Flag of Vietnam.
Happiest Moments
My happiest moments was seeing the lights change colour on the bridge from the airport into the capital city, Hanoi.
Horrified Moments
Health and safety - Hanoi is not for the nervous.
1 Open Sided Sheer Drop Road
The motorway area around the airport passes magnificent, stunning skyscrapers, some of which change colour. However, as you near the city the road seems to have a cliff edge over the old fashioned garage style shops below. We were safely in a booked taxi which we had arranged via our hotel. But the motorcyclists and scooters seemed to me to be weaving along the road on the edge of a precipice.
2 Our hotel, the Sunline Paon was lovely. Brand new. Gleaming. Flight of steps up to reception. Hm, steps, not for the handicapped. Fortunately I am not handicapped.
Open-sided staircase
First stop after checking in was check out the swimming pool on the rooftop. The short flight of stairs has a sheer drop on one side. You can't cling to the wall side. There's no rail nor rope on the wall side. The phrase which sprung into my mind was 'accident waiting to happen'. I gave up the idea of a swim. We had booked this hotel, moving our booking from another hotel, in order to have a hotel with a pool
3 Off we went for a walk into Hanoi. Our hotel was brilliantly positioned. Like several others, it is a converted multi-storey building sandwiched between others in the old quarter.
At first strolling along seemed fun. Crowds of jolly people carrying balloons and flashing lights, all pre-Christmas in December. Nothing closes on Christmas Day, reception told us - it's not a Christian country. But the hotels and large buildings have Christmas trees.
Hooting motorcycles zoom along through the crowds crossing the roads. Motorcycles carry one person, two people, and in one case I saw a family of five, parents and three little ones. Crossing at a junction is stressful.
I decided to stick to the pavement. You cannot. the pavements are intermittently blocked by chairs and tables from cafes or banks of parked motorbikes.
To sum it up, Hanoi, is a change, a complete contrast to clean, green Singapore. If you want cleanliness go to Singapore. If you like chaos, and constantly hooting traffic, go to Hanoi.
It's a similar contrast to England, which I think of as having too much litter and too many potholes. In Harrow in London the Council cracks down on restaurants using part of a wide pavement without permission and payment. Certainly not blocking the pavement and forcing pedestrians into the road.
Not for the blind, deaf, wheelchair uses, not for the nervous.
If you want to enjoy the modern world, but also escape the modern world. Hanoi offers both.
We flew (at our own expense) on VietJetair, a budget airline, about which more later.
More details on the Sunline Paon, Japanese run hotel, later.
Travel Tips
For hotels
booking.com
For airlines
travelok.com
vietJetair.com
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
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