Vietnamese Santa delivers Chinese toys
HANOI — A few days before Christmas, a whitebearded man with a big belly bursting out of his red outfit could be seen riding an old motorbike down the packed Nguyen Trai Road in Vietnam’s capital of Hanoi, carrying with him a sack full of toys, school aids and garments.
Unbeknownst to many, the bulk of these gifts were actually made in China.
At an old apartment block in the Thanh Xuan district some 5 kilometers away, the full-figured fellow swiftly dismounted his bike and entered an apartment on the first floor. “Father Christmas is coming. Hurray!” exclaimed a girl with pigtails, her face filled with joy.
“Hi, Ngoc Chau. If you study hard and obey your elders, I will give you more gifts next time,” said young Saint Nick, as he handed her a colorful box.
While the girl hurriedly opened her present to find a set of Elsa and Anna dolls from the Disney film Frozen, her five-year-old cousin received a gift of his own — and some advice from “Santa Claus” to eat his greens, drink more smoothies, and focus on his studies.
The gift-giver then knelt down to embrace the two youngsters and pose for a few photos. Soon he was on his way, his sack still brimming with toys, but before he left the children’s mother handed him a tip.
He then departed, ready to repeat his routine a dozen more times that day in flats and houses across Hanoi.
“I’m Santa Claus now. I go door to door, greeting kids and giving gifts. I tell them to do what their parents have requested in advance. My work starts on Dec 22 and will end on Christmas Day evening,” said the pseudo-Santa, a second-year student at the Hanoi University of Social Sciences and Humanities whose real name is Nguyen Van Huy.
Despite not lasting very long, the work pays well enough to cover all Huy’s tuition fees and daily expenses for several months. His commission can be as high as 20 percent of the total value of each order.
To meet demand for such Santa Clausthemed delivery services, Thien Cam Investment Jointstock Company in Hanoi recruited 10 “Santas” like Huy this festive season, with fullfigured candidates who are experienced at riding motorbikes and finding hard-tofind locations preferred.
“We are now offering these services for 70,000-180,000 Vietnamese dong ($3-8) depending on distance and time,” said a member of Thien Cam staff surnamed Van, adding that the charges are higher for large families or schools.
Some retailers, such as the popular Kids’ Paradise online supermarket and Tien Phong bookstore chain, offer the special delivery service for free with purchases of at least 500,000 dong.
Nguyen Thu Thuy, a shop assistant at Tien Phong bookstore in Hanoi’s Tay Son Street, said this year’s best-selling items were Santa hats, books, school aids and toys, noting that most were made in China.
The situation is similar in other bookstores and shops across the capital. The Dai Ly Do Choi shop on Thai Thinh Street is packed full of Chinese toys.
“The number of our customers has increased 10 fold compared with other times of year. Our best-selling toys are radio-controlled cars, helicopters, tanks and ships for boys, and Elsa and Anna dolls for girls,” said the shop’s middle-aged owner, Vu Van Duy.
“I’m a grandpa now, but I’m still impressed by radiocontrolled toys. China is really an expert in making toys which are inexpensive but very modern,” he added, holding up a toy tank that moves, fires plastic bullets, discharges smoke and makes realistic noises.
A customer quickly snatched it up for 1.5 million dong, while another chose a radio-controlled toy submarine.
“It’s winter now, so toy submarine sales are slow. But they will sell like hot cakes in summer, when kids can play with them joyfully in swimming pools,” said Duy, with a smile.