In December 2016, I traveled to Vietnam with my family and some friends. We spent six or seven months choosing a destination. In the end, we decided on Vietnam and Thailand. I will cover Thailand in a separate blog series.
We had two flight options: Vienna through Moscow to Hanoi with a Russian airline, or Vienna through Dubai and Burma to Hanoi with Emirates. The Emirates ticket was a little more expensive, but it was worth the difference. We left Vienna on 7 December, and it did not take long to realize that we had made the right choice. The airport staff, cabin crew, and airplane were all impressive. Of all the airlines I have flown with, only Turkish Airlines and Emirates served genuinely good food. We even had a Slovak flight attendant!
Our first stop was Dubai, where we had a layover of just over three hours. We got something to eat and spent the rest of the time chatting. Dubai airport has plenty of places to eat, drink, or pass the time. We could not leave the airport, but with only three hours, we probably would not have seen much anyway. When the time came, we boarded the plane for another few hours in the air before reaching Burma.
We were supposed to stay on the airplane in Burma, but we misheard the announcement and got off. We soon realized something was wrong when airport staff sent us back without much explanation. The cabin crew looked shocked to see us return. Once we explained what had happened, they seated us again. They were not happy at first, but eventually everyone laughed about it. We still had one last flight ahead of us before arriving in Hanoi.
We had booked a driver through our hotel, so he was already waiting when we arrived at Noi Bai International Airport. The drive to the hotel took roughly 30 minutes. Even through the car window, Hanoi looked unlike anything we were used to. We could not wait to explore the city and see how people lived there.
We ran into a complication at the hotel. Because we had booked and paid for everything in advance, we expected to arrive, check in, and be done. We were wrong. At reception, we learned that the third bed in our three-person room was not included in the amount we had paid. We did not let that spoil our mood. We paid the difference, took a quick shower, and went out.
The roads were crowded, and most people traveled on mopeds. I had never seen so many mopeds in my life. I could see why they were popular: Hanoi has narrow roads and a large population, so putting everyone in a car would create constant traffic jams.
There were a few conventional restaurants, but many places had tables and chairs on the sidewalk. Staff washed dishes outside. Barbers worked on the sidewalk too. Vendors even sold unrefrigerated meat there, and plenty of people stopped to buy it. Even though everyone seemed to be rushing somewhere, people looked happy, at least to me.
We had dinner at a place where locals were eating. Our table stood beside a traffic light, and the meat sat on a stand on the sidewalk without visible refrigeration. We ordered shrimp, snake, frog, and some vegetables.
The food was delicious. Many people would have walked past because the place did not look especially healthy or hygienic, but the food tasted better than what I might have found in a fancy Hanoi restaurant. We loved the atmosphere. Locals and tourists sat together, talking, smiling, and enjoying their meals.
After dinner, we went to bed and prepared for the next day. In the next chapter, I will cover Ho Chi Minh City, Hạ Long Bay, the Củ Chi tunnels, and more.