TBH has been to Hanoi twice for work before this trip, staying in hotels located in the city. His experience with the hotels in the city was that they can get quite noisy with the street traffic.
So we decided to stay at the West Lake area which is about 10 minutes away from the city by taxi. It was a good choice because this area is much quieter – no honking and tooting – and the only noise I hear from my hotel room is the screams and shouts of children splashing around in the swimming pool directly below my room. We could live with that.
^Around the West Lake.
^Seeing these shopfronts at the West Lake, I imagine that I am somewhere else. The French Riviera, perhaps?
The hotel is also a short walk away from a number of restaurants and cafes at the West Lake area where one can relax and enjoy the view of the lake while nursing a cup of coffee or a glass of wine.
I like strolling along the perimeter of the lake in the evenings when the weather is cooler, watching locals fish in the lake and just enjoying the area for what it is. Ahhh, wouldn’t it be nice to own an apartment overlooking the lake..? Or any huge body of water for the matter.
We discovered Don’s Bistro on our first day in Hanoi and was charmed by the Chinoserie-style interior. The food is quite good, with a wide selection of Western and Vietnamese courses.
Best of all is the view of the lake that the bistro affords its diners.
We had brunch at Don’s today and will probably head back for dinner later on. If we don’t get too lazy which we probably will.
^Oysters served in the conical Vietnamese hat.
^ Mr Tan’s steak-something, can’t remember what this is called.
^My first bowl of Vietnamese pho in Hanoi. Oddly, at Don’s Bistro and not one of the local street stalls.
I am not a big fan of Vietnamese food because I find it a little too bland for my tastebuds. But the broth in this bowl of pho tastes different from the ones that I have tried previously. It had a very robust flavour, somewhat similar to the Hainanese beef soup that we have back home.
