The first thing you realize when you start planning a trip to Vietnam is just how big it is. Not US big, but it is over 1000 miles from top to bottom. With only two weeks to spend in Vietnam, we knew we couldn’t see it all. Ultimately, we settled on an itinerary that would take us to 7 different parts of the country. This would give us a good mix, with stops in the north, central and southern part of the country.
Hanoi
Our first stop was Hanoi. Hanoi has been the capital of Vietnam on and off since 1010, and has been the capital of the reunified country since 1976. It is also clearly the focus of the government’s investment activity, with its economy and population growing rapidly.
We stayed in the Old Quarter, once called the “36 streets” because each street was dedicated to a single trade. There was pottery street, hardware street, iron street, etc. There was even a sailmaker street, though there are no sailmakers left there. Not many junks needing new sails, I guess.
Nearby, the French Quarter has many architecturally interesting buildings dating from the French Colonial era, including a grand opera house modeled after the Paris Opera.
The Water Puppet Theater offered a uniquely Vietnamese experience. The show consists of numerous puppets that move in a shallow pool. The puppets are manipulated by a team of people working behind a curtain at the back of the stage. They perform a variety of skits depicting scenes from Vietnam’s history and mythology.
Given the climate and cramped buildings, much of people’s daily lives is spent outdoors. Whether it’s tradesmen making shoes on a street corner, or people stopping for a bite at a food stall, the streets and sidewalks were always packed with people just going about their daily routines.
At night, the streets of the Old Quarter, and especially around Hoan Kiem Lake, come alive in a different way. Thousands of people gather in small groups to eat, drink or just hang out. The entire area becomes a sea of little plastic stools, which seems to be the one thing every merchant in the city has in common.
Hanoi is a big, crowded, frantic city and after a couple of days there, we were ready to move on to our next destination, Ha Long Bay.
