Five must-do things in Vietnam (while you thaw out)…
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If travelling to warmer climes is on your immediate list of priorities, then put Vietnam to the top of that list.
It has everything you need for a quick (or long) break from the Canberra winter, it’s a relatively short and cheap flight away (less than nine hours from Sydney) and your budget will not be constrained in the same ways it would with a trip to Europe or the US.
Tradition and modernity in Saigon.
And while you could just go and hang out for a week or two and just relish the heat, delicious food and genuine warmth of the locals, you could also put these five activities on your list.
A food tour
Nobody knows food like locals, so don’t expect any guidebook to do as good a job of exposing you to the tastiest and most authentic Vietnamese food as an experienced tour group. We chose XO, a Saigon-based, female-operated food tour company, and loved every second of it.
Autumn knew where the best crab was to be found.
Picked up at our hotel by Autumn and Anne on their motorbikes, we popped our helmets on, jumped on the back, grabbed the handles on the seats, and sped off into the night. Actually, to be fair, you can’t speed anywhere in Vietnam due to traffic congestion the likes of which Canberra simply could not imagine. Nine million mopeds and motorbikes in Saigon alone jostle for space with cars and somehow the vehicles progress in an orderly fashion. Don’t ask me how it happens, it just does, and is like ballet. This isn’t four lanes of traffic, it’s about 27 going one way and 34 going in the other direction. As a pedestrian it looks almost impossible to cross the street and you have to take a giant leap of faith to put one foot on the road. But using your best Frogger arcade game technique, you just slowly walk between the vehicles and they do an admirable job of not hitting you. By the end of two weeks we barely looked where we were going.
Don’t look before you cross (otherwise you’ll be waiting hours) just take a step and magically the motorbikes will swerve around you.
But I digress. On our tour we sampled a range of memorable eateries, from a crab noodle soup restaurant (indoor and air-conditioned), to a street stall restaurant specialising in BBQ to a bustling seafood restaurant. Our group leader Lucy ensured that as we pulled up, our small group was immediately seated and dishes started coming out. We were served speciality dishes we had no idea about and forged some core food memories as a result (the green mango and prawn salad and distinctive smoked tofu among them).
Green mango and prawn salad to die for.
Along the way we saw different districts of Saigon (Chinatown, the CBD, the new multi-squillion dollar lakeside development which looked a lot like the Kingston Foreshore to be honest) and learned much about the culture and economics of a socialist country with one foot firmly through the door of capitalism.
Intrepidly navigating the markets of Saigon (by following my delightful XO tour guide Autumn).
It is a rather wild mix of ancient traditions, TikTok moments being filmed on every corner, subsistence living and profligate wealth. Mainly we are struck by how calm, kind and hospitable the Vietnamese people are despite the heavy presence of tourists in their lives.
But first, coffee
Who knew Vietnam was so obsessed with coffee? Within a few moments of driving from either Hanoi or Saigon airports you will see the sheer number of cafes on offer, from the chain stores (Highland, Katinat and Phuc Long Coffee & Tea) to the whole-in-the-wall independent operators to the fancy destination stores known for specialities such as egg and salted coffee. Coffee is absolutely everywhere.
Vietnam is famous for both egg and salted coffees, specialties you should try at least once. A shot of espresso with a heavy dense froth of sweet crème brûlée on top for egg, and a salted caramel-type froth for the salted version – these taste largely like desserts. So does the Vietnamese coffee which is best served on ice and consists of condensed milk poured over a long black. These are all extremely sweet. And they pack a punch.
Part coffee, part crème brûlée, Vietnamese egg coffees are not for the faint of heart.
And after trying all three of them, I had had my fill and stuck to conventional lattes after that. Call me a traditionalist…
My husband was a salted coffee convert, however, and ordered these with wild abandon everywhere we went. Now he is having withdrawals (does anyone know anywhere in Canberra that serves them?)
Give me my White Lotus moment
I am not going to dispute the fact that I love me a little luxury hotel stay in any holiday and in Vietnam we broke up the stay to three different segments. In Saigon, where we flew in, we chose the Hotel Des Arts which is centrally located in the tourist district and was delightful with its rooftop pool and bar and we finished with an eco-retreat (more about that in a moment).
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But what I was really hankering for was a week at the Capella in Hanoi. This is real White Lotus territory, opulent, beautiful and so very special – possibly the most beautiful hotel in the country. While it was not cheap, we did appreciate the incredible breakfasts every morning which were complimentary, as were the afternoon cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. With under 50 rooms, this is a small but meticulous hotel, designed in what I described on Instagram as “lavish Rococo style and Greco-Roman aesthetic morphed with ornate Indochine features (or Baz Luhrmann had a fever dream in Vietnam and invited guests to join him)”. Which pretty much sums it up. Every day I made time to head down to the spa and pool, which was a spectacular marbled and mirrored affair with ornate glass chandeliers hanging over the water. As you swam, a waiter would bring complimentary iced tea, taro chips and what tasted like an electrolyte drink to the sofas, or perhaps a homemade cacao protein ball from the gym…
I will forever wish to be back in our bathroom at Capella Hanoi…
As for the actual spa. My God. It was sublime. Next level. And worth every dollar. While we found activities and restaurants to visit while in Hanoi, we were equally happy just hanging out in any of the glorious bars, lounges or communal areas of the hotel, trying to take all that design stimuli in.
Get back to nature
Despite its bustling cities, Vietnam has plenty of glorious tropical landscapes far from the madding crowd.
Spent a day boating and trekking in Ninh Bình
As an opportunity to defrag, we spent our final five days at the Avana Retreat splayed across the side of a mountain range above the Mai Chau Valley and twisting around the most magnificent system of waterfalls which were part of an extensive nature reserve.
Waterfalls at the Avana Retreat in Mai Chau
It is hard to describe how glorious this place is, how the air smells of ozone and the constant thrum of water over rock calms your nervous system. Hiring local ethnic communities from nearby rice plantations, Avana treads very gently in the tourist space, and is an antidote to the big smoke and bigger crowds of the city. Yoga is hosted in either a platform over a valley or a studio on stilts straddling the water. There is also daily meditation. The Avana Spa consists of small treatment rooms built along the banks of the waterfalls. It is almost impossible to summon one atom of adrenaline in this setting. What could possibly matter?
Does this infinity pool make me look relaxed? The Avana Retreat is beyond zen.
Expect lots of incidental exercise as you walk up and down steep paths to access the restaurant and activities, or just hang in your bungalow deck with a good book. Ten out of ten would recommend.
Culture
It is almost ridiculous to think that we were once, in living memory, at war with this country. But if you want to see part of that brutal reality, the War Remnants Museum holds nothing back. You can also view the embalmed body of Ho Chi Minh in the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi, which remains a place of reverence for Vietnamese people. Meanwhile, indications of a culture which blends Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism with folk religion and ancestor worship are everywhere.
You can visit any number of glorious temples and pagodas and stop to admire the elaborate shrines, burning incense, floral and food offerings in most public places. For the busyness of the place, Vietnamese people are disarmingly gentle and without exception they delight in their elders and their youngsters. There seems to be respect and social cohesion which makes a holiday feel safe and welcoming even if two weeks barely gives you time to scratch the surface. This was not our first trip and will certainly not be our last.
