Back at home in Hanoi

After a few hours sleep and breakfast, we took a huge bag of laundry to be cleaned. How civilised getting someone else to do it.

As usual it has taken coming back to Hanoi for me to start getting used to it, and feel happier about the place.  SaPa wasn't a complete disaster, but I suppose I felt it was a waste of time and it cost a lot to sit in a hotel bedroom for two days. But you have to put it down to experience. Also it was so lovely to see the locals so excited about snow. Our guide tonight said that it had been 42 years since it last snowed. No wonder they were so excited.

It is nice be back doing something.

We decided to walk back to the Hoan Kien lake. It was a much clearer day than last week and at the end we veered off into what seemed a smarter area, with wider roads.  In the middle of the lake there is a wooden bridge over to an island with Ngoc Son Temple on it, I think the most photographed temple in Vietnam.

There was a photographic exhibition in the park, some of it very good.

Then we hit the posh shops, but what I love about the place is that in front of them you have sitting on little plastic stools cooking up their lunch.

Somebody has lots of money here.

We walked around the Old Town again. In the 13th century Hanoi had 36 guilds, each of them taking a different road. Hang means merchandise and the 36 streets still exist. Each one called Hang plus the name of the goods. P Hang Gai means silk Street. When we first walked around last week we couldnt understand why there was a whole street or shoes or lanterns  or books etc. Also at the back is a whole street of coffins with flower sellers, and what looks like a crematoria all together.  We know now.

Vietnamese health and safety at its best.

The Opera House

Poinsettia everywhere

In the evening we had a guided street food tour. We thought it would a group, but our guide turned up and it was just the two of us. We decided to be brave! We have already tried Bun Cha which is pork noodles, salad and crab rolls. So Lee started us off with chicken noodle soup, lovely

Then fried vermicelli with fried eel, I know, but it was great

Then it was a drink of fresh beer in Beer Street, and next came deep fried tofu and fried tiny fresh water crabs... Different than tofu ive had the UK was so fresh, the crabs great and the fresh beer tasted like lager, so okay

We finished off with deep fried battered banana and sweet potatoes. It should illegal.

And then gooey pudding made from beans and coconut milk. Bit too sweet for me.

By that time I was ready to explode.  As we started walking back it started to rain and Lee so kindly bought us a plastic Mac... Ooo so chic don't you think.