Great news for travellers! Flying over to Hanoi is now more convenient with the launch of Vietjet's connecting flight from Singapore.

On 27 April 2017,  Officials from Singapore Changi Airport Group and Vietjet, as well as travellers were surprised and delighted by an impromptu flash mob dance by Vietjet cabin crew.

Admire beautiful rural scenery of paddy fields along the way and immersed yourself in the tranquil beauty of green tender plains, field plots and cottages.

 Hoa Lu was the capital of Vietnam for 41 years, under the Dinh and Le dynasties and is a district in Ninh Binh Province popular with visitors.

In Hoa Lu lies 2 famous temples — Dinh King Temple and Le King Temple — which were built in the 17th century in remembrance of  King Dinh Tien Hoang and King Le Dai Hanh respectively.

Since the Chinese dynasty's fall, Dinh Bo Linh, a Hao Lu native, sized power and establish the Dinh dynasty as the first Vietnamese emperor. The rest is history.

 First, King Dinh Temple

Second, King Le Temple.

The deity inside worshiped by the locals is King Le.
 

Tam Coc ( 10 km from Hao Lu)

After the 2 temples, we hopped on to Tam Coc.
This is an amazing, picturesque place where we got onto a bamboo boat rowed by the locals, and sightsee along the Ho and Long River and sighted the Tam Coc ( three caves).
The deep dark caves go on bright and dark and took two hours to go along the river. Local fishing villages and limestone formations are whatTam Coc is famous for.
The boats were rowed by the not-so-young men and women and it was no mean feat. Long distances, time and harsh weather. They don't use hands, they uses their feet, perhaps lest strenuous.

This is how you R.O.W.
Feet + Umbrella in Hand

Grottoes

In and out of grottoes we went.
You can see, everyone was busy taking photos and capturing the moment of the limestones, grottoes, sunlight and all. 

Apologies it's a bit shaky. But shows part of the journey

When you are in the midst of Tam Coc, you can't control but to take lots of selfies. 

\[TRAVEL VIETNAM 1] WHAT TO SEE IN HO CHI MINH CITY

The Old Quarters

This nostalgic charming maze of 36 streets is littered with shops dedicated to various trades such as silk, toys, ceramic, jewellery etc. Our boutique hotel was on the toys street
( More on that at the end of the post).

With the gloomy weather and muggy air in the morning, we experienced a different pace and atmosphere once we stepped out from the hotel.
The traffic was a dangerous endless stream of motorbikes and the locals were about their daily chores in mere nonchalant.

Erosion of culture?
 Have the locals felt the impact from the influx of tourists and foreign faces?
For them, life goes on and is a welcome change.

1. Eat at Cha Ca La Vong

Cha Ca La Vong Restaurant is what I will recommend if you are pressed for time and yet wanna experience local cuisine.
I simply loved what they serve only 1 dish Cha Ca La Vong, going by the same name — grilled fish slices, thrown in with dill, shrimp paste, turmeric, fish sauce, chilli, peanuts cooked on the sizzling pan, accompanied with rice vermicelli.


In my opinion, the fragrance of the stirred fried along with the condiments was a wonderful marriage that kept me salivating and could not stop eating with vermicelli.
The store seemed to have renovated, looking more modernized and sporting a larger shop front compared to past photos.
Here it is! Cooking and preparation will be done by the staff.




Price & Address
845 000VND for 3 pax.; 280 000 for 1 pax
14 Cha Ca Street, Hang Dao, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi
+84 438253929

2. Walk Hoan Kiem Lake

They served a range of local food from Pho to Banh Mi but we only ordered snacks to chill, along with Saigon Beer

4. Scale the highest point

This roundabout has got to be the centrepiece at The Old Quarters.
There are many restaurants lining up along around the main fountain,  but if you want to get something simple and enjoy the panoramic view, then head to Highlanders Coffee like we did. 

5. Watch a Water Puppet Show

Just diagonally across the street from the Hoan Kiem Lake is where Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre lies. Watch scenes of Vietnam's history performed by puppets in elaborate costumes accompanied by folk music.
One of the most acclaimed theatres in Hanoi and conveniently located with sold-out puppet shows.
** Be there early to snap the tickets!
We missed once when the show was full and thank god we had one more night in Hanoi to try again and managed to buy the tickets.
No reservations are allowed and no advanced purchases and no photography inside the theatre.
I love the show for its local folk elements and music.

Where We Stayed

Victory Hotel is a small boutique hotel with basic facilities, nice friendly staff and breakfast provided. The rooms were cleaned and the bed comfy enough. A budget accommodation for those who don't need too much of a fanciful stay.

Address: No. 3 Hang Quat Street, Hoan Kiem Distirct, Hanoi, Vietnam


[TRAVEL VIETNAM 1] WHAT TO SEE IN HO CHI MINH CITY

[TRAVEL VIETNAM 2] HO CHI MINH - VISITING CU CHI TUNNEL (BEN DINH)

[TRAVEL VIETNAM 3] HANOI- WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A 2D1N HALONG BAY CRUISE — DAY 1