Rather than driving up to Gatwick Airport at a ridiculously early hour on Thursday morning, we drove up Wednesday and stayed overnight in the Premier Inn. Finding a space in the Long Stay car park was challenging, but the shuttle bus appeared quick enough and we were soon joining the scrummage of people up on the first floor checking in. Our room, way up on the 10th floor was clean, comfortable and very quiet despite being right on the edge of Gatwick airport.
Thursday morning kicked off with a 5:00am alarm call and following a quick shower and shave we were soon over in the north terminal checking in, waving off our cases as they disappeared on the conveyor. The Qatar Airways lounge was quiet, with good, quick food and plentiful drinks.
Boarding at the gate was swift and easy with our Boeing 787 pushing back bang on schedule.
Our flight, QR330, down to Doha was smooth enough and the 6 hours and 10 minutes passed by helped by a movie or two. We briefly popped in to the Platinum and Gold lounge for some light refreshments, before joining our flight, QR974, to Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon).
Another really smooth flight, 6 hours 30 minutes, two glasses of wine, a movie and a decent nap and we were soon navigating the immigration queue in Saigon airport. Our baggage was there waiting for us on the carousel and after grabbing a local Viettel SIM card for my phone (just VND400,000 for unlimited everything, about £12.00) As directed our pre-booked transportation was waiting for us and despite our driver attempting to drop us in the wrong place after misreading our address, we soon found the right road using Google Maps. Checking in to the hotel was a breeze and we waited for about 20 minutes for our room to be ready, swiftly dropping off our bags we headed back out to find a coffee.
Our hotel for our few days here in Saigon is the Maison De Camille Boutique Hotel.
Saturday
With a little help from jet-lag we were up early, popping downstairs to enjoy our buffet breakfast. Good selection of hot and cold items and friendly service from the young girl cooking eggs whichever way you wanted and making up bowls of rice soup.
Grabbing a taxi using the GRAB app we wove our way through the morning traffic to the first stop of the day, the War Remnants Museum to be greeted by everyone’s worst nightmare… coach loads of noisy school kids queuing up to get in ahead of us. Entrance fee was VND40,000 each and an extra VND 80,000 for an English audio guide. really interesting to hear the story of the conflict from the opposite side, discovering how the French and Americans fought with the Vietnamese.
Fully educated about the war we walked up to the Independence Palace, interrupted briefly by a coconut juice seller who gave me his bamboo cane to shoulder loaded with ice and coconuts that weighed an absolute ton! We grabbed a fresh coconut drink from this guy before walking around to the gates of the palace, famed for the images of tanks storming the gates when the north Vietnamese toppled the south.
Crossing the road from the palace we headed through the park that was busy with picnicking people all sat in the shade of the trees on plastic mats. Reaching the end of the park we crossed the road again to the scaffold covered Notre Dame Cathedral, but it was sadly closed.
Disappointed the cathedral was closed we crossed the road to the Saigon Central Post Office, an amazingly ornate building and was really busy inside, not with people posting letters, but with the host of stalls selling all kinds of tourist tat.
After a brief cooling visit to the nearby UniQlo store where Mrs Y picked up some folding sunglasses, we also found the Rex Hotel, another historic building famed for hosting war correspondents during the war.
Time for a quick caffeine fix, finding the remarkable XLiii coffee shop, enjoying the process of choosing one of many specialty coffees and being entertained by careful grinding, brewing and hand pouring of my brew. Sadly there was no ‘non-coffee’ option for Mrs Y.
After sweating our way around the streets enjoying the sights of old Saigon it was time for a break to cool down and refresh and returning to our hotel, we discovered our room hadn’t yet been cleaned, so we wandered around the corner to a nearby coffee shop – D’s Place – to pass the time. After a brief siesta, along with most of the locals it seemed, before popping back out to visit the Jade Emperor Pagoda. Unlike any temple we’ve ever visited before it was a maze of rooms filled with huge wooden icons that all seemed to resemble a beared Confucius. It was really interesting but not the must-see that the guidebooks suggested. Following our visit we sought out a local vegan hotpot restaurant for dinner, Quan Chay Nha Toi, which proved well worth the walk.
