How is it possible that I’ve never written anything about my beloved Hanoi? Since we moved back, we have had plenty of friends visiting us here. So, I thought it would be fun to map out a typical Hanoi itinerary🌻

Day 1:

AM: Stroll through the Old Quarter, walk around the Sword Lake and visit the iconic Ngoc Son temple in the middle of the lake. Try baby-rice icecream at Trang Tien Icecream.

PM: Visit Van Mieu – Temple of Literature, Vietnam’s first university.

Day 2:

AM: Option 1 – Bat Trang Museum of Pottery. Tickets include a museum entrance and a pottery class. The piece can be colored, glazed and shipped to your address, or regular colored and bring straight home with you.

Option 2 – Museum of Ethnology. This is a unique museum with both indoor and outdoor displays. There are life-size houses from 54 Vietnamese ethnics and minorities to explore.

PM: Café & shopping. Try Phe La or Phuc Long for a local taste of Vietnamese coffee and/or milk tea. Shopping options are endless.

Day 3:

Take a day trip to a Northern popular spot. Ha Long Bay, Trang An – Ninh Binh, Tam Coc – Bich Dong, Incense Village, or Duong Lam Village.

Things to eat:

• Phở: beef (briskets or rare) or chicken. Hanoi is the home of Pho. Would be wrong to visit Hanoi without having at least one bowl.
• Bún chả: minced pork patties or slices, or mixed, with vermicelli noodle.
• Bánh mì: tbh any banh mi you find on the street is marvelous! I have never tasted a bad banh mi in my life.
• Bánh đa cá: interesting brown, thicker noodle with deep-fried, crunchy sweet-water fish.
• Chả cá: grilled hemibagrus fillets with lots of spring onion and dills.
• Bánh cuốn: paper-thin, steamed rice crepes filled with savory ingredients like seasoned ground pork and wood-ear mushrooms. Accompanied by crispy fried shallots, fresh herbs, and a flavorful, slightly sweet and salty fish-based dipping sauce.