Gold Coin, Plastic Chair and Egg Coffee
A Self-Guided Tour Through Hanoi's Streets
📍Hanoi, Vietnam
The food tour I had booked was canceled. A short message without much explanation – maybe because of expected rain, maybe just because not enough people signed up.
I almost let this message ruin my day. Almost.
But I guess I had mentally prepared myself so well to go out that I decided to visit the city anyway. After all, I have my own personal guide – an AI that doesn't cancel at the last minute. For tasks like this, I turn to ChatGPT, tell it what interests me (special areas and local food) and what doesn't (churches and museums), and it builds me a route with landmarks and surprising recommendations like "It's Sunday today, so the night market is open! You should go there in the evening!"
Cute, thanks for the tip.
I grabbed myself and set out to wander. I ordered a Grab (local taxi app) motorcycle, and was surprised when the driver arrived with a helmet for me! I guess that's what happens when you expect nothing – you get small surprises that bring disproportionate joy.
I wonder if Vietnam has a law about wearing helmets? I understood there is such a law, although I saw many riding without helmets, which left me a bit confused.
We drove a journey that looked much shorter on the map. But of course, the traffic lights and the bustling city traffic have their own opinion about travel time. Along the way, I saw people simply driving through red lights as if they were merely suggestions, and my Grab's scooter stalled every time it stopped at a traffic light. I recognize this issue from the scooter I once had. Take it to the mechanic, buddy.
I arrived at the point where the canceled food tour was supposed to begin – it seemed right to start my self-guided tour from there. I marked a few points on the map on my phone to have a general direction. And then, the moment I entered the Old Quarter area, I was drawn into the magic of the alleyways and just walked.
There is no creature in the world more curious than me at this moment.
Every sign caught my attention. Every street seemed mesmerizing. The people looked like actors in a performance happening just for me. And the smells... oh, the smells. They filled the streets and made me hungrier than ever. On every corner there's a huge pot, a small restaurant, or a food stall. In every alley, people sit on tiny plastic chairs eating, and on the main streets too. This is where all the tourists are – and for good reason. This is simply the place to be.
I chose a small street restaurant using a completely scientific method – I saw someone with a plate that looked delicious, pointed at it, and smiled. The nice lady got the hint and served me the same dish. After one bite, the elderly woman sitting across from me passed me a pack of napkins and her spoon, thinking I hadn't received one. While saying something that sounded roughly like "You eat this with a spoon!" in a tone that made me smile my biggest smile and throw into the air the only word I know in Vietnamese – "Cảm ơn!" (Thank you!).
The noodles were s-o-o-o tasty! Vietnamese cuisine is rich in herbs, fresh vegetables, with sprouts in every dish. The soup itself was a delicacy – deep, aromatic, with layers of flavors I hadn't known before, and it all together created a feast in my mouth.
After my first dish, I continued wandering and noticed that the cafes only serve drinks. No food at all. Another hint from the universe to leave the familiar behind and try new things. One of the surprising sights was seeing locals sitting in a cafe cracking black sunflower seeds. I wouldn't have expected that, but it seemed like a real social ritual.
I continued wandering through the narrow streets of the Old Quarter, looking at the colorful merchandise in shops, at tourists photographing everything, at locals conducting their lives amid the tourist hustle. And then I saw crowds of people flowing in the same direction. "What's happening here?" I wondered. And instead of thinking too much, I simply joined the flow.
I continued with the crowd and realized I had reached the lake area. Here, masses of people spend their weekends – mostly taking photos. Between fountains and balloon stands, and street desserts at prices that seemed a bit excessive to me (but maybe that's just because I still don't fully understand the local money value).
I found an empty plastic chair by the lake shore and sat on it for exactly one second – until a waitress approached me and said that if I'm not ordering something, I need to get up. I got the hint – no free sitting on such expensive plastic chairs!
A few steps led me to a unique building, which apparently not only I had noticed, as it was full of people with a line at the entrance. A four-story café with a front facing the lake. Like many others, I assumed the view from above would be stunning, so I decided to stand in line. I thought to myself – this is it, it's finally happening. My first egg coffee!
Egg coffee is a very popular drink in Vietnam, and I had been looking forward to trying it since I arrived. What better than tasting it for the first time in a place that looks authentic and special?
I ordered the coffee and went searching for a seat. Of course, all the tables facing outward to the view were taken, so I sat at an inner table. The moment someone got up from a table with a view, I politely asked if I could sit there. "Sure," she answered with a smile, "I did the same thing." And there I found myself with egg coffee and a perfect view of the lake.
It has a taste of coffee, and... egg. Yes. Surprising, I know. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it was definitely interesting. Let's just say I'm not declaring a new addiction. It's not my new favorite, but I'm glad I tried it.
I continued walking along the lake until I spotted, among the stalls, a waffle stand with melted cheese in the shape of a coin – exactly like the one I fell in love with in El Nido, Philippines! Lucky I'm on a self-guided food tour and wasn't really full, because I was happy to pay 40,000 dong (an amount that looks huge but is about $1.60) and savor every bite of warm waffle and melty cheese.
I took my waffle and sat on a stone bench by the lake, in a pastoral and romantic spot within all the hustle. Around me were couples everywhere, and so was I – sharing a moment of love. With delicious food, with myself, and with this gift called life.
Hanoi is such a colorful city, full of life, full of joy. This tour of the city made me wander with a smile, smile at everyone around me, and reminded me why I set out on this journey in the first place.
The Old Quarter area, with all the stalls, music, hustle, looks like Independence Day back home – thousands of people walking, masses of tourists and locals exploring the streets, and I wonder what happens here when Independence Day actually arrives. I'll find out next month, when I'm in Da Nang, a city in central Vietnam.
I wondered what my daily routine would look like when I'm their age. Would I still wander the world? Would I find one place that feels like home? Or maybe I'd return to the place that was always my true home?
Maybe it doesn't matter so much, and maybe that's exactly the point – in the end, any path I choose will lead me precisely to where my soul wants to be. Hanoi already taught me something important on my first day, and that's much more than I expected.
I can't wait to see what else Vietnam has in store for me. Sometimes, a canceled plan is just an invitation to a better plan.
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