Today is our last day in Vietnam’s capital city, Hanoi.
While you’ve probably already read blogs and Lonely Planet guidebooks to prepare you for the madness (as I did), I decided to write a quick post to help you with useful information.
Here are the topics I will touch on:
- Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum
- The Botanical Gardens
- Saturday’s clothing Night Market
- My favourite restaurant, Noodle & Roll
The most important thing of all is not to underestimate Vietnam’s love for Uncle Ho (Ho chi Minh). If you are planning on visiting his eternal resting place, don’t go on Sunday. This is most Vietnamese people’s only day off. By 8 am, the line-up was so long it went all the way to the Botanical Gardens. 
If you go, which you should, especially if you made the journey from South to North, go Tuesday morning. I’ve heard that’s the best day.
That segues nicely to a must see attraction in Hanoi; The Botanical Gardens. You won’t find them on anybody else’s list of things to see/do, which is a pity.
You know that Hanoi is hectic, and you know it’s smoggy, noisy, cold, etc. So why not escape the hustle & bustle and head here:
You’ll see locals jogging, stretching, listening to calming music, meditating next to the little lake, doing tai chi movements.
It’s all so serene. You can almost NOT hear the noise from the streets for once! As a bonus, there are some gnarly trees to sit under. 
Shop til you drop Saturday night. Save your spending for the night market down near the lake. Not only will there be no cars or motorbikes, there will be the cheapest prices you can encounter in the city. Just be prepared to see more people congregated outside of New Year’s Eve!
We bought souvenir t-shirts for 35 k (earlier I spent too long bargaining a lady from 120 k down to 60 k and I was proud of myself). Brandon got some nice kicks for only 150 k, while miraculously, they had my size, 48! That’s a first…
On top of the clothing, there are more souvenir stands than you can shake a stick at, plus street-side eats so good you won’t miss mom’s cooking. The “beer street” is just one street over, so you’ll be able to guzzle back some egg beer (40 k) watching the world go by.
Finally, if you want to eat well, visit Noodle & Roll. It caters to tourists but offers local pricing. B & I ate a big bowl of pho (with tofu, mint leaves, lettuce, pickled carrots and garlic, peanuts, vermicelli) for only 45 k. For the first time in forever, we were full!
So there’s my list of things you won’t read in a guidebook, or in most other blogs. If you have any other not obvious tips, I’d love to hear them!
agetravelsaround 