Day 5 - Hanoi

9th March 2011
Romantic, charming, picturesque, beautiful – they’re all words used by travel guides to describe Vietnam’s capital city. So I had a high expectation going into Hanoi. My first impressions weren't good. Hanoi was cold and grey. The streets were dirty and polluted and it just felt miserable. I wasn't disappointed but it did left me feeling a bit underwhelmed.

Vietnam’s capital Hanoi is very different to Saigon. The streets still throb with traffic, but it is a bit easier to get around. The city is more compact which is great for walking as most of the main sights are all within the same area. Hanoi doesn't really feel like a big city to me. It’s like an oversized town with long narrow houses, ancient streets and alley ways with cafes and French colonial charm.

Whereas Saigon represents Modern Vietnam, Hanoi is the Old Vietnam. It’s a place of culture and tradition. Hanoi’s old world charm remained unchanged by Vietnam’s modernisation. This is especially evident in area known as the Old Quarter.

On my first day in the city I decided to concentrate mainly on this area. Visiting the Old Quarter sometimes feel like being in a time warp. Its here you’ll see the vendors wearing the iconic conical hats and carrying impossibly large loads balanced on their shoulders through the ancient streets.

It is the bustling heart of Hanoi, with each tiny street dedicated to a specific craft, like shoemaking or metalwork or even masonry for tombstones. As I explore the streets, I found clusters of shops all selling like goods - like 20 sunglasses shops together, then 30 hardware shops all together, lantern shops in the same block. It's so strange. The Old Quarter also has hundreds of shops selling silks, lacquer ware, all sorts of other handicrafts, even stores selling original propaganda posters and reprints from the American War, as it’s known in Vietnam.

The Old Quarter is also the area where my hostel was located in. I stayed at Hanoi Backpackers Hostel in Ma May Street and it was very good value. At only $6, they offer clean air-conditioned shared dorms and bathroom and free breakfast. There is also a bar and lounge area. The hostel has a great international atmosphere, there so many backpackers from all over the world. It's run by two Australians and the staff here are excellent and very helpful. I would definitely recommend this place for someone on a budget, it's so cheap.

In the center of the city is Hoan Kiem Lake, a pretty little lake surrounded by trees, pedestrian boulevard, park benches, and cafes. Any time of day is a good time to go people watching at Hoan Kiem. Early in the morning, old men and women can be seen practicing their tai chi around the lake. At night, couples stroll the park. A sacred pagoda called tortoise tower lies on an island in the middle of the lake. In the northern parts of the lake is the Ngoc Son Temple accessible by a red wooden bridge.

One of the biggest differences I notice between Hanoi and Saigon is that Hanoi has a communist vibe going on. Pith helmets are prevalent here, I see a lot of men wear them and for some reason it kind of creeps me out. Many of the tourist sights and government building also have these guards with their classic green communist uniform. There’s even a statue of Lenin in a park and many propaganda posters to be found along the streets. I also find the people here in general are more serious and conservative. And the night life in Hanoi is not so good as majority of drinking establishments and clubs close down before midnight to avoid the wrath of the "fun police."

The communists may have taken over from the French in the 1950s, but the European flavor still exists particularly in the area know as The French Quarter. Located east of the Hoan Kiem Lake, the French Quarter feels like you are in a certain European country (I can't recall which one) with it's wide streets and buildings all have French influences due to it's colonial past. Some of these building include the Sofitel Metropol Hotel, Hanoi Opera House, Hilton Hanoi Opera and the Vietnam History Museum.

The area is noticable more clean. Here you'll find bookshops and art galleries and museums, government buildings and embassies as well as cafes and hotels. It's nice walking along the French Quarter and admiring the beautiful architecture, a refreshing change of landscape.

As I mentioned earlier on, Hanoi has a midnight curfew so there isn't really much to do in the night time. I did go to Vietnamese Water Puppet Show in the evening at the Thanh Long Theatre located across from Hoan Kiem Lake. This hour long puppet show features traditional music and is set in a theatre with a water stage and a Chinese pagoda floating on top. The leaflet says the puppet show tells a story about the daily lives of local country people and also mythological stories about fire breathing dragons, golden turtles and an evil king. It features some special effects like fire and smoke and water spraying dragons but nothing too fancy. It's all told in Vietnamese so I don't really know what was going on. Nevertheless, it was very unique and unexpectingly entertaining to watch and only costed three dollars.