Monday 18th December
When I got up and ventured out, the first thing I noticed was how cold it was in Hanoi! In the build up to coming I'd been checking the weather, and though I knew the north to be much colder that it would be when I got south to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), it had still looked to be around 24 degrees C. That had all seemed to changed the day I touched down, and it was now around 16-17. I had only bought a thin hoody, intended mostly for the flight out, but now I was going to have to wear it for the duration of my stay in Hanoi, as I only had short-sleeved shirts.
The second thing I noticed, which was admittedly less unexpected, was the chaotic traffic. Rules in the road, if there are any, seem to be drive on the right. Mainly. But even this rule was regularly ignored by the many, many motorcycles. I'd text my friend Billy to tell him where I was, and his reply was, "Land of the Vespa!" Crossroads were just insane - they have to be seen to be believed.
The second thing I noticed, which was admittedly less unexpected, was the chaotic traffic. Rules in the road, if there are any, seem to be drive on the right. Mainly. But even this rule was regularly ignored by the many, many motorcycles. I'd text my friend Billy to tell him where I was, and his reply was, "Land of the Vespa!" Crossroads were just insane - they have to be seen to be believed.
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I'll get on to talk about the shops in a minute, but something I quickly noticed was that some enterprising locals don’t own shops at all - they laden their scooters with an absolutely insane amount of goods, and drive around with loud speakers announcing their wares.
I remember thinking that Esta would hate her first impressions of this place, because when navigating the streets there is no room to walk on the pavements, as it's either full of shop stock or parked scooters! There’s no choice but to walk in the road. You have to boss it - own your space. Or you’ll either just be crowded out, or you simply won't get anywhere at all. I quickly worked out that you just don’t stop walking. At least not when you’re on the road. If you need to stop, you find somewhere to "pull over" - otherwise you just keep on walking, however slowly. Crossing the road, no matter how busy it is, and this rule applies even more than ever. Stopping just confuses everyone around you. It’s probably people stopping that causes any accidents. Luckily I didn’t see any of those.
I remember thinking that Esta would hate her first impressions of this place, because when navigating the streets there is no room to walk on the pavements, as it's either full of shop stock or parked scooters! There’s no choice but to walk in the road. You have to boss it - own your space. Or you’ll either just be crowded out, or you simply won't get anywhere at all. I quickly worked out that you just don’t stop walking. At least not when you’re on the road. If you need to stop, you find somewhere to "pull over" - otherwise you just keep on walking, however slowly. Crossing the road, no matter how busy it is, and this rule applies even more than ever. Stopping just confuses everyone around you. It’s probably people stopping that causes any accidents. Luckily I didn’t see any of those.
 A Mobile shop |  Busy pavements |
In Hanoi, the shops seemed to be grouped into streets which all sell one thing. I passed four shops selling buttons. Nothing else - just buttons. And they were all next door to each other! Some shops, I couldn’t even work out what on earth they were were selling.
Button shop. Just buttons!
After a couple of hours trying to locate myself, I finally found Hoàn Kiếm Lake. There was definitely a sense of tranquility around the water. The honking of horns did not disappear, but it certainly moved into the background.
 Hoàn Kiếm Lake |  Hoàn Kiếm Lake |
Dinner in the evening was at a BBQ stall on the corner of a busy road. I’d seen an Indian restaurant which tempted me, but the smell of the BBQ, along with how busy it was, just tempted me too much. I was still struggling with the currency, because it’s insane. Each skewer cost 10,000VND… which worked out at just 38p each! Next to me, as I ate, there was a stall churning out fried banana fritters. It was a constant cycle of cooking.
 BBQ dinner |  Fried bananas |
The backpacker’s mode of transport here is called Grab. You install the app, and like Uber you can hail a ride within minutes. This could be a 7 seater car, or just a moped.
I tried out a motorbike to get back to the hotel. You just have to trust the driver. It’s fun, and it costs pennies! They all carry spare crash helmets for the passengers they pick up.
Discovering the Grab transport was excellent. It meant that after going back to the hotel to lather myself with mosquito lotion, I could just completely and utterly wander at random. “Lost” was a concept that applied itself 100meters from the hotel anyway, so after that it was irrelevant. I took random lefts and rights, going down whatever street looked busy and interesting. It was very dark by 18:00, so the lights of the shops and restaurants just lead me on. Had it not been for some loud Americans, I would have completely missed Leo’s tavern. But as I had to stop and try and find a way around them, the rep outside tempted me down a tiny alleyway and upstairs to a hidden gem with a balcony overlooking the street. Little escapes from the chaos like these were a wonderful way to step away from the mayhem and view it from a safe distance.
Sitting in Leo's, I reflected that Hanoi reminded me a lot of Kathmandu - which doesn’t help if you’ve not been there either, but both a chaotic, yet somehow also feel safe. Everyone’s on a hustle, just trying to make a buck (or in this case, a few hundred thousand Vietnamese Dong).
The BBQ didn’t fill me up much, so after another hour or two of wandering I found myself in a really busy area, full of tourists and bars playing loud music. Somehow, out of all the Vietnamese places, I ended up sitting outside a Mexican bar, chowing down on smoked buffalo! At least the beer was Vietnamese. By the time I'd chewed on the meat (I needed the beer to help wash it down), I'd had enough for day one.
I tried out a motorbike to get back to the hotel. You just have to trust the driver. It’s fun, and it costs pennies! They all carry spare crash helmets for the passengers they pick up.
Discovering the Grab transport was excellent. It meant that after going back to the hotel to lather myself with mosquito lotion, I could just completely and utterly wander at random. “Lost” was a concept that applied itself 100meters from the hotel anyway, so after that it was irrelevant. I took random lefts and rights, going down whatever street looked busy and interesting. It was very dark by 18:00, so the lights of the shops and restaurants just lead me on. Had it not been for some loud Americans, I would have completely missed Leo’s tavern. But as I had to stop and try and find a way around them, the rep outside tempted me down a tiny alleyway and upstairs to a hidden gem with a balcony overlooking the street. Little escapes from the chaos like these were a wonderful way to step away from the mayhem and view it from a safe distance.
Sitting in Leo's, I reflected that Hanoi reminded me a lot of Kathmandu - which doesn’t help if you’ve not been there either, but both a chaotic, yet somehow also feel safe. Everyone’s on a hustle, just trying to make a buck (or in this case, a few hundred thousand Vietnamese Dong).
The BBQ didn’t fill me up much, so after another hour or two of wandering I found myself in a really busy area, full of tourists and bars playing loud music. Somehow, out of all the Vietnamese places, I ended up sitting outside a Mexican bar, chowing down on smoked buffalo! At least the beer was Vietnamese. By the time I'd chewed on the meat (I needed the beer to help wash it down), I'd had enough for day one.
Smoked buffalo
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