SUNDAY – Back on the road again, heading to the city of Hoi An. Finishing our breakfast we ‘booked’grabbed’ a taxi using the all purpose GRAB app and headed to Saigon airport for our short flight up to Da Nang, a swift 60 minutes up the coast. This short flight with Vietnam Airlines felt a little unsettled, not overly turbulent, it just felt like the plane was moving about a lot, like it was on ice!
Again, our pre booked taxi met us as advised and 45 minutes later we pulled up outside the Little Hoi An Boutique Hotel, our home for the next two nights.
Dropping our cases in our room we headed out in to town get some dinner, easily finding a vegan restaurant that we’d found on the internet, Shamballa. Warm and friendly service and the food was incredible!
Fed and watered we walked into the old town, getting a false sense of calm as we started walking. Suddenly, we realised that the path before us was rammed full of people and this continued throughout every street in old town; bus loads of tourists arrive to spend the evening walking the tiny streets of Hoi An!
Before arriving, we had discovered that there was a social project running a tea house so we made it our mission to find it, finding it nestled amongst the tourist souvenir shops, a haven of peace – Reaching Out Teahouse. We knew the teahouse gave disabled people the opportunity to be in the workplace but didn’t realise that the peacefulness was because the servers were deaf. All communication was done through cards on each table which kept any speaking to a minimum – a refreshing change in a country where background noise is pretty much a constant. We spent some time just enjoying the calm, watching the bustle on the street outside.
After our tea, we persevered with the crowds, exploring everything around us and then a combination of intense heat and busyness drew us back to the calm of our hotel terrace, where we grabbed a couple of cold beers and people watched on their porch.
Monday – Waking up at a more reasonable time, our body clocks slowly adjusting to Vietnam time, we enjoyed a slow, quiet breakfast in the hotel restaurant which had a very well stocked buffet catering for every taste. Today we had no plans other than to pootle around the old town and enjoy the sights. Walking the streets of Hoi An during the day was a much better experience than the night before. No jostling. No crowds. You could actually see what was in the shops! Heading off on our side of the river we finally crossed using one of the ornate bridges and found ourselves in the Central Market, here they sold absolutely everything! Raw meats, fresh vegetables, clothing and all manner of dry goods, picking up some Liptons tea bags, as the tea in our hotel room was rough to say the least.
Today was really hot and the sun was already high which gave us no shade as we browsed. Mrs Y spotted a dress in one of the stores, loved the colour, tried it on and it fitted just perfectly and for VND500,000 it was a bargain! Seeking somewhere to cool down we happened upon a peaceful looking cafe, LaQue, and sat in the shade under a ceiling fan enjoying a peach iced tea and an iced coconut coffee.
We chose to go back out in to town, after a couple of hours, to find some lunch. Today we were on the lookout for vegetarian banh mi and had seen recommendations for Madam Khanh’s. Finding as many shaded walkways as we could, we managed to locate the restaurant with ease, ordering 2 vegetarian banh mi with drinks for the princely sum of 130,000VND (<£5) and we had to agree, it was well worth the walk.
Fed and watered we again strolled the tiny streets of Hoi An and without the bustling weekend crowds our evening walk was a lot more enjoyable.
Tuesday – Moving on again today, taking the train up to the city of Hue.
We had used Booking.com to pick us up and the taxi company messaged us asking if we’d like a return trip with them, cheaper, so we said “yes, we did!” Our taxi was a little early and made good time to Da Nang station where we’d pick up the train to Hue. Slightly ahead of schedule we grabbed a coffee from the station cafe, sitting outside in the sunshine enjoying the morning bustle.
We checked in for our train and took a seat in the waiting area. Slowly other passengers began arriving and finally our train slowly pulled in to the station, heralding the opening of the waiting room doors and the ticket girls ushering us all across the track to the other platform so that we could board the train. Finding our seat we settled in ready for the three hour ride to Hue.
