* Nem cuon chay
16 April 2010 (Fri): There's a lot to write about Hanoi, but I have no idea where to begin.
I returned last December with a camera for idiots and so, have captured quite a number of sights. I have always had pre-trip anxieties about returning to Hanoi: How could I cope with the language? How safe would it be for me? These are common fears.
But each time I returned, the happiness experienced when I was living there returned. It would take me a day or two to slip back into the linguistic fluency, and then everything would fit right back in its old place. Unfamiliarity would then gradually subside as the old faces, smiles and sounds greeted me.
I missed Hồ Tây (West Lake), and had reserved lodging just right by it. Before I reached it, there was a jam on the road. My cab driver grew impatient, and hopped out of the vehicle several times to check.
There was no accident, fortunately. A bus broke down and jammed the Thanh Long Bridge. Traffic soon returned to normal. The cab sped past Lạc Long Quân, Âu Cơ and then Đường Thanh Niên. I checked in at the Sofitel Plaza.
I was admiring the shimmering surface of the West Lake as the bullet-elevator lifted me up.
It was the first hotel with such elevators in Hanoi, and the first five-star to be built by the lake. This hotel also has what I consider the best layout for its executive lounge on the 17th floor. A businessman or even a writer is able to have his own private space in the lounge and still easily make food orders or calls out for secretarial assitance. Other such lounges lack the 'working' function and serves as F & B outlets for the exclusives. Acoustics is good here. It is very peaceful - the interior is sqeaky clean and neat, and overlooks the Red River; yet it is also conducive for group discussions. There is plenty of wood to calm your nerves. A Singaporean chap once told me that his company hired a Japanese architect to design it, and the roof is the most outstanding.
I scooted off to a downtown cafe to meet my friends after dropping off my luggage in my room.
* Paris Deli Cafe, Pho Nha Tho
It's Christmas time! This is one of the few places with decor. The slightly more elaborately decorated place was Sofitel Metropole Hotel. It's where I usually go for a cuppa nowadays when I go to Hanoi besides Hoa Sua. Not Ciao, not Moca (where I used to go eight years ago)...Juliana is gone and Highlands Cafe has made its mark in the cafe scene; Tonkin has moved to 39A Lý Thường Kiệt. I did like the bitter coffee at the Tonkin.
* Second floor, Paris Deli Cafe
I think this "big church" street (where the Paris Deli cafe is situated) is incredibly tasteful. There's still no tall modern buildings. There's a lot retained along the street including the deep-fried bánh store at the corner. The oil is certainly "off" and the texture of the "curry puff" rather hard, but it's obviously very popular among folks in the city. I think its weak points are drowned in the fragrance of the herbs and the pungent nươc mắm(fish sauce). The resultant taste becomes one which is rather difficult to duplicate anywhere else in the world.
I like the ambience at Paris Deli, though I will not rate its food too highly. I couldn't meet Bien this time and I don't know his roster. The manager that I met was absent as well. I only met some of the lady staff and waiters that I met before.
I returned to my hotel in the evening. I was literally starved, but went to bed.
The next morning, I had my "vengeance" and ordered a huge bowl of phở. Most Hanoians must think I was silly- fancy eating phở in a hotel! The noodle should be partaken in the street or some famous small shops (Phở Thìn, Phở Mai Anh, etc.)
I returned to my old school which is beside this tower. It looks newer than before after the renovation- the alleys and streets have been paved with tiles and layered with concrete.
The classrooms are given a fresh coat of paint outside;the courtyard has also been tiled.
I had missed the charming kids at Hoa Sua - more than the food (see vegan rolls above).
The only disappointment in this trip was the lounge at the top of Sofitel Plaza (once known as the "Top of the M" after its former owner, Mandarin Group of Hotels). It used to be very lively - not sedate like it is now. Being "the" place where one could enjoy the beautiful sunset of Hanoi, it was cozy. Now the space outside and inside was limited to couples, but only accomodates a few of them. One can tell it's designed for very young couples who will not mind perching on high chairs and staring into each other because even certain parts of the glass window are covered, blocking out both view and ambience:
Black is overused; it makes the lounge spooky rather than warm.
On my way back to Singapore, I met a friend of Thoi, the driver who used to take me to Noi Bai. Duong is as nice as him.
Time flies! I will be back again in Hanoi soon.
