Happy thanksgiving from Hanoi! We touched down on Thursday afternoon after a 2 hour flight from Chiang Mai, made our way through the interesting visa process and immigration lines, and took the one hour ride to our hotel in the old quarter of the city. We were spending the next 8 days in Vietnam – first one night in Hanoi, then three days on a boat cruising in Bai Tu Long Bay and Ha Long Bay, back to Hanoi for two days, and then three days in the mountain town of Tam Coc (Ninh Binh area).

It was a new country and new culture to explore. But first things first… to find out how they did Thanksgiving dinner. Unsurprisingly they did not unless we ventured to a Marriott or similar hotel chain, so we decided that settling for the local cuisine would do just fine. First step was getting to the restaurant, which took a bit of skill since crossing streets in Hanoi is like a game of frogger with hundreds of motor bikes and cars wizzing by, not even necessarily stopping at a red traffic light (or driving on the correct side of the road). We quickly learned that there is a bit of no rules/anything goes with the motorbikes. Once there, we had a dish called Bun Cha, which is a soup with pork in it with fried spring rolls. They served you the broth with the pork and vegetables in it, and then you added more garlic, chillies, herbs, and rice noodles to it. As you were eating it you would add pieces of spring roll one by one and eat them in the soup. It may not have been a turkey, but it sure was delicious. (Side Note: Bun Cha is a dish that Anthony Bourdain and Obama famously enjoyed on plastic tables and chairs at a similar place in Hanoi a few years ago on one of Anthony Bourdain’s shows).

We only had one night in Hanoi for now because early the next morning we would head off on our three day cruise in Bai Tu Long Bay / Ha Long Bay, but we would be back a few days later to explore the city more (and work on our street crossing skills). We were picked up at our hotel at 7:45 in the morning for our shuttle and set off for the port which was around 150 km away.

Along the way we stopped in the village of Yen Duc for lunch and a water puppet show, a tradition in Vietnam which involves puppets dancing in the water portraying local customs and day by day traditions. The puppeteers stand behind a screen in waist deep water and control the puppets using long bamboo rods. The mini shows they put on mostly depicted life in rural Vietnam, for example collecting rice and fishing, or Vietnamese folklore, and were accompanied by music and singing.

After a great lunch of local Vietnamese food alongside the water following the show, we arrived at the port and boarded a small boat which would take us to the larger boat where we would be spending the next two nights. We were staying on a Junk boat, which is a sailing ship initially developed by the Chinese but historically used in many parts of Asia. Our cruise would take us to the edge of the well known Ha Long Bay and the lesser know and less crowded Bai Tu Long Bay. Ha Long Bay is a bay in northern Vietnam and UNESCO World Heritage Site with emerald waters and nearly 2000 islands made of limestone sticking out of the waters in all sorts of shapes and rock formations. Ha Long means “descending dragon“ in Vietnamese and some legends say these are parts of the large dragon scales sticking out from the water.

We were welcomed on board our ship, Dragon’s Pearl I, with our 16 other fellow passengers and presented some fresh fruit juice as we formally met our guide Tom. After the welcome and briefing with Tom on the plan for the afternoon, we were given the keys to our cabin. There was just enough space for a bed and us to walk around it, and a nice bathroom attached. Considering we were on a smaller boat, it was pretty great and surprisingly comfortable. The best part was when you opened the curtains and from massive windows could look out on to the sea and watch the towering islands passing by while laying in bed.

After checking out the cabin, we went to the top deck of the boat and relaxed under the cloudy skies while taking in the views as we cruised along. It was incredible how many islands there were, and every direction you looked it seemed there were more and more in the distance.

During the Mid-afternoon, we had a cooking class with the head chef on board who was introduced to us with his English name – “chicken.” Chicken was giving us a lesson in how to make Vietnamese spring rolls. He showed us everything that went into the mixture and he mixed it all together with his hands, and then showed us how to properly execute the rolling in the rice paper. Not too much filling (or it will not all cook inside), roll it two times with it flat, then tuck the edges, then two more rolls and it was ready for the fryer. We tried to pay close attention to the technique, because it would soon be our turn. We were sitting at a table with our two new French friends who lived in the Netherlands, and together we had to create a plate of our own. We were given a stack of the round rice papers and a plate of the filling and it was off to work. After a few trial runs out table of four managed to crank out a tower of spring rolls of varying sizes. Some short and fat, some longer and skinnier, but the size didn’t matter as much since it was now time for them to go into the fryer to be cooked. Ten minutes later they brought back a plate of freshly cooked spring rolls, still sizzling, so we could enjoy the product of our labors as an afternoon snack. We confirmed pretty quickly that the shape didn’t matter – the taste was great all the same.