Our route, touted to be one of the best railway journeys in the world was simply stunning! Cliffs, coves, deserted beaches all trundled past our window. Our coach was very warm, the air-con struggling to keep us and the carriage cool. Food and drink trolley’s made their way up the aisle, but we had already picked up snacks in the coffee shop at the station. Arriving in Hue was chaotic with the station exit swarming with taxis and people being picked up, but we made our way to a quiet spot near the ticket office and again used GRAB to get our ride to the hotel.
Our hotel for our one night in Hue was the Spatel d’Annam Imperial Boutique Spa & Hotel, the closest hotel to the Citadel. With the intense heat of the day, around 40°C, our room was way too warm to use and after turning the air-con on FULL we dropped our cases and had a quick exploration of the area, before returning to the pool that was now pleasantly shaded taking a glorious cool swim while watching the bats flying overhead. We dined in the hotel restaurant as we didn’t feel like braving the extreme heat and venturing in to town searching for somewhere to eat.
Wednesday – Apart from visiting Hue Citadel and catching our final flight of the holiday up to Hà Nội, we had no plans. Waking late we nipped across the corridor and in to the restaurant, found ourselves a quiet table and made our breakfast choices from the reasonable selection on offer. Packing the last bits and bobs in to our cases we checked out of our room, asking reception to care for them while we braved the extreme heat of the day to explore the Citadel. Leaving the coolness of the hotel we dodged from shade to shade as we walked the 10 minutes around to the main entrance where entrance tickets were VND200,000 each. On our route we picked up a brightly coloured paper fan from a huddle of ladies sheltering under some trees who sprang in to action as we approached, trying to sell us slices of mango and folding postcards, we bagged the paper fan to assist us with keeping ourselves cool.
Strolling around the grounds of the Citadel was a delight although the intense heat saw everybody snaking around every area of shade around the edge of the complex. The layout was like a smaller Forbidden City in Beijing, leading to the most spectacular and ornate pavilion/house, set high above the rest of the citadel with a panoramic view of the site. After the craziness of Hoi An, it was lovely to be somewhere so peaceful and with so few visitors.
The walkways through the citadel had large wooden shutters from floor to ceiling, carefully angled to funnel cool air across the courtyards and allowing us much needed reprieve from the heat.
We finished our morning wandering through the neat ornamental gardens and smaller pavilions, marvelling that it had all survived for so long.
Exiting through a side gate we took refuge in a coffee shop, Coffee & Tea, that was cool and we sat with a couple of iced drinks while the fans near our table helped cool us down. While enjoying our drinks we bumped into a guy from NZ, also taking shelter from the heat while his wife and his daughter continued to enjoy the sights of the Citadel.
From the comfort of the very cool cafe it was a short stroll back up the tree lined street to the hotel, where once again we grabbed a table and sat enjoying another cooling drink outside in the Salon de Te.
Once again we used GRAB to get a ride to Hue airport for our flight up to Hà Nội.
The airport appeared to be brand new and was really busy, our flight boarding swiftly before taking off just ahead of schedule for the hop up to Noi Bai Hà Nội.
Again, Booking.com to the rescue and our pre-booked taxi was waiting for us as advised for the swift 40 minute ride in to the Old Quarter of Hanoi and what would be our last stop on our journey and our home for the next six days, The Hotel Tirant Hà Nội. Checking in was a delight in the reception area and after a cooling welcome drink and sorting out the obligatory paperwork, we were soon dropping off our bags and heading out in the bustling streets of Hanoi.
Thursday Hanoi – Up early for breakfast as we had a tour booked with Hanoi Motorbike City Tours. The streets of Hanoi are jam packed with scooters, it seemed like the best option to be part of that chaos by taking a scooter tour for the morning. The company employ women to drive the bikes as a way of encouraging them into the workforce, so the whole ethos appealed to us. Promptly at 9:00, two petite young women turned up at the hotel and quickly ran through the safety procedures and getting on and off the scooters before heading off through the busy narrow streets of Hanoi.
