Vietnam - Hanoi Part 2

So we found the backpacker district and got our bunking situation worked out for the night, and the next door the place we were staying offered a walking tour of some of the city every morning, so we checked that out. I don't remember learning anything, but we were shown a pretty cool coffee place you'll see later. 

More wires

Even the cats here own mopeds

People sell fruit from their bicycles all day, but there are also many women (I only ever saw women doing it) who carry these around all day serving up food on the sidewalk with little stools and tables (those red things there) as a portable eating area that they could drop down any time someone bought a meal. The cardboard is insulating her cooking area, so she's basically carrying around a kitchen all day

Hoan Kiem Lake, where something about a magical sword being entrusted for protection to a turtle took place. You might be able to take a boat to visit that structure in the middle, but I never saw anyone do it. It's lit up at night though

This couple was getting wedding photos done, pretending to be staring deeply into one another's eyes while the photographer presumably told them to stare deeper into one another's eyes

Happy New Year! I think. It's just a guess really, but that's probably it

These are called Xiclos, and you can hire a guy to peddle you around the city for a negligible fee while you get a front row seat to the traffic experience of Vietnam (it's pretty cool, I recommend it)

Three trees of Hanoi are insane and they dominate the sidewalks and corners too

So we headed into this coffee shop that you would never know how to get to if you weren't in the know because you have to walk through a shirt shop out front and go into the back like you own the place before you even get to it

Then go up winding and cramped iron staircases surrounded by plants and incense

Looking down from the top of the stairs

Egg coffee: A whipped concoction of condensed milk and egg yolk that sits on top of Vietnamese coffee

View while drinking said egg coffee

Then we found a place that sells beer (purportedly German beer [or Bier]) in 1.5 litre babies like this. It's not just the distance factor either, mine actually is bigger than his

It's worth noting that Hanoi is an amazing smelling city. They burn incense all day long in temples just off the streets, home idols, the street curbs, or even in the trees. They just place a stick in the trunk of a tree on the street and light it, or wrap vines around a glass bottle, fill it with water, and put flowers in it. Public space is thought of in such a unique way, and creative ways of making the city more pleasant just keep popping up.

Hoan Kiem Lake at night

Their concept of how you use space is amazing, and the thought of just stringing your sell-able goods up the length of a tree trunk is so simple, yet so alien to me

Hanoi at nighttime was like an entirely new place compared to the daytime. Everything is lit up and the streets are alive with people sitting down everywhere and eating a meal, playing badminton, drinking, or just walking around. Markets thrive a bit more with everyone off work, and everything is very relaxed. The feel of Hanoi was never bested on our trip, so in a lot of ways the highlights came first. Also English in Vietnam is pretty well spoken, and foreigners are much more common so for once it didn't feel like we were always being watched like in Korea. Koreans are often subtle about it, but you always know they're staring at you. Here, they might ask you to buy something or pay them to drive you around, but they don't really find you that amusing beyond that so you feel more free to forget that you're an outsider.