I had a terrible night’s sleep with backpacker’s alley being a busy locale until 3am and restless dreams the rest of the night. However, we were up bright and early to head out for our flight to Hanoi.
We took Vietnam Airlines up. It’s just two short hours and the flight seemed alright though I was half awake for most of it. π
Our airport pickup for Hanoi Boutique hotel was there to greet us for the hour journey in to the city. It was quite nice to see the mountains and countryside on the drive in.
I was struck by the orange or red roofs everywhere. I’m not sure why, but it seems somehow strange to see them. I wasn’t withit enough to take photos but maybe later pictures will reveal what I am talking about.
The city is smaller, thus fewer motorbikes but still a ton! Most buildings are tall and narrow which I haven’t quite come to understand because space doesn’t seem to be that much of a problem. Perhaps it is money….
Our new hotel is lovely and the staff is very friendly. We are located in the Old Quarter which is pretty convenient for seeing most things.
So after settling in, we headed out to explore. The streets are filled with stores/vendors and the honking of horns. The cyclo riders made frequent attempts to get us as customers but we walked on. After a bit of meandering we found the Hoan Kiem Lake and had a walk around that.
In search for lunch we took a very long detour and somehow ended up in the northwest along the shores of Ho Tay (West Lake). Thankfully, the boats had food so we ate on the Potomac. Though the food was pretty average we watched our first downpour.
Once refreshed, we took a bit of a wander along the lake shore which seemed to be the backside of the South American embassies. There wasn’t much to see other than a few crazies swimming in the water getting their next meal perhaps.
So, as the next downpour began we caught a taxi back to our hotel.
In the evening we went to a popular place recommeneded by Lonely Planet called 69 for drinks and dinner. It was pretty good and thus was our first afternoon in Hanoi!
More to come,
-T
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