I have done much research on
Vietnam
on the net once I have decided to visit this country despite its current bird
flu problem.Iread more people died of road accidents than bird flu in
Vietnam
!On our second day in
Hanoi
while on the way to
Halong
Bay
, I witnessed two major accidents.
I gather much info about this beautiful country from Lonely Planet Thorn
Tree forum.Many thanks to those who
have given constructive advice and useful info.I must say TT is one of great travel info forums.Then again, there are touts too.You
need to be careful of what you read.Be
careful of scams too.I experienced
twice myself.Stories below.
Trip
itinerary
Arrive in
Hanoi
late evening.Stay two nights in
Hanoi
.Proceed to
Halong
Bay
for a 2D 1N trip.Back and stay one
night in
Hanoi
.Take 10 hours night train to Lao
Cai and then an hour ride to Sapa for two nights stay.Back to
Hanoi
and take 16 hours night train to Danang on the same night.Take an hour taxi ride from Danang train station to Hoi An for a 2 night
stay.Fly back to
Hanoi
from Danang (due to lack of time).Stay
last night in
Hanoi
before coming home the next evening.
Certainly, this holiday trip involves much traveling than any holidays we
have taken so far.Is it a hassle ?I do not think so.My wife,
Joy does not think so.Only my
daughter, JH complaints about it.I
reckon she has too much of good life in
Singapore
.
In retrospect, I should go to Sapa first before
Halong
Bay
.Why ?The night train from Lao Cai reaches
Hanoi
at early morning at about 5am.At
such early hour and with all our bags, where are we supposed to go ?I had no choice but to rent a day room to rest and bath.We learn from experience
Sapa
This is a must-see when visiting
Vietnam
– many mention in the TT.I must
agree.It is a beautiful place with
scenic landscapes and mountainous villages dotted around.Sapa itself is a small town full of hotels and restaurants.From here, you can book your trekking tours or market tours from the
various travel agencies around.We
paid for US$40 jeep trip to three villages.Standard of living in the villages was poor and very manual.Despite of the hard living, I notice the villagers appeared happy with
the simple and care-free way of life.We
were here for two nights and had enjoyed ourselves tremendously for its cool
weather and sheer beauty.
We also did two treks on our own to
Cat
Cat
Village
and Ham Rong Trek.Both are easy
treks which do require much effort.It
takes about half day to do the Cat Cat.On
the way, we met many trekkers like us.
While in Sapa town, you will be constantly asked by the
villagers in their traditional Hmong /other minority group costumes to buy
something from me.If you buy
something from one, the whole group will surround you to persuade you to buy
from them.Cannot blame them.This is their only trade to earn a living.Noticeably, these sellers are female.I also note the three standard questions these girls will ask you:-
a)what is your name
b)where are you from
c)buy something from me
Strangely, these girls speak good English.Most of them learn it from tourists.For the second question, we were mistakenly taken as Japanese or Koreans.I suppose my country is just too small in the world map.When we mentioned
Singapore
, the first reaction was ‘very clean’.Are
we ?
We took the train (SP1) from
Hanoi
at 9.30pm to Lao Cai after about 10 hours ride.From Lao Cai, another hour of bus ride (25000VND) to Sapa town.It is not difficult to go to Sapa yourself.
Halong
Bay
This is the World Heritag Site.It is a must see when you are in
Vietnam
.I know why because it was surreal.Giant craters of rocks scattered around the bay.We were on a 2D 1N trip (US$36pp thru ODC).
On our boat, there were 16 tourists with 8 crew members and
a watch dog named Tiger.Not sure
why, Tiger was not too friendly keeping to himself all day.Only at night, he was active.
We went kayaking, swimming and exploring caves.Other than these activities, you spend your time on the boat relaxing and
just enjoying at the natural beauty of the surroundings.Personally, I feel two days should be enough for this kind of trip.Too long, you will get bored.Too
short, it will be too rushed to enjoy it.
Each cabin sleeps two.The cabin is small and not soundproof.Bathroom is attached but basic.All
meals are provided.Food is not
excellent but acceptable.
