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| Happy winter: Schoolgirls in their colorful winter outfits pose for photos |
In this sun-burnt southern city, sweaters are thought to be a redundant luxury. However, during this past week, winter outfits are in vogue in Saigon as the first spells of cold weather have arrived earlier than usual.
On the weekend, it kept raining lightly throughout the daytime. When night fell, it became colder and the temperature dropped to the bottom in early morning. By the time the city woke up, Saigon saw a scene different from the daily routine as its streets were full of people in sweaters lending color to the cityscape.
December is often the coldest month in HCM City when the lowest temperature during a day may fall to below 20oC at daybreak. However, the average temperature in December is not much lower than that of the hottest month of the year. Take 2008 for example, the average temperature in December, the coldest month, was 26.9oC compared with 29.5oC in April, the hottest month, and the year’s average of 27.9oC.
Normally, Saigonese expect a few chilly days in December. When these days come in the last two weeks of the month, they give Saigonese Christians a feeling that Christmas is in the air.
But the current cold spell has brought an “early winter” to the Saigonese. On Monday, the temperature dropped to 19oC at sunrise.
Meteorologists in town say chilly days come as a result of several factors. Cold air from the north and central Vietnam is rushing south ward. A low pressure swept through Ca Mau, Vietnam’s southernmost province.
Meanwhile, an atmospheric depression has been spotted stretching from the southern central province of Binh Thuan to Ca Mau. Due to this slow moving depression, it continued raining throughout the day.
Weather forecasters say the lowest temperature in southern provinces will be between 19oC and 23oC, and the cold weather spell will linger until next weekend.
In the scorching hot HCM City, schoolgirls are arguably those who enjoy the current chilly spell. It’s time for them to take out their beautiful sweaters long buried in wardrobes, or to beg parents for new ones. On the way to school, their colorful sweaters definitely enliven the streets and please passers-by.
Nonetheless, nobody welcomes the “Saigonese winter” more heartily than owners of sweater shops. Despite being a tropical city, Saigon is home to many shops selling outfits for cold weather. For almost all the year round, these shops’ main clientele consists of those who need warm clothes on outbound trips to temperate territories. An unexpected winter will surely make the winter wear business brisker at least for a while.
On the other end, the business of cold drinks may be in the blue. Winter sees the demand for iced drinks and beer fall. But “one man’s meat is another’s poison”: Many Saigonese shift to choosing hot drinks and hot foods in chilly days, which very much pleases those in this business. Cold beer may temporarily lose its high rank, hard spirits are probably on the rise, though.
Some young lovers are also among Saigonese who prefer chilly days. As it becomes colder, young couples on a motorbike will feel bigger the urge to get closer, as closer as possible.
While some schoolgirls and young couples may take cold weather for fun, many others are not so eager. For factory workers on their way home or to work late at night or in early morning, the chilling atmosphere has the least of romanticism. The same to hawkers in the streets. They and their relatives need more warm clothes to wear and more food to eat, and that means more money. To the poor, a winter during an economic downturn is always much colder.
