It's been 11 years since I travelled with my family. It was quite challenging to navigate on my own, take photos and bring them around all at the same. Our hotel quoted us US$60 pp for a private day tour and that was simply out of the question! So when I found out about Hanoikids and Hanoi Free Tour Guides, I was thrilled. Three weeks before departure, I contacted Hanoikids but they were full. Luckily, Mr Cong from Hanoi Free Tour Guides managed to arrange Hanh to be our guide. I was elated!!!

It was Ho Chi Minh's birthday today and there was already a looooong line outside the mausoleum. My sisters were skeptical about getting in but we queued anyway. We ended up passing all our water bottles to Hanh (water is not allowed inside) and she waited for us at the exit. The queue moved surprisingly fast and we were inside the building within 20 mins! We figured we must have joined an express queue unknowingly!


It was fascinating to be able to see such an important historical figure but at the same time I feel sorry for the man as his last wish was to be cremated. As the line moved along, I was so surprised to see my father saluted Ho Chi Minh. He requested for a solo photo of himself here in Ba Dinh Square, just like how I remembered he had asked for one outside Chairman Mao's Mausoleum (we never got to see Mao's body by the way).


Although Ho Chi Minh was the president, Hanh told us that he declined to live in the Presidential Palace and chose to live in a stilt house instead. It was nice walking around the garden where he once lived and worked.


We proceeded to the museum to have a more in-depth understanding of Ho Chi Minh's extraordinary life.


My younger sister conversing with Hanh in Ho Chi Minh Museum. Hanh is in her early 20s currently studying in a local university. She speaks fluent English and shares her knowledge about the places we visited with enthusiasm. She also showed interest in getting to know us and our lives in Singapore.


Temple of Literature was a good break from an entire morning of Ho Chi Minh. Students visit the temple to pray for good grades and celebrate their graduation.


Quan An Ngon was just 10-15mins walk away from the temple but my family was hungry and "melting down" so Hanh helped us called a taxi. We reached Quan An Ngon in two mins.


Hanh has tried the food here a few times with other visitors so we just ordered according to her recommendations - huge pancake and spring rolls amongst others. I later realised I had tried Quan An Ngon before in Saigon too!


After lunch, we went for a stroll along the lake. Hanh narrated the famous legend of how a Vietnamese emperor found a sacred sword here and used it to battle against the Chinese invaders. After he won the war, he was asked to return the sword to a tortoise living in this lake. That's the origin of the name Hoam Kiem Lake (还剑湖).


It started to rain so we decided to head back to our hotel to take shelter and rest for awhile in our rooms. Meanwhile, Hanh waited patiently at the lobby for us. Luckily it was just a passing shower and we could go outside and have some coffee!


We followed Hanh to Kim Lai Cafe at 99 Hang Buom. Weasel coffee and lotus tea taste so good my folks decided to buy some home. You can tell we spent alot here (so much I don't even remember how much) from the lady boss (in purple top) huge grin.


Since we were in the vicinity, Hanh decided to show us the room at 48 Hang Ngang St where Ho Chi Minh wrote the Vietnamese Declaration of Independence.


My elder sister requested for ice cream so Hanh brought us to Kem Trang Tien, a popular ice cream store frequent by locals. All of us were enjoying our popsicle or cone except my sister. She refused to have any because she thought she would get to sit down in a nice cafe and eat ice cream from a spoon lol.


It was past 5pm and we decided to call it a day in front of the opera house. Thank you Hanh for bringing us around Hanoi! We really appreciate your time and company. I believe my family had a great time today.


Shared experiences create new conversation topics for us during meal times. While waiting for dinner at Restaurant 22, we talked about our impression of Vietnam and how our day has been.


I like this home-cooked meal by a family in 22 Hang Can St - duck in orange sauce, fish fillet with mixed vegetables, home made toufu and green vegetables. They even gave us a bowl of complimentary "soup" they had "cooked" when boiling the green vegetables!


The night ended with more shopping at Dong Xuan! My family spent so much we had to make a trip back to hotel to exchange more money!