Click a picture to see a larger view.
breakfast on boat" border="0">
Old
Quarter
This unique place comprises of 36 streets.Each street is unique for its special product.On one street, you can find all the shops are selling shoes.On the other, craftsmen are making tombstones.Ancient meandering streets are each named after the crafts and specialty
trades traditionally practiced by original artisan’s guilds in the 13th
century. What makes it more interesting is the incessant flow of traffic and
non-stop honing!There is no one way
traffic on these narrow streets.Everything
goes.It is amazing the thousands of
scooters just move along without any hitch.Men of various size, ladies in skirt, young and old- they are riding the scooters.Motorcycle-taxi
riders are waiting for people to hire.Cyclo-men
are shouting to tourists to book their trishaws.
Many of the buildings in the Old Quarter are very old, some
antique.Most are narrow buildings
but very long inside and both sides of building are not painted.I noticed some are very well decorated inside.Many stall vendors carrying their wares in two baskets are seen
everywhere.Fruits, sandals, nuts,
snails, cloths – you name it, they have it.Food stalls line along the street pavements are plenty.Everything is done on the streets.Cooking,
washing, eating…..Vietnamese are indeed very entrepreneurial.When it starts to rain, you can see vendors running to sell raincoats to
you.One thing I noticed missing in
Vietnam
are the big Amercian names – KFC, McDonalds, Starbucks…
This is indeed a very interesting place to wander around.Wandered around we did and lost our way all the time!
Hoan
Kiem
Lake
(
Lake
ofRestored Sword)
Probably the most famous landmark in
Hanoi
city.It was once part of the
Red River
.A beautiful setting where you can
take a slow stroll around.Early
morning, I saw many joggers running around it.If the traffic pollution is reduced, that will be wonderful.
Old quarter is within walking distance.Nearby, there are some shopping centres and supermarkets.
Click a picture to see a larger view.
Hoi
An
Night train from
Hanoi
to Danang was very long but not too hassle.We bought the soft-sleeper ticket which was the right choice for the 16
hours ride.As Hoi An has no train
station or airport, Danang is the base to Hoi An.An hour ride from Danang train station brought us to Hoi An town.On the taxi ride, we saw school girls in their traditional white An-Dao
uniforms.Beautiful sight.
Hoi An is small unique town famous for its tailors.So many of them that I lost count. Now
I know why people go to Hoi-an for their cloth.Comparatively, it is cheap to have your shirts or pants tailor-made
there.I made my first shirt for
US$10.The second shirt was US$8.Joy made the most.Be sure to
bargain hard.There are just too
many tailor shops there.There are
shoe-making shops too. Hotels and
restaurants are plenty to choose from. The beautiful
and well maintained old buildings are a sight to behold.On the country side are the miles and miles of green paddy fields.
It has an area of 60 sq km and population of 81000.On 4th Dec 1990, the UNESCO inscribed Hoi An on the World
Heritage List.
My Son Hollyland– this is a side trip from Hoi An.30000 VND for each person for the trip.Entrance fee is 60000 VND.Built
by the
Champa
Kingdom
between 7th and 13th centuries.Skip this if you are not interested in temple or history.Weather was too hot on this trip
Click a picture to see a larger view.
Accommodation
Through vietnamstay, I have booked Phan Thai hotel (rec in
TT) in
Hanoi
old quarter for two nights stay.Unfortunately,
I do not have any confirmation of it despite my repeated queries.I have no choice but to book Lucky Star hotel (
11 Bat Dan St
, Hoan Kiem,
Hanoi
) through asia-hotels.Lo and
behold, when we arrived in Noi Bai airport, there were two placards bearing my
name!Sorry, Phan Thai – could not
go with you although I wanted to.This
is where I met my first scam.
Lucky Star provides free shuttle service for her staying
guests from airport to the hotel.The
representative, a young and entrepreneurial man, who came to fetch us told us if
we did not mind to go in a taxi than bus. Bus – long wait. Price
?US$5.00.I agreed knowing this was his own arrangement.
Lucky Star is one of the many mini hotels you can find in
old quarter of
Hanoi
.Most of the hotel buildings are
narrow but very long inside.At
US$20 + 15% tax for triple sharing and simple breakfast included, Lucky Star is
a basic accommodation.Would I
stay there again ?No because there
are much better hotels to be found at this price.I must say that rate of hotels in
Hanoi
is very attractive.Cheap compared
to other cities.
