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After a few frantic weeks of planning and stressing, I had finally made it to Vietnam..all by myself. I must admit, as adventuresome as I am, I was a bit nervous about being alone in a country that I knew virtually nothing about.
Getting to Vietnam is not an easy feat. An extremely long trip, most treks from the United States involve stops in other cities…Hong Kong, Taipei, Seoul, Manila…before continuing to Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi. My exhausting, five-flight journey, beginning in Richmond, Virginia, would take me to Atlanta, Seattle, Narita, Bangkok and finally, Hanoi and encompass four days!
Once I had arrived in Bangkok, I set about to book my flight for the next day. Being that I preferred to leave for my return through Singapore, I desired to work my way from north to south, thus ending in Ho Chi Minh City, a closer (and cheaper) flight to Singapore.
Bangkok has two airports, Suvarnabhumi (or the Bangkok International Airport) and Don Mueang International Airport. Both offer flights to Vietnam, but since I had just arrived into and was staying overnight near Suvarnabhumi, I opted to fly from there to Hanoi.
Shortly after the noon hour, I was on my way. Just under two hours later, we were pulling into Noi Bai International Airport.
Having arranged transportation to my hotel, I walked quickly, visa approval letter and forms in hand, to the immigration area to secure my visa. Second in line, I handed everything over to the official and was instructed to take a seat and wait for my name to be called. Carefully, I counted out twenty-five dollars to hand over for the visa stamp fee and five minutes later, my name and picture appeared on the large monitor over the counter. Walking up to the desk, I was handed my passport with my new visa pasted in securely and instructed to pay one hundred and thirty five dollars! Thinking there was a mistake and given a multi-entry visa instead, I let the official know that I had only required the single entry tourist visa. Big shocker! The U.S. and Vietnam have changed the visa procedure, effective August 2016, to a one year, multi entry type with a stamp fee of $135 for all visitors…and somehow, I had missed this information. Well, this was a big blow to my $100 per day allowance!
Trying not to let it get me down, I pulled out the additional $110 and reluctantly handed it over. Safely putting away my passport, I proceeded through immigration, collected my suitcase and exited to the arrivals hall.
Looking for my driver, was the next hurdle. It didn’t seem as though any of the people awaiting passengers with pre-arranged pickup were extremely interesting in them seeing their names on the signs they were supposed to be holding up. Walking among them, bending over and trying to read signs that were folded over while they sat looking at their phones, I began to panic a little as nothing I saw contained my name. Another two rounds among them and I was now sure that my name was not on one of those signs, and, not seeing any phone companies in this area where I could purchase a sim card to make a call, left me wondering what to do. Thankfully, I was able to log into the airport WiFi and use Skype to call my hotel. At the moment that I informed the front desk that my transportation had not arrived, he magically appeared in front of me. Whew! A few moments later, we were on our way in air conditioned comfort to the Tu Linh hotel.
Unfortunately, I had allowed my driver to put my carry-on bag in the trunk which contained my DSLR camera. As we traveled to the city center, there were so many sights that I was unaccustomed to seeing and I wanted to capture them all. Using my Iphone, I was able to get a few, though not of the quality that I would have preferred.
After a forty-five minute ride, we began driving through the narrow, congested streets of the Old Quarter. People were everywhere on sidewalks…eating, cooking, squatting. Motorcycles, cars and bikes fought for space as they passed though the area.
My hotel was like all of the buildings in the area…narrow and tall, as at one time, buildings attempted to minimize taxes because each property was taxed according to the width of the street-facing facade.
Greeted by a friendly young woman, I was given my key and helped to my room by the bellman. Small, but clean, my bed filled the space but my room had everything that I needed, a refrigerator, large television, safety deposit box, hairdryer and hot water.
