January in Hanoi Vietnam
When considering travel to Southeast Asia, one typically envisions a warm, humid climate filled with exotic foliage and cuisine. While all of that is true, there’s a much larger range of climate than what an inexperienced traveler to that region would expect.
In northern Vietnam, the winter months are cool and damp, with temperatures averaging in the mid to low 50 degrees Fahrenheit range. Given that we are notoriously minimal packers, this presented a bit of a challenge, which we were only able to solve by doing a little bit of shopping upon arrival.
Where to stay in Hanoi
The Old Quarter
Having spent our first night in Vietnam at a high-end hotel, we were ready to immerse ourselves in a more authentic culture or urban living in Hanoi. Sticking very closely to points of reference provided by Anthony Bourdain in his 2015 episode, featuring Hanoi.
The Old Quarter, with its French colonial architecture, and proximity to the sites we wanted to be able to walk to, made it the obvious choice for us to spend the next two days.
Budget-Friendly Accommodation or Nightmare?
As is the case on most of our trips, I’m always looking for areas that we can save a few bucks, and have generally accomplished this by carefully selecting our accommodations well in advance. Unfortunately, even with my diligence at reading reviews and crosschecking ratings between multiple booking sites, it did not prepare me for the reality of our accommodation in the old quarter.
We booked a private room at a hostel, which had amazing reviews, a perfect location, a private bathroom, and was actually on the upper end of nightly cost for the area ($38 per night… but hey, it’s Vietnam). However, when we arrived, it became immediately evident that our room was an informal addition to the rooftop of the building, and in places, the walls were nothing more than sheets of vinyl siding that had been zip-tied to the structural polls that had been added at some point and flapped when a good wind would blow.
The rough finish of the room was only amplified by the fact that it was in the low 50s, and we were already cold, but then we only had a single blanket for our bed (which was on the floor), and a heater that was insufficient to the task countering the extreme nature of our draft. Making matters infinitely worse, there was a rat, which I guess a sighting is to be expected when staying in budget accommodations in a developing country, but oh my goodness, I had never felt so much like a fish out of water, than that night we spent clinging to each other for warmth, and visually tracking that rat.
Willing to practice what we preach, we decided to stay in that hostel for the duration of our time in Hanoi, and in hindsight, I’m glad that we did. Part of traveling should be to get outside of your comfort zone and to experience the way that other people and cultures live. Not to imply that the people of Vietnam all live in shacks that have rats, but the average yearly income is $2,800. It’s us, that expect a certain level of comfort, that would feel upset by circumstances we found ourselves in, which in reality, were pretty good in contrast. This was an opportunity to experience something different, and to feel grateful for what we have back home, which is why we stayed.
What To-Do in Hanoi
I booked us a private street food tour, which I scheduled immediately following our check-in at our hostel. It can be risky to schedule things like this back to back, but I was really glad in this instance.
Our tour guide met us at our hostel, and thankfully, spoke excellent English. He was a university student and gave tours like this one, part-time for a local tour company. At any rate, after introductions, he asked us if we had tried crossing the street yet, which to us was an odd question, but in reality, we hadn’t. Up until that point, we had been picked up and dropped off in a door to door fashion, but hadn’t done any exploring. So, first things being first, he gave us our first lesson in how not to die crossing the street.
Lesson One - Step Off the Curb, and NEVER STOP MOVING
The traffic in Hanoi was overwhelming to me, a constant stream of traffic that ran like water from a faucet. Traffic signals, crosswalks, lanes, even direction, are all just “suggestions” there. Almost exclusively scooters, you’ll see families of four, all piled onto a single scooter, that will NOT stop. Traffic moving too slow? Why not pop onto the sidewalk and go around? Yep, all bets are off, and to an American faced with the need to cross one of these concrete streams of death, local intervention is worth GOLD.
Our instructions were simple, “wait until the traffic is lighter, step off the curb, walk slowly, and no matter what, do not stop.” The horrors. However, much to my surprise, it works! The stream of scooters simply goes around you, which is why you can’t stop moving because THEY don’t stop moving. It was a miracle.
Street-food Tour
My first introduction to Vietnamese food, was in 2006 when I lived in San Diego. I remember feeling so “international” while trying to explain what “Pho” was, to my mother, who lived in the Midwest.
However, with more options than just chicken pho and spring rolls, we learned a lot about the variety, and regional diversity of Vietnamese cuisine that evening.
Probably the most surprising thing that we tried, was Egg Coffee. Created during the French occupation of Vietnam, egg coffee consists of espresso, sweet and condensed milk, and egg yolk. I was concerned about this item when it was placed in front of me, but hey, you only live once? Much to our surprise, it was good! The coffee itself is served in a small espresso cup, which is placed inside a slightly larger bowl (a bath) of hot water. You take a sip and then return the coffee cup to the bowl of hot water, to keep the egg from cooling and tasting bitter. If you get the chance, be sure to try it!
Cultural Tour
After surviving our first night in our Hanoi, we kicked-off our second day with a cultural tour and made a pit stop for something warmer to wear. Our tour guide was also a student at the university, and she was full of helpful tips about how to behave in certain places, or certain situations. It was $30 well spent!
In addition to our little side trip to get sweaters, our guide took us to temple, a historical house (there’s not many left in Hanoi), a church built by the French (she asked us if it was just like Notre Dame in Paris, to which it was almost painful to disappoint her), as well as explaining many cultural practices, legends, and providing us with some popular snacks along the way.
All said and done, I would recommend the experience.
