It was a pretty leisurely morning as we prepared ourselves to go into battle. LOL....well....not really battle but we were going to be spending the day on the back of old military motorcycles wearing army helmets so it was kind of like going into battle. In fact, there is one photo that our new friend Lelde took of us walking down off the Long Bien Bridge wearing our helmets with the sun behind us so we are silhouetted in the photo. It seriously looks like we could have been in a war time! It really is an amazing picture! Lelde was the third guest on our Hanoi Backstreet Adventures Bike Tour today. It was a 5 hour tour that took us off the typical tourist path and into some really interesting areas of the city and surrounding countryside. Since all three of us have names that start with the letter L we dubbed ours the “Triple L Tour”.
Darlene and Gail opted to stay closer to the hotel to do a little shopping and so Gail could make a trip to the hair salon. Yes friends.....Gail is a brave girl and she got her hair coloured in Vietnam where the stylist really couldn’t speak any English! LOL....she might have come out with something quite colourful but in truth...it looks great and she is super happy with it.
I think it was all for the best that Darlene and Gail opted out of our ‘back of the bike’ tour as some of the street crossings and many of the lanes we travelled were kind of like threading a needle. Neither of them were keen on even going on a bike without any other traffic or under the best road conditions so.....as I said.....it may have been for the best. But, we did miss having them along for the great adventure that it was!
So....to expand on the adventure. It all began right here in front of our hotel on Hang Bac road where Shaun and Bob (the names we gave them) picked us up. We were so excited to get going that we might have even scared them just a little. We took off down the busy street, just another one (or two) of the 5 million bikes that call these streets home every day. First stop was at the Opera House where we were to meet our tour guide, Nimh and Lelde.
From there it was a street tour of the old quarter where the chaos of the streets somehow made sense when you saw it from the perspective of a bike in motion. It truly is like a dance and they all know the steps. We’ve all heard the instruction to maintain your pace when crossing the street here as a pedestrian and that seems kind of scary until you see it all from the back of a bike. You can see your path and it is only when someone changes their pace or direction that your path is affected in a bad way.
The old quarter was beautiful from the angle of the bike. In this part of the city a house (maybe 500 meters square) will sell for approximately $1 million USD. As a result, many locals are choosing to sell their home in the city in favour of a home in the east quarter where the same place sells for about $200,000 USD. This change has come about in just the past decade and our guide believes it will only escalate.
Once our tour moved into the east quarter of the city it was like being in another world! The streets were tiny narrow lanes designed to be a maze that would keep anyone who wasn’t local from leaving as they would be lost within seconds of their arrival. None of the lanes runs in a straight line and all of them look identical. The homes have as small a footprint as possible (reduced taxes) and then they go up from there. As soon as you get to the second floor of the buildings the square footage goes up as they “hang” over the alleys. An added advantage to this fact is that when it is raining no one in the alley gets wet!
This section of the city is also home to the black market which was originally created to accommodate the ever present need for more food than the food stamps provided by the government of the day could garner. Currently this market is no longer underground and about 75% of it is home to parts for motor vehicles (cars and bikes) and small electrical appliances etc. The other 25% is still home to food. The black market ceased to be necessary around 1986 when the country began to open up from it’s communist controls.
After winding our way through several lanes in this section of the city we moved on to the famous train street where the residents are considered to be super brave. The train comes through this street between 5-9 times each day and everyone must flatten themselves against the fronts of their homes if they’re outside because the sides of the train are simply that close! Motor bikes parked in front MUST be tight up against the home or they will be lost forever. We would have loved to be able to see this during one of those train times but alas...today that was not meant to be. Perhaps it is just one of the safety measures Hanoi Backstreet Adventures takes to ensure their guests all come home in one piece. LOL
Next stop was for some local food where the chairs were soooo small I actually might have either ruined my knee or fixed it....I’m not certain just yet but something in there sure made a tearing noise when I went into that deep of a knee bend! As well, I suspect that tiny chair might have gotten lost up my butt had I stayed there. Luckily the restaurant had slightly taller stools that they brought in for us. Whew! Much better! We had some kind of flat rice noodle that was about 2 inches wide and 6 inches long. They tasted just like other rice noodles but were a different shape and in some ways easier to eat as there is more of them to hold onto with your chop sticks. There was the ever present fresh herbs (mint and coriander) to add to the delicious broth that you dipped these noodles into before eating along with the fresh herbs. The broth also had pieces of pork sausage in it and they too were delicious. Actually, everything here is delicious! This local restaurant (very local) has been here for more than 60 years and it continues to be very popular with area residents.
