Travel Tales
Hà Nội.
Arriving on Thursday evening I laughed off the pilots announcement that ‘the outside temperature was 36 degrees’. Rolling my eyes knowingly towards Chi I asserted that he meant it was 26. No, he was right. Wow. 10.30pm sat on the street and the sweat was cascading down my front like a waterfall, crashing onto the rocks that was my lap. Thankfully the rest of the weekend was bearable, but that first night was like being in a greenhouse full of steam in the Amazon Basin.
So, Hà Nội. Nice. A ‘pleasanter’ city than Sài Gòn, I would have to say. Lakes and parks and more open space. Less traffic. Better air. The Old Quarter is charming. I have visions of this city in the future, perhaps fifty years down the line. All around modernization has taken hold and the city will be as developed as any other in Asia, but the Old Quarter will remain the same, and in doing so it will be one of the most attractive tourist destinations in the region….real history and tradition should be preserved in these streets, starting with the banning of cars, an embarrassment to those narrow streets.
Across Hanoi, I see less building and construction than in Saigon. I see less big chains taking hold like Highlands and Lotteria. This is of course relative to the populations of the two cities, but noticeable nonetheless.
Hồ Hoàn Kiếm
Đền Ngọc Sơn, my wife just visible through the incense sticks.
We had started with only a coffee in a traditional Càfê Giảng on Hàng Gai, so breakfast was a high priority. This was it, a voluminous bowl of bún riêu cua laced with cherry tomatoes and tofu.
Later that evening we went to Công Viên Thống Nhất (Independence Park, previously Lenin Park) for a dusk stroll, along with half of Hà Nội.
Then it was back to the Old Quarter and off to a very famous restaurant, where I had one of the tastiest Vietnamese dishes I’ve ever had. The place was the renowned Chả Cá Lã Vọng. Wow. The longer it cooked, the better it tasted. I wanted to drink the oil from the pan and bask in its greasy deliciousness.
Hà Nội by night:
The following day we ventured to the Hồ Chí Minh mausoleum, where I practiced looking sombre. Of course, the pomp was worthy of royalty, let alone a national hero. The actual walk through was brief and subdued. In the picture, you can see the line of people waiting to pass through.
We then made it to the Museum of Ethnology, where the most interesting display I have seen about Vietnam is shown, that of life during the bao cấp period
That evening we visited Bobby Chinn’s restaurant. What a place — the food was fantastic, as was the atmosphere, and the man himself was walking around making the customers comfortable (Bobby has his own show on Discovery Travel & Living now).
The next morning, we went to Văn Miếu ( Temple of Literature), the first University in Vietnam. The history of the Confucian system of education is remarkable. You think students these days face pressure…..huh! Here, the stone tablets bear the names of those who passed the exams and the exams themselves.
Finally, I wanted to drive over the Red River and back, you know, just to ‘have a gander’.
And that was it, in pictures and words, our trip to Hà Nội.
Discussion
8 comments for “Hà Nội.”
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Connections Vietnam is a brilliant company operating in Saigon, Vietnam, with a slogan of "Bringing visitors to Saigon closer to it's people, food and culture". 
You guys should visit there during autumn (around Sept-Oct). The weather is nicer and trees, the gardens, the lakes, etc. look more beautiful.
Your wife can confirm this: there are songs about Hanoi’s autumn but none about its summer.
There is a fun fact that so many Hanoi”ese” were born around June-July. Count back 9 months and you will understand how romantic Hanoi autumn is
Love the incense pic, and the toys (cute). Hanoi does look to have different feel than Saigon. Maybe an interesting destination.
Dagnabbit Jon, had I known you were here, I woulda boughten yah a couple of beers.
Thanks for this excellent post and all the great photos. I’m really enjoying your blog.
from Doodee
And I wouldn’t have turned you down either Thong. As it turned out, everything was last minute and it was very much a whirlwind tour of Hanoi!
Great photo’s as always. I know what you mean about the humidy - We were last in Hanoi during August and it was like walking through hot mist.
I thought the traffic in Hanoi, specifically the Old Quarter was worse than anything in HCMC.
How did the locals treat your wife? My GF didn’t get along well with the Hanoi locals (she’s from HCMC).
I can’t compare the Old Quarter traffic to Vo Thi Sau at 7.30am or 2/3 at 5.30pm…..haha. Saigon traffic is becoming more and more of a nightmare as each month passes. The OQ traffic in Hanoi is inevitably bad beacuse of narrow lanes.