Since I had only booked my room for one night, I headed downstairs to inquire about trips to Ha Long Bay, which I was hoping to book for the next day. At this point, I was still on the fence about the overnight trip. Although it had been highly recommended to me, others had written about not settling for the cheaper cruises and because I was a solo traveler, I was also subject to a higher rate for occupying a double cabin. Additionally, I was concerned about being an individual on a boat with couples and whether or not it would be an awkward situation, especially during the downtime in the evening. Perusing the many books that were given to me by the front desk attendant, I found it extremely confusing to mesh the price with the amenities. Finally, giving up, I headed out to walk around, find a grocery store and check out the area.
My first lesson in the city was how to cross the street. Basically, there is no right way. Terrified, it took me about ten minutes to muster the courage to dart between the masses of motorcycles and cars speeding through the streets. At one point, I stuck close to an old woman, because I was sure that they would never hit her. You know, they really do respect their elders! Another challenge was navigating the sidewalks…oh wait, you couldn’t! Motorcycles were parked everywhere, defeating the purpose of the sidewalk. Basically, you had to walk along the curb, once again, dodging traffic. I felt completely drained trying to make my way through the area.
After finding the grocery store and stocking up on diet coke, water, beer and a sim card for my phone, I headed back to my hotel. Exhausted, I told myself that I would just lie down for a few minutes to regain my composure. An hour later, I was still there, trying to convince myself that I could just skip dinner and get some rest. Knowing full well that I would be awake at three a.m. dying of hunger and counting down the hours until breakfast, I forced myself up and out the door in search of nourishment. But, first, there was that pesky problem…I still had not booked my Ha Long Bay cruise. Deciding to book another night at the Tu Linh, I gave myself a reprieve and resolved to take a day to explore the city instead. It would also give me the opportunity to gather a bit more information on the Ha Long Bay cruises.
Setting out and walking the three blocks to the street where it was recommended that I eat, I scanned the area for restaurants that appeared to be tourist friendly. Every single one was packed…with locals. Turning right, I walked to another street and then left, hoping to see restaurants with western faces. Finally, I noticed one with other tourists inside. Opening the door, I was met with a friendly greeting and shown to a table. Giving my drink order, I was also met with a question, “And one Cha Ca?” Huh? “One Cha Ca?” I glanced down at the menu and realized that that is the only thing they serve. Okay then. One Cha Ca for me.
Reading the description on the menu, I discovered that it is a specialty of the Hanoi people made from mudfish, snakehead fish or Hemibagrus, a type of catfish. The fish bones are removed, it is covered by banana leaves, seasoned and grilled over a coal heat. The Cha Ca must remain hot, so the servers continually come to the table to reheat and reserve. The Cha Ca is served with roasted peanuts, rice noodles, dill, spring onion, coriander, mint, shrimp paste or fish sauce. And boy was it good!
After looking it up when I returned home, guess what? I just so happened to stumble upon the restaurant in Hanoi that is famous for this dish! Gotta love it when that happens! So, after all, my long, stressful day ended on a positive.
Finally, wandering back to my little hotel, I began to feel more at ease with the busy streets of Hanoi. After a good night’s rest, I was sure that I would be ready to tackle the many sights and attractions that this city was willing to offer.
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Hanoi
- Getting there: Delta Air Lines flies from Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Portland and Seattle to Narita International Airport. Although flights to Bangkok will be discontinued at the end of October, you can fly to Singapore and connect to Tiger Air, Jetstar and Vietjet Airlines (non-stop) to various cities in Vietnam. Many other airlines fly from cities in the U.S. making connections in Seoul, Hong Kong, Manila and Taipei.
- Where to Stay: Tu Linh Palace Hotel, 2 Hàng Gà, Hàng Bồ, Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội, Vietnam. This hotel is in the Old Quarter and near the Đồng Xuân Market and the Night Market open on weekend nights. There are many hotels in the Old Quarter which are extremely tourist friendly. Try the Agoda app which gives the best prices for hotels in Asia.
- Where to Eat: Chả Cá Thăng Long, 21 Đường Thành Cửa Đông Cửa Đông Hoàn Kiếm, Hồ Hoàn