This trip to Vietnam wasn�t started when I got the news that our abstract was accepted for a conference in Hanoi, but it started three years ago. I guess (again) universe brings this journey like �Boom! Here you go!�. Three years ago my brother works in Italy wanted to meet me during his business trip at Kuala Lumpur. I desperately wanted to go though I wasn�t really interested to travel. It had been a year we didn�t meet, but unfortunately I could not go because I had no passport, just haven�t applied for it yet. I was 24 years old and no passport, clumsy I admit. So that�s why I finnaly applied for passport though I had no idea where to travel and what for, if finaly I don�t use it after five years that would be still cool.
When the immigration officer handed me my passport, he smiled and asked, �So where are you going to fill your very first trip, Miss?� My answer was like....
Source : 9gag.com
Then suddenly I answered �Vietnam. That would be cool I think,� and I didn�t know why I mentioned that country. After years I passed Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau, UAE, Italy, Switzerland, France, Germany and Malaysia, I asked my self �When am I going to Vietnam? Considering my self financial crysis, maybe the next traveling abroad would be in two or three years.� To be honest my sallary is only about USD 300 each month, for you who think that you have to be rich to travel, you are limiting your self! Just start it!
So, couple months ago, big boss told me that a professional organization was calling for conference papers at Hanoi, Vietnam, I applied for a research abstract that hasn�t been done and I have no idea how it was accepted. >_<. So... Here was the journey...
I booked (cheap) flights from Bandung-Singapore-Hanoi-Singapore-Bandung and got USD 250 for round trip. I made another cheap booking for hostel through hostelworld.com and saved a USD 60 hostel room booking for 6 days 5 nights. Blessed skyscanner and hostelworld developers!
Flight to Singapore from Bandung was a bit rough, I guess the pilots lost their balance, but finaly landed safely in that all-are-artificials-country and left it after three hours for Hanoi. Noi Bai Airport welcomed me in a sweaty afternoon, Vietnameses told me it was the hottest autumn there. Autumn? Yeah, I thought Hanoi is in tropical country. I recommend you to travel here in summer, April-August. That would be the best time to explore Hanoi and especially the famous Halong Bay.
Traveling to Hanoi and Halong Bay in October was very misty. I will explore Halong Bay in further paragraphs.
You can employ a taxi to the down town from Airport, there were many travel agents in the airport offered taxi from airport to Old Quarter or other places. It takes USD 13 by taxi, otherwise you can take bus number 17 to the down town/ Long Bin Bus Station, they will charge you for 7000 VND or USD 0. 6, but you have to wait until all seats are filled. If you want to hire a taxi, I recommend you to hire in the airport, don�t walk out of the airport unless you want to take bus because taxi outside airport could be much more expensive. Don�t wish for Hanoi city bus map because it is not available.
We touched down in Hanoi Kim hotel in Monday afternoon, i could barely see sun light that time. First surprise was... the hotel staff could not speak English and we both don�t speak Vietnamese either. We showed our booking print out then she talked to us in complicated spelling, we kept silent then she called the hotel owner and we talked on phone, thanks God, the owner speaks English! She came, asked for passports, then we checked in and relieved :D
Hanoi Kim hotel was very clean and comfortable. It is not located near tourist sites, if you decide to spend nights there, taxi to Old Quarter is very expensive (USD 5) because of the distance. I considered it was very close to our conference plenary hall (Vietnam Convention Center). Yeah and it was very closed, only 10 minutes by taxi and we paid for 30000 VND or USD 2.5 for single trip taxi. Talking about Taxi in Hanoi, I recommend you to show the map from your spot and the address to the taxi driver because the don�t speak English mostly and showing maps is good to avoid scams. I read other travel blogs and they recommend some taxi s such as Mai Linh, ABC and Taxi Group, but a friend of mine got scammed by Mai Linh in Ho Chi Minh, so I always showed the map and address to driver through google map when I was there.
Overall, Hanoi was nice and a little bit stressing because many people riding motorbike are addicted to always turn their horn on everytime they pass other motorbike. Yes, in Indonesia we got many motorbikers but not as crazy as people in Hanoi. Motorbikers with their rice cookers on are frustating. Yes! Rice cookers! Vietnameses call helmet as rice cooker, no rice cooker, no life. If you don�t put your helmet on, there would be no life.
What I love most from Hanoi are the public places and food. Pho is noodle soup you must try! Where to visit then? They have wide and many public places, most of them are arround lakes. The most beautiful lake was located near Old Quarter, the name is Hoan Kiem Lake. The lake mesmerized me especially at night. You can see beautiful lights there and just sit in the middle of flowers park and trees, watching the crowded public place. Good place for jogging as well. For luck believers, you better visit this place in afternoon when the gate to another island in this lake is opened. Vietnameses believe if you cross the gate and bridge then your wishes will come true. Cross the street near the lake and don�t miss the water puppet show near Lenin Park for 100. 000 VND, it ends every 8 pm, it is most wanted as well, so.. you better prepare to queue. International Post Office is also available here, so you can just buy and post postcards nearby.
I wonder why Hanoi city manager doesn�t build for better public transport system. The figure of motorbikes and dwellers are not as many as in Jakarta or Bandung, so they won�t face complicated traffic there. I wish they could build better city bus transportation such as transjakarta or maybe Mass Rapid Transir (MRT) ways.
I met other Indonesians and new Vietnamese and Pinoys friends there. We had fun and shared many stories and best practices about public service in our home country. It was nice to know how ASEAN countries do public service reform and enhancing competitiveness where there are challenges and few resources as well. Especially Vietnam, though they are ruled by communist party, they open huge foreign investment and improve their public service.
We went city exploring together to Vietnam Ethnology Museum (very nice place covering history of Vietnam culture and beautiful lay out as well) and Temple of Literature where confucianism grew in Vietnam. Last day we went to Halong Bay �locals call it Dragon Bay-, it was 3 hours from Hanoi. This one of UNESCO Heritage Sites looked so surreal because of the weather that time. Nothing more romantic than staring at the islands and have lunch on boat. Don�t miss to visit Thien Cung Grotto and Floating Fishing Village. They are wonderful.
So the next day after a warm good bye to our new friends, we headed to Singapore. I have been here before and it was still same, artificials. But i am happy finaly my office mate touched down at Merlion as she wished :D and after a week stayed as minority in Hanoi, I felt wonderful met immigration staff in Changi Airport praying room and she smiled and greeted �Assalamualaikum,� I replied �Waalaikumsalaam,� see you again Singapore, I hope for transit to Europe next year! :D
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