Honeymoon recap part 2: 36 hours in Hanoi

After a day in a half in Hanoi, I had started to feel settled in. I had a good night hanging out with some folks I met at a bar, and my mind was shifted to vacation mode. I woke up on Christmas Day well rested after going to bed early. I took the morning to pack up and upgrade hotels.

Once again, I got Vietnam’d as the first hotel I booked ended up pulling a bait and switch and putting me in a sister hotel. The hotel wasn’t awful by any means, but it wasn’t what we paid for and it left a sour taste in my mouth. I ended up switching to the Oriental Suites where I was taken care of by Mike and Bella. This was probably the 6th hotel I’ve stayed at in Hanoi and was by far the best, especially considering the price. I was stoked.

Mike ended up booking me a private car to Ninh Binh and also recommended me an awesome Bun Ca joint while I waited. Sophia and I had originally booked two nights in Ninh Binh, but I canceled as her trip would be delayed. I ended up spending my Christmas Day riding around Ninh Binh on a motorbike and exploring the area. It was amazing day all around - I hiked up to the top of the famous “cave” and had some amazing sights over the mountains and valleys.

I got back to Hanoi in the evening and met up with Timmy for some drinks. I felt bad as he was waiting for me at our local pub for a couple hours as my driver fought through Christmas Day traffic everywhere in Hanoi. Later that night, Sophia finally arrived in Hanoi and my guy Mike at the Oriental Suites set-up a corny but sweet flower bed in the room for her arrival. Both Sophia and I were relieved that she had finally made it - after almost about 30 hours of traveling.

On our only full day in Hanoi together, we ended up exploring all the sights that Hanoi had to offer and ate everything along the way. The highlight of the afternoon may have been our meal at the Bun Cha restaurant that Obama and Bourdan ate at. I had gone the last time I was in Hanoi and it was just as good.

We had a great night on the rooftop bar for cocktails and got a bowl of Bun Bo Hue for dinner. After a couple drinks on beer street, Sophia’s jet lagged caught up and we called it an early night.

The next morning we got perhaps one of the highlight meals of the trip in a bowl of Pho Bo in the Old Quarter. It was my first time there and Sophia had found the spot on Tik-tok. I’ve always maintained that the Pho in San Francisco is as good or better than the pho in Vietnam unfortunately, but this bowl of Pho was amazing and made me rethink my statement.

After getting some Banh Mi’s for the road, we wrapped up our 36 hours together in Hanoi and headed for Bangkok for the 2nd leg of our trip. It was a short, but good time together. Overall, I love Vietnam and I enjoyed my 2nd time in Hanoi. I may not be too enthusiastic to make a 3rd trip anytime soon as there’s other parts of the country I have yet to explore such as Hoi An and Hue.

Perhaps next time around, we’ll start in the south and make our way north.