First stop took us to a remote part of the city known as Banana Island – this land is used for farming by farmers who have no entitlement to the land they are using. The farmers can’t sell their produce in shops and markets because they can’t afford the pitch so many of them carry their produce into the city, sitting in any space they can find and moving around constantly to make some money. Despite the uncertainty of their position on the land, the area is beautifully cared for with an astonishing array of fresh fruit and vegetables creating a peaceful green lung in an otherwise over populated and polluted city.
Weaving across the city, our next stop was Tran Quoc, a Buddhist temple, situated on an island on the lake. It was busy, but retained it’s sense of peace and tranquility. The temple was lovely but the most interesting part of the visit was talking to our young guide about what it was like to be ‘real’ Viet, we had no idea that there were graded levels of being Viet but she made it clear that not all Vietnamese were, as some had ancestral origins in neighbouring countries.
Then back on the scooters to the B52 Victory Museum; the remains of the plane is on display outside the main entrance. There are missing patches throughout the plane because the excited residents stole pieces as souvenirs before it was pulled from the lake! The museum itself was small but gave a clear chronology of the war without glorification of either side.
The final stop on our trip was to Train Street, now an Instagram favourite, for a quick drink as the lunchtime train passes through on its way to Hanoi station. We knew this was a bit of a tourist trap, but it was not particularly busy and an experience we would not have wanted to miss with the train passing just millimetres from our knees as we sat with our drinks.
Luckily, we were no longer phased by being in the crazy traffic as our drivers were facing the wrong direction leaving Train Street; no problem, just cut across the multiple lanes of traffic and head in the opposite direction! Our journey back to the hotel took us past the main sites, passing Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, the Opera House and all the beautiful administrative buildings. We were sad to finish out trip as it had really given us an authentic view of the city.
Our next stop was for lunch and we wanted to find some good traditional food. The choice can be mind boggling so we headed a few roads away from the hotel to what, at first appearance, looked decidedly risky. We were looking for Katze Vegan & Vegetarian Restaurant. Chancing our way through a grubby alleyway with a yapping dog and an old woman with limited English – ‘go up’ – we climbed a narrow flight of stairs into a single room with no more than 7 small tables and a makeshift kitchen area in the corner. Briefly, we questioned our sanity as we were the only customers but the menu was totally vegan and we were spoilt for choice. Choosing 4 dishes to share and a beer each, we waited nervously! Within minutes, dishes started to arrive freshly cooked from the kitchen and our 4 dishes turned into 8 or 9. With no common language the owner showed us how to layer each dish with our chopsticks to get the best flavours – feeding us each time and then leaving for another dish to add to our collection. As our dishes piled up so did the restaurant and, within 15 minutes, every table was occupied. Sitting observing our surroundings and the remarkable food, we laughed with certainty that the restaurant would not in any way meet UK food hygiene standards despite the astounding quality of the food. The entire meal including beers came to the grand total of £8 and as we left the owner handed us a card telling his life story in English – he was a street child who used his cooking skill to get out of poverty and is continuing to help others like himself. As we picked our way back to the street we knew with certainty that no meal for the rest of our trip would be able to live up to this.
Friday – An early start today as we were leaving Hanoi for a trip out, not our favourite thing to do as we prefer to travel independently and not in a group. Sitting in reception before the agreed time, we were told that the bus had already been but would come back for us! Finally it arrived with one more pick up to make. The final pick up didn’t bode well for a smooth day as the family being picked up weren’t ready, struggled to cross the road and then held up the bus passing round food etc. We were on our way to Ninh Binh, a 3 hour drive away, so we settled in for a long drive. However, in true tour group fashion there was an enforced stop for toilet and drink; why are these stops always attached to an expensive gift shop that clearly gives commission to tour leaders? This was a particularly distasteful stop as it was selling goods made by the disabled, who were sat at tables making souvenirs as proof. Mrs Y specialises in Special Needs and found this particularly difficult as many of the youngsters had Down Syndrome and were made to look like they had no real worth in society, a myth that the UK has worked hard to dispel. We used the bathroom, bought a coffee and left swiftly to sit outside. We finally arrived at our first destination, Truong Yen, a citadel set deep in the countryside. We had not asked to visit this citadel as Hue was already in our itinerary but it was part of the tour! We spent time looking around the temples and gardens but the visit was much longer than planned, as the last family boarding spent most of the time wandering off, complaining and breaking temple rules, to the point where another passenger suggested that people who ignored rules were showing disrespect to the nation they were visiting.
