Blogs from Red River Delta, Vietnam, Asia - page 4

Of course, there’s more to Hanoi than the HCM memorial gardens. The city fair boils with activity. People mill around constantly. Otherwise, they sit outside their little businesses on bizarre small chairs or stools. They eat, they chat, they smoke. But how they do it on one of those minuscule seats for hours on end, I’ll never know. We made our way to the War Museum stopping to have a coffee near to the city’s ancient fortress and flag tower. Just behind we found a display of planes, tanks and guns. Arguably, these are the very things people associate with Vietnam even though it’s nearly 50 years since the conflict ended. I don’t think this country will ever fully shake off that unfortunate association. And maybe that’s as it should be. A reminder to us all ... read more

In Hanoi we were staying in an exquisite little place, the Essence Spa Hotel, right in the heart of the Old Quarter. We had stayed at it's sister hotel here last time, the Essence Palace, and had enjoyed it so much we booked again not realising there were two of them. Initially we were disappointed at the change but realised after a day or two that it was probably an even better choice but not by much. Both are in the Old Quarter and right in the heart of the hustle and bustle of naked commerce and gritty daily life. It’s been much cooler in Hanoi than Saigon. Almost half the temperature - one day’s high 19° compared to 31 in Saigon. It has warmed up over the few days getting up to 29 now. Lyn ... read more

Pour que Noël reste La fête magique de l'année, nous avons décidé qu'elle le soit pleinement ! Nous n'avons plus vu Leslie depuis bientôt 3 ans 1/2... trop c'est trop... alors prenons l'avion et fonçons vers le bonheur.... Noël réunira aussi le frère et la soeur cette année... Deux fois plutôt qu'une : OUI Noël sera LA fête de l'année... Leur maman a tout de suite réagi positivement à l'annonce de notre visite... Nous sommes attendus LES bras ouverts ! Ceux qui voyagent avec nous de par ce blog savent que nous ne partons jamais quelque part sans passer par autre part.... Nous arrivons donc à Hanoi afin de connaître cette partie du pays que nous ne connaissons pas encore... pour continuer notre route vers Saigon en une dizaine de jours... Tout un chemin afin que ... read more

Guess what.......an early start again today! Out of bed at 6.00 am, in time for breakfast, check out and then on to the coach for a 7.30 departure. In actual fact, it was only a 'partial check out' today, because as Arnie famously said (sort of!), 'We'll be back'! We're off to Ha Long Bay today, for an overnight cruise in the bay, then back to Hanoi tomorrow evening, for one more night, at the same Sunway hotel, in Hanoi - we only took an overnight bag on this trip and left our main cases in storage at the hotel. Ha Long Bay is yet another UNESCO World Heritage site and is considered one the highlights of the trip; one that we have all been looking forward to. The iconic image of the limestone promontories spread ... read more

They say the third time is a charm. Well, this is my third visit (and perhaps last visit) to the famous French colonial city in the north of Vietnam, Hanoi. What is it about Hanoi? Food, buzzing night life, silk, friendly young people, crazy traffic, exquisite handicrafts, it all adds up to a few days on interesting meals and adventures. I have a feeling we will be concentrating on the food. But the beer and coffee are also quite good here. But the food, yes, the influence of the French, the culturally bound food and traditions, the newer cuisine. It adds up to lots of eating and drinking. We have already tried some of the better places in the city. It is time to check out the lesser known, and perhaps more innovative cuisine of this ... read more