Hanoi

Passing through Bangkok once again on the way to Vietnam, we came across a very creepy Thai version of Ronald McDonald.

Our first impression of Vietnam: motorbikes, motorbikes and more motorbikes! We’ve spent a while in Asia now, but Vietnam takes it to a new level when it comes to motorbike traffic. We continue to be amazed at what can be carried on a tiny scooter – a huge slaughtered pig, a family of five, or the contents of a full market stand.

We’re getting better at crossing major intersections – the technique is best summed up as “be brave, keep going and hope” (and, when possible, embed yourself in a flock of locals!) The traffic is worst in the historic old quarter. While it was hectic, we enjoyed walking among the old buildings which had a lot of character.

A nice surprise about Hanoi was the many parks and lakes throughout the city. In the weekend they were packed with Vietnamese families enjoying the outdoors. The Vietnamese seem quite sporty, with games of badminton and volleyball going on in small spaces all around the city. We spotted a new game called jianzi, where teams kick a weighted shuttlecock to each other like a hacky sack.

Another great thing about Vietnam is the coffee and bread. Our thanks to the French colonialists! The strong, rich coffee here tastes even better after a couple of months of weak 3-in-1 instant coffeemix. The Vietnamese have a different method of brewing coffee, using a small filter that sits on top of your mug and slowly drips coffee through. It comes out super-strong, and ice and condensed milk is then added for a result that’s halfway between a drink and a dessert.

As for bread, a dollar will get you a fresh mini-baguette filled with an omelette and chilli sauce. It’s welcome comfort food when we need a break from rice or noodles three times a day!

A few travellers have mentioned to us that they didn’t think people in Vietnam were as friendly as people from other Southeast Asian countries. But, so far, the local people have been great. We caught a lot of buses in Hanoi and people always helped us navigate the complex route network.

While in Hanoi, we CouchSurfed with the lovely Vincy. She took us out to a local restaurant and gave us some great advice for visiting Vietnam. Vincy is a nickname used for westerners, because if you pronounce her Vietnamese name in the wrong tones, you call her “sticky”! Vietnamese is a difficult language for English-speakers, with six different tones. It’s fair to say we’re struggling to even say hello properly! Here’s a graph of what the tones look like. Simple, right?

And this is just the northern dialect… By Ishwar, Wikimedia Commons

It’s always exciting coming to grips with a new country, and we’re really enjoying being in Vietnam. Our plan from here is to head to Cat Ba Island, a base for exploring the famous Halong Bay. We’ll then head north to the mountainous frontier region along the border with China. After that, we’ll make our way down the country and fly out of Saigon in a few weeks’ time.

Tạm biệt. Which means goodbye. Or, if you say it in the wrong tones, “to leave broken rice grains” or “soak special”.

Comments from WordPress

• Tim 2013-04-22T19:30:58Z

  YAY Vietnam!! Love that place!

Written by Craig Drayton and Sally Robertson