A Night at West Lake

2 September is Vietnam's National Day, which is a public holiday. Since our helper was not around, we decided to have our dinner at the nearby Al Fresco's before taking a walk to Intercontinental Hotel, known for being the hotel with the best lake view in Hanoi.

The Intercontinental Hotel is located right behind Sheraton Hotel and designed in a stylish, resort manner. The attractive, grand entrance makes it worthy of its "6 star" status.

The hotel also boasts of a new, well-equipped gym with a scenic view, as the gym was located at a higher floor. I heard that the annual membership was USD 2,000 though. Definitely not for "commoners" like us. :p


M said that the lake view in the evening is superb and one will easily forget that you are in Hanoi. As we were there at night, I found the scenery quite pleasant but not breath taking as he mentioned. Perhaps it was the wrong timing...

I found the hotel rooms by the lake quite appealing though it might resemble staying at the "kelong". Those would be my top choices if I were staying there, except that it was a little far from the lobby.


I went to the restroom to take a look as well, to see how the "6 star" hotel restroom was. It was nice so I took a snap shot since there was no one around.


On our way home, we walked past Sheraton and I couldn't help but take a picture. The hotel looks different at night with all the lights on. Much prettier, I would say.


It was nice, pleasant walk despite the relentless honks from cars and motorbikes and traffic congestion along the main road. After all, this was one of our last few nights in Hanoi. I must savour every moment... :)

P.S. Both hotels are owned by the same owner.

Missing the Cold

It's such a contradiction.

Now that spring is here and the cold spell in Hanoi is over, I find myself missing those days when I would wrap myself up with thick clothes. I have always enjoyed cold weather (except the times when I was sick). It made me feel more alert and refreshed. During winter, walking outside the house was a bliss. The cold air breeze felt like soft waves of vapour hitting gently against your skin. Definitely pleasant.

Spring in Hanoi is quite different from other temperate countries. When I was in Pennsylvannia, spring time was the best season I have ever encountered. Flowers bloomed in full sight.. forming a wonderful picture against the lush green grass and warm sunshine. The weather was cool yet dry. One can really say "no sweat!". In Hanoi, the picture you see is slightly different. The weather remains warm (not devastating like summer but not cool) and very humid. Every day, the sky is dimmed by grey clouds, making a depressing sight. You know how people always say waking up to sunshine puts a smile on your face? Well, I wake up to gloomy spartan sunshine. Am I supposed to frown or what? :)

For now, I should enjoy this weather as much as I can. Summer will be approaching soon and so far, the weather forecasts have painted a really HOT picture when summer hits this year. It is predicted to be one of the hottest years in Hanoi.

Just thinking about this makes me break out in sweat already.

Busy Street Shots

On my way home from lunch today, I took a few funshots that captured the busy moments of Hanoi in preparation of Tet (Lunar New Year). It's incredible but the streets are getting so crowded these days that you need to "double" the travelling time! Sitting in the car makes me feel so stressed, let alone driving! So I decided to take some pictures to occupy my time...

Top left: A repair shop; Top right: The Hanoi Bus;
Bottom Left: A man with loads on his motorbike; Bottom right: Crowded roads

Top left: Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum; Top right: An entertainment club
Bottom left: Truch Bac Lake; Bottom right: Newly opened Korean hair salon

Top left: Plants for sale!; Top right: Stalls in the middle of the road
Bottom left: Bringing the purchase home! Bottom right: Jackfruit, anyone?

Top left: The flower mart near my house; Top right: See the flowers?
Bottom left: Another flower mart; Bottom right: Live bargaining in progress

CNY Shopping Spoils

I went on a shopping spree with my friends, S and L, last Friday. We had lunch at Paris Deli before heading off for a one hour whirlwind spree to buy some local new year foodstuffs for our families. Here are some pictures of my conquests:

1. Gift Bags
2. Ang Baos
3. Dried Coconut Strips
4. Dried Fruits
5. Peanuts
6. Coffee
7. Lotus Seeds
8. Dresses for Little Girls
9. Hats for a Botak Boy
Definitely an eventful trip. Really looking forward to the Chinese New Year!

