Monday, July 18, 2011

Wind and Water Cafe

We know that Vietnam has many interesting cafes. But Wind n Water Cafe (cafe Giף vא Nuớc) in Binh Duong province, an hour drive from downtown Saigon, is not just one of them. It's an artwork of architect/owner Vo trong Nghia. He is a professional architect, trained in Japan.
This cafe uses bamboo as main building material, from the structure frame to the roof and the furniture. The main feature is a large elevated concrete pond so you feel very close to the water when you sit on the cafe's floor. If your table is on a glass islet inside the pond, you feel that you are floating on the water. I wish there were koi or gold fish in the pond, in addition to lotus, but there could be some problem that prevents Nghia from doing that. People told me that at night, the cafe has a different look under the lighting. .
This little architectural masterpiece has won many awards.