Bia Hoi Hanoi!

“Goodmorning, Vietnam!”

Really, really early in the morning actually… Robin and I arrived in Hanoi in Northern Vietnam on April 26th, 2018. We had a long direct flight from Japan and were ready for this next chapter in our year long (or so we say now) journey.  From Pho to Bahn Mi to Bun Cha and spring rolls, we knew we were in for a culinary delight. Vietnam was also the start of our travels through Southeast Asia and marked a complete change from the countries we had already visited. When we arrived we quickly remembered that we showed up in the hottest and wettest time of the year. No need for makeup or hair-dues here, just try to stay out of the sun mid day is the game. Thankfully Vietnam is full of cheap hotels with AC units for a whopping $12 a night. And this often includes breakfast for two!

For 5 days we walked the busy streets of Old Quarter Hanoi seeing many narrow, old and beautiful but neglected french colonial style buildings and narrow streets to match with no real road rules. We spent days wandering the city and eating ALL of the AMAZING choices of food, especially bun cha as this is a Hanoi specialty and one of our favorites back home. People in the US might recognize it as vermicelli bowl. Oh, don’t miss the locals beer, Bia Hoi, for about 30cent drafts! We also visited the Temple of Literature that is dedicated to Confucius and scholars, the Ho Chi Min Mausoleum and buddhist temples. We visited the Vietnam National Museum of History, which was probably my favorite place we visited in Hanoi. So much rich culture and history here and you can learn much more about their complex and diverse cultural background. For example, did you know there are 54 different government recognized ethnic groups in Vietnam? A lot of traditional art, jewelry, decorative weapons and pottery as well in here.

Between our few days in Honoi we managed to sneak in a trip to Ha Long Bay. This place is astonishingly beautiful and such a tragedy because of  the pollution. We booked ourselves an overnight boat trip and we sailed around Ha Long Bay and its roughly 2,000 limestone karst islets. It really is an amazing sight to behold (once you look past the litter filled bay waters). We went squid fishing took a lesson on spring roll making, kayaked, visited a  cave and also a beautiful beach with a hike up a small mountain for panoramic views of the bay. The beach part was pretty hilarious. These 4 Chinese women were taking selfies and then insisted on taking a picture with me! So with their arms around us like we were best friends, Robin and I smiled and threw up the peace sign. We took several photos with them and we were all laughing so hard my cheeks hurt. It always amazes me when people want to take a picture of me because I’m pale white, but then I remember I do the same thing. I see a Vietnamese woman walking down the street with a conical hat and suddenly my camera is out like the paparazzi just arrived.

Turns out, being pale in Asia has given me a ticket into in a lot of other peoples photo albums over the months. This wasn’t the last time someone wanted to take my picture in Vietnam by a long shot. Another funny instance, one night while eating at our favorite little bun cha restaurant this young woman actually started to FaceTime Live me eating bun cha. At first I thought she just talked a lot because her boyfriend was literally silent the whole time, but then after a while I looked over to the other side of our small shared table and realized she had her phone propped up recording me while she gave commentary! If I had known I might have at least wiped the fish sauce off my face! 😉

Overall, Hanoi has great food at tiny little street side restaurants and the culture is loud, busy and fast paced. The people from our accommodation were always kind and went over the top for us, but the merchants in the street are a little more rough around the edges and they make a hard bargain. Do bargain, but if you aren’t going to buy anything expect any helpfulness or pleasantries to end abruptly. Crossing the road is also a fun and an adrenaline pumping challenge of its own and such a contrast from the organization that is weaved into everything that is Japanese culture where we arrived from. The trick is the motorbikes will move around you, but don’t ever step out in front of a car even if you have the walk sign. Let those pass then make your move and don’t be startled by the honking, they’re just letting you know they are there.

Once back in Hanoi we set up plans to move on to one of my favorite destinations in Vietnam, Phong Nha.

Here is a gallery from our time in Hanoi and Ha Long Bay: