Taipei Airport (David, Julie and Llew-Anne)
Arriving in Hanoi (Julie and Llew-Anne)
One of the first things learned today was how to cross a Hanoi street safely. There are few cars in the downtown core, but the streets are congested with motorcycles. And the intersections are a visitor's nightmare, but somehow every driver knows what they're doing, hence the traffic flows smoothly. However for a new visitor, the task of crossing the street, at first, seems impossible. Our food tour guide gave us a quick lesson, and advised to wait for a gap and start walking, keeping a steady pace. The motorcyclists are always watching the pace of pedestrians and will cross in front or behind, but rarely will they stop. It appears scary at first, but it does work without incident. We arrived to our accommodations at the Church Boutique Hotel, which is at the heart of Hanoi, and at 5pm met our food tour guide at the Dong Xuan Market.
Our 1st stop was at a street vender selling freshly baked buns with a tasty (spicy) filling. She was on the sideway curb, hence she had drive-through customers. Many motorcyclists stopping for a quick and handy treat.
Our 2nd stop was a restaurant specializing in a thin wrap made of rice paste cooked on a small round cooking surface (like a crepe). The wrap is filled with pork and herbs and dipped in a sauce.
The 3rd stop was our main course, which consisted of a soup-base with bacon and bbq pork, rice noodles, lettuce and herbs. It was delicious and filling, and there were still three more stops.
Before the next food stop we were taken to the rail tracks going through a section of Hanoi. At first I questioned why we would be going there, and it quickly came to light why this area is a tourist attraction. During the French occupation a rail line was built through the residential area. The government in power did not buy the properties next to the rail line, hence these homes were two meters away. The people living there are now used to the train noise, and there has never been a fatality. It is so bizarre that the government would allow homes this close, and over time this area has attracted curious visitors. Apparently the train does not slow down when going through this section, and there is even a bar at one end where visitors wait for the 7:20pm arrival.
The 4th food stop was at the Cathedral where we tasted a cured pork sausage. It was tasty, but I'm sure we would have enjoyed the sausage more if we were hungry.
I was looking forward to the 5th stop -fruit salad. This was a popular stop and the outdoor street cafe was rather unique. The guide advised us the reason for the portable tables and stools was in case they are asked to leave by the police. The salad bowl contained mango, watermelon, young coconut flesh, jack-fruit and cream, served with a side of crushed ice. The ice is mixed in to chill the fruit.
The 6th and last stop was at a coffee shop to try egg coffee. I know this sounds strange, but during the French occupation there was little dairy products and eggs were used to create the creamy foam on the coffee. It is a very rich beverage. The cafe was also unique, hidden in a courtyard, with the option of going to the rooftop for a view of the lake.
We were greeted by a rooster!!
We finished the tour at 9:00pm, and after being awaked for 24 hours, we were feeling like zombies. All we wanted to do is go to sleep.
Even the rooster at the cafe went to sleep.
