Good Morning Vietnam!

 

Hanoi, Vietnam – Day 11 (28/12/11)

 

We arrived to Vietnam bright and early this morning and were so very lucky to have such a kind and wonderful guide waiting for us at the gates in Hanoi. Quan is a colleague of mine from the KCB office in Brisbane. He is a former resident of Hanoi and came back recently with his wife and daughters to celebrate the holidays with the rest of his family who are still living here. Lucky for us, because he has pulled out all the stops to make our first day in Vietnam a fantastic one! 

 

Hanoi is a city full of quirkiness...just when we think we’ve see it all in Thailand, we are left shoveling our jaws off the ground here in the ‘city of peace’...maybe this is a mantra for the direction they are aiming to get to one day but for now it is pretty much pure chaos. Take the traffic in Thailand and throw in some senior citizens on pedal bikes out for a casual smoke on the highway and a couple of motorbikes heading the wrong way down the street and welcome to Hanoi! Quan doesn’t bother to drive here anymore as he has become accustomed to the Aussie roads and doesn’t want to destroy a rental car. I completely agree. So we toured by taxi around Old Quarter where our hostel is and walked until we came to a little underground restaurant for lunch, literally... a cement hole in the ground with a few tables and one item on the menu. But dang! You only need one item when it is that yum! Then we headed for a coffee at a local cafe. After a mid day cat nap we met up once more with our friend and his buds from his elementary school days and set out for dins. 

 

 

Little did we know that they had a two hour degustation planned at another eatery a few blocks away. These guys know how to show some tourists a good time. They ordered for everyone and we couldn't believe some of the dishes that came from the kitchen. We saw the likes of pig head, shaved bone, beef tail and goats leg. Then they went on to put Sabi and my wine drinking to shame. The night was filled with lots of exotic food, loud yelling and guzzling beer...32 glasses to be exact on the tab. But that’s nothing when you become a millionaire overnight (in dong that is!). All that can be heard is the constant hum of bike engines and horns honking in Hanoi and we are just happy to be here.

 

 

Hanoi, Vietnam – Day 12 & 13 (29 & 30/12/11) 

We did a full on city tour of Hanoi today with Quan and another of his local friends who volunteered to chauffer us around the busy city. First stop was at Vietnam’s oldest university where we saw the old traditional style buildings that were home to some of the first educational classes in the country. 

 

 

Then we visited the tomb of leader Ho Chi Minh who died in 1969. The monument is huge for just one man, especially in a city where space is extremely precious. It shows the value and dedication the Vietnamese have for their former leader. We then visited the Canadian Embassy just a street over from the mausoleum.