December 31, 12.29 local time. The flight, operated by Vietnam Airlines, takes us, without turbulence so far, to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh), the first city visited in this spectacular country. Hanoi was our home for 3 intense days and 3 nights.
It is difficult for me to compress all the experiences, experiences and discoveries here in one account. That is exactly why I decided to divide the trip to Hanoi into several episodes.
Nerves, fatigue, terrible hotel
A heavy rain and 12 degrees Celsius reminded us of the winter in Constanța. Grungy and tired, after the few hours of sleep we had in the last few days, we arrived at the hotel located right in the center of Hanoi's entertainment. The location is the only plus of this accommodation, despite the hundreds of positive comments found on the booking portal. Under no circumstances do we recommend Serenity Vila Hotel Hanoi! You can stay a maximum of one night here, if you have no other alternative.
But all the bad things gathered and consumed, and Hanoi was going to show us the best side.
Traditional Vietnamese dinner next to the decorated tree and cake for dessert
Călin, the friend who accompanies us on this trip, was the contact person with a Vietnamese family, former students in Romania. A special connection was made with the two husbands, Cẩm Tú and Tuấn Anh. Despite the rain and cold, the two were our guides through wintry Hanoi. And from the terrace of the restaurant with a spectacular view of Hanoi, Tuấn Anh sent a message to Andrea Esca.
The explanations, in Romanian, helped us better understand the history of the city, the current economic situation, the differences from the southern part, the local gastronomy, but we also received the best advice to "taste" the real Hanoi.
In the photo is egg coffee! More of a dessert than a coffee! The black liqueur, the size of an espresso, is at the bottom of the cup, and half way through the container you discover an egg yolk beaten with sugar. The consistency is of a milk chocolate, and the taste is similar to a liquid tiramisu. And that was just the initiation into Vietnamese culture.
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In the evening, the two husbands, together with their daughter, newly arrived from studies in the USA and the family dog, were our hosts for a traditional dinner.
The table was filled with seafood dishes, vegetables, but also pork (Loredana was the happiest). I don't know if it is traditional in Vietnam or Tuấn Anh imported this custom from Romania, but before trying the goodies "we worked up an appetite" with a bitter obtained from dozens of plants. The drink, less alcoholic than our palinca, whetted our appetite. And the mix of cultures continued! The Vietnamese food was paired with a Cotnari wine.
Then came dessert! Loredana's face lit up when she saw the slices of walnut cake.
As after a real hearty holiday meal, we said goodbye to the 4 family members. I am sure that we will meet again, as soon as possible, in Romania!
Pho, a dish for the soul
When I left Romania for Vietnam, I put only one dish on the list - Phở. It is a Vietnamese soup containing rice noodles, herbs and meat. Phở is served in households, street stalls and restaurants across the country. Phở is considered the traditional dish of Vietnam. The locals eat it in the morning because it is a dish that contains the daily requirement of carbohydrates, protein and fiber, but I have even seen them indulge in this soup at night.
We were lucky enough to eat Phở at one of the most popular restaurants in Hanoi, Phở 10 Ly Quoc Su.
It was also recommended to us by Tuấn Anh and Cẩm Tú, and on the evening we went, we were lucky enough to stand in line for a maximum of 10 minutes. I chose two Phở Special and one classic, together 245.000 vnd. We were served with rice donuts, and lemon, hot peppers and a hot sauce to spice up the soup.
Phở is food for the soul. A clear beef soup with a strong coriander taste, the meat very carefully cooked, and the rice noodles come to complete this dish full of flavors. It's not for nothing that I got the following reaction on Instagram. "It's my favorite soup in the world".
By the time I finished eating, the queue in front of the restaurant already numbered dozens of people. We highly recommend this place!
Take note of the message from the owners of Phở 10 Ly Quoc Su. There are only 3 restaurants with this name in all of Hoian, the rest are just places that completely copied the brand, but not the original dish.
Cảm ơn bạn Tuấn Anh, Cẩm Tú (Thank you Tuấn Anh and Cẩm Tú)
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