Good Luck!
by King_Golo
There are several traditions in Vietnam how to be lucky in the future. One of the nicest is to go to Van Mieu, the Temple of Literature, and pray for good luck for your exams. You can do that by patting the tortoises' heads. They are already patted blank, so I guess it really works... If you've got a more important exam to pass you may consider planting a poinsettia (a flower that usually flourishes in December so that it is also called "Christmas Star"). In December, Van Mieu's lawns are full of these flowers. However, I don't know whether planting them is legal. Don't sue me if it's not!
Eating Pho in The Sapa Market
by neurochic
If you are worried about Avian Flu, I'm not sure if I would recommend eating in the open air market, but if all your travel immunizations are up to date and you aren't immunocompromised eating in the open air market is a must. Best Pho that I had next to my moms. Also I am a firm believer in eating where the locals eat, and in the market my husband was the only nonVietnamese person I saw eating. So if the locals eat here you know it must be good. Here you can also see the many different tribes that come to market, the Black Hmong, Flower Hmong, and Red Zao. Don't be intimidated about ordering here. Even if your cook doesn't speak English, they still have English written menus that you can point at to indicate what you would like and he will be able to recognize it by its number on the menu.
Healthy Food for tourists
by Wild_Orchid about Fruit Vendors
Many fruit vendors work hard plying the streets on foot, balancing a long pole with baskets at each end on their shoulders.
I stopped one & bought 2 kg of Mangoes (10 Mangoes) . Then I noticed a fruit I had not seen before. It was green in colour, like an apple but rounder. I was curious to taste them and the vendor was obliging enough to let me swap two of my mangos for two of these fruits. They had a bitter & sour taste which didn't appeal to me or my children and looked pretty bad (off white) after I cut them open them a few days later.
The mangoes however, were delicious. Unfortunately, they didn't travel well and a few were bruised by the time I got them back to Malaysia. Next time I'll just buy my mangoes at the local pasar malam!
I've since found out the name of the mysterious fruit-it is called the star apple. Please see the picture of what it looks like. The pulp of the fruit was off-white, similar in texture to a custard apple and came with large black seeds. My take on it is that I much prefer the taste of custard apples or sour-sop anytime. After some gentle bargaining, I got my mangos at 21,000 dong/kg.
(15,000 dong = USD 1.00)
Going to the Airport
by shintarojon
(last date took the mini-van - July 4, 2006)
Cheapest way to reach the airport is to take the Vietnam Airlines mini-van.
2 US dollars/head
Location: Quang Trung near Hoan Kiem Lake
Departure time- 5:50 p.m.
Arrival time - 7:10 p.m.
An oasis in Hanoi
by caherpeak about Kangaroo Cafe
This was easily the best restaurant we ate at in our 5 days in Hanoi. We came here for lunch and dinner. The city is a bit manic, but eating here was always relaxing. The food is really good and they serve burgers and other western fare if you want a break from local food. Staff are also exceedingly polite and attentive.
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Kevin and LouAn,Hang Bac Street,Old Quarter,Ha Noi
Ruby Plaza
Ho Chi Minh's stilt-house 1958 to 1969
Doors or Windows
