Coffee and flowers in Hanoi Vietnam
15/01/08 (GMT+7)
Coffee and flowers in Hanoi Vietnam , the capital city of Hanoi is listed as a favorite destination for travelers. Hanoi’s hospitality services are less professional than one would find in the tourism hub of Ho Chi Minh City, but the city is very rich in tourist sites and has special lifestyle that is very appealing to travelers.
That may be one of the reasons for the growing number of international visitors to Hanoi, which numbered about 1.3mil in 2007.
One of the special attractions are the flowers. In Ho Chi Minh City VIetnam and other cities around the country travelers buy flower in shops or markets, but in the capital city flowers are available not only in shops but also from the many women who sell from the sidelines of the city’s markets, or from the baskets of the vendor’s bicycles.
Thus, visitors can enjoy, and buy, flowers everywhere, especially in the mornings when the flowers are particularly beautiful and full of vitality. Most foreigners are fascinated with this image of Hanoi.
Last year, when camera men from Cable News Network or CNN came to the city to film Vietnam’s famous attractions for their international networks they were interested in presenting the vendors selling flowers around the city from their bicycles. This special image was broadcast on CNN to promote Vietnam’s tourism.
Flowers in the city are so inexpensive. Every time I travel to Hanoi my friend, a civil servant in the city, offers me big bunches of roses. They are very beautiful.
“Don’t worry about my pocket. A poor student in this city can be a romantic man and give roses to his friend every day because flowers are so cheap here,” he said.
This is not possible in Ho Chi Minh City, where a rose costs from VND3,000 to VND5,000. However, vendors in Hanoi sell their roses for VND500, or just VND50,000 (over US$3) for a bunch of 100 beautiful roses. That is great.
The second thing that makes me pleased to be in the city is having coffee in the Hapro coffee shop, on the banks of Hoan Kiem Lake. The location offers a good view of the lake and the front of the Hanoi Post Office. Sitting here amongst the green trees, tourists can enjoy the clean air and watch many people walking through the park and chatting on the park benches. I find it interesting.
I don’t like to drink coffee in the small coffee shops on Hanoi’s sidewalks because, as mentioned above, the city’s hospitality services are not very professional when catering to the demands of travelers. Therefore, you may not be warmly welcomed, and you should not expect good services from the waiters in shops on the sidewalks.
Thus, this coffee shop is one of my preferred choices, as it is for many visitors to Hanoi. Last time I had a coffee here on a winter’s morning I saw many foreigners also enjoying their coffee in the outdoor coffee shop. Many of them stayed a long time, not only for coffee but also for breakfast, some even staying until lunch. Some of the guests were couples traveling with their children. They enjoyed their meals while their children played safely in the park. It is secure.
I feel much better in this season (December), the beginning of the winter in Hanoi. The air is cold and clean, and the city is so beautiful with colorful flowers.
You should go there and experience it.
(Source: SGT)
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