The Weather is like a Woman in Hanoi

There's a saying in Hanoi that goes "The weather is like a woman. You never know when it will change." I have come to agree with this statement.

From a high 26 degrees celsius on Sunday, the temperature has fallen to a low 15 degrees today. I had to bring out my light winter jacket (normally I will wear a cardigan) as it was really freezing! Didn't help that it was drizzling slightly too. Brrrgh!

I called my mum yesterday and was glad to know that my little brother is coping well in the Home Team Academy. He's serving his NS with the Police Force right now and I miss seeing him online. Usually we will try to chat everyday. He has been smsing me a lot though which I think is sweet, considering he is not allowed to bring his hp charger into his bunk. Not sure how long his battery will last!

Missing my family in Singapore now... :(

Shots of Hanoi Old Quarters

N and her husband, R, came to Hanoi last Wednesday and I was really excited because I haven't seen her for a long time. It's really funny coz when we are together, we bicker a lot but I do miss her quite a bit when I don't see her.

Anyway, N and R managed to spare one day for me on Thursday to bring them sight-seeing around Hanoi. We went to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in the morning before heading off to the Old Quarters. I brought them to Hang Gai (where the silk stuff are sold), Hang Dao & Hang Ngang (to see some sports shirts) and Dong Xuan Market. We also dropped by the DVD stores in Hang Bac. It was fun browsing around though we didn't get anything much. Lunch was at a halal restaurant in Hanoi and the owner happened to be R's friend, which was quite amazing! The food was good and I especially enjoyed the teh tarik.

In the late afternoon, R wanted to try the Vietnamese coffee so I brought them to Highlands Cafe near Hoan Kiem. Not my top choice location but we didn't have a choice as M was using the car for work. :( Luckily, he enjoyed his coffee. While chatting, I took some photos of the crowded street scenes in Hanoi. This was the first time I am taking pictures despite having been there numerous times!

A common street sight in Hanoi (Hang Duong)

The bus terminal near Hoan Kiem Lake

At a traffic junction (minus the lights)

Look at the numerous motorbikes!

In the evening, we brought N and R to watch the water puppet show before having dinner together at the same halal restaurant. See how much we like the place? *grins* Will be dining with N and R again tomorrow night and really looking forward to catching up with them. They are off to Halong Bay and Tam Coc these few days so didn't have much chance to catch up with them. Hope that their tour in Northern Vietnam has been enjoyable... :)

Rainy Days

It has been raining quite heavily in the afternoon the past few days.

M said that this was due to a typhoon nearing Hai Phong, causing heavy downpour in most parts of Hanoi. I am not complaining as this makes the weather much cooler, though the occasional heavy downpour does make me feel lazy in the afternoons.

Can't really see the heavy rain but it was pouring when I took this pic.

Look at the dark gloomy sky...

Enough is Enough

I finally decided today that I have had ENOUGH.

For the past two weeks, I have been indulging myself in different flavours of mooncakes. Green tea, honeydew, white lotus paste, normal lotus paste, coconut, pineapple, you name it, I have tried it. As much as I tried to ration my craving, I always ended up eating more than planned as I have a really BIG sweet tooth. So I resolved yesterday not to touch another piece of mooncake for the rest of the year. I told M about this and he gleefully agreed to support me by heading down to the kitchen to eat my favourite snowskin green tea moon cake IN FRONT OF ME! His rationale was to finish them so that I would not be tempted. Duh.. that's really helpful.

Anyway, Mooncake Festival (or "Tet Trung Tu") is widely celebrated in Hanoi. The tradition of eating mooncakes, pomelos and snails as well as playing with lanterns is similar to what we do in Singapore. In addition, the quality of the mooncakes made by local hotels are pretty authentic, with my favourite being Sofitel Plaza. The prices are not cheap though, ranging from USD18 - 20 per box for 4 pieces. The most famous local Hanoi mooncake brand is "Kinh Do" but I have yet to try because so far, I have not heard good reviews about it (heard that it's too sweet). Was very tempted to buy one last week but decided to give it a miss in view of my diet plan.

So will I be holding a lantern and walking along the street outside my house tonight? Probably not as it has been raining quite a bit these few days. But I will probably enjoy a cup of tea while watching M sink his teeth into our favourite green tea mooncake laden with 1000 calories plus fats. I am still determined to keep to my promise...