A little while after our snack, it was time for pre-dinner kayaking. We got into our tandem kayak and followed our guide toward one of the islands with a water cave that we could paddle explore a bit. The clouds were still out overhead and it was a bit windy, but if you put your hand into the water you could feel it was quite warm. Not that we had any intention to tip the kayak, but we knew if we did, it wouldn’t be too cold. And it made us feel a bit better about the swimming that was planned for the next day with more clouds and wind predicted again for the following day. We paddled closer to the cave and then along the edge of the island. It was really interesting to see the limestone rocks up close. The tide was also lower at this point (the water levels shift by 4 meters every 12 hours) which made it extra interesting to see the rock formations which are usually covered by the water. It was beautiful and relatively still on the water despite the wind, and we kayaked around the islands in that area for a bit before paddling back to the boat.

We had some more time to relax on the deck before dinner. The clouds were blocking the sunset but we watched the sky get darker as twilight was starting to set in. Dinner that night was a delicious 8 course feast of Vietnamese foods. Most of the meals were served family style, and the plates filled with food kept coming and coming to our table, where we ate again with our two new friends, who we had become friendly with after sharing a meal, cooking class, and car ride together earlier in the day. We all agreed that everything was delicious and all the dishes had so many flavors. There were fresh vegetables and salads, fresh seafood from the bay, delicious meats, lots of rice, and more, the meal was excellent. After dinner we all went up to the terrace on the deck to enjoy the night view of the other boats and towering islands in the background as our boat drifted slowly back and forth in the water. Soon it was time for bed as the boat rocked us to sleep.

We woke up the next morning to more cloudy skies but we could see the sun peaking through a bit and we hoped that meant it might come through later in the day. Today we were headed to spend some time on a beach of one of the islands and explore its cave. But before all of our activities, the chef seemed eager to make sure we were full of food and energy. Breakfast today was a mix of Vietnamese and western cuisine. First up was big bowl of Pho, which a lot of Vietnamese eat for breakfast, but has more recently become popular throughout the day as it is a widely available, cheap Vietnamese street food. Pho is a Vietnamese soup with a flavorful bone broth, rice noodles, herbs and meat. We were looking forward to having Pho while in Vietnam, and the chicken one we had for breakfast did not disappoint. Already somewhat full, they also brought us eggs and toast for our western meal.

After breakfast, Tom told us a little more about the Ha Long Bay area and it’s significance and showed us on the map where we would be cruising for the next two days and gave us a brief Vietnamese geography lesson. Tourists started visiting the bay in 1989 but the tourism infrastructure and overnight cruises improved significantly after it was named a UNESCO world heritage site in 1994. The UNESCO area is comprised of Ha Long Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay and is 1,553 sq km in area with 1,696 of these limestone islands. Some vegetation exists in the cracks of the limestone, but the animal life is limited on the islands and is mostly baboons, which will sometimes swim from island to island. The water of the bay is a more emerald green because of the salt levels, which is much higher than some of the clear blue seas toward to south. We also learned about the importance of fishing for the people living on and around the bay. There are four main types of fish (all of which we tasted in our meals) – red snapper, white mackerel, grouper, and sea bass. Additionally, the bay is full of shellfish like snails, crabs, oysters, mussels, clams, and prawns, which the fishermen will collect from along the edges of the islands when the tide is low.

It soon was time to get off the larger ship and spend our afternoon on one of the islands. We climbed aboard the smaller tandem ship and made the short journey to the shores of one of the islands. The first thing we did was a short hike to explore the cave on the island. A family of fishermen lived in this cave for many years until they relocated to one of the fishing villages in the area. The cave was rather large and contained two chambers, and had a lot of stalagmites and stalactites throughout.

