Taking baby steps through Hanoi

REMEMBER China Beach?

Between McMurphy’s terribly tragic love affairs and Dodger’s jungle exploits, there must be a whole generation of thirtysomethings whose romantic images of Vietnam were fixed by their exposure to the American TV series.

In my backpacking days, I had always dreamed of travelling there; I just didn’t expect to get the opportunity when my husband, Scott, and I had 10-month-old Hannah in tow.

A friend was working in Hanoi, Vietnam’s capital city, and had invited us to visit when we were on our way home from introducing Hannah to her grandparents in New Zealand. Travelling to the other end of the world with a small baby was challenging enough but at least we were going to family. Vietnam was a very different — simultaneously exciting and intimidating — prospect. But, in the manner of new parents wanting to prove to ourselves that nothing had really changed, we headed for Hanoi.

Picking up our pre-arranged visas at the busy airport wasn’t a simple task but — and this was our first indication of how the trip would turn out — things were made easier by the fact that we had a baby in our arms. Encouraged by Hannah’s wide-eyed attention, officials made all efforts to whisk us through. Before long, we had found a taxi, negotiated the price and settled back for the journey. Lush paddy fields gradually gave way to a more urban landscape but, holding tight to Hannah, we were more impressed by our driver’s prowess at dodging and weaving through heavily laden motorbikes, packed buses and manic trucks, horn tooting all the while. After negotiating the crazy traffic which, we later discovered, was par for the course, we found the place that we would call home for the week. Our friend’s apartment was in a residential neighbourhood by the calm, picturesque Hanoi Lakes. Just a few minutes walk from the non-stop bustle of the Old Quarter, it made an ideal base.

Hanoi is one of the most atmospheric capitals in Asia, but this is also a city in a hurry to move into the 21st century. The energy and drive of its inhabitants is palpable, especially when you have to take your life in your hands to get to the other side of the street. (Best tip? Walk slowly, they will avoid you. Really.) A blend of old Asian grace and new Western buzz, Hanoi is a real study in contrasts: ancient pagodas and graceful colonial buildings alongside anonymous modern developments; elderly men on bicycles cycling serenely through streets clogged with hundreds of motorbikes; simple street stalls selling bowls of pho bo (the ubiquitous aromatic beef noodle soup) for less than 50c on the same road as pricey, cosmopolitan restaurants.

Despite my images of a steamy, tropical Vietnam — blame China Beach! — Hanoi was in the depths of winter and January was cool and humid. With temperatures between 13C and 20C and lots of Irish-style drizzle, there were no worries about protecting Hannah from the sun. Instead, it was a multi-layered baby, dressed up in leggings, a warm jersey and her little pink raincoat, that we carried around. We weren’t out long the first morning before Scott was startled by a slap on his arm. It came from a concerned little old lady, telling him off in floods of Vietnamese. As he gazed at her, puzzled, she indicated with vigorous hand movements that there was a half-inch gap between the child’s leggings and her sock. With Hannah attracting attention where ever we went, that was only the first of many friendly interactions with women cleaning chickens on the street, travelling banana sellers and bia hoi (fresh microbrew beer) drinkers outside bars. We quickly learned to nod thank you, smile and pull the socks up — until the next baby kick of delight exposed another bit of flesh.

Every time we paused, Hannah was quickly surrounded by friendly Vietnamese who wanted to chatter to, play with and comment on her. Their friendly attention was a little daunting initially but she — and we — quickly got used to it. When we sat down to have food or coffee, one waitress would take our order while another would whisk Hannah away to be cooed at and clucked over. Although I was anxious at first, seeing that the staff always kept the child nearby and that she was thoroughly enjoying herself, I soon relaxed. Before long, Hannah decided that this attention was her due, leaning out of our arms and towards waiting staff in anticipation of being picked up. Who would want to sit with Mama and Dada when there was a whole new group of people to meet? During the few times Hannah did stay with us, she delighted in the new tastes on offer, playing with my noodles, trying a sip of green tea and devouring spoonfuls of fresh mango smoothie.

