Glimpse of Vietnam - Hi Hanoi!

Our second week in Vietnam was spent in Hanoi, cited by Frommer's travel guide as one of the Top Destinations of 2010. Not much prepared on looking out for a hotel before leaving Saigon, that we hurriedly checked in a low budget hostel for backpackers in the Old Quarter. Unknowingly without a lift, ended up stucking our tounges out in exhaustion as we carried our luggages up to the 4th floor where our room was located. We checked out and changed hotel the morning after, got in Sunshine Palace 3 hotel (http://hanoisunshinehotel.com/) up until our last day of our stay in the Old Quarter. If you have more money to spare for hotel for about 30 USD per night stay, i rather choose here than the previous hostel we had, with all the comforts and very good buffet breakfast they provide.

Since its a business trip, we hadn't got much to go around. Most of the pictures are from my companion E with her very nice and so damn expensive (and heavy) SLR camera haha.Thanks!

We had our first dinner in a filthy looking Chinese restaurant in front of the hotel but nevertheless satisfied us with their grilled beef and fried rice combo.

Grilled beef with lots of onions and onion leeks, most of the diners have them with their own French bread. But since me and E are so dead tired and hungry from the day's work, we ordered rice, raising an eyebrow to a couple next to our table. Pakielam nila, tse!

A not so-good week of work was what he had in Hanoi, and I dont want to reminisce them again, but not of the bonding I had with E, with lots of worrysome moments but we managed to get through within the week. On our last night we walked around the Old Quarter, haggled with a fare from our hotel to ride on this Tuktuk.

About a 15 minute walk from our hotel was the Hoan Kiem Lake where the popular landmark of Hanoi was located - the Ngoc Son temple.

We got lost on our way back to the hotel, wandering around the Old Quarter for an hour, before finally found our route. For a relaxing savoring of our last night, we had their Vietnamese coffee and ordered them cold.

The morning after, with about a 4 more hours to spare before catching a flight back to Ho Chi Minh, we return to the lake park and took some more pictures.

A photo of a local woman still wearing their traditional conical hat. Old Quarter is a busy place of local stalls and restaurants. Most of the tourists visiting Hanoi stay in hotel and backpacker's hostels in this area.


Entrance to the Pagoda temple near the lake.

View of the Ngoc Son temple at the day.

Traffic is light on weekends, still mostly with motorbikes though, but i find it better using a bicycle like that of the lady in sraw hat like below.

I'll definitely go back to Hanoi if time and consequences allow to me, and I'll tag again E if you ask me for a companion. :)

Glimpse of Vietnam - Ho Chi Minh II

A personal tour would never be complete without savoring local cuisines and haggling souvenirs and presents. For this, we went to Cho Ben Thanh market in downtown Ho Chi Minh, the market is open daily from 7am to 7pm. You can find almost everything here from local clothes to sweets and souvenirs. I saw some known branded items as well for travel bags and accessories but just be aware that they could also be fake since the price is unimaginably a half or even quarter of the original price.

Chi Ben Thanh market at night.

Inside the market.

Below is a Vietnamese coffee by Nescafe. By the way, locals prefer their coffee sweet and so strong that on the first time I tried them, I ordered a tall glass of hot water to dilute it. It was served individually brewed with a metal filter on. But its good with ice too.

Souvenir items for sale, be ready to haggle good.

Tasting their local cuisine mad me fall in love on the very first time I had them. One of the best I had after our own Filipino dishes. Food is so good, be it sold on street corner or stalls around the market as on below image:

Up to the high end looking restaurant like these:

New Pearl's restaurant is located on Pham Ngu Lao street, food is good, great ambiance, plus freebies as well during our first visit.

Special mention to Vietnamese spring rolls, me and E had them almost every other day during our 2 week stay haha, they're so damn good! Hehe. We just forgot to took a picture of them but the good thing is Pho Hoa restaurant has branches in the Philippines. I remember my companion E couldn't get enough with this dish that she had them in Manila a week after we arrived home. ^_^

Glimpse of Vietnam - Ho Chi Minh City

And so, after my Dubai stint that I went back home to the Philippines, a surprise came after 3 months that an agent called me up for a two-week project in Vietnam. Since local projects are scarce during those times, i tag a recently heartbroken friend along with me (sorry for tagging you as that E hehe - ed), to try out our luck. Thank God we made it through the project, its not as smooth as we expect it as is, but a load of new experience from trying out new places to dealing with different type of people as well. We we not able to visit on to most recommended places as we hadn't much time to go around due to work, but still managed to go around on spots that are within the vicinity. (Some of the pics are courtesy of a friend, thanks E.)



First of my 3 part Vietnam tour - Ho Chi Minh City. Formerly known as Saigon, the government renamed the city after a North Vietnamese Leader - Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh.


Ho Chi Minh city's traffic consists mostly of loads of motorbikes, and it disappoints me that some taxi drivers dont speak much English and so be ready with a paper and write down your destination and have it read than just by telling them. Be careful as well when taking a cab from the airport, some taxis overcharge their fares, better take Vinasun taxi company, also watch out that they start their meter when you start travelling. On worst case when you really have to take other taxis, try to negotiate with them on the payment prior using their service, like a regular fare from airport to downtown part (e.g. Pham Ngu Lao), costs not more that 95000 dong (Vnd).

The city's main Postal Office. Tourism info guides could be found here as well as forex exchange booths.

This is the French built Notre Dame Cathedral, located in downtown Ho Chi Minh City.

Another spot in downtown Ho Chi Minh, the Reunification palace in District 1.

War remnants museum in 28 Vo Van Tan, in District 3. The museum exhibits photos & some items related to American-Vietnam War. I must admit, that after the tour, it left a lump in my throat and a heavy heart, on over millions of soul loss during the war, and still perishing people affected by Agent Orange (code use for the herbicides & defoliants used by the US as part of their warfare program).

Ho Chi Minh City Hall at the day. But unfortunately, the place is not open to the public.
The city hall illuminated at night.