We've been back in Minneapolis for a few months but I wanted to document one more trip from our Hong Kong experience. My former college roommate, Adam "Sweet Lou" "Cochese" "Roger Fontaine" Desmarais came over for a visit. After a few days in Hong Kong, we planned to meet up with another college roommate, Byron, for a week long journey throughout southeast Asia. The mind-boggling levels of debauchery, questionable decision making, and extreme alcohol consumption reminded us of the famous film trilogy, The Hangover. Fortunately dear readers (all three of you), I won't be documenting those activities in this space.
We started with a long weekend in Hong Kong. By this time in our stay we already had our standard visitor's agenda but we did start with something a little different - Korean BBQ:
Adam and I did the Dragon's Back hike, one of the top "urban hikes" in Asia
Welcome to Hanoi!
First beer of the trip with Byron.
On our first night we went to Cha Ca Thong Long, one of the popular Hanoi restaurants that serves a single dish: catfish with fresh herbs. You can cook the fish table-side and each diner can tailor their plate to their tastes with noodles, spicy, sweet, and sour condiments. Serve with Hanoi beer and you've got a great dinner.
Here's the classic Hanoi street crossing scene. The key is to look confident and keep moving.
Our hotel was located right in the middle of the old town. Lots of action happening right outside our door.
The next morning we went on a Hanoi street food tour. It was a great way to see the old town, learn about Hanoi street food culture, and fill our fat bellies with food and Vietnamese coffee.
Here we are early on the tour with our guide, Mark. Each stall that we visited specialized in a single dish but a lot of them had similar concepts: starch (noodles, bread, wrapper) cooked (boiled in soup, pan fried, deep fried) with a protein (tofu, pork, chicken, prawn) and lots of customization.
More walking, more eating.
I was excited about trying out Hanoi egg coffee. It did not disappoint.
Egg coffee is kind of like a mix of a latte with tiramisu. The Vietnamese sure know how to make coffee unhealthy (and delicious).
Roughly 2/3 of the way through the tour with a beer pit stop.
This stall had deep fried prawns wrapped with a bed of vermicelli. It was probably my favorite stop.
Done with the tour, one more Vietnamese coffee for the road.
It was 100 degrees that day in Hanoi so we went back to the hotel to cool down and take a bit of a rest. Then it was on to more sightseeing and refreshments. Here we are at the Hanoi Metropole hotel, a famous hotel known for hosting celebrities and dignitaries.
Needless to say, we did not fit in very well. We were dressed very casually and dripping sweat everywhere. I think if we weren't obviously American they would have booted us out.
Next stop, absinthe at the Green Fairy Bar in the Hotel d'Opera. Very impressive presentation.
That night, a visit to Quan Kien, or Ant's Cafe. They are a local place known for their flavored rice liquor and fried bugs. We settled on the lemon and berry versions and the bee larvae, respectively.
Next day, a visit to West Lake. This picture shows the oldest pagoda in Vietnam, Tran Quoc. We did not go in because we were wearing shorts (it was still hot as F).
Memorial indicating where John McCain was shot down. We didn't investigate too much but based on my previous experience with Vietnamese historical monuments it's not talking about what a courageous hero he was.
Cute picture of Adam with traditional street vendor plus garb. It was less cute when said vendor aggressively requested $10 for the privilege. We managed to talk her down to $1 which was still a pretty good return for her, relatively speaking. Vietnam is still a pretty cheap place, as long as you avoid the places that are obviously only for Westerners.
Next stop, Thailand. We were on our way to Krabi but stopped off in Bangkok for a little urban sightseeing. I thought it would be nice to once again do the longtail boat tour on the Chao Phraya (see here ) because it was such a fun experience the last time.
No pictures of Soi Cowboy and ladyboys on Sukhamvit Avenue...sorry.
Next stop Krabi! Byron reserved a nice house with a refreshing pool for a change of pace. This part of the trip was more relaxing, by design.
First day we made our way down to beach for some chilling out and thoughtful conversation.
Next day we started with a tour of the surrounding islands. The scenery reminded me of Coron, perhaps not as pretty but with better infrastructure.
On our way to some snorkeling.
I take back what I said about the scenery - the vistas were breathtaking.
Cue beautiful blue-green water with limestone caves.
We don't look a day over 35.
That night we hit the Krabi night market. The night markets in Thailand are da bomb - great combination of people watching, great street food, fun entertainment at a cheap price.
Lots of meat on a stick.
Fresh fruit - sweet mango at the bottom, rambutan in the center. It tastes like a lychee only a bit better/sweeter in my opinion.
Sushi at the hot Night Market - how do you say "Bad Idea Jeans" in Thai?
Two things I love: Beijing and fresh coconut juice
Goodbye from Asia!
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