Happy Mooncake Festival! Chuc Mon Trung Tu!

Relativity

Have been immersed in the sweltering heat in Hanoi the past few days. Temperatures range between 36 to 38 degrees in the afternoon. Dread going out in this heat, especially since most of the shops in Hanoi are not air-conditioned. Was down with flu since last week and it's taking a long while to recover. Irritated, I decided to brew some herbal soup for myself this morning (using Chinese herbs that my mum brought for me from Singapore) and go to the gym. Read from SHAPE magazine (my favourite!) that it's better to do a light workout when one has a slight cold or cough, instead of avoiding exercising completely. Not sure whether it was the herbal tea or exercise, but I really felt better after my workout.

Was enjoying my porridge lunch today when suddenly, there was a blackout. This is quite common in Hanoi because there is a shortage of electricity supply. At this crucial moment, I realised that contrary to what my housing agent claimed, there is no back-up generator at my house! Furious and hot, I immediately called M, who calmly told me that he would discuss this with me at night. Of course he was calm! He was talking to me in the comfort of his air-conditioned office! I stomped back to my seat to the amusement of my helper, H, and continued my lunch, using newpapers to fan myself. It was really quite a funny sight. Me and H, bathed in hot sweat, eating hot porridge and fanning ourselves furiously. We finished our lunch pretty quickly because both of us didn't have much of an appetite in this sauna weather and started chatting, weak attempts to divert our attention away from the heat.

Suddenly, the fan revived! We both yelped for joy and relished each moment as the wind pranced on our faces. I never appreciated the fan so much before. It was at this moment that I understood the meaning of relativity. Who says that the air-conditioner is better than the fan? Once you have been baked in the afternoon heat for close to 1 hour, you will realise that the fan is the most glorious electrical appliance ever. I should really learn to appreciate the smallest thing in life.

Summer Scent

Summer is here. I know it. I feel it. I smell it.

The temperature in Hanoi soared to a high 37 degrees in the late morning while I was in the study room chatting with my mum. My mood was at the lowest ebb being encompassed by the endless scalding heat waves. I looked longingly at the air-conditioner but willed myself against it. Too much air-con is bad for one's health, I read somewhere. Since I am a spoilt brat who MUST sleep in an air-conditioned room at night, I reckoned I should make do with the ever-reliable fans in the day. To my disappointment, my fans failed me. The simple logic of warm air = warm winds struck me plainly.

Moodily, I had lunch with H, my helper. The heat did not dampen her cheerfulness and she happily chatted with me while we ate and watched TV. At this point, I recalled that she told me once she does not have air-con at home, so she learnt to sleep in the heat, claiming that it's actually better for her body. Better? I thought to myself. Well, maybe. Perhaps I could shed a few pounds this summer since I am constantly in a sauna?

On a more positive note, it turned cooly windy in the evening (phew..) when M and I went for a quick golf practice at Hanoi Club. We had to perfect our full swing. Hit about 50 balls and was proud to say that I did fairly well, though my furthest ball was only *shyly* 75 metres away. After hitting my last ball, I realised I was was perspiring slightly despite the strong winds. There was only one conclusion to make. Summer is definitely here.

Election Day

It was the Election Day in Hanoi yesterday. We could see our neighbours putting up flags around their houses. Our friends told us that the grassroots leaders in each district would go around each house as early as 7am on Election Day to remind the residents to cast their votes. And there was a sense of pride if the community was the first to cast all their votes in the district! I was initially quite worried that the grassroots leaders would knock on my house and ask me to vote but I was assured by my friends that this would not happen because there are clear records of the foreigners staying in the district. True to what they said, I slept in peacefully yesterday morning.

