Exploring north Vietnam from top down

The unpredictable Perfume River has been intertwined for 650 years with Nguyen dynastic intrigue to inexorably shape the modern city of Hue. The old imperial capital exudes a less frenetic pace than Hanoi – although the cyclo and tourist boat drivers are just as persistent.The 2-1/2 square mile Hue Imperial City housed hundreds of buildings, lakes, gardens fountains and the Forbidden Purple City, home to the Imperial family of Vietnam. This vast complex was Versailles for the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1946). No matter that not all Nguyen family members were fondly remembered – to say the least – this was still the shrine to 144 years of national ancestors and therefore sacred ground.The 1968 Tet Offensive during the Vietnam War inflicted severe damage on the Imperial City. International efforts are funding the slow, painstaking restoration of the complex. The business district has entered the modern era with office and apartment blocks as well as large advertising neon signs.Don’t miss cocktails at the restored 1901 Hotel Morin Saigon and excursions on the Perfume River to visit the Imperial Tombs. Vietnam Airlines has frequent flights from Hanoi and travel is possible by both bus and train.Have you ever wished you could live in a postcard? You can if you cruise the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Halong Bay. Situated on Vietnam's northeast coast, it’s one of the most beautiful sites on the planet.Hundreds of limestone island mountains have been sculpted by centuries of erosion. It has been an artery of wealth for Hanoi and north Vietnam, as well as the cultured pearl capital of the country. The bay, like so many expanses of water in Southeast Asia, contains floating villages.Halong Bay's a year round destination but summer is its high season. Winter and Spring can be chilly and damp but these seasons add a mystical mist to the entire scene. The most popular way of visiting the islands is by taking an overnight or day cruise on a Chinese junk-style ship carrying between 10 - 35 passengers. Cruise arrangements made from Hanoi usually include round trip transportation to Halong City. From the port, the ships sail into the center of the bay - about one hour - and anchor. From there passengers are ferried to the floating villages, pearl farms, beaches, caverns and kayaking through caves.Charming is a term to apply to Hanoi only if you believe Manhattan deserves the moniker as well. Frenetic is a more apt description. The motor bike horns begin by 4:00 AM. Hanoi is a city that would make Donald Trump proud. Everyone is an entrepreneur and quite aggressive in their selling methods whether it be a cyclo driver following you down the street or stepping over and around another sidewalk café while respectfully declining the hundredth deep fried donut all the while being aware that you’re walking in the middle of the street along with cars, motorbikes and bicycles because there's no sidewalk space.Yet several days in this thousand year old city can be enjoyable. Wander the old city with its narrow ancient streets dedicated to crafts – plumbing, medicinal herbs, etc. Stay in the colonial French Quarter. Walk around central Hoan Kiem Lake any time of the day or night. Visit the thousand year old Temple of Literature and don’t miss the Municipal Water Puppet Theater. Cuisine is not Hanoi's forte, yet Koto restaurant is not to be missed.View the list »
Father & son, Hanoi, Vietnam

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The north of Vietnam is different from its southern half. For over a thousand years, the culturally Chinese Confucius and Buddhist north was a separate kingdom from their Khmer Buddhist cousins in the south. Although the south was tropical year round, the northern winters could be cold and damp. The Annamite mountains literally divide the land. Political upheaval in the late 18th century led to the Nguyen Dynasty’s triumphant unification of the Vietnams in the early 1800s.

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Yet political upheaval seems to have been the natural order often until 1975. The end of America’s Vietnam War, allowed the Vietnamese to concentrate on what they enjoy the most, doing business. Whether it’s a BMW auto dealership in Hanoi or a convenience store in a rowboat on a bay, the Vietnamese are capitalists. It’s part of the throb of real life in Vietnam.

Part of life is also stunning natural beauty, crazy traffic, the silence of fog on a bay and the iridescence of a fresh pearl just shucked from its shell. Vietnam charms and jars. One trip is not enough. This exploration highlights five key destinations in the north. Americans must arrange for visas in advance. Major international airlines serve Hanoi.