After exploring the cave we went down to the beach for a swim in the bay. The air was cold and the water felt a little chillier than when kayaking yesterday, but we decided to go for it and swim anyway. Once we were in the water able to settle in, it was refreshing and comfortable. After swimming we got back into the kayaks and paddled all around some of the islands in the area before going back and relaxing on the beach, when the sun finally came out.

After an hour of relaxation and reading in the sun, it was time for one of the other highlights of the afternoon – a beach barbecue. The crew transported the ingredients from the junk boat to shore and again our chef prepared a delicious meal of grilled meats, vegetables, and of course lots of fish. Everything was delicious with an excellent barbecue taste.

Soon after lunch we returned to the ship for some relaxation (aka a power nap) as we cruised toward our docking destination for the evening. We would once again anchor in a similar area as the prior evening to sleep, as all of the ships on the bay are required to do. After we anchored, we sat on the upper deck prior to dinner once again, watching the ship slowly drift back and forth. Finally, it was dinner time and we were treated to another meal of delicious Vietnamese cuisine. This time, the chef showed his artistic and creative side with some magnificent artistic carvings of animals and a ship out of vegetables, presented at the head of the room for the entirety of the dinner. The meal and the carvings apparently took our chef and his crew of three several hours to complete.

The next day, the final day of our cruise, we awoke to sunny skies with little bits of clouds. Finally – there looked to be consistent sun. We had breakfast and then got into the small boat again and took it to one of the fishing villages called Vong Vieng. Throughout Ha Long Bay, there are several floating villages where the fishermen live, with about 1600 residents in total. The one we were visiting had 170 residents. The villages were often built in areas surrounded by islands so that they were well protected from the winds and waves and in shallow water from 2-3 meters deep. The villagers will take boats out to fish and then have a farm set up in their villages where they will grow their catches for 9 months or so before taking them to the mainland to sell. They do the same with any oysters, clams, or other shellfish they catch. Trips to the mainland take from 4-6 hours by tiny motor boat depending on the conditions. They typically go 1-2 times per week, depending on the season and if they need to buy fresh water for drinking and cooking if there has not been a lot rainfall thyme could collect.

We disembarked from our small boat and climbed aboard even smaller boats holding 4 people and a villager who would be rowing us around. We saw the tiny, 7 square meter houses where families of up to 8 can be living there together and the fish pens next to them. We also passed the building that used to be a school until 2014. The families were slowly stopping sending their children to school over the years, with previous thinking that it was more valuable for them to learn to fish than to get an education. A government program was established to educate the parents on the importance of education and to bring the children to mainland schools. Nowadays, the children are picked up every Monday morning and taken to the town of Ha Long where they stayed and have schooling until Friday, and then return to their families for the weekend.

The water was extremely calm and it was peaceful rowing along through the village. About halfway we came to a beautiful archway under one of the islands. All of the islands we had seen over the past few days had so many different unique shapes. The final stop on the tour before heading back to our big boat was the pearl farm, where we saw examples of the oysters you could find in the bay and learned about how pearls are grown and oysters harvested. There is a bit of human intervention to initiate the process, but they don’t know how the pearl will turn out and what color or quality it will be until they open the oyster.

We headed back to the boat where we packed up our things and lounged on the top deck of the boat under (finally) sunny skies as we cruised back toward the harbor in Ha Long. After one last delicious lunch it was time to disembark and take the small boat back to the pier. What a beautiful journey it was and great experience we had, enjoying the peacefulness of the bay. After that it was back to the chaos of Hanoi, hoping we still remembered how to cross the street…

We arrived after about 4 hours drive in the early evening back to Hanoi and found a place for another delicious meal. This time we had Bun Bo Nam Bo, which is a southern Vietnamese noodle and beef dish. The place where we ate, like many in Hanoi, essentially served one dish, and did it very well. We walked around for a bit after our early dinner and eventually came to where the weekend night market was taking place. Vendors were setting up stands selling pretty much anything you could imagine. Stands selling Tshirts, shoes, bags, toys, accessories, and of course food lined the streets, while all of the shops were still open looking for customers. We decided we would try some of the Vietnamese street cuisine and shared some pork skewers and a banh mi (Vietnamese baguette sandwich) before heading back to our hotel, ready for some sleep.

