Singapore’s Tiger Cub
Check-in in around 0730 at Singapore Airport’s Budget Terminal was a surprise to me. It was much smaller than KLIA’s LCCT … and the place was more like a quiet hospital … whereas KL was like a busy bus station before Hari Raya.
It became obvious that Tiger Airways is not of the same scale as AirAsia … it is more of a cub than a grown-up Tiger, for now anyway. Somehow I had thought that the Singaporeans always do things bigger and better.
Introduction to Hanoi
The 3h30 flight to Hanoi, departing at 0940, went reasonably quickly. Arriving at 1210, we taxied to the Old Quarter of Hanoi where we checked into the Rendezvous Hotel, not too far from the lake. It turned out to be owned by an Australian couple.
The various streets of the old quarter are largely organised by trades, eg. One street for plumbing, another for silk and another for sheetmetal ware. The most memorable bits for us were:
Having Bia Hoi (local beer) for VND7,000 (about NZD0.42 or EUR0.20) per glass. It is a very light refreshing beer and is sold in local street cafes, often with customer sitting on kindergarten-height stools. The accompanying food was cheap too at NZD1.50 for delicious vegetables or tofu. Strangely we had really awful chicken as well for about NZD8 … which was nearly New Zealand pricing … and comparable to a posh Hanoi restaurant.
Coffins are about VND2.5 million (about NZD150). Kim had just spent NZD3000 for each of his parents’ coffins just recently … only to have them get cremated. The ones here seem to be solid wood too.
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- Old Quarter of Hanoi.
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- Hanoi roads are chocka with scooters. Crossing the road is easy … just shuffle your way across without looking and they’ll all go around you.
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- A bia hoi shop where the beer is about NZD0.40. Often the chairs are kindergarten-height.
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- A bia hoi shop where the beer is about NZD0.40. Often the chairs are kindergarten-height.
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- A bia hoi shop where the beer is about NZD0.40.
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- A bia hoi shop where the beer is about NZD0.40.
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- Hanoi roads are chocka with scooters. Crossing the road is easy … just shuffle your way across without looking and they’ll all go around you.
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- Old Quarter of Hanoi.
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- Old Quarter of Hanoi.
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- Hoan Kiem Lake in old Hanoi.
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- Hoan Kiem Lake in old Hanoi.
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- Hoan Kiem Lake in old Hanoi.
