Getting a Late Night Meal in Hanoi, Vietnam
As an undergraduate student I was fortunate enough to study abroad in
Australia for two semesters. While there, I embarked on the
traditional backpacker’s tour, jumping from hostel to hostel across the
country. Backpacking in Australia is what I imagine being in a
traveling rodeo is like; you run into the same people over and over,
stay at the same hostels and hotels, you even visit the same tourist
destinations. The number of backpackers and students planning trips to
the Great Barrier Reef, Fraser Island, Byron Bay, and Sydney at any
given time is surely mind-boggling.
While down under, I had the
opportunity to travel to Hanoi, the capitol of Vietnam, an opportunity I
certainly wasn’t going to pass up. After a layover in Taiwan, my group
and I landed in Hanoi late one spring afternoon. By the time we went
through customs, gathered our bags, exchanged currencies, and hailed
cabs, it was soon approaching 10 p.m. As it was a few weeks away from
the humid rainy season, the air was crisp and the temperature was mild.
Having
skipped the in-flight meal, and having experienced the sensory overload
that is a Southeast Asian metropolis, I found myself very hungry. I
then proceeded to leave my group and venture out alone in search of a
late night meal. I was very proud of myself as I navigated the narrow
sidewalks for a full minute and a half before I found myself utterly and
completely lost.
Navigating Hanoi by foot is a charming
experience perfect for pleasant post dinner strolls or late morning
window-shopping. Central Hanoi has ample restaurants, shopping, and
attractions sure to keep any interested visitor occupied for days on
end. There are also a number of wide tree-lined streets and idyllic
lakes in the heart of the city, providing a welcome refuge from the
hustle and bustle.
The streets and neighborhoods are even
remarkably organized by consumer product. After wandering with no
particular destination, I often found myself passing tire store after
tire store. The next block might be the pirated music district followed
closely by tailor-town and the wooden artifact borough. This makes
finding your way around surprisingly easy in a city as large and full of
life as Hanoi. While Hanoi may be ideal for walking, in order to fully
enjoy it, you must first learn the science of crossing the street.
Before
I left, I spent an inordinate amount of time devoted to the discussion
of this particular subject. Never would I have thought that such a
seemingly simple task would prove to be so perilous. In a city of over
six million people, there are approximately, and this is putting it
generously, three stoplights and four crosswalks. Furthermore, in a
remarkable feat of urban living, it often appears as if all six million
own scooters and are avid Evil Kneivel fans, effortlessly playing
chicken with on-coming pedestrians and motorists alike.
Everyone
who has been to Hanoi gives the same advice as to how to cross the
street, look straight ahead and keep a steady pace, as the endless rush
of scooter drivers will go around you based on how fast you are
walking. Easier said than done. Crossing the street in Hanoi requires a
level of faith similar to that shown by Indiana Jones when he was
forced to walk the invisible bridge to reach the Holy Grail. Closing
your eyes and putting one foot in front of the other has never been so
difficult. Tourists tend to gather like flies at street corners hoping
there is strength enough in numbers to gather a courageous battalion to
forge the asphalt river infested with motorized piranhas.
Everything
changes at night. The inescapable smell of Hanoi, an odor of fish and
sewage, intensifies, but a more serene and revealing cityscape emerges.
Gone are the screaming scooters and their wail, gone are the rickshaws,
and gone are the tourists with their deer-in-the-headlights stare. It
is easier to read signs and enjoy the architecture without worrying
about running into, or being run over by, something.
Children hard
at work or in school during the day play in the streets more freely.
Merchants do not watch your every move in anticipation of the next
sale. Restaurants gain a more quiet appeal and storefront eateries
appear less intimidating without the long line and unfamiliar language.
With a number of centrally located lakes, parks, and tree-lined streets,
Hanoi is indeed a walker’s paradise.
After walking in circles for
what seemed like hours, it was at one of these very eateries that I
eventually came upon and decided to grab my first sample of authentic
Vietnamese food. This particular eatery was about ten feet wide and 20
feet deep and was very dimly lit. It was a sparsely decorated wide-open
space with high ceilings and a makeshift open kitchen in the front left
area that consisted of a wok and a few unidentifiable ingredients
scattered nearby.
Three small tables in the back made up the
dining room. The chef/owner/waitress was preparing a meal for the
customer in front of me while her children played in the back. Not
knowing what the proper ordering etiquette was, I tried to glean as much
information from the customer ahead of me as possible, looking over his
shoulder like he had the answers to a pop quiz.
After getting a
minimal amount of useful information from the previous customer, I
looked at the cook as jovially as humanly possible, raised one finger,
nodded and smiled. I highly doubt that this was the proper ordering
method, but the ignorant American approach worked just fine this time as
she got the message and began to prepare a meal.
I watched
intently as she prepared the food: pouring the batter into the sizzling
wok, spreading the brownish (to this day I do not have the slightest
idea what it was) filling, and rolling it up into a sort of Vietnamese
burrito. I then eagerly sat down to enjoy my long awaited mystery
dinner.
And enjoy it I did. The home-cooked meal was delicious
and satisfying, just what I was looking for. Furthermore, I got the
entire thing for about the same price as two items on the McDonald’s
Dollar Menu. I left with a full stomach, content with the knowledge
that I had just gone out alone, in a foreign country, and ate as
authentic a meal in as authentic a setting as possible.
For that
brief period of time, I forgot I was far away from home, far away from
the creature comforts that we have all come to rely upon. For that
brief period of time I was devouring my late night snack, I also forgot
that I didn’t have the slightest idea how to get back to my hotel room.
At least now I could cross the street.
HUONG VIET TRAVEL – MEMBER OF PATA, ASTA, IATA
Add: 20 Nguyen Truong To Str, Hanoi, Vietnam
Tel : (84-4) 37162149 Fax: (84-4) 37161738
E–mail address: sales@huongviettravel.com
Website: www.huongviettravel.com | http://www.aseantravelandtours.com | http://www.visavietnamonline.com | http://www.huongvietjsc.com
Vietnam Travel Packages | Vietnam Visa | Cambodia Tours | Myanmar Tours | Laos Tours | China Tours
Add: 20 Nguyen Truong To Str, Hanoi, Vietnam
Tel : (84-4) 37162149 Fax: (84-4) 37161738
E–mail address: sales@huongviettravel.com
Website: www.huongviettravel.com | http://www.aseantravelandtours.com | http://www.visavietnamonline.com | http://www.huongvietjsc.com
Vietnam Travel Packages | Vietnam Visa | Cambodia Tours | Myanmar Tours | Laos Tours | China Tours
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