The last day of the trip. Of course, we spent it at the Corgi Cafe. While we were paying, I noticed a sign with a picture of some corgi keychains. When I asked the cafe owner about buying one, she smiled, told me they were not for sale – they are a loyalty program: if you buy 7 drinks, you get a keychain. And she handed me one and said I was here everyday so she hopes I enjoyed my drinks and keychain. So sweet!
Harry was not interested in a full breakfast, so Ken and I went back to the bo ne restaurant “Beef Station” (An Thuong 34, Ngu Hanh Son, Da Nang) for another amazing breakfast. Afterward, we went to the tattoo shop with Harry to make sure everything got started without a problem. The tattoo was… much larger than we had expected. It was supposed to be about 4-5 inches tall, but the stencil they placed on his upper arm was more like a half sleeve! Harry saw the art and didn’t even care – he loved it, and to be fair, it WAS gorgeous work.
While he was getting his fresh ink, Ken and I went back to the Han Market to grab a few last minute souvenirs. After that, we brought Harry some snacks to keep his blood sugar at a reasonable level, then went back to the room for our mid-day nap.
Checked back in with Harry, he was doing fine. “Mom, this guy is amazing. And I kind of hate him right now.” HA! Exactly what he should be saying in the middle of his first tattoo! Turns out, this was going to take a bit longer than we anticipated. About 8 hours in, I checked in with the artist on time, as it was getting late and we had a flight the next day. He said he would do what he could to make it look as finished as possible, and Harry could come back after the move to get it completed.
So Ken and I decided to explore a new direction to find some dinner. We happened across a little food stall with a sign that said they served Vietnamese sticky rice. We love Chinese sticky rice, so we decided to give it a try. Chinese sticky rice is generally served with toppings mixed in, wrapped up in lotus leaves, steamed until it’s hot, sticky, perfection. Vietnamese sticky rice is not served in a leaf, but on a plate, and they top it when you order it. Ken and I wanted to try a couple different things and share them. We put in our order and sat at what we had now gotten used to – a tiny table on the sidewalk with tiny plastic stools. The lady who ran the stall came over with our food – she had heard our conversation and instead of putting each order on a separate plate, she had served each of us one plate with half of each order. She just made this easy – no need to swap halfway! When I went back up to pay, I told the lady that it reminded me of my grandma and childhood. I had almost forgotten about pork floss – a delicious treat I used to eat by the handful out of a jar in my grandma’s kitchen. The lady was so happy, she came out from behind the register to give me a hug.
Now that we were happily full, and felt welcomed by yet another little Vietnamese woman, it was time to go back and check on Harry. He was ten hours in to his very first tattoo – which is a crazy long time for a first piece. They were just finishing up, and he was smiling so big. When I saw the finished work, it was quite the sight! A beautiful red Chinese dragon, with black chrysanthemums. All the guys at the shop had been checking on Harry all day, they had nicknamed him Dragon Boy. This guy really did amazing work – I’ve rarely seen any tattoos that look that good. If you’re ever in Da Nang, and interested in an Asian-style tattoo, I definitely recommend looking up Nam Son Tattoo (82 Do Ba, Ngu Hanh Son, Da Nang). We didn’t realize when we booked it that this guy has tons of international awards. Not a bad choice for a first tattoo, Harry!
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