08:30 start a full day city tour beginning with Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, which contains a rich collection of audio-visual documentation and more than 15,000 artifacts including life-size traditional houses depicting all aspects of life, culture, customs and belief of the 54 ethnic groups of Viet Nam. Continue to the Temple of Literature, known as the first university of Vietnam built in 1070 by the Ly Dynasty to honor Confucius, sages and outstanding Vietnamese scholars. Lunch at Bun Cha Huong Lien restaurant
Afternoon, visit the Ho Chi Minh Complex which features the life of Ho Chi Minh, the nation’s founder. Explore Ba Dinh Square, an important point of pilgrimage for many Vietnamese, the Presidential Palace, Ho Chi Minh Museum (outside) and the rural style Ho Chi Minh’s house on stilts where he lived and worked. Stop by one of Hanoi’s icons, the One Pillar Pagoda, built in the 11th Century in dedication to Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara or Buddha of Compassion and reminiscent of a lotus blossom rising from a pond. Then visit Hoan Kiem Lake or “Returned Sword Lake” which originated from a legend of a sacred sword. On an islet in the lake, there locates Ngoc Son Temple which is accessible by a classically red painted wooden bridge.
Finish the day tour with a Vietnamese coffee at at HIDDEN GEM COFFE - a unique café hidden away in a small alley at the heart of the Old Quarter. With about 95% furniture and decorations made from recycled materials, the café’s owner wants to contribute a part in protecting the environment, raising the community awareness, as well as spreading the message of nature protection to everyone, especially the young. Using the principle of “reduce – reuse – recycle”, all the scraps were cleaned, cut, grafted, and painted to make tables, chairs, decorative lights, and drinking cups. The group can admire tables made from wheel, unique murals, and a colorful veranda made from 1,000 plastic bottles. They also have chance to create some items from waste by themselves.
Meal: Breakfast, Lunch with Bun Cha Huong Lien
Overnight at hotel in Hanoi
Mikayla