Hanoi and Halong Bay

It definitely took me a while to get used to Hanoi, which reminded me of China and Nepal combined. Most of the people looked and dressed like Chinese people (or at least what I remembered of China when I went to Beijing back in 2001). They were also just as loud as them. The streets and traffic were similar to Kathmandu, except that the roads were paved whereas Kathmandu had mostly dirt roads so it was pretty dusty (in Kathmandu). Reminiscent of Kathmandu was also the amount of incessant honking involved. Cars and motorcycles cannot move an inch without steady honking. No laws governed these roads. Motorcycles had whole families sitting on them. Others had pots of plants tied to the backseat. It was madness. I think I’d throw a fit if I was driving here.

Actually, I was a bit surprised at how backwards the city was. I visited Kuala Lumpur in November 2008 and was surprised at how advanced it was, so I guess I expected the same for Hanoi. I’ve heard so much of how Vietnam was developing very quickly in the last few years that I kind of expected it to look almost like Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur. However, Vietnam definitely needs a few decades to catch up.

Anyway, touches of French architecture can be seen throughout Hanoi. The buildings are built very narrow (and tall, almost 4-6 floors). And interestingly, as our tour guide to Halong Bay told us, people only paint the front of the house and leave the sides unpainted because other people will most likely build another house right next to it anyway. Many family generations live in the same house, which I found to be quite nice. The older generation lives in the bottom, and the younger ones are on top. I guess I wouldn’t mind having my parents live below me as long as we’re separated by floors. Baguettes are also found on the roads. I didn’t get a chance to try them but they looked really good! I love French bread.

They also bury their deceased family members on the rice paddy fields. So as you drive along the road, you’ll notice (many) tombstones on the fields as you see farmers planting their rice. The tour guide made an attempt at cracking a joke by saying that they made excellent fertilizers.

From my personal impression, life in Vietnam seems to revolve around mainly money. I thought it was interesting how the tour guides kept mentioning how thankful they were that we were putting money in their pockets by visiting the country. They also had this weird leer whenever they said that, which made me feel slightly uncomfortable. I guess other people have a more subtle way of showing greed (like me). Vietnamese people are tough and hardworking folks though considering what they’ve been through in the past.

There were no price tags to anything in Vietnam, which I found extremely difficult as I felt they were ripping me off constantly. You definitely have to bargain even for street pho (Vietnamese noodles) and they ranged anywhere from 15000 – 30000 dong. I paid 20000 dong for a bowl of pho, but the lady was going to charge me 30000 dong at first. They also love US dollars, so you can buy almost anything with this currency. It was about 17000 dong for 1 US dollars when I was there. It probably would’ve been better if I paid a dollar for the noodles instead of in dong actually. I also have issues with people taking advantage of me (like everybody else I’m sure), so I definitely didn’t like feeling ripped off. I don’t mind paying for expensive food as long as everybody’s paying the same price tag.

It’s nice if you know somebody in Vietnam who can show you around and where to eat (Yes, I’m all about the food). I had extremely horrific luck eating pho the first night I was there (my pho tasted like overcooked noodles and tap water), but luckily, Nick’s friend was there afterwards and she took us to eat at a buffet restaurant ($10 US), which served a terrific assortment of Vietnamese food (I love the spring rolls!). I also love the Vietnamese sweets, which was one of the best things I discovered in Vietnam. I also found out that the sweets I bought back to Thailand expired on the 13th so I was really sad to throw away all of my boxes of Ban Comh. At night, we also went for drinks at a Latino Bar on top of a pretty posh hotel. It felt like being at Vertigo or The Nest.

Halong Bay was beautiful, although it was cold and foggy when I went. Don’t take the cruise if you’re there. I don’t think it’s worth it as you can save time and money by just going there yourself and renting a boat to take you around to the main islands for a day. I went on the Phoenix Halong Bay Cruiser (it was US $79, don’t take it). The room was nice but there was no hot water, the food was very simple and bland, and they only took us to one island (The Cave of Surprizes). Actually, I don’t think I’m much of a boat person because eventually my sheer excitement of being on a boat dies down and boredom kicks in as there’s only a limited amount of space that I can explore. After that, you’re just stuck on the boat watching islands slowly go by. I felt the same when I was in New Zealand and took the Milford Sound cruise. I guess I would prefer tramping around the islands than just looking at them from afar. But gazing at the stars at night was definitely romantic (and cold and wet).

So it took me a while to appreciate Hanoi. It definitely had its charms. I really liked walking through the Old Quarters, which had tons of shops selling various things. A street in Vietnam also usually just sells one thing, for example just Vietnamese sweets, or silverware, or silk, etc. Shops, houses and restaurants also have an orange tree in the front to bring in good luck. The tour guide said it was good feng shui. We stayed at the Indochina Hotel I (US $35), which was in the Old Quarters and just around the corner from the lake and St. Joseph Cathedral. The rooms were good but we got upgraded to a better room on the last night because the power kept shutting off on the first night. There were also no shower curtains so I pretty much flooded the bathroom while I took a shower.