Bolger Family Travels: Pho, A Long, Long Way To Run

(Editor: Okay, so what does “Pho” have to do with “Do-Re-Mi,” which is from what might be the greatest war musical of all time. Writer: War musical? That’s a genre? Anyhoo, “Pho” is NOT pronounced “foe,” but instead the Vietnamese say “Fa.” Editor: Oh, I get it, that’s actually clever. . .for you!)

I surprised myself. I ended up loving Hanoi. I’ve heard over the years how much better Saigon (aka “Ho Chi Minh City”) is than the capital city, but after a couple of days there, I feel differently.

We got to Hanoi at night, and the place is a gritty Asian city thrill. More on that in a later post, where I do the old “compare and contrast” with Saigon. Anyhow, Bun took us for a walk to a couple of ATMs. There is a KFC and a separate Domino's Pizza right next to one of the ATMs. Those weren't the only American chains we saw during our time in Vietnam, and it made me wonder who really won the war. It seems like, from our time in Vietnam, that the capitalist are winning in the long run.

While Carol was pulling Vietnamese Dong (yes, Beavis and Butthead, that’s the name of the currency, now stop sniggering!) out of the ATM, I took this selfie in front of this cool fountain.

A cool guy and a cool fountain.

Would you settle for a guy

and a cool fountain?

After everyone extracted cash, Bun took us to his favorite Pho restaurant. Even though the temps were in the low 50s, the night air made it feel about 45 degrees, which meant Carol and I were significantly underdressed.

The Pho was fantastic. The restaurant is, like many in Hanoi, a little hole in the wall. And by little, I mean really small. It makes the famed Chili Parlor Bar in Austin seem huge. While we couldn't get Mad Dog Margaritas, we got fantastic Pho.

We sat across the street in a concave concrete sidewalk outside another business. Some older Vietnamese customers were also dining in that area. Seeing we didn't have enough chairs, they gave up their extra chairs, and even some they were using. Very hospitable. Next time I see a group of Germans visiting the USA needing space, I'll reciprocate by giving up my chair.

(Editor: Take a bow, that's definitely a sneaky good line. Writer: I like it too!)

The group felt like kindergartners as we sat on our little plastic chairs at our little plastic table.

Travelers like authentic experiences -- I'm not sure it gets any more authentic than what we ate and where we ate it. The Pho was fabulous, and just holding the hot bowl in our hands gave us a warm feeling we desperately needed in the cold air of the night.

Happy Carol chowing down

the fantastic Pho. She's even

gotten to be adroit with

chopsticks, which she used

to refuse to use.

Our dining area is the envy of all.

Since the restaurant can't sell beer, Bun went to a nearby place and purchased beer for those who partake.

So there we were, in Hanoi, dining like communist leaders and drinking beer. It was my most memorable meal of the trip.

After we finished, the group split up. Carol and I went into a store nearby and bought two "North Face" jackets for 1,000,000 Dong, which is approximately $40.00. We would need the jackets during our three days in Hanoi/Ha Long Bay. If we hadn't purchased the "authentic" North Face jackets, we would have frozen over the course of our time there.

It wasn't a simple purchase. The shop manager first asked for 2,000,000 VND. Carol verbally trashed the jackets. She countered at one million, they trash talked back at 1.7 million. She kept saying we should leave. I pushed back, pointing out that we needed coats in that weather. And, every so often they countered themselves with a lower price. Eventually they got down to the million VND price and Carol saved my life by taking the deal she originally offered them.

For someone who hates bargaining, Carol's turned out to be pretty good at it. She no longer says "the price is the price is the price." She even gets that gleam in her eye that she's NOT going to pay full price!

After that, Carol and I walked around a few blocks. Hanoi was a swirling night mass of people, scooters, motorcycles, and cars. There are small shops and restaurants everywhere, and the place was bustling. We walked along a nearby lake that has a temple on an island. The bridge to the island is a brilliant red, especially when beautifully lit up. We swapped picture-taking with a random couple in front of a 2024 lit sign, as Vietnam is getting ready for the lunar New Year.

After walking around some more, we headed back to the hotel, happy with Hanoi and with ourselves.