Bamboozled

The day began with a walk in the bamboo forest at Tam Đảo. There are temples situated at the top of a hill and the views from there are breathtaking (or perhaps that was exhaustion from walking up the steps).

Shortly afterwards, it was time to return to the city. Once we arrived back in Hanoi, I decided to have a Vietnamese egg sandwich (bánh mì trứng). The baguettes here were introduced during the French colonial period. There are different kinds of bánh mì, but I think this is my favourite. The bread is the right balance of a thin, soft and crunchy crust and a deliciously fluffy centre.

I observed the important process to making this sandwich: first add cheese spread, then the fried egg, followed by chilli sauce and garnished with sliced cucumber, coriander and pickled carrot. I am not surprised that bánh mì is now sold in cities around the world.

I do have a sweet tooth and for some unknown reason, later on in the day, I recalled a favourite snack that I used to eat in 2006. I wasn't sure if it was still available but eight years ago, I would occasionally indulge myself with 'bánh gấu'. There are similar mass marketed products now available with a chocolate filling, but these 'bear cakes' are delicious biscuits with butter-cream icing inside. After an innocent plea on social media, I finally got to try these treasures once more.

This evening, I took a motorbike taxi (xe ôm) to an old haunt; Kim Oanh Restaurant, to meet Thang, his wife Phuong and their daughter. It brought back a lot of memories when bargaining the price of the taxi in Vietnamese and getting driven along Kim Mã road.

On the back of a motorbike taxi.

We ate Bánh đa (a type of cracker, not too dissimilar from a poppadom) with a chilli dip and cơm rang (fried rice). Perfect food to eat when drinking bia hơi (a cheap, light draught beer).

As always, it was great to catch up with friends. I went back to their house for a few more drinks before returning to my hotel. I am currently resisting the urge to reopen that packet of biscuits...


Tôi đã có một giấc ngủ ngon đêm qua. Hôm nay, tôi đã có một ngày thú vị. Ở Tam Đảo, có một khu rừng xinh đẹp để đi dạo. Bụi tre rất đẹp!

Tôi có kỷ niệm vui về thời gian tôi ở Việt Nam. Tối nay, tôi đã gặp một người bạn cũ ở Hà Nội. Bây giờ tôi cảm thấy tốt hơn nhưng tôi đã ăn quá nhiều! ﹋o﹋

Tam Đảo

We hired a driver to take us to Tam Đảo early this morning. The journey wasn't too long and by 9am we were already feeling the cooler climate in the mountains (comparatively cooler, but by no means cold).

The views are spectacular. It feels great to be up in the clouds. The mist occasionally clears to reveal the landscape below.

For lunch, there was chayote (susu) root and leaves sautéed with garlic, rice, salad, omelette, sour soup (canh chua) and pork.

Later, we went for a short walk to see the Silver Waterfall. Despite having a stomach ache, it is a beautiful place to be feeling under the weather!

Hôm nay tôi vẫn cảm thấy không khỏe. Tôi đang ở Tam Đảo. Cảnh núi non thật hùng vĩ! Không có gì hay hơn việc ngồi xuống và ngắm nhìn cảnh núi non và cảm nhận làn gió mát của núi.

Thác Bạc Tam Đảo thật đẹp. Ở đây rất thanh bình.