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Hanoi Local Customs

Before Dec. 14th - Hanoi
Before Dec. 14th
by kokoryko
Learn the local customs of Hanoi. Tips and photos posted by real travelers and Hanoi locals.
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have an ice coffee at Cafe Bon Bon
  • Tip Rating:
    • richiecdisc
  • Updated By richiecdisc on December 29, 2004
  • Hanoi Page by richiecdisc
    • do what the locals do, have a coffee - Hanoi
    do what the locals do, have a
    coffee
    by richiecdisc
    I have been drinking Vietnamese ice coffee in the US for about 25 years now so I was happy to finally get to have some on their local soil. These places vary quite a bit in style and price but the most local ones offer up the typical plastic tables and chairs that inexpensive restaurants do. If you see one like Café Bon Bon, crammed full of locals, stop in. It’s bound to be good.

    Vietnamese ice coffee is a vestige of French Colonial habits though with a decided Southeast Asian flair. It is a roast bitter dark coffee that is mixed with sweetened condensed milk that not only sweetens the brew but also makes it creamy. It comes to the table in a little drip kettle that brews right there and you then pour the contents over ice in a tall glass. It is a tasty dessert and a nice pick you up in the afternoon if hot from all the sightseeing. You should be able to get one for 5,000 d (30 cents).

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  • Other Contact: So 4 Bao Khanh (Hoan Kiem Lake)
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    don't sit under that kumquat tree
  • Tip Rating:
    • richiecdisc
  • By richiecdisc on December 28, 2004
  • Hanoi Page by richiecdisc
    • transport of the kumquat requires some balance - Hanoi
    transport of the kumquat
    requires some balance
    by richiecdisc
    Tet Nguyen Dan literally means the festival of the first day and abbreviated as TET, it is the biggest holiday of the Vietnamese year. They describe it as combination of New Years, Christmas, and every person’s birthday and though it only lasts a few days, many take off a whole week to celebrate. Much like Western Christmas time, the Vietnamese adorn their homes with trees but not the kind we know. They use colorful kumquat trees that are quite expensive by local standards (around $20). Leading up the beginning of the festival, you will see countless people lugging the trees on the backs of bicycles and motorbikes too. It is quite a spectacle and well worth timing your stay in Hanoi around it. It falls between the 19th of January and the 20th of February, but get there early to secure a room and see the preseason festivities!

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    a tradition that comes in handy for visitors too
  • Tip Rating:
    • richiecdisc
  • By richiecdisc on December 28, 2004
  • Hanoi Page by richiecdisc
    • sticky sweetened rice - Hanoi
    sticky sweetened rice
    by richiecdisc
    There are many traditional foods associated with TET as well and the most popular perhaps is banh chung. This is glutinous or sticky rice layered around some very fatty pork and bean paste and wrapped in a banana leaf. You’ll definitely be offered some to try but it is an acquired taste so take a small bite to see if you like it. No matter what, say you do….lol. This orange sticky rice pictured was another festival favorite as people bought them at the market to bring home. I grabbed one too and brought it home to Doreen, who lay sick in bed with a very upset stomach. The simple food was just the medicine for her. I liked it too as it was lightly sweet with sesame seeds for added flavor.

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    remember, this is a Communist country
  • Tip Rating:
    • richiecdisc
  • Updated By richiecdisc on December 29, 2004
  • Hanoi Page by richiecdisc
    • hammer & sickle? Yup - Hanoi
    hammer & sickle? Yup
    by richiecdisc
    Though Vietnam welcomes Western visitors, it is a decidedly Communist country and one should keep this in mind when dealing with officials. There is a lot of red tape in getting even simple things accomplished, such as securing a visa to Cambodia or Laos. Though one does not feel entirely restricted, there is a prevailing feeling of being under some kind of control. There is also rampant corruption on the political level though that does not seem confined to Communist governments, now does it? Still, locals feel there are kickbacks to be paid as a general rule. This unfortunately equates to tourists being subjected to like thinking which often leads to feelings of mistreatment to those not accustomed to such practices.