The next day was our only full day exploring Hanoi and we decided we would spend it wandering the streets and seeing what else the city had to offer. We were staying in the Old Quarter and it’s many windy streets left a lot to be explored. We walked around with not too strict of a plan – a few things we wanted to see – but mostly we wanted just to see what else Hanoi was all about. We first walked to Hoan Kiem (lake in the old quarter) and crossed the red bridge to reach the Temple of the Jade Mountain which is a Confucian temple built on an inlet in the lake. Despite being in the middle of all of the hustle and bustle of Hanoi and constantly honking cars and motorbikes, it was relatively peaceful in the middle of the lake.

From there we started to wander the streets a bit more. First walking down a street with ten different shops selling porcelain and pottery, then another street with all the shops selling silk, then one selling all Christmas decorations. Each street had its own unique craft, as was traditional in the Old Quarter years ago and still was today and the streets were originally name the way they were because of the of the craft that was sold on it. For example there is a silver street, silk street, bamboo street, mattress street, etc. There is even a street called Cha Ca which means grilled fish, and is a street dedicated to this specific cuisine. This happened to be where we were headed for lunch. It is interesting walking around the Old Quarter to see the architecture of the buildings. Since taxes for the storekeepers were historically determined based on the width of the shopfront, many of the buildings are tall and very narrow.

For our lunch walk down Cha Ca, we had a focus on a specific spot recommended by our hotel, Cha Ca Thang Long. We ordered (the only option on the menu) and a pan of partially fried fish seasoned with turmeric was placed on the burner on the table to continue cooking in front of us. They added about half of the very large bowl of spring onions and dill sitting in front of us and let it continue to cook down. The other half continued about five minutes later. In front of us there were smaller bowls of rice noodles, broth, chili, more herbs, and peanuts. We followed the example of our waiter, and added some rice noodles, herbs, and the broth with the chili into the small bowls in front of us. Then went the fish cooked with the dill and spring onion on top, and then the peanuts. So many different flavors but all so good together. We continued making these little bowls until the big pan of fish and all of the ingredients on the table slowly disappeared into our bellies.

After lunch, Fred decided he wanted to see if he could find a tailor that could make him a bespoke suit in five days to pick up when we returned to Hanoi to fly out at the end of the week. Vietnam is know for its textiles and the ability to have suits made quickly and at a very reasonable price. After a bit of research and striking out with a tailor who would be unable to do a fitting for him ahead of the final pick up, we ended up at one who was willing to have Fred come back later that evening for his first fitting (talk about quick mock up of the suit) and pick it up four days later on Friday. We picked out the colors and materials for the suits and shirts (with the speed and price quoted it was worth it to go for two) and returned later that evening at 7pm to be fitted. We‘ll see how they turn out when we pick them up in a few days.

We spent the rest of the day wandering the streets. We stopped in the afternoon at a cafe to try a Vietnamese coffee specialty – the egg coffee. It may sound strange, but this is a coffee where a foam containing whipped egg yolk and other ingredients such as condensed milk, sugar, and sometimes even cheese (it can vary a bit). We were not sure what it would taste like but were curious to try since it was in every coffee shop in Hanoi. We ordered one and sat on the sidewalk in front of the cafe and were pleasantly surprised with how it tasted. If you had just the frothy top it was a little too sweet but when you caught a spoonful of the froth with the dark coffee below it was very nice. Following our coffee break we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening doing more wandering, and capped off the night with another great meal.

We had another few hours in Hanoi the next day before the train to Ninh Binh. The weather was beautiful and there were sunny skies, so after breakfast we spent some time walking around Hoan Kiem Lake and enjoying the nice weather. We stopped for a break and iced cappuccino and coconut coffee at The Note Coffee, where the three floors of the coffee shop is entirely covered in post it notes. We left a note of our own before heading to lunch.

That afternoon we went to the train station and headed south on a 2.5 hour ride to Ninh Binh. Hanoi was an exciting and hectic city to explore, but we were looking forward to the next stop and the peaceful nature that awaited us.