the waiters set down the plates on their table,
which hardly had enough space for everything, with the chopsticks,
spoons and glasses competing to stay on the surface as
well.
    “ Ana,” McKenzie shouted
when Ana finished serving the Chinese tourists. She came
over.
    “ What are you doing here?”
said Ana. She smiled at McKenzie.
    “ Doesn’t anyone know that
when a man shows up at a restaurant, it’s usually because he is
hungry?” said McKenzie with