I woke up at around 9.30am and was quite happy because the weather was good and we were finally going to try the tim sum buffet at Tao Li Restaurant, Nikko Hotel. While I am fond of tim sum, the high calories hidden in the small portions of har kow, siew mai, etc do put me off a little. But M and I went ahead anyway. The variety of the tim sum at Nikko was quite limited and I was disappointed (there was no porridge offered!) plus the atmosphere was not like the usual tim sum restaurants with push carts and lots of shouting "Har Kow Siew Mai Char Siew Bao!" from waitresses (P.S. 2 thumbs down!). But the quality and taste of the tim sum was above my expectations (P.S. 1 thumb up!). There was a "La Mian" promotion going on at the restaurant at the same time, so we go to see two Chinese chefs kneading and tossing the long strands of noodles. I vaguely missed Crystal Jade at that point in time. :)

It's quite funny I had two coincidental meetings with my friend, L, last weekend! The first was on Friday night, when we had dinner with M's colleagues at a Chinese Restaurant in Vincom Towers. Just when we were about to start, we saw L and her hubby walking into the same restaurant. The second time was yesterday during our tim sum lunch when L came with her hubby and friends to enjoy the last day of the "La Mian" special! We went like "ahhhhh" when we saw each other... and started laughing. Two coincidences in a weekend! Can you believe that? :)

The Truth About Commas and Dots

Some snippets taken from the Vietnam News today:

Snippet 1
"Daily western buffet lunch available at X hotel. 320.000 VND only. Offer till 13 Apr 07. Come now!"

Snippet 2
"Growth of Y industry in Hanoi is expected to reach 24,6% this year, far exceeding the targets set by the government."

In case you are wondering whether there are any typo errors in the above statements, the answer is "No". The use of dots and commas in numbers here are very much reversed and it took me some time to get used to it. Dots are used as separators for "thousands" while commas refer to an end of a number, and followed by decimal places.

I remember the first time I tried to paid my maid $ for the food expenses (she helps me with the marketing sometimes), I made a little boo-boo. She handed me a book detailing the list of items purchased and final amount which came up to 245.500 VND (equivalent to SGD 25). I handed 500 VND (SGD 0.50) to her and casually said "You can keep the change." before walking away. She was shocked and kept saying "No enough, no enough!" while frantically gesturing. In the end, she had to take out the various dollar notes from her wallet to show me the correct amount that should be paid. That was my first lesson on the dots and commas in Vietnam. We had quite a huge laugh after that. Boy, was I glad that I didn't have to learn this in the market, where I will probably be shouted at by the shopkeepers for under-cutting!

Isn't it amazing that you can actually learn something new from dots and commas in another country? :)

A Difficult Job

The most difficult job tat one can have is to work in the meterological station in Hanoi. The erratic weather patterns here, in my opinion, are beyond any capable meterologist's forecast analysis. Last week, the climate was hot and humid, with temperatures ranging around 28 to 31 degrees. Thinking tat winter is gone, I diligently packed all my winter wear in my suitcases and kept them in my cupboard. To my surprise, the weather changed to a cool 17 degrees today! When I woke up in the morning, my body was aching badly (becoz of rheumatism) and I realised it was back to the cool winter weather. I quickly scrambled to get my jacket out from the cupboard again. Well, I definitely welcome the coolness here.. but the crazy weather pattern leaves me v much amused at times.

Well, went out for lunch with M today before making a short trip to the supermart for our groceries. Special mention goes to the eatery Pho Vuong, where we had the delicious Vietnamese rice noodles. The choices for non-beef eaters are quite limited so I chose the only item available: Pho Ga (chicken noodles). Trust me, after eating the noodles here, you really won't crave for any of those sold in Singapore. That's what happened to me and M now. Talking about spoilt for choices... :)

The Mask Raiders

I bought a mask near Hang Dao Street the other day (cost 5,000 VND or SGD 0.50) and it's really cute, with a picture of a cat sewn on it. I used to have this fear about masks because it reminded me of SARS. But here in Hanoi, it is so common to wear masks that it is like a mini fashion statement. The roads in Hanoi tend to be a little dusty so it helps to cover ur face when u r walking or riding on a motorbike. For ladies, the mask also doubles up as a "sunblock" that protects their fair complexion. I used my mask yesterday while walking to the gym (it's a 10 mins' walk) and felt a bit silly. I mean, it seems as though a little bit of dirt will kill me?? But I guess a layer of protection on top of my sunblock will be useful. I will try to wear it again today.. and be natural about it like everyone else. :)

Construction in Hanoi

Recently, my quiet little house has been plagued by pulses of loud booming noises coming from the construction of a 7-storey high apartment behind my house. The construction started in June last year but underwent a period of "cease fire" for a couple of months. We were baffled but word has it that local authorities were looking into the building because the foundation was not laid properly. Thinking that this matter would take a long time to resolve, we continued to stay in our house which I have grown to like.

