La Petite Tonkinoise (Hanoi Accent)

La p'tite Tonkinoise

C'est moi qui suis sa petite
Son Annana, son Annana, son Annamite
Je suis vive, je suis charmante
Comme un p'tit z'oiseau qui chante

Il m'appelle sa p'tite bourgeoise
Sa Tonkiki, sa Tonkiki, sa Tonkinoise
D'autres lui font les doux yeux
Mais c'est moi qu'il aime le mieux

L'soir on cause d'un tas d'choses
Avant de se mettre au pieu
J'apprends la géographie
D'la Chine et d'la Mandchourie
Les frontières, les rivières
Le Fleuve Jaune et le Fleuve Bleu
Y a même l'Amour c'est curieux
Qu'arrose l'Empire du Milieu

C'est moi qui suis sa petite
Son Annana, son Annana, son Annamite
Je suis vive, je suis charmante
Comme un p'tit oiseau qui chante

Il m'appelle sa p'tite bourgeoise
Sa Tonkiki, sa Tonkiki, sa Tonkinoise
D'autres lui font les doux yeux
Mais c'est moi qu'il aime le mieux.

chanson francaise du debut du 20e siecle

For some reasons, most of the Northern people I know from Saigon seem to come from Ho Nai Xuan Loc (and also my neighborhood, Lang Cha Ca). I had therefore a certain idea of the Northern Vietnamese accent. When I visited Hanoi for the first time, I realized that what I knew was not the Hanoi accent at all. And I guarantee you Southern gentlemen, if you ever meet a "jeune fille de bonne famille de Hanoi," she will completely take your breath, your conscious thoughts, and whatever is left of your will power within a few minutes, just by talking.

First of all the decibel level: It will be a lot lower that what you are used too, forcing you to pay attention, Then the pauses in the speech, achieving the same result. Of course the tones, extremely musical. And there is the exquisite politeness. You see, no young lady in Hanoi would call you anh. I guess that if you look pass a certain age, they call you chu' (even though after three minutes you just want to say: "đừng gọi anh bằng chú"). And it's not the short chu like in Chú taì xế in the South. No brutal syncopatic and abrupt end. It starts as a pursing of the lips, a breath slowing blowing out, a little sshhh round rising, then finally the long chuuuuuu, quavering in semi-tones, and slowly declining in volume until it disappears like a whiff of smoke. Gentlemen, after three chu' like that, you lose control of your limbs...