The citadel had lots of photographers snapping you as you arrived and then trying to sell the pictures to you as you left, the same family decided they needed loads of photos and this meant them wandering away from the bus to collect copies etc despite being asked to board the bus. We then had a provided lunch, again dominated by the same family who greedily piled their plates after insisting that they would not climb the stairs to the restaurant – clearly the possibility of not eating was more painful than going upstairs!
After lunch, there were two different options for boat trips and luckily the troublesome family were not with us, as we made our way to Trang An and the bamboo boats. We shared our boat with another young couple, choosing the longer ride with 2 temple stops. The peace on the river made the journey worthwhile as we floated in almost silence round limestone karst peaks and through caves leading to hidden temples built on small islands. It was the highlight of the day.
We were being collected at the main entrance but had time for a coffee as we waited, watching the comings and goings at the complex. The journey back was again broken with a stop but this time there was no hard sell, just the equivalent of a motorway service area. Returning to the hotel, we dumped our stuff and went out in search of food, finding a good pho restaurant before making our way back to the lake.
We knew Den Ngoc Son was open late into the evening so decided to pay a visit, crossing the illuminated bridge and sauntering around; we encountered only a handful of people so found a spot on the steps looking out across the lake, watching the bustle on the shore. We completed our day by wandering through the night market, a favourite for us, looking at all the souvenir possibilities.
Saturday – For Mrs Y, today was a BIG day, something she’d been waiting for for the entire holiday, the puppet show at the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre. So, it was a lazy hotel breakfast followed by a stroll to the tourist agency to pick up our theatre tickets that we’d purchased online, then on around the lake to St Josephs Cathedral, only to discover it was closed. As compensation we visited the lakeside UniQlo, picking up some bargains. The lake was busy with couples taking selfies and what appeared to be single women being photographed with the lake a a backdrop. We found a bench and enjoyed watching all the posing! Strolling up to the Dong Xuan market, seemed to be the home of the stall holders you see lining the night market. Nothing special, just loads of tiny stalls crammed in to a building.
Heading back towards the theatre, we stopped for pre-show lunch, eventually finding a nice looking restaurant, Met Vietnamese Restaurant, that had some decent veggie options ordering a few dishes between us and a couple of cold beers.
And FINALLY, it was show time! We had front row seats, about a meter from the edge of the pool. The theatre filled quickly as the musicians took their places either side of the pool. The lights dimmed and the show began! To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much, not being a fan of water shows, but the skill of the puppeteers and the story telling with just a few wooden puppets was astonishing. The whole show was spellbinding! As you’d expect, Mrs Y loved every second of it!
Sunday – Another early start and the destination we were most uncertain of; we were off to Halong Bay. We knew this was a must see but had read reports of the hordes of tourists and boats jostling for photographs. It was another early pick-up , followed by a 3 hour drive to the port. Yet again, we were the only English people on the boat but this time our companions were great company. As before, there was a comfort break during the journey but there was a small grassy area nearby so we grabbed a coffee and sat before rejoing our bus. The final leg of the journey saw the landscape change dramatically with rural farmlands and rice fields stretching across huge areas dotted with limestone karsts. Suddenly, the port appeared before us, dotted with a variety of boats ready to take tourists out to the bay. Our worries disappeared, as we saw fewer people than we expected and even happier when we discovered that our boat only took 25 people at a time. The boat was set up for lunch and was not at all crowded.
