My husband and I had an interesting eight days in Vietnam. It wasn’t long enough to really understand or know much about any city or country. I am still unaware and/or don’t understand or know some stuff in my country. Hmm.

Anyways, it was quite fun being on the ground and observing – people, traits, food, lifestyle, workstyle – in the places we visited, particularly in Hanoi. Our/my perceptions and interpretations might not be wholly accurate or representative as they are mainly anecdotal, not Google-verified.

The first thing that caught our attention was driving in the city, especially in the Old Quarter. It’s a scary endeavour to say the least. And, this from a person who drives in KL, where it can be hair-raising at times. The roads seemed narrower with no white lines that separated vehicles travelling in opposite directions. Hence, it felt like the vehicles were constantly moving in all directions, sometimes directly at us.

It was chaotic, and yet there appeared to be a tacit system or understanding amongst the local road users. Cars, vans, motorcycles, bicycles manoeuvred skilfully around each other, and pedestrians. They honked a lot, swerved, stopped just in time, and drove on and away. Like it was business as usual, which it was. In Sapa, we saw people/bystanders help shift and lift two motorbikes parked on the side of the road to allow a huge bus to drive through an already narrow road. 

We or I learnt very quickly that if hesitant when crossing the always busy streets in the city, shadow a local. I kid you not. They don’t stick one arm out to stop traffic like some of us do at home, they walk cooly, confidently dodging traffic. 

Pavements were as busy as the roads, especially in the Old Quarter. If not occupied by parked motorcycles, and sometimes cars, they were populated by low plastic stools and tables (some looked like modified crates) that were used/owned by micro, small, medium, and fairly large restaurants for their customers to sit, eat and drink. People appeared to dine and socialise/get-together on pavements. Food served ranged from Pho (soup comprising broth, rice noodle, herbs, meat), Bun Cha (grilled pork noodles – my husband liked it), Banh Mi (Vietnamese bread – I liked it), hot pot, sticky rice plus lots of soupy dishes.

We also saw customers of permanent/proper coffee and tea places, sit outside on stools along pavements with their jackets and coats on, chatting, sipping their drinks, and eating kuaci/sunflower seeds with shell. Wherever we went there were many coffee and tea places. On the menu were salted, egg and coconut coffee. Tea included green, black and floral. Pastry and cakes were surprisingly not always present. That is not to say there were no bakeries and patisseries, there were. Not as many or evident as the coffee and tea shops, at least not to me.

Also, when I asked both our tour guides about desserts, the one from Ninh Binh gave us two pomelos from her garden and the one from Sapa, little oranges, that were, to be fair, juicy and sweet. Both did not have much to say about desserts in the Vietnamese or their diets. My husband and I wondered aloud if it could be a factor in the locals generally having not-fat physiques.

Back to the pavement. One morning, from our hotel room that came with a city view, we saw a lone vendor ride her bicycle up onto the pavement and set up stall.  A few chairs and tables, and before long, she was serving tofu and spring-rolls. This type of one person and micro businesses thrived on most pavements. Several sellers of fruits, local cakes (that looked very similar to youtiao/ichakoi and hamchipeng), clothes and souvenir peddled their wares all over the place. We also saw a street barber and a mobile bicycle repair service offered.

People were industrious and entrepreneurial. They worked hard and long hours. Those we came in contact with – tour guides, drivers, staff at hotels and restaurants were friendly and helpful. A few were excellent. Most were good. No one had a couldn’t be bothered attitude.

We live in KL so we live in amongst noise. We have motorcyclists who rev their engines in the middle of the night. Sigh. That said, the Old Quarter still wins in terms of decibel levels. Apart from vehicles honking and vendors calling out to customers, locals spoke rather loudly. I assumed they were quieter and reserved. Not so. They were nice but noisy. We heard them before we saw them😊 Adding to the din, were public service announcements via loud speakers, yes, loud speakers. Unfortunately for us, our second hotel in Hanoi was located where announcements were hollered out in the am and pm. For how long? Too long. Hmm.

No matter. We had a nice holiday in Vietnam.