We Have Arrived

So we picked up our visa, breezed through customs, swiftly collected our bags and were met by a lovey chap holding this sign...

And we were finally in Hanoi, Vietnam

(First, and possibly last photo taken with the selfie stick I purchased from Red Dot)

Ok, just one more

Our driver was very friendly and although he spoke only slightly better English than our Vietnamese, we managed to communicate through translation apps on our phones..... ah, the wonder of technology.  I think I impressed him with my knowledge of Vietnamese numbers and general random chit chat words..... at least I think he understood what I was saying. He laughed in all the right places.

We were a little hungry when we got off the plane and had wanted to try Banh Mi - a baguette with meat and pickled vegetables and there was a shop at the exit of the airport, so we picked up a couple of sambos for the journey to the hotel.  They were very tasty, however I'm sure we'll find a more authentic version in Hanoi.

 We crossed this bridge, which I don't remember from last time we were here.  Apparently it is the 3rd biggest bridge in the world.  It's pretty amazing and  seems to go on forever.

There were plenty of Bikes of Burden to stare at in wonderment.....

And this was our first glimpse of the Old Quarter in Hanoi... It gets busier!

So, we turned up at our hotel and were greeted by the friendliest man named Bruce.  I do have to wonder if that is his real name.  Anyway, he organised a welcome drink and got straight onto the business of telling us all about the history of Hanoi and what tours we should do and then got a map and pointed our all the temples and pagodas around Hanoi that people usually like to visit.  He didn't look up once to notice that we were hot, dirty, tired and still had all our bags over our shoulders.  Once there was a break in his monologue (as helpful as it was) we were able to let him know that we weren't taking any information in and that perhaps we could ask at the desk a little later and that we would really like to get up to our rooms and freshen up.  So he said, "Yes, of course, I have one family room for you with 2 beds"

He meant for all 4 of us.  

Um, no.

So when we told him that we in fact had 3 rooms booked, he raced back to the desk to check and called out, "Yes, that's correct...... However, the other 2 rooms are not available until 1pm.  Fair enough, we thought, that is normal check in time, so we dumped all the bags in the one room we had and went exploring the streets of Hanoi.

Here's what we saw.....

A man on a bike transporting trees.......

Famous Vietnamese electrical work......

A lady in a traditional hat carrying her wares.  These things are not light.  As an additional income, some of these ladies happily pose for photos or will hoist their shoulder carrier onto your shoulder and encourage your friends to take a photo....... for a little fee.  

They are heavy and no, we didn't take a photo.

Quaint little windows and balconies.  When you're wandering around Hanoi, and

 you're not trying to save yourself from personal harm from the chaotic traffic, it pays to look up.... there is much beauty to be found.

The Note Coffee Cafe where there were 100s of post note notes stuck to the windows.  They weren't easy to read.

This trip I've decided to open myself up a bit to trying foods I haven't tried before and that includes the wares of the street sellers.  Don't get me wrong, I'm never going to eat chicken feet or anything, but these donuts went down a treat.  

The lady on the right of the photo was the lady I purchased said donut from and the lady on the left wanted me to purchase the same type of donut from her as well and insisted on being in the photo.

Awkward.

People settling in for a bit of lunch....

I love the little stools they sit on, however those plastic ones are a little precarious!  I think these ones would be a little sturdier......

In the Old Quarter there is an area known as the 36 Streets.  There are really more than 36, however 36 = heaps.  Most of the people selling similar things tend to have their shops in the same area/street.  So, there is Shoe Street, paper Street, Suitcase Street, etc....

We found Shoe Street!

I wanted to follow this lady to see what she was going to collect.  There is just so much to see here.  A person could give themselves whiplash!

This gentleman had his cafe open.  There were 2 tables and on the right was whatever he was serving.  I wasn't brave enough to try this one.

 Fashion in Hanoi.....

 Fabulous lanterns just hanging randomly in the tree.  So pretty.

People.... people.... people.....

More beautiful buildings......

Check out all the different modes of transport all trying to share the road in different directions.  I have a feeling that the painted lines on the road are merely a guideline......

Down Sewing Needs Street, we found a fab quilt shop with some adorable quilts and bits and pieces.  I liked this hanging strawberry key chain.

And the quilts were meticulously made, and I gather - hand stitched.  I don't have a lot of experience in quilting, but they looked great.

Another glorious building obstructed by trees and power lines.  Remember to look up.....

As we didn't get a lot of sleep last night, we didn't want to make any rash decisions on purchases today, so there was a lot of window shopping by the Master Shopper.

Turns out that the Banh Mi is a highly sort after dish here in Hanoi.  Never fear, we shall try them all!

In Vietnam, it is all about the bike.....

So much so that this person had covered theirs in a lovely sarong......

After wandering around for a few hours, we thought the hotel rooms MUST be ready by now.  We were tired and we were dirty and come on, we needed a little nigh nigh..... but on our return, Bruce informed us that the rooms were still 30 mins away.  So we fell back on what should be everybody's Plan B - we went for a massage.  

But...... that's a story for another day.