As I mentioned in the Arrival in Hanoi post, on our first day in Vietnam we took a private tour called “Hanoi Orientation,” a real immersion in the local culture, which I’ll describe here, followed by other suggestions. (All the tours described here were organized by Handspan Travel).
We started the day in the Ngoc Ha area, wandering the streets and alleys of an endless street market. We saw temples and learned a lot about Vietnamese culture from our guide, Mỹ. The market was very local, and we were among the few tourists around (probably still a post-pandemic effect).
It was very interesting; we saw everything for sale at the street market, from crabs, fish, fruit, and vegetables to people selling meat from makeshift stalls right outside their homes.
In a covered part of the market, as well as food, we saw many stalls selling paper items such as money, clothes, food, and many others. These are to be burnt as offerings to those who have passed away, so that they can have a more comfortable life in the spiritual world after leaving earthly life behind.
Next to this area of the Ngoc Ha market, you can also visit Huu Tiep Lake, also known as B-52 Lake. As the name suggests, this lake holds the wreckage of an American bomber that was shot down by Vietnamese troops and has remained here since the night it crashed in 1972. Today, it is a symbol of the resilience of the Vietnamese troops during the war and also serves as a reminder of Vietnam’s turbulent history.
The first thing that caught my eye in this neighbourhood were the loudspeakers scattered around, used by the authorities to communicate with the population. During the COVID period, for example, they were used to call people in for vaccinations. The reality of a communist country is very different from what we know, and we often feel like we’ve stepped back in time to a world from many years ago.
From Ngoc Ha market, we headed to our next stop, which was just around the corner, the Ho Chi Minh Complex. (For more details on visiting to the mausoleum and museum, see below). We just walked around the complex, where we also saw the One Pillar Pagoda, built in the 11th century.
President Ho Chi Minh, affectionately called Uncle Ho by the Vietnamese, is regarded as a hero in Vietnam for his dedication to the country’s liberation and unification. You can read more about the revolutionary communist leader’s journey on the official site of the complex, using Google Translate. It’s truly impressive to see the admiration people have for their former president and the number of people who gather there to visit his body.
By now Maria Rita was getting very tired (and bored) and was very happy to know the next stop: lunch! After lunch we visited the Temple of Literature (more on that below), and then decided that we needed to take a break from the tour as it was becoming too much for her. She had been ill the week before, and we were unsure if we should travel until the last minute. After a nap at the hotel, we resumed our tour with a cyclo ride through the French Quarter, passing by St. Joseph’s Cathedral. We then stopped to try the famous Egg Coffee, which is kind of a coffee with eggnog. (Read more about the café we visited below).
After the famous Egg Coffee, our next stop was the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre, where we watched the water puppet show, a tradition in Vietnamese culture and popular with tourists as well. (More details on the theatre below).
Next to the theatre is Hoan Kiem Lake, where the Ngoc Son Temple is located (here). It is accessible via a red pedestrian bridge that lights up at night and is well worth seeing, even from a distance.
Our first full day in Hanoi ended here. The following days, we went on a day trip to Ninh Binh, which you can read about here, and did an overnight cruise in Halong Bay, which you can read more about here.
I loved the city of Hanoi and its chaos. I’m not sure I could live here, especially coming from Singapore where everything is so orderly and has a million rules that you eventually get used to. But I would definitely come back to Hanoi, and I’d still like to visit Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), but that is for another time.
Below are some more details and suggestions for things to do in Hanoi.
Hang Ma Street
Hang Ma Street is a must! It’s a super colourful street that I call the “theme decoration street.” Here you’ll find all the trinkets for the festivities of the season. As we were there in October, we found many, many shops selling everything related to Halloween. Depending on the time of year, you’ll also find items for other festivals, such as Lunar New Year, Mid-Autumn Festival, Christmas, and many more. The street is located here.
Water Puppet Show
The water puppet show can be seen at the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre, located in the ‘Old Quarter’, opposite Hoan Kiem Lake. The show lasts 50 minutes and there are several performances a day, and depending on when you travel, you may need to buy tickets in advance. We bought our tickets at the theatre box office, but our guide had already planned for us to arrive in time for the start of the show. (At the time, tourism hadn’t fully resumed, so things may be different now).
The tradition of water puppetry began over 1,000 years ago in the villages of the Red River Delta in northern Vietnam. In these villages it was common for the rice fields to be flooded, and the villagers developed this form of entertainment for everyone in the village. The stories are sung in Vietnamese and are inspired by the daily life of this rural farming world, with magical creatures such as dragons and phoenixes. For more information about the theatre and the show, click here.
Temple of Literature (Quoc Tu Giam)
The Temple of Literature is home to Vietnam first university, dating back to the 11th century. Here you can visit the temples dedicated to Confucius and his disciples. For more information, including opening hours, click here.
From the end of 2023, a new night tour of the Temple of Literature also takes place on certain days of the week. This offers a different experience to the daytime visit, with different illuminations throughout the gardens and a light and sound show at the end, telling the story of what the Imperial University of Vietnam was originally.
Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Complex
Visiting hours for the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum can be found here, and more information about the museum can be found here. Within the complex, it’s also possible to visit the wooden house where Ho Chi Minh spent his last years of life. However, some parts of the house are not accessible. Like other attractions in the complex, Ho Chi Minh’s house is closed at lunchtime from 11:00 to 13:30.
If you decide to visit the Ho Chi Minh complex, which I recommend you do, even if you don’t go into the buildings, be aware that you have to cover your shoulders and knees. We also had to take off our backpacks for inspection at the entrance.
Egg Coffee
In the Old Quarter, you’ll find plenty of options for the famous egg coffee, which we tried here. And we loved it! Our guide bought us some typical Hanoi fried cakes, which went really well with the coffee.
Train Street
Hanoi’s famous Train Street was unfortunately closed to tourists when we visited the city. According to our guide, the street was closed to tourists for safety reasons, as there were times when the street was so crowded that it was difficult for the train to pass smoothly.
After reading more about it, I found out that the Train Street reopened to the public in mid-2023, and now it’s possible to walk out onto the street if you stop at one of the cafes on the street that offer tables and chairs to sit and watch the train go by. You can choose, for example, the Railway Café located here. Check the train timetables on the street or in the cafes so you don’t have to wait long to see the trains passing through.
