Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam and following Ho-Chi-Minh City the second biggest city in the country. It is located in the North of Vietnam in the delta of the red river.
Vietnam is known for the most chaotic traffic on the streets – rightly so! The first hours after arriving in Hanoi can be quite challenging. A day without having an accident is a good day. After a few hours in the thick of the city it’s getting better though and eventually you can discover a certain logic behind. You have to simply cross the streets very slowly and predictable without any jerky leaps. And you have to rely on the drivers of the various scooter, bikes, Rickshaws, cars and greengrocer pushing their carts and trust they will see you and avoid hitting you at the very last moment.
Hanoi offers many contrasts. There are a lot of French colonial style buildings, many small temples, narrow built houses and pavements with little space to actually walk as they are part of the local’s living room, kitchen or sales area.
Old Quarter (Hoan Kiem District):
There are many salesman and small shops, restaurants and cafés in this area. The Vietnamese coffee is well known for its excellent quality and its very own taste (chocolate flavour?).
In the Old Quarter you can find a few small chinese and buddhist temples. The beautiful courtyards of these temples are like small oases. Although you can still hear the noisy traffic passing-by, we could disconnect a little bit as we were most of the times the only people in the patio.
One highlight of the Old Quarter district is the old railway which runs right through the city and the small street canyons. The train still runs here twice a day. Apart from the rare moments of the train passing-by, the rails seem to be part of the living area of the locals. They are cooking, doing their laundry and playing games right at the tracks.
Hoan Kiem Lake:
Hoan Kiem Lake (Sword-Lake) is located in the Old Quarter and it is the most famous lake in Hanoi. In the middle of the lake they have built a small tower called Turtle Tower. At night it is lit up in various colours which looks really nice. As the houses in Hanoi are built one after, the other there are only a few places for recreation. Therefore the lake is very popular and many locals come here during the weekends for relaxing, having a picnic with live music, playing games or having a bride’s photoshooting.
Ho-Chi-Minh Mausoleum:
The last resting-place of Ho-Chi-Minh can be visited in Hanoi – and not in Ho-Chi-Minh-City in the South of Vietnam.
The memorial is a big stone hulk built on a spacious parade ground. It is often said that the design of this building is not one of the best but it is for sure impressive with all the waving flags and the uniformed guards next to the building.
Flag Tower / Old Citadel:
The Flag Tower is part of the former fort of Hanoi. The Tower can be visited during day-time. We liked the small park right next to the tower even more as this small green area is again used by many locals for playing games, exercising and skateboarding.
For a city trip to Hanoi you should estimate about 3-4 days before heading on to the next destination. If you can spend only a very short time in Hanoi, I guess the Old Quarter is the best place go. Staying in Hanoi longer than 4 days could be challenging for one or the other. The city is very exhausting, noisy and full of people.
It is really interesting to explore the different areas of Hanoi but after a few days you might want to get away from the city and enjoy some nature 🙂
