The morning started a little later as our Ha Long Bay plans fell through. Still feeling devastated about missing that day trip and not really anything planned. So of to a late breakfast was first thing to do. Something close to the apartment is what we wanted but soup (Pho) was not top of the list for either of us for breakfast. This is what most of the footpath restaurants near us were serving. So, we ended up at an Asian fast food chain called Lotteria. It is kind of like a mix of McDonald’s and KFC. It’s quite good value and has a little spice which is great. Something important was missing however. Coffee!
Real coffee was needed. The hunt for a cool cafe was on. Finding one was not a problem, choosing one however was a big problem. Cafe’s are everywhere. Everywhere as in probably around 70% of businesses are cafe’s. There are whole strips of cafe’s where there is nothing else but more cafe’s. One strange thing we noticed was they seem to share staff. They look like separate businesses with different names, yet the staff are working them all. Same owners maybe, or just they way they do things? I don’t know, it works well though. Service was super friendly and very fast and attentive. It was explained to us that the huge cafe culture is remnants of the French influence from when they ruled the Country.
It was already mid morning, it was a super hot and the hot coffee didn’t help. Although the coffee did get the engine started so to speak. Not long had passed and stopped off at another cafe. This time for a cool drink. This cafe was intriguing. Two tiny tables on the footpath, then a long hallway through the door opening. Where is the cafe? Is this it? Well yep, it was it….. but not all of it. The counter, kitchen etc was all out the back with more tables inside. It was a cool, kind of hidden cafe and I loved it.
Iced coffee sounded like a great drink to help cool off. I thought I would try it the local way though. A Yoghurt Iced Coffee is what I ordered. It sounded strange, the texture was strange. Delicious is how it tasted. So good in fact, I ordered another. We fly out the next day so we head back to the Penthouse to organise some things. Last chance now to do a load of washing, some pre-packing and arrange a late checkout. Our flights were pushed back two hours, our Airbnb host was super flexible. We just had to wait until today to confirm if anyone else rented the place after us. Lucky for us there was no new booking which meant we could have a later checkout.
Before long the day was gone, there was still one thing left that was planned. Actually we meant to go to this place for the last couple of nights. It was the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. Seeing it at night was a must as it is all lit up with LED Wall Washers. The images I had seen looked amazing. Seeing it in person though, wow! It is an impressive looking structure and the grounds around it are nothing short of amazing. it is a must see when in Hanoi.
The walk there and back was interesting too. We passed a motorcade of vehicles with loads of police cars with lights and sirens on. Perhaps something to do with President Obama’s visit? Everything around town had pretty lights. We passed a random building all lit up, no idea if it was residential or not. Even a Beautiful Pagoda right on the lake looked stunning at night.
There is a cool Irish Pub called Uncle Joe’s right near our Penthouse Apartment. Not sure how often it opens as it was closed most of the time. Luckily on our last night in town it was open. That is pretty much the end of the Hanoi Trip. Next stop is Ho Chi Minh City.
