A busy and bustling, interesting and impressive, relaxing and rainy week. Leaving sunny and pittoresque Laos, Hanoi with its approximately 6,5 million inhabitants and its streets full of cars and motorcycles at any time (including constant horn-blowing) is a so-called change. The capital city of Vietnam oozes a bustling atmosphere, which is not to be compared to Bangkok or any other big city that I know.

We stay in a hotel close to Lake Hoan Kiem, which translates as ‘Lake of the Restored Sword’ or ‘Lake of the Returned Sword’, in the historical centre of Hanoi. According to the legend, Emperor Le Loi had been given a magical sword by the Golden Turtle God (Kim Qui) to smite the Chinese Ming Dynasty. After fending off the the invaders, the emperor was boating on Hoan Kiem Lake when a giant turtle rose up and took the sword from him and disappeared into the depths, never to be found again. The legend says that the Golden Turtle God reclaimed the magical sword (source: havecamerawilltravel dot com).

We have only two days in Hanoi, which we start by walking around the old quarter of the city, which is at least tumultuous. With its 36 streets of over 1000 years old, and the so-called “tubular houses”, which are short and narrow, it is said to be the heart of Vietnamese classical life. Food is sold and prepared on the streets, in the middle of the heavy traffic and people lounging and chewing on sunflower seeds. It is nice to see and experience, and also quite overwhelming at first.

The next day we wake up early to visit the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, which is a must-see for our short stay in Hanoi. The mausoleum opens 5 days per week from 08 to 11 in the morning. Ho Chi Minh* was a Vietnamese Communist revolutionary leader, who is seen as the liberator of Vietnam. The visit to the mausoleum is remarkable and impressive for various reasons. The protocol of visiting the mausoleum is in itself already an experience: lining up in rows of two, with strict rules on how to behave while waiting to enter the mausoleum. Arms must be next to the body (no hands in your pocket or anywhere else), no talking, no laughing, no eating or drinking, and be ready to be reprimanded by the military officers in snowy-white uniforms if you do any different. The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is inspired by Lenin’s Mausoleum in Moscow, and ranked as ‘sixth most ugly building’ by CNN international. Waiting in line, with mostly Vietnamese co-visitors, it takes almost an hour before we can enter the grey granite building. Inside, Ho Chi Minh’s embalmed body is preserved in a cool hall, and lies in a case with dim lights. In a few minutes, we are guided in and out of the mausoleum, after which we have to follow the stream of people along the house and former working premises of Ho Chi Minh. It is an interesting but also slightly awkward visit.

In the afternoon it is time for a run, which is combined with sightseeing around the Hoan Kiem lake. After dinner at a local Vietnamese restaurant, and some further strolls around the city, it is time to pack up again and get ready for the next flight to Danang in the early morning. It has been a short visit to Hanoi, they say you either love it or hate it. I think the visit was too short to decide on that, but although I found it interesting to visit this city, I cannot say I fell in love with it.

From Danang, we drive to Phu Loc, a rural district in the central coast region of Vietnam. On our way, we see the small Vietnamese towns, the agricultural fields, the sea, hills with Buddhas, and more. We are welcomed by massive amounts of non stop rain, and dark skies, overlooking the lagoon from the gigantic water villa. Compared to Hanoi, this feels like the end of the world, a beautiful tranquil place which, despite or maybe because of the weather, has a mystical feeling. From the terrace of the water villa, you can see the local fisherboats coming by, with the green hills covered in clouds in the background. Time for a few relaxed days, reading, running, eating, before heading on to Hoi An.

*Ho Chi Minh was a Vietnamese Communist revolutionary leader who was prime minister (1945–55) and president (1945–69) of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam). He was a key figure in the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in 1945, as well as the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and the Việt Cộng (NLF or VC) during the Vietnam War (source: Wikipedia).