Day 13: Hanoi

After three days in the same train I finally arrived in Hanoi for which I’ve scheduled only one day. So after having breakfast close to the train station, I walked to the Temple of Literature (Van Mieu) which was the nation’s first university. It’s considered as a must-visit in Hanoi and as a jewel of traditional Vietnamese 11th century architecture. It’s important to know that visitors have to “dismount from their horses” before entering, as it says at the front gate – a legacy I suppose

Maintaining the temple's courtyards

The temple is surrounded by a wall and hosts pools, courtyards, pavilions, ancient trees and sculptures. Once, the temple was a centre of teaching Confucianism thought and the nation’s brightest students graduated from this educational institution.

View from the top of one of the buildings in the temple

After checking out the temple I walked to the Old Quarter of Hanoi which still hosts old, beautiful French colonial buildings spreading a special charm throughout the area.

French colonial buildings

Walking in Hanoi does always mean to be careful about not being driven over by a motorbike, truck or bus. At first glance it seems impossible to break the constant stream of motorbikes, but if you wait long enough, you will have to take advantage of the slightest break in traffic and make your way sloooowly but confident to the other side of the street. It’s also a good advice to wait for locals to cross the streets and to creep behind or next to them.

A constant stream of motorbikes makes crossing a difficult task

After a few of those “crossing adventures” I walked into a small eatery to grab some lunch – I didn’t really know where to go to and what these eateries offer, so I just chose the one that looked ok and where a bunch of locals were already enjoying dinner. The place I chose seemed to have specialised on a certain kind of dish, which name I still couldn’t figure out – however, I ordered and sat down next to the locals who instantly started talking to me. Of course I couldn’t understand a thing and they didn’t speak English at all, but still – it was fun to “communicate” and talk about the food we ate.

Could not really find out what it was, but it tasted faboulus

Another beautiful colonial building which seems to be maintained quite well, is the St Joseph Cathedral which gives the place a very medieval European flair – a stark contrast to Vietnamese architecture.

St Joseph Cathedral in the Old Quarter

Just next to the church I found a small, lovely cafe which seemed to be a good place to rest, sort out some photos and organise the next days.

A lovely cafe in the centre of the Old Quarter

I think I’ve spent a couple of hours at this place and when I finished my last coffee it was already dark outside. It was time to head to the train terminal to catch the night train to China. After strolling along the Hoan Kiem Lake, which is the heart of the Old Quarter, I took a taxi to the station which is located outside of the city centre and about 30 minutes off the main train station in a dark, dodgy area. It seemed this train station served only a few destinations. However, I was strolling around in this dark area for a while and bought some food before I went to the waiting room. The train left Hanoi at around 9:30pm heading to the Chinese border.

Boarding the train to the Chinese border at night

Day: 13
Date: 14.04.2011

Impressions from Hanoi

More photos of my trip: Picasa Web Album