It's been so long since I left Hanoi, so long ago that it seems like a distant memory. Nevertheless, a lot of important events happened during my 10 days there, which I'll attempt to recount briefly. We spent the first two nights with Diep, our couchsurfing host (below), a software engineer who lives in a posh area just outside of central Hanoi. Diep had to take a sudden business trip to Saigon (other end of Vietnam), so we were forced onto the streets to fend for ourselves, and ended up at -
the Hoa Duong Hotel, which was to be our humble abode for the next week or so. Initially, we'd planned to spend just a few days in Hanoi and then hit the road, but by the time we arrived, we only had about 2 weeks left on our visas; not nearly enough time to make it all the way to Saigon (not that we ended up going there anyway). So we were stuck in the big city for an extra week while we waited for our visa extensions to pull through ($35 extra – yikes!).
Hanoi traffic was CRAZY! Compared to Laos and Thailand, I found the traffic here incomprehensible. People seemed not to care whether they live or die, which side of the street they drive on, or whether they were just inches from a head-on collision. Cycling in Hanoi is *almost* as bad as cycling in the US. The only thing that makes it better is that nobody rolls down their window and yells "F%#k you, get off the road!" I did manage to get hit, however, by a drunk guy and his friend on their scooter, who side-swiped me at about 2mph. They fell off their scooter, and bent my front rack in the process. Everything was ok, or so I thought, until a few days later I broke 2 spokes on the front wheel just outside of Hanoi – post traumatic stress on my bicycle?
Outside of that bad experience, Hanoi was pretty fun. Cute coffee shop girls and good coffee (below, my friend Lan) -
Nice night-time scenery at Sword Lake -
Awkward street breakfast photos –
Grandmas and their grandkids -
And a dinner party with some college students we met through a couch-surfing organization -
Other important information: KFC in Hanoi has 25 cent ice cream cones! We had at least one a day. Also, we lost Mingyu :( He set off after just a few short days to go visit a friend in Luang Prabang, Laos. But not to worry! We'll hook back up in Cambodia or thereabouts. Can't keep shakies apart!
Also done in Hanoi – Museums! Look for that in another post!
the Hoa Duong Hotel, which was to be our humble abode for the next week or so. Initially, we'd planned to spend just a few days in Hanoi and then hit the road, but by the time we arrived, we only had about 2 weeks left on our visas; not nearly enough time to make it all the way to Saigon (not that we ended up going there anyway). So we were stuck in the big city for an extra week while we waited for our visa extensions to pull through ($35 extra – yikes!).
Hanoi traffic was CRAZY! Compared to Laos and Thailand, I found the traffic here incomprehensible. People seemed not to care whether they live or die, which side of the street they drive on, or whether they were just inches from a head-on collision. Cycling in Hanoi is *almost* as bad as cycling in the US. The only thing that makes it better is that nobody rolls down their window and yells "F%#k you, get off the road!" I did manage to get hit, however, by a drunk guy and his friend on their scooter, who side-swiped me at about 2mph. They fell off their scooter, and bent my front rack in the process. Everything was ok, or so I thought, until a few days later I broke 2 spokes on the front wheel just outside of Hanoi – post traumatic stress on my bicycle?
Outside of that bad experience, Hanoi was pretty fun. Cute coffee shop girls and good coffee (below, my friend Lan) -
Nice night-time scenery at Sword Lake -
Awkward street breakfast photos –
Grandmas and their grandkids -
And a dinner party with some college students we met through a couch-surfing organization -
Other important information: KFC in Hanoi has 25 cent ice cream cones! We had at least one a day. Also, we lost Mingyu :( He set off after just a few short days to go visit a friend in Luang Prabang, Laos. But not to worry! We'll hook back up in Cambodia or thereabouts. Can't keep shakies apart!
Also done in Hanoi – Museums! Look for that in another post!
