Hanoi

On October 22nd we went from Malaysia to Vietnam!🇻🇳 To be more precise, to Hanoi...Vietnam's capital.

The flight✈️ didn't take long and we arrived at our new accommodation in the afternoon. Located right in the Old Quarter. Our accommodation wasn't the nicest... more than rocky, it smelled disgusting🤢 like cigarette smoke in the hallway🚬, but what more could you expect for under €20 a night including breakfast for the four of us?🤷‍♀️ So we were a bit pissed off.☹️ We wanted to get out and explore the area… and then came Hanoi! Loud📢, bustling, crowded, chaos, masses of mopeds🛵 that constantly honk.

We were ALL overwhelmed!🤯 Where had we ended up?! After a fresh coconut 🥥 and dinner, we just thought we'd get through the two days somehow and then let's go. At least our room was apparently clean. But sometimes some things only get better at second glance… including Hanoi.

Every now and then we recognized a system in chaos. There are almost “themed” streets: just toy shops🧸 next to each other

or lamp shops💡, then just tea and spice shops🫚 (the smell was amazing).

The loud honking of the moped drivers, for example, is not a complaint, but rather a “careful, I’m coming from behind/right/left”. There are traffic signs and traffic lights every now and then, as well as zebra crossings, but nobody seems to be interested.😛 People show consideration for each other. And as a pedestrian🚶…just don’t stop! Because the countless mopeds estimate how they will get around you based on your speed.

We drifted through the streets ☺️ and discovered something new on every corner.

We took a break at Hoan Kiem Lake

and snacked on our grapes🍇, which we had bought from a traveling saleswoman on a bicycle🚲.

Next to us was a stand with lots of beautiful pop-up cards. The children were “flirting” again and so we got a good price for our holiday tickets and an extra one for the older one.

The hike continued to the famous narrow street (which we knew from countless photos of Hanoi) through which a train🚂 runs straight through.

Every now and then stop at a shop, freshly squeezed juice 🥤, coconut 🥥

or drink Coconut Coffee☕️ and eat a Banh Mi🥖.

At second glance we found Hanoi wonderful!❤️ On October 24th. We then continued by bus🚌 towards Halong Bay.