Sadly, construction work was revived in "full force" a month ago. Day and night, drilling and pounding noises haunt me from my backyard. Strangely, construction in Hanoi does not require a "stipulated" project time line nor working hours. When I asked my maid the expected duration of construction, she cheekily replied "1 to 3 years", before explaining that construction timeline is "unknown" in Hanoi because it depends on too many variables.

Grumpily, I told myself that I could accept an ambiguous timeline. After all, we are encouraged to work with ambiguity these days. But the irregular working hours were beyond me. The working hours seemed to depend on the mood of the workers! Construction could begin as early as 5.30am in the morning and continue overnight till the next day. While I am a self-professed "quick-sleep guru" sleeper, having cement-mixing noises invade my bedroom the whole night was beyond my level of sleep attainment. To make matters worse, there was absolutely no construction the whole of next day until right at night again. This is beyond my comprehension. Why did the workers choose to work in the night and not day? Of course, there is no way I can find out the answer to my question. Nobody knows.

Recently, the construction hours have been more regular (God bless!), beginning at 6.50am and ending at 6pm. The precision in construction time has resulted in my alarm clock being obselete, as I get "pounded" out of bed each day. Occasionally, I am treated to singing accompaniment from the workers and each time, my husband has to refrain me from throwing my pillow out of the window.

We are considering seriously moving these days, and have started on our new house-hunting. However, we are both half-hearted because we do like our house a lot (minus the endless drilling). I have been praying that perhaps after Tet (Chinese New Year), more humane working hours could be established e.g. 9am to 4pm. But this is a dream that will never come true.

Meanwhile, I can only console myself with the fact that like the "early bird which catches the worm", I do have more time now (to add to the already endless time) to read, surf internet, write my blog and watch TV. All these not by my choice. :(

A Whirlwind Wedding Dinner Experience

I was invited to my first Vietnamese wedding dinner yesterday. The bride is a pretty young lady called L, who is my husband's colleague. She held her wedding at a small hotel in Lang Ha and this is considered a practice of the upper middle class in Hanoi. Typically, most others will hold their banquets in local restaurants and according to my husband, the experience would be totally different.



Le's wedding dinner started at 6pm and this timing would be considered early by Singaporeans' standard. However, in Hanoi, 6-7 pm is the dinner time for most. When we arrived, it was slightly past 6pm because there was a slight traffic jam along the way. The couple and their parents were already on a small stage pouring champagne and giving short speeches (possibly to thank the guests for coming). I had expected the bride to be dressed in the traditional Vietnamese costume "Ao Dai" but she had chosen a lacy white bustier gown instead, and looked simply radiant.

The waitress showed us to a table at the corner of the ballroom and I was quite surprised to find that a few dishes were already laid on the table. My husband explained that this was a common practice so as to "save time". I didn't fully comprehend what he meant until later. There was a total of 9 dishes, which included items such as roast suckling pig, crab and corn soup, chicken (which I refused to touch because of the bird flu scare in Hanoi), steamed fish, seafood stew, cold salad, vegetable dish, glutinous rice and fruits for desert. The dishes were mostly cooked in light broth or soup and I felt that it was the healthiest wedding dinner I have ever eaten. One thing though was the idea of using a "common spoon" did not exist in this restaurant so I felt a little bit uncomfortable.

What amazed me most was the "pace" at which the dinner was conducted. As the newly wed couple moved around the tables to toast to their guests and take pictures, the dishes continued to be served at "lightning" speed. By 6.40pm, the full course of the dinner was laid at the table and by 7pm, guests were starting to leave. I looked in amazement and this was when I finally understood that indeed, there was no time wasted.

We made a move at 7.15pm, spending only 1 hour (gasps!) at the dinner. This was really the shortest wedding dinner I have ever attended in my life (seriously). My only regret was that I had forgotten to bring along my camera and thus, was unable to take a picture with the bride.