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    Drinking Wine from a Jar
  • Tip Rating:
    • bpacker
  • Updated By bpacker on January 19, 2005
  • Hanoi Page by bpacker
    • Drinking Rice Wine, Huong Son Province - Hanoi
    Drinking Rice Wine, Huong Son
    Province
    by bpacker
    If you do venture out of Hanoi, you'll notice that the locals drink rice wine neat and direct from the fermentation jar via a bamboo straw. Take note that this is a male thing (sigh! ) as village women are NOT allowed to suck on the joy juice or enjoy the privilege of getting high on alcohol.

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    Close Kin
  • Tip Rating:
    • Wild_Orchid
  • Updated By Wild_Orchid on April 29, 2006
  • Hanoi Page by Wild_Orchid
    • Close Kin - Hanoi
    Close Kin
    by Wild_Orchid, 1 more photos
    Driving from Hanoi to Halong, we noticed that right in the middle of some paddy & vegetable fields there were some red and white tombs. There were some large & tall ones and some smaller ones.

    I didn't ask the tour guide for any explanation but I guess that there are some close kin of those who own the farms who are buried there, close to where they had lived and worked.


    A few kind VT'ers have since explained to me that it is a common sight in Vietnam to have family members buried because in the fields where the family lives and works. Of course with modernity, it is become less common, but the older graves are still there, out in the middle of the open fields.

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    Hugging on Motorbikes-enjoy the ride!
  • Tip Rating:
    • Wild_Orchid
  • Updated By Wild_Orchid on April 13, 2005
  • Hanoi Page by Wild_Orchid
    • motorbike - Hanoi
    motorbike
    by Wild_Orchid
    A common mode of transport in and around Hanoi is by the use of motorbikes. Nights are pretty romantic in Hanoi and it is not uncommon to see young couples cruise around on motorbikes under the moonlight (because the streets are barely lit).

    I guess the "om" hug is a way of dating and spending time with your lover. While most of the time the rider is male, sometimes, it is the female that is the rider and the guy who is the pillion rider. You have to wonder who enjoys the ride more?

    Thanks for Bpacker for enlightening me on the "om" hug.

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    tie up the loose ends
  • Tip Rating:
    • richiecdisc
  • Updated By richiecdisc on December 29, 2004
  • Hanoi Page by richiecdisc
    • play money offered up to deceased ancestors - Hanoi
    play money offered up to
    deceased ancestors
    by richiecdisc
    TET is also a time of tying up loose ends. If one is quarreling with a friend or family member, this should be resolved before the lunar year begins. Extended families come from far to be reunited with the rest of their clan and even deceased ancestors are offered gifts of play money to appease their spirits. It is a most colorful time to visit temples as locals ready themselves for the New Year.

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    Women with Balancing Poles
  • Tip Rating:
    • Wild_Orchid
  • Updated By Wild_Orchid on April 29, 2006
  • Hanoi Page by Wild_Orchid
    • vendors on foot - Hanoi
    vendors on foot
    by Wild_Orchid, 1 more photos
    A common sight in Vietnam are vendors in the unmistakable Vietnamese conical hat. These women walk from street to street and place to place to hawk their wares, which are usually food or fruits such as mangoes, strawberries and the local star apple.

    I bought some mangoes from one of the vendors. Just carrying the 2 kilos with me to the airport and back home to Malaysia was a real chore. I guess most of us cannot imagine how hard these women work...to make a living.

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    Street Culture-eating al fresco
  • Tip Rating:
    • Wild_Orchid
  • Updated By Wild_Orchid on April 13, 2005
  • Hanoi Page by Wild_Orchid
    • the new street culture - Hanoi
    the new street culture
    by Wild_Orchid
    In Hanoi, the phrase street culture takes on a new twist when you see groups of people, such as the family pictured here seated outside right on the street having their evening meal.

    On one of the side lanes outside a touristy souvenior shop, I observed this family tucking into a tasty meal of steamed water snails (escargot). I had a quick look around but I couldn't see the kitchen or stall where the food had came from. Despite the rather unusual setting (by the drain & peeling yellow wall), the adults and kids seemed to enjoy their dinner. As is common in Vietnam, the seats & table are both set very low-I reckon you have to have a flexible body to eat like a local!

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