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  • Charming is a term to apply to Hanoi only if you believe Manhattan deserves the moniker as well. Frenetic is a more apt description. The motor bike horns begin by 4:00 AM. Hanoi is a city that would make Donald Trump proud. Everyone is an entrepreneur and quite aggressive in their selling methods whether it be a cyclo driver following you down the street or stepping over and around another sidewalk café while respectfully declining the hundredth deep fried donut all the while being aware that you’re walking in the middle of the street along with cars, motorbikes and bicycles because there's no sidewalk space.Yet several days in this thousand year old city can be enjoyable. Wander the old city with its narrow ancient streets dedicated to crafts – plumbing, medicinal herbs, etc. Stay in the colonial French Quarter. Walk around central Hoan Kiem Lake any time of the day or night. Visit the thousand year old Temple of Literature and don’t miss the Municipal Water Puppet Theater. Cuisine is not Hanoi's forte, yet Koto restaurant is not to be missed.
  • Have you ever wished you could live in a postcard? You can if you cruise the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Halong Bay. Situated on Vietnam's northeast coast, it’s one of the most beautiful sites on the planet.Hundreds of limestone island mountains have been sculpted by centuries of erosion. It has been an artery of wealth for Hanoi and north Vietnam, as well as the cultured pearl capital of the country. The bay, like so many expanses of water in Southeast Asia, contains floating villages.Halong Bay's a year round destination but summer is its high season. Winter and Spring can be chilly and damp but these seasons add a mystical mist to the entire scene. The most popular way of visiting the islands is by taking an overnight or day cruise on a Chinese junk-style ship carrying between 10 - 35 passengers. Cruise arrangements made from Hanoi usually include round trip transportation to Halong City. From the port, the ships sail into the center of the bay - about one hour - and anchor. From there passengers are ferried to the floating villages, pearl farms, beaches, caverns and kayaking through caves.
  • The unpredictable Perfume River has been intertwined for 650 years with Nguyen dynastic intrigue to inexorably shape the modern city of Hue. The old imperial capital exudes a less frenetic pace than Hanoi – although the cyclo and tourist boat drivers are just as persistent.The 2-1/2 square mile Hue Imperial City housed hundreds of buildings, lakes, gardens fountains and the Forbidden Purple City, home to the Imperial family of Vietnam. This vast complex was Versailles for the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1946). No matter that not all Nguyen family members were fondly remembered – to say the least – this was still the shrine to 144 years of national ancestors and therefore sacred ground.The 1968 Tet Offensive during the Vietnam War inflicted severe damage on the Imperial City. International efforts are funding the slow, painstaking restoration of the complex. The business district has entered the modern era with office and apartment blocks as well as large advertising neon signs.Don’t miss cocktails at the restored 1901 Hotel Morin Saigon and excursions on the Perfume River to visit the Imperial Tombs. Vietnam Airlines has frequent flights from Hanoi and travel is possible by both bus and train.
  • Here’s the project and money’s no object: build a retreat away from work and home where you can just get away from it all, surround yourself with your friends, do what makes you happy and stay there forever. If you were a Nguyen emperor of Vietnam you did exactly that and included artificial lakes, islands, palaces, temples, gardens, courtyards, and, of course, your tomb and that of your wives.They were simply following a long tradition of emperor worship both to solidify the continuity of the dynasty and take their place as an ancestor of the nation. The Nguyen emperors (1802 - 1946) certainly did it in style constructing virtual country estates to pass relaxing hours painting, eating and escaping the pressures of state both in this life and for the afterlife.Excursions to the Imperial Tombs and the lush surrounding countryside either by boat on the Perfume River or car can be arranged through your hotel in Hue.
  • For over a thousand years the village of Hội An was a hot item on the South China seacoast. But by the early 19th century the port of Da Nang was replacing Hội An as the area’s major international trade center. The town slowly sank into obscurity sustained by the accumulated wealth of old merchant families and its abundant seafood and agricultural products. Its centuries old cypress and ironwood buildings remained intact impervious to the river’s floods and their owners inability to modernize. Under French colonial rule, it became a popular summer retreat. More remarkable was that during the Vietnam War the town was hidden among the reed covered islands of the Thu Bon estuary.Hoi An emerged as the most intact medieval village in Vietnam. In 1999, the old town was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site as an example of a Southeast Asian trading port of the 15th to 19th centuries.There are modest admission prices to most of the merchant houses, assembly halls and museums, and a strip of tickets is best purchased at one of several tourist offices in the old town. Hoi An is 20 miles south of Da Nang International Airport.
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, International Travel Examiner

As a chef, food, wine and travel writer, Marc seeks out the culinary stories of a region and a culture whether that be in the remote Andes Mountains or the streets of Philadelphia. He is on the Board of Directors of the International Food, Wine and Travel Writers Association, a member of the...

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