Hanoi Nights and More

[Day 2-3] Hanoi. More than a thousand year-old city. The capital of Vietnam.  A city of seven million people- and seven million motorcycles. That was actually the first thing I noticed about Hanoi (aside from the cold). There were motorcycles- everywhere! And if you’re not careful, I say you have pretty good chances getting hit by one.

Although Hanoi was our entry point to Vietnam, we only got to explore it a day after our arrival, after we did our Halong Bay Cruise. 

We arrived at our hotel in Old Quarter late in the afternoon. As old as Hanoi City itself, our guide says Old Quarter used to be busiest commercial area in Vietnam. They had best silk weavers and shoemakers and leather merchants and so on. It has 36 streets representing 36 different commodities made, sold and traded in the area. Today, Old Quarter is mainly a popular tourist place. But in the old days, people visit the streets depending on the product they’re looking for- jewelries, linen, porcelain. That night, we were looking for the best place to eat. Haha.

Everyone we asked recommended one place- New Day Restaurant. And we soon enough understood why.

New Day Restaurant. #72 Ma May St. Old Quarter, Hanoi.

Food fest!

Three happy friends ready to dig in!

The food was amazing! And reasonably priced. The place was packed when we got there. We even ran into a French couple and Norwegian family we met in the cruise.

They have the friendliest staff, too!

It's always the people that make the place. Especially if they cook and serve awesome food. :)

After dinner, we had the whole night to walk the streets of Old Quarter. :)

Hanoi by night. 

With a street vendor who sold me her lovely donuts for double the price. :)  #ripped #touristwoes

Another thing I noticed about Hanoi is that they love eating on the sidewalk. I mean literally, shop owners just put out small plastic chairs, makeshift tables and serve noodles or what-have-you’s and- voila!

Between these crowded streets. 

Top to bottom: Cafe Nang, one of the popular homegrown cafes in Old Quarter;
enjoying cafe su da with our new found friends.

After our Vietcoffee night cap, we bid our new friends goodbye (no without adding each other on Facebook) and packed up before midnight.

The following day, we had the entire morning and afternoon to explore the city before heading to Luang Prabang that night. No tour guides, no taxis. Just a city map paired with our itchy feet and shutter happy selves.

Fresh flowers brighten up the foggy morning. 

Hoan Kiem Lake or Lake of the Returned Sword.
Legend say Vietnamese Emperor Le Loi received a sword from a turtle that emerged from the lake.  

The wonders of GoPro on a monopod. 

In the middle of the lake sits the Ngoc Son Temple- a museum-cum-worship place. 

After touring the city center, we headed for the the Temple of Literature. Locals say it's a 10-minute taxi ride from the lake. But since we wanted to see more of the city, we decided to walk to the Temple. Getting the full city vibe was worth the 45-minute walk. *pants*

Hanoi city sights. 

Entrance to the Temple of Literature. It is one of the popular Confucius temples..
 Built in 1070 as an Imperial Academy, it was the first national university in Vietnam.

First courtyard of the Temple of Literature. 

The temple is also used for school functions. 

One feature in the temple that really caught my eye were the doctor steles. These are 82 giant stone tablets carved with the names of doctors who passed the royal examinations from the 15th to the 18th century. A total of 1,304 names are carved on these steles. These include some of the famous historians, mathematicians and philosophers in Vietnam history. 

The doctor stelae. 

Imagine if they also do this for the UPCAT.  

Inside the temple. 

Add caption

They look like your typical bonsai plant, but if you look closely,  they're adorned
with there tiny, meticulously done figures. 

Visiting the lake and temples, and getting another dose of pho and Viet coffee in between, was indeed a day well spent. :)

By afternoon, we headed back to our hotel to gather our stuff and kiss Hanoi goodbye. It would've been sad to leave such a nice city, but our next destination was one that we couldn't wait to get to.

So off we were to our next stop- Luang Prabang.

But before that, we had to endure an epic border-crossing, 30-hour bus ride. Tada-da-duh.