Phan Thai hotel (
44 Hang Giay St
,
Hanoi
) is my first choice and stay we did.Big
room at US$22 with breakfast included.I
was told it should be US$27 for triple sharing but to hotel mistake, it was
US$22.
Anh Dao Hotel (37 Ma May St,
Hanoi
) –(rec in TT again) is a nice hotel with big room.At US$17 with breakfast for triple sharing, it is worth it.Need to book advance as it is very popular.
Thang Long hotel (52,
Cau Go St
, Hoan Kiem Dist,
Hanoi
) is the day room I rented for US$10.Basic
hotel.
Over in Sapa, I took a chance by not confirming any hotel
booking (quoted US$27 for one night).A
blessing in disguise.When we
arrived in Sapa town, cold and early, a few steps away where we alighted was the
Mountain View
hotel (54A Cau May, Sapa).As a
matter of fact, the caretaker was still sleeping.At US$10 for triple sharing, it is worth it.There are plenty small hotels/guesthouses in Sapa.In fact, the town looks very commercialized which greatly catered to
tourists.Everyone wants tourist
money.
In Hoi An, by twist of fate, we stayed in Thanh Xuan hotel
(22-23 Nhi Trung St, Ba Trieu, Hoi An Old Town) which I have not heard of.The taxi driver stopped at this hotel to ask for way to my destination.Was it deliberate ?Once
stopped, two very sweet receptions came to greet us and invited me to see the
room.Since it was a nice room and
at US$18, I decided to take.
Food
As far food is concerned, we did not have the courage to
try the side street vendor food stalls.Why
?Food was foreign to us.Afraid we might not able to take it.All meals were taken in small cafes or restaurants except one.Early morning just arrived from Lao Cai to
Hanoi
, we tried the congee from a street vendor.To our surprise, we liked it.5000
VND per bowl.
Little
Hanoi
sandwich bar (
21-23 Hang Gai St
,
Hanoi
)– just right at the corner of a street.Serve
good sandwich and platable spaghetti.So
good we went there twice.
Little
Hanoi
restaurant (9-14,
Ta Hien St
,
Hanoi
) – good Vietnamese dishes with reasonable price.Interior decor is also very unique.A
small plate of fruit dessert will be served at the end of the meal.
Golden Land Restaurant – went in by chance.Food is good but price is little high.Still affordable.
City View Cafe (5th Floor,
Dinh Tien Hoang St
,
Hanoi
) –Nice view and food is good.I tried the ‘Cha Ca ‘- a famous Vietnamese fried fish fillet that
comes with plain white noodle and a small bowl of overpowering smell of fish and
shrimp sauce.Needlessly to say, it
was left untouched.Just could not
take it.
Highland Cafe and pub – just a floor below City View –
simple food.More of a pub to me.
Restaurant Cafe 96 (
96 Bach Dang St
, Hoi An, Quang
Nam
) – was introduced to this small and quaint restaurant along the waterfront by
word of mouth.Food is good.The chef/owner introduced to us Hoi-an speciality dish called “Cao
Lau” – thick flat noodle in soup with bean sprouts, other vegetables with
sweetened pork (
Singapore
version of char chiew).Joy likes
it a lot.
Banana Leaf Café (
88 Bach Dang St
, Hoi An, Quang
Nam
) – not far from Club 96.I had
the best version of spring rolls served here.We all like the food here very much.BTW, the food comes in plates not on banana leaves.
In Sapa, we had most of our meals in Ann Dao restaurant.We went in because this restaurant was always packed.Why ?Food is good and very
reasonable priced. It serves mainly
Vietnamese dishes.
Transport
We fly Tiger Airways, the only budget airline that flies to
Hanoi
from
Singapore
.This is free seating and
food/drink need to be purchased.
In
Hanoi
old quarter, the best mode of transport is by foot.If you are tired, there are motorcycle-taxi and cyclo-trishaw to take you
around.Be sure to agree on a price
before boarding.I was scammed into
paying too high for being naive.Thinking
it was a metre-taxi, we took the taxi from old quarter to Hanoi Railway Station.A mere 20 minutes ride that charged me 174000 VND (US$11.00) !!When I paid 200000VND to the driver, he returned the change of 30000VND !What a generous man !I paid
160000VND from old quarter to Noi Bai airport (an hour ride).I know there is an airport bus which is cheaper.However, Iknow not the
details.
Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines also ply along
domestic cities in
Vietnam
.You can save some money if tickets
are bought directly from these airline offices.
Train leaves
Hanoi
all the way to Ho Chi Min City, stopping along major cities like
Hue
, Danang,etc.As a matter of fact, I
went to Hanoi Railway Station hoping to save money by purchasing the tickets
myself.Unfortunately, language was
a problem here.In the end, I gave
up and went to a travel agency.
MISC(this section covers anything as the title implies)
Travel agency used – ODC Travel – I joined
Halong
Bay
tour with them.I also bought all
train and airline tickets through them.Service
is good and reliable.However, if
you can purchase tickets yourself,you
can save a substantial sum.
Waterpuppet Show – An entrancing display of marionettes
dancing on the water.No visit is
complete without watching it, hence, an overwhelming response by tourists.It is a sellout every day.We
needed to book the tickets in advance.40000
VND for first class.Nice and
interesting.
Weather– The first two days in
Hanoi
were cool and pleasant.We were
very glad.Subsequently, it turned
to humid and hot but bearable.We
are from
Singapore
, you know.Hoi-an was unbearably
hot and dry.Sapa was pleasantly
cool and comfortable.
Drinking water – We bought our drinking water from shops and
supermarkets.I find the price is
cheaper from supermarket than those small stalls catering to tourists.For example, a 1 litre of La Viet (was told the best) bottled water sold
7000VND in supermarket but 10000VND in small stalls.
Exchange rate – At the time of my travel, the rate was US$1 =
15800 VND.Strangely, I got better
rate in Noi Bai airport at 158500.Big
US
note gets better rate.I like the
10000VND best.Probably the color
red attracts me.I also saw a
jellewery shop in old quarter that accepted SGD.The best bet is USD.
People – Generally, the Vietnamese are friendly and helpful.Many times when we were lost, we were able to get help when we asked.Most of them are slim.Hardly
see any overweight Vietnamese around.Also
hardly seen are Vietnamese women in shorts.Most wear skirts or long pants.What
you will see most are the conical hats worn mostly by the women.
Safety– To be honest, I was a little apprehensive before we
were there.A few days later, my
fear had gone.Relatively, it is a
safe country to travel.I saw many
lone travelers.
However, one needs to be alert.A
small incident nearly marred our holidays.On
the first day of arrival in
Hanoi
in late evening, after checking in, we decided to take a look atone of the streets in Old Quarter.It
was very crowded.Out of blue, Joy
was shocked to find her small backpack on her shoulder was being zip-opened by
someone.She knew it because there
was a little bell on the zip.Fortunately,
she turned around in time to frighten the ‘thief’ away.
Ticket price– All
tickets bought thru ODC Travel
a) Train leaving at 7pm from
Hanoi
to Danang = US$34 pp (448000VND=US$28 if buy yourself)
b) Pacific Airline leaving at 9.20am from Danang to
Hanoi
= US$57 pp (59714VND=US$37 if you buy the ticket yourself)
c) For train from
Hanoi
- Lao Cai –
Hanoi
= I think it was US$37pp (cannot remember clearly)
Baguette – Sold almost everywhere.Personally, I prefer the Delifrance version back home which is not
available there.
Hotel registration–
Simple.Hand in your passport to the
receptionist.No form to fill.No deposit required.When
check-out, pay and get back your passport.Quick
and easy.
Lift – Do not expect to use the lift in the many mini hotels
in Old Quarter.There is none.We had to walk up the stairs with our bags to the fifth floor at Anh Dao.Mind you, these were narrow and steep stairs.Luckily, in Phan Thai there was a llft available.
Medicine – It is essential to bring it from home.I was glad I brought.Due to
the drastic change of weather, I caught a flu.Fortunately, I was able to recover soon to enjoy the rest of the
holidays.Both Joy and JH also
caught flu.I guess it was from me.
Clothing– For this trip, I had brought along a few shirts
intending to give away after wearing it.I
am happy to see that the villagers of Hmong tribe in Sapa had gladly accepted
it.Bring sweets for the children if
you are going there.They love it.Lovely children, poor but cheerful []
Vietnamese restaurant in Sapa" border="0">
breakfast on boat" border="0">
