Hanoi, Feb2109
This was a trip for the extended Chinese New Year break. I made it last minute and got an amazing deal on an airfare. Not sure how I landed on Hanoi, but I knew that I wanted to go Vietnam eventually and for some reason chose Hanoi. Very happy that I did. I needed away from the cold and dreariness of Beijing. The cheap flight meant that I would be getting into to Hanoi very late in the evening or very early in the morning. One downfall: the imigration process at the airport. I had all my paperwork read to go, but it was a slow MOVING PROCESS. Not sure if that was normal or because there were so few workers that time of night. Not a fun thing to wait for when you are tired tired tired. Anyway, the driver from the hotel was ready and waiting to make me to the hotel.
I arrived a few days after the end of the Lunar New Year... side note: interesting to compare with the new year celebrations in China. I had no VND dong. I usually don't worry too much about not having the local currency as I just get cash from local ATMS. Oh boy! Not the case here. While there were ATMS everywhere, they were completely empty of currency, including HSBCs. Ugh. I was in panic mode and walked everywhere trying to get money. Finally I found an odd type of ATM that dispensed cash. It was quite the process and all in Vietnamese. I relied on the kindness of a young man to help me process the machine and get the needed money. I pulled out as much as could. Finally, about mid way through my trip, cash magically arrived into the ATMs.
I found this little gem via a search on hotels.com. However, you will find many, many, little boutique style guest houses in Hanoi. I stayed in the Iris Boutique Hotel. Truly a very nice experience for the price. Read my review here:
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g293924-d1389056-r650990557-
Iris_Boutique_Hotel-Hanoi.html?m=19905
Here are a few pictures:
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Hanoi is a great city for tourists. It's easy to walk around the central area and easy to book city trips to see museums, tombs (the body of the communist leader is enshrined in Hanoi...it's not my thing, but if it's yours, go for it), and day trips out of the city. I managed two day trips out of Hanoi-one short, 1/2 a day and one all day to the Halong Bay. More on that later.
It's a bright, engaging and vibrant city. While it's crowded with people, bikes, scooters, shops and the like it doesn't feel too bad as there are no skyscrapers to make it feel claustrophobic.
One of the best trips I took was a few hour city trip on the back of motorcycle with a young guide. I believe in supporting the endeavors of young women, so was excited to see this excursion on Trip Advisor.
It's called shopping and food, but I think it's really up to you and the tour guide as to what you want to do and where you want to go.
It was fabulous, even though I thought I would probably meet a fiery death in the streets of Hanoi for the first 10 mins of the ride. Then it was exhilarating! The tour guide was a great driver and took me to a shopping mall...not much there that I wanted so I just picked up a cheap pair of shades. For me, the most fun was just riding around the city on the back of the motorcycle! The young guide took me to a local shop for the iconic egg coffee. I had been reluctant to try it. I'm a fan of coffee, but the idea of an egg coffee sounded odd. She insisted... it was DELICIOUS. I enjoyed it so much that I had one every day thereafter. We also had a nice lunch at one of the ever present noodle/broth shops. More on food down the way.
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| I GOT OVER MY FEAR AND MANAGED TO STAY BALANCED ON THE BIKE AND TAKE A SELFIE! |
I really just enjoyed wandering around and looking at a lot of the shops. A particular favorite was a little ceramic shop. So many fun little things to see and buy it was hard to choose. But trust me, I did buy a lot! I kept going back for more little treasures. Very well priced. It's called Cerender Ceramic Shop and there are several of them scattered about the city. There are lots of touristy little shops with cloth items which I am partial to. However, be prepared to go into a shop and have the clerk tell you you are "too fat!" ugh...But I did find a beautiful dress as well as some embroidered pieces at a fair trade shop that supported the Hmong people.
OH THE FOOD...THE FOOD... THE FOOD!
Much has been written and explored about Vietnamese food. I probably won't write anything different. Food bloggers/travelers probably have more to say on this than I ever could. There are lots of street stalls...meaning just that...you get your shop and you eat in the street wherever you can find a spot. Lots of little plastic chairs and table for these vendors. Just be aware that you need an IRON stomach to eat at one of the small shops. The first one I went to, was near the hotel and the young concierge joined me. It was one of the ubiquitous soup and noodle bowls with a bit of beef. Let's just it was tasty and cheap, but with a matter of 30 minutes or so, I needed a bathroom...FAST! For the rest of the week I ate at more traditional, indoor restaurants. Helped my tummy a bit. Though, there was this one stall, well really it was a lady sitting on a stool in the open air frying all kinds of things. I think it was mostly "fish" and veggies but it sure was tasty! There are also these small spherical bits of dried dough that are very sweet and delicious. Similar to a donut hole, but a little denser and sweeter. Just be careful where you buy them. The women selling them on the street can get very aggressive and charge an outrageous fee. So that kept me from eating them every day! Less clogged arteries is the benefit. 😂
Keep Tums or Maalox handy in your bag! The other traditional food, by way of French influence, is the bahn mi sandwich. Again, so much yumminess between two pieces of French bread. Lots of shops sell these with so many versions. There was a shop close to my hotel and I had one most days either for lunch or dinner.
I had to visit the restaurant featured in Anthony Bourdain's show. He visited there with President Barack Obama. I could have eaten the soup elsewhere and the location was a bit out of the way, but I knew my dad would be tickled if I went there. He greatly admires both men... as do I. The restaurant is Bun Cha Huong Lien. It was a fun visit. The picture was hastily snapped and sent right off to my dad. Needless to say, he loved it! The food was tasty and worth the visit. And then came the challenge to get back to my neighborhood. Expensive and a long wait for a taxi. Hanoi has it's own version of UBER.
One of my favorite mementos is a Starbucks mug from wherever I visit. Of course there were several stores to get that precious mug... side note, they are all displayed in my kitchen. But NO need to get a coffee at a SBs.... Vietnamese coffee is just fabulous! And not just the egg coffees...all the coffee is great. Coffee is big there. A plain cup tends to be very strong with very sweet milk at the bottom. Just swirl it together and drink away.
Also try the bags of fruit that are lightly coated with sugar, salt and a bit of chili powder. OUT.OF. THIS.WORLD yumminess.
DAY TRIPS:
The first half day trip out of the city was to the country side and a trip down a winding river. I booked a 1/2 day countryside river/bike tour. Very touristy of course, but the countryside was lovely and relaxing. The boat was propelled by a man at the back using his feet to peddle as with a bike. That has to be a challenge! I chose to opt out of the bicycle around the village and ended up have a coffee and roll at a roadside restaurant. Pics below add to the story.
The second, full day trip was to the iconic and world heritage site-Halong Bay. Long bus ride, then a a ferry ride and then into smaller boats. This is one of the precious places in the world. It has to be a challenge to protect and yet make available for travelers. Sad to write that the pure beauty was marred by the every present trash of plastic bottles and bags. It wasn't everywhere of course, but it was present. 😪
OTHER THINGS OF NOTE:
There is a nice city lake near the Old Quarter. Its great for a stroll, people watching or catch a tuk tuk for a quick visual tour of the area.
All in all, another satisfying adventure to a truly charming city. I know a couple that had been to Vietnam and visited Ho Chi Minh, but didn't care for it. I suggested another try to Hanoi which they loved as much as I did. The only thing that I would have done different- stay for a few extra days to include a trek to area of the Hmong people.
One more thing of note...I was sitting on some steps enjoying an ice cream and these lovely young ladies wanted a picture!
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