Now or Never

The two of us traveled to Vietnam during our first international trip together in 2016. Back then, with limited time, we only explored the southern (Ho Chi Minh City) and central (Hoi An) parts of the country but always had the feeling we missed out by not visiting the capital, Hanoi, in the north. After some planning with David and Dianne, we decided to split our time between Hanoi and the surrounding areas, namely the tourist hot spots of Halong Bay and Ninh Binh province to the northeast and south of Hanoi respectively.

For our first three nights we home-based in Hanoi’s Old Quarter which is both charming and choked full of motorbikes zipping through narrow streets. In this part of the city traffic lights are few and far between so crossing the street is like playing a game of chicken block after block. Just walk strong and commit!

Within a few hours of landing at the airport we, thanks to David, found ourselves at one of the city’s famed water puppet shows. Water puppetry is Hanoi’s cultural pride and joy that dates back as far as the 11th century when it was performed in flooded rice paddies. Shows now take place in shallow pools inside theaters with puppeteers hidden behind screens controlling the puppets with large bamboo rods under the water. Overall an entertaining and very unique way to spend our first night.

We toyed with the idea of an organized food tour in nearly every country we’ve visited thus far but in Hanoi we finally pulled the trigger with “Mr. Ha’s Food Tour”. Despite there being a handful of guides working for the company, we managed to get a private tour from the Mr. Ha himself. It was immediately apparent Mr. Ha was sort of like The Godfather of the Hanoi foodie scene and mentioned on several occasions that he single-handedly put various eateries on the map. There was always a prime table waiting for us courtesy of Mr. Ha. From the spring rolls to the bun cha, every dish we had was very tasty and we ended the tour brutally full. Pacing was easier said than done.

The next morning following our Vietnamese food adventure with Mr. Ha we were picked up in a tour bus and headed a couple hours south to Ninh Binh, a province in the Red River Delta known for its beautiful landscapes and waterways. The tour group was bigger than we are typically used to but the strange, extremely self-deprecating humor of our guide, Sophia, kept the ride interesting. Despite the big group, we often split up to explore after arriving at each stop/activity which included biking, boating, and even a hike up one of the massive limestone cliff faces. Well worth braving the touristy crowds.

Besides Hanoi, Halong Bay is arguably the top tourist destination in northern Vietnam and is known for its thousands of towering limestone islands topped by rainforests. Over the last couple decades a huge industry has been built around one and two night cruises on the bay. David and Dianne booked us a two nighter after having found, when they visited 12 years before, that one night was too short. Our boat, Sapphire Cruise Halong, has about 20 or so cabins and the four of us were fortunate enough to have two adjacent rooms that shared a private back-facing terrace. While parts of the experience were a bit hokey (as we imagine cruises typically are), the beautiful scenery and tasty meals more than made up for it. Beyond eating, drinking, and relaxing on the deck, we managed to break off from the other passengers and bike around one of the populated nearby islands called Cat Ba. Toss in some boat jumps, swimming, and kayaking, and it made for a very memorable part of our time in Vietnam.

We came back to Hanoi from Halong Bay on Christmas Eve with the plan to spend Christmas with David and Dianne before they flew back to CA. The four of us stayed together at a lovely hotel in the Old Quarter called the Peridot and spent two days not doing much more than wandering around the city and eating well. For Christmas lunch we even ate at the local spot that President Obama and Anthony Bourdain visited together back in 2017. Just ask for the “Obama Special.”

After two weeks on the road together we bid farewell to David and Dianne. Before heading to the Philippines we had three more nights to kill and after tossing around a few ideas we settled on heading to Mai Chau, a valley full of rice fields and rural villages about three hours from Hanoi. We ended up snagging a room at an ecolodge smack dab in the middle of the valley. It was the perfect place to unwind and relax. Plus, for the money, it is definitely in the running for the best lodging we’ve had thus far.

Following two restful nights in Mai Chau we traveled back to Hanoi to stay at a “cozy” airport hotel and ate a final meal at a very authentic, off the beaten track Vietnamese restaurant. Not a word of English was spoken, Google Translate and a bit of guessing with fingers crossed was the name of the game.

Next stop, and last in Asia, the Philippines!