Scott and I had been long used to setting our own travelling pace. It took a while to adjust to a slower, baby-focused take on things but, happily, Hannah-pace coincided with mealtimes. And the food of Hanoi is worth a trip alone. Each morning we headed to our favourite line of street stalls. Squatting on small plastic stools, we filled up on pho ga (chicken noodle soup) or banh cuon (rolled rice pancakes) then crossed the road for a cup of strong Vietnamese filter coffee, sweetened with condensed milk. Breakfast and Hannah socialising out of the way, it was back to the flat for her morning nap. Afternoons were for being a tourist: we visited the Temple of Literature and admired the giant stone tortoises through pouring rain; played in traditional village houses in the grounds of the Museum of Ethnology; and Hannah discovered plenty of echoes in the high ceilings of the stern Ho Chi Minh Museum. As a (brief) part of the Irish community in Hanoi, we were invited to a music and poetry event at the Irish embassy with Irish violinist Colm O’Riain and Sri Lankan poet Pireeni Sundaralingam. It was a real treat to get dressed up and snaffle some spectacular canapés — although we didn’t get a chance to listen to much of the evening’s proceedings. When, inspired by O’Riain’s violin, Hannah decided to contribute her own squawks to their magical Whalesong, it was time for a swift, red faced exit! She was better behaved on a brief visit to the Hilton for cocktails, playing peek-a-boo with the impeccably turned out staff while we took a break from streetside dining to relish our martinis in comfort.

While I didn’t get to live my China Beach dream and we didn’t travel as much in Vietnam as we had hoped, I was genuinely sad to leave Hanoi. Because of Hannah, we spent much more time talking to and interacting with the people around us. We got to see the city through her eyes, as a place of friendly, welcoming faces, ever-ready cuddles and exciting new flavours. Last memory? The taxi driver serenading a crying Hannah as he drove us to the airport, his eyes fixed more on the teary-eyed baby than the chaos ahead. Anything to see a small girl smile.

Flights

The most direct route to Hanoi is with Air France (airfrance.com) from Dublin, via Paris Charles de Gaulle. Malaysia Airlines (www.malaysiaairlines.com) flies from London Heathrow to Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia, and onwards to Hanoi. Cathay Pacific (www.cathaypacific.com) also flies from London.

Accommodation

There’s something for every budget in Hanoi. Follow in the footsteps of Graham Greene and Jane Fonda to the five-star, French colonial-style Sofitel Legend Metropole (from $280, www.sofitel-legend.com/hanoi), stay at the landmark Hilton Hanoi Opera (from $145, www3.hilton.com/) or check out the friendly Hanoi Charming 2 in the Old Quarter (from $50, www.hanoicharminghotel.com).

Things to Do

Hidden Hanoi (www.hiddenhanoi.com.vn) do a variety of walking tours; we loved their informative street food breakfast tour ($25).

The gatehouse of the former Hoa Lo Prison — given the ironic name of “Hanoi Hilton” by US POWs — is now an atmospheric museum, including displays focusing on Americans like Senator John McCain who were imprisoned here. Hanoi Cooking Centre (hanoicookingcentre.com) runs informative hands-on cooking classes ($55) and market tours, including a kids’ club.

Food

While we enjoyed getting dressed up for fine dining at Wild Lotus (www.wildlotus.com.vn) and Green Mango (www.greenmango.vn/), some of the best eating in Hanoi can be found on the roadside. Pho is unmissable but don’t miss the opportunity to try bun cha (barbecued pork with fresh noodles) and banh mi (a baguette sandwich, the best version of which is stuffed with pâté, sliced pork and pickled vegetables).

After the hurly burly of the street, head to the calm, Australian-run Hanoi Social Club (@HanoiSocialClub, [phone]. 6 Hoi Vu, Hoan Kiem) for veggie fare and quality espresso coffee.

Check out The New Hanoian (tnhvietnam.xemzi.com/en) for up to date reviews from locals. In terms of feeding a baby, I was breastfeeding Hannah, which made life easier, jars of food were easy to find and she loved all the fruit on offer.

Shopping

If you fall for the condensed milk-sweetened coffee in Hanoi, it’s worth picking up a small stainless steel drip filter and several bags of Vietnamese coffee to take home.

Old propaganda posters give a fascinating insight into Communist-era Vietnam and are easy to transport.

For traditional crafts, check out the fair-trade shop at the memorable Vietnam Museum of Ethnology (www.vme.org.vn).