We pulled away from the dockside and within minutes food began arriving at the table. The nicest part of lunch was getting to share it with a group of 4 Taiwanese ladies, who were on a 5 week yoga training course in Hanoi and had chosen this excursion as their one day off during their trip. We speak no Taiwanese and they had a little English but we really enjoyed each others company. There was a relaxed pace to lunch as we slowly made our way out into the spectacular scenery of the bay, taking to the upper deck for a panoramic view. The boat slowed for photos and we were glad that, despite other boats being out, everybody kept a distance to allow for a great experience.
After lunch, we stopped at an old floating fishing village and could choose whether to travel in a bamboo boat or kayak ourselves around the secluded coves that had formed around the karsts. We shared our bamboo boat with 2 of the Taiwanese ladies and was rowed by a Vietnamese fisherman who clearly loved his job – serenading us with traditional songs and taking every opportunity he could to photograph us all.
With phones full of photos, we boarded the boat again to make our way to Thien Cung Cave. The boat dropped us off at the entrance and then disappeared to collect us at the exit, leaving us no option but to climb up to the cave! Being only accessible by boat, it was amazing to see, with stalactites everywhere you looked and shafts of light illuminating dark corners.
Emerging from the cave, the view over the small cove was breathtaking. Picking our way down the steps, we boarded our waiting boat in time for afternoon tea and fruit as we glided back to the port. This had truly been a wonderful surprise – relaxing, great company and beautiful scenery. The return included another quick bathroom stop before our final drop off in Hanoi. As it was the weekend and the street market was on, several streets were closed, so we were dropped off at the office of the tour company as that was as close as they could get.
We finished the day in our favourite way, dining in a local restaurant. Sitting on the ubiquitous low plastic chairs of a street restaurant eating noodles, we watched the world go by as hawkers tried to sell us unwanted fruit and scooters wove their way through the crowds.
Definitely the best way to finish off the day…a coffee at KAFA and a final visit to the Night Market, of course!
Monday – Following another lazy hotel breakfast, we set out to enjoy our penultimate day in Hanoi. Having tried to visit St Josephs before only to find it closed, we timed our visit to coincide with its afternoon opening time. Arriving too early, we took refuge in a nearby coffee shop, sampling their specialty coffee.
Finally, we saw the gates being opened and the ‘open’ sign being put out, so we headed across the street. Once inside the gates we discovered, along with several other visitors that the church itself was still closed! Taking a seat in the shade we waited another fifteen minutes before being allowed in. The church itself was OK, nothing spectacular. Very dark and austere, although the gentle voice of the choir was calming. Not sure it was worth the wait!
Time to find some lunch, so we headed up town to track down a restaurant that served only one dish, Cha Ca, a delightful cat fish dish we had seen on an episode of Rick Steins Far Eastern Odyssey TV show. The restaurant, Cha Ca Thang Long was packed full of locals, but we were quickly seated and given a menu. Selecting the Cha Ca and two beers, without adding any options, we sat and enjoyed the bustle around us. Very soon a battered gas stove arrived, followed by a bowl of vegetables and another of noodles. Then, the main dish of sizzling catfish arrived, coated in turmeric and other spices and continued to sizzle atop the gas stove. One of the waitresses arrived and instructed us how best to eat it! It was good, VERY good!
As this was our last full day in Ha Noi, we had already decided to just enjoy; taking in the craziness of the city from coffee shops and the hotel terrace as well as chatting to staff we had come to know during our stay. This was our way of avoiding the inevitable – packing our cases!
Tuesday
Here we go, it’s our final day in Hà Nội.
Another lazy hotel breakfast, chatting with Chester, the wonderful assistant manager, before finally checking out and heading back to the lake for one last walk.
We picked a bench with a lake view and simply enjoyed watching the world pass by. On to Kafa, the corner coffee shop for a change of view and a coffee before finding a Bahn Mi for light lunch.
There was no delaying the inevitable and promptly at the arranged time our driver arrived to take us to the airport and the end of an adventure that we had wanted to do for so long. There is no doubt about it, this tiny corner of South East Asia holds a very special place in our hearts.
mrandmrsyoung 