Indochina Day 4: Out of Bangkok and into Hanoi
This morning we had time to go out and check out an actual Thai restaurant called Siam House Café near the hotel. Even though the website said that the restaurant would be open at 0900 and the sign on the window said that they were open from 0800, we were told to come back in 30 minutes after arriving after 0900. We took the opportunity to head to the Full Moon Bakery to grab some snacks before heading back to the restaurant. The Siam House Cafe had some good Pad Thai and Phat Si-io but due to the delay, We had just enough time to head back to the hotel, pack, and grab a taxi to go to the airport to catch our flight to Hanoi. Despite the tight schedule, I realized as we were checking out of the hotel that I had left my sunglasses at the restaurant and had Maggie head back to the restaurant to pick them up. Apparently the restaurant owner had wrapped my glasses in a plastic bag and recognized her the moment she walked in so we were all good there. We had no problems finding a taxi and we made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare (traffic was definitely better than on the 6th) although ironically enough, our flight was delayed.
The Qatar Airlines flight itself was fairly good - the "snack" we got included a savory pastry pocket and a chocolate muffin with chocolate chips! Tasty! After getting out of the airport, we were both struck my the oppressing heat and humidity of Hanoi. It definitely felt worse than Bangkok. Fortunately the taxi ride was air conditioned, the traffic was a lot less busy than Bangkok, and we were able to get to the hotel in one piece despite the crazy traffic in the old quarter.
I had planned to go out to dinner or take part in a tasting tour but Maggie zonked out so I went in search of some banh mi. There was a place called Banh Mi 25 which was highly recommended on Tripadvisor, but it took me a while to find the place even though it was just one block away. When I finally recognized the sign, I came across some lady in red who was told that they were closed. She asked if there was another place the they recommended for banh mi and started heading out. So I caught up with her to find out what the guy had told her. Apparently Banh Mi 25 had run out of bread, and suggested another place down the street, first right, first left and had a sign with a large "P". I decided to tag along, although it may have looked that I was stalking her. *rubs unkempt face*
In any case, after a fifteen minute walk into the night market, which did start to look like a wild goose chase, I spotted Banh My P, which had a number of different types of banh mi. I ordered the chicken and beef instead of the normal pate and headed back to the hotel.
Maggie was still out when got back so I finished off my beef banh mi, and offered her the chicken one. She told me to have some of it so I started eating it but by the time I forced myself to stop, there was only maybe 20% left? At least I stopped?
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| Maggie at the very modern Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport. |
The Qatar Airlines flight itself was fairly good - the "snack" we got included a savory pastry pocket and a chocolate muffin with chocolate chips! Tasty! After getting out of the airport, we were both struck my the oppressing heat and humidity of Hanoi. It definitely felt worse than Bangkok. Fortunately the taxi ride was air conditioned, the traffic was a lot less busy than Bangkok, and we were able to get to the hotel in one piece despite the crazy traffic in the old quarter.
I had planned to go out to dinner or take part in a tasting tour but Maggie zonked out so I went in search of some banh mi. There was a place called Banh Mi 25 which was highly recommended on Tripadvisor, but it took me a while to find the place even though it was just one block away. When I finally recognized the sign, I came across some lady in red who was told that they were closed. She asked if there was another place the they recommended for banh mi and started heading out. So I caught up with her to find out what the guy had told her. Apparently Banh Mi 25 had run out of bread, and suggested another place down the street, first right, first left and had a sign with a large "P". I decided to tag along, although it may have looked that I was stalking her. *rubs unkempt face*
In any case, after a fifteen minute walk into the night market, which did start to look like a wild goose chase, I spotted Banh My P, which had a number of different types of banh mi. I ordered the chicken and beef instead of the normal pate and headed back to the hotel.
Maggie was still out when got back so I finished off my beef banh mi, and offered her the chicken one. She told me to have some of it so I started eating it but by the time I forced myself to stop, there was only maybe 20% left? At least I stopped?
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