Hanoi 3rd - 8th October

So after a quick stop in Guangzhou, we were on to Vietnam, and Hanoi. Guangzhou was very busy, and the only major point of interest was the Canton Tower:

Nice lights at the Canton Tower

Immediately in Hanoi, the feel of the city seemed more laid back. This in spite of a million motorcycles all desperate to get to their destination at speed, down narrow streets that seem more suited to traveling on foot, but more on that later...

On our first night, we went to the Newday restaurant on Ma May, and had barbecued ribs and lime chicken. The ribs affected Jenny emotionally they were that good! We followed that up with beers in a bar called Half Man Half Noodle, with a balcony that overlooked the busy street below.

We then strolled down to the Hoan Kiem Lake, where we saw a monkey taunting a dog.

Monkey vs. Dog

Twice because why not?

The next day, we explored the Old Town some more- loads of crazy stuff- the whole place seems to be held together by string, but laid back people and amazing food keep the whole place going.

In the evening the weekly Night Market took place on Hang Ba- absolutely packed but they sell some cool stuff- we bought a lovely pop up birthday card to send home. At the top of the market, under the train bridge, there was an amazing restaurant, with hot plates on every table- you are provided with butter, meat, chillies, onions and an amazing sauce and are left to cook your own wraps- so delicious!

Before

After

The next day, we couldn't resist going back to some places we'd already visited- Ben had more pho (noodle soup, fresh tasting and lovely)and Jenny had crazy Vietnamese muesli, which was cornflakes, yoghurt and bananas! , then a street barbecue lunch and back to Newday in the evening for Lemongrass and chilli chicken, spring rolls and special ribs.

You can also drink Bia Hoi, the local beer, served straight from the barrel, at street temperature- it's surprisingly delicious, and costs only 15,000 dong (17p!).

Six glasses for a pound. HEAVEN.

On our final day, we finally saw how laid back Hanoi is, as our entire street had a power cut, to which the hotel staff said 'It won't be long. Power will be back at 4 o clock.' At 10am in the morning... We wandered round the town again- many places had generators, so I assume this was a regular occurrence!

There were crazy balloons flying over the river, and we had iced coffee by the lake and watched them.

And finally, to cap off our stay, Jen took the perfect video of the motorbike traffic, and the fun of crossing the road here!!!

Unfortunately, due to the weather in the South, trains were severely limited, so we had to cut short our stay, as we couldn't travel much further, and so our next stop became Bangkok...

Edit- Fixed the video!