After a little more time on the back of the bikes we made our way to a beer stop. Here we piled into a tiny room...just large enough for 5 or 6 at most. The beer here is very fresh and must be drunk within 3 weeks of making it. It is in a large metal drum that is tapped for the beer to flow into mugs. Our guide explained that Vietnamese love their beer and that they don’t drink to get drunk but rather that it is a social activity where they gather for a party and to talk about their respective day with friends and neighbours. And actually....this beer was very very good!
It was now time to head out of the city so across Long Bien Bridge we went. This bridge is considered to be one of the most beautiful and special bridges in Hanoi because it was repaired so many times and survived the Vietnam/American war. The Americans would bomb it every day and every night as if by magic the Vietnamese would make the necessary repairs by morning. Apparently there was even a live bomb left under the bridge long after the war was over. Locals used to come just to see the bomb until finally the government took it away. Thank heaven it wasn’t still there today or we would have had to make our drivers take us to see that too! This bridge is still used by trains and motor bikes and pedestrians but no cars. There is another new bridge across the Red River which is the one that our bus took when we travelled to and from Halong Bay a few days ago.
Once across the bridge we got off our bikes long enough for them to descend the “stairs” leading down under the bridge. We had to walk (this is when Lelde got the photo of us). Down below we were into another world entirely. This was a world of banana trees and field after field of vegetable gardens. We learned that all of this land is not owned by anyone and so the people who live and farm here are squatters. They get what land they get on a first come basis and they all know the government could kick them off the land at any time. The people who live here are considered to be very very poor. Many of them earn no more than $100 USD/month/family. Some of the homes are on barrels that enable them to float atop the river but most of them are on land and each year during the rainy season (and whenever China chooses to open the dams and flood the area) the whole place is underwater. This is good for the soil but all the homes are lost except the ones that are floating....they just rise with the water. Nimh explained to us that conversations he’s had with locals here lead him to believe that they are happy in their very simple lives. They have no bills to pay and there is food available to those who are willing to work for it.
It was lovely and cool as we rode through the planted areas. Some of the trails were a bit slippery with mud but for the most part it was just beautiful. It reminded both Lynda and I of another time not that long ago when we were on the back of bikes going through the rice fields of Ubud in Bali.
As if by magic we popped out of that idyllic green space and into the hustle and bustle of the city! I actually don’t know how that happened. One second we were on a dirt path and the next we were in the middle of traffic where apparently red lights are just a suggestion. Here we had yet another meal to stop for so it was off the bikes again and this time the chairs were full size BUT we had to climb 2 flights of stairs to get to them! Once again, the food was all delicious! One of the dishes was rice noodles/paper that had been deep fried and that had puffed into a kind of Yorkshire pudding that you then dipped into the different sauces on the plates of food. There was too much food for us to eat but we were happy to know that this tour company pre-plans by over ordering with the arrangement that the left overs will be packaged up by the restaurant and given to homeless people in the neighbourhood.
It was beginning to get dark and traffic was plentiful as people made their way home from work. We settled our bill of $54 USD for the 5 hour tour (including food and drink) and said good bye to Nimh and Lelde. Our drivers returned us safe and sound to the Paradise Hotel where we were met by the smiling faces of Yan and Linda (our reception staff). Yan is also a part time driver for this bike company and so it was nice for him to see his colleagues who’d taken such good care of us this day.
Gail came down a few minutes after our arrival to say that she and Darlene were hungry. Oh No! But heh...why not....so after a quick face wash and bathroom break we were off in search of dinner for those two and coffee for us. We located a great place (the same one I had egg coffee at yesterday) and everyone found something on the menu that tickled their fancy. Lynda and I opted for desserts. :-)
Till next time,
Darlorlyngai
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