VISITING VIETNAM

Leader editor Gina McAdam discovers that she can’t get enough of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.

The Far East is the world I grew up in, and despite a quarter of a century living in Europe and the UK, every year in the summer I still make that cherished long-haul journey to Manila and Hong Kong. Apart from the bustling, skyscraper city that is Makati, where established landmarks like the Mandarin Oriental, Shangri-La and Peninsula hotels evoke all the hauteur and amenities of another world, most of Metropolitan Manila can still fascinate the curious and intrepid with its hodgepodge of sounds, dwellings and smiling faces everywhere. Hong Kong, on the other hand, is at turns sleek and sublime, and mercantilist to the core. The truth is, given the choice, there is none -- you will never get enough of both.

Of this I was very much convinced after a meeting on behalf of Profile Leader with The Peninsula Hong Kong’s first female General Manager, the gracious Rainy Chan. I stepped out of ‘The Pen’ and into the Kowloon sunshine, feeling ten feet tall from all the warm Asian hospitality. Then the brief text message arrived -- my first ever trip to Vietnam was now confirmed. After a short stop in Manila, I was bound for Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi for a week of shopping, eating and pampering in some very smart hotels during the best time of the year. ‘I hope you’ll be keeping a diary,’ said Profile CEO Mark Norris when I told him. If only I had!

Vietnam is the gateway to Indochina, and Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) still clings to its ‘Paris of the Orient’ air, while the centre of Hanoi, with its interlocking, narrow commercial arteries reminded me, strangely enough, of parts of old Madrid. One only had to change the language of the shop signs. No wonder Asians, including those who live and work in Southeast Asia, choose to visit time and again; our soft currency goes further here. Ever pragmatic, my travelling companions – my mother and two sisters – had been there before.

Welcome to Ho Chi Minh City

So they laughed at my shock when our designated ‘limousine’ guide met us at Ho Chi Minh International Airport wearing little more than a T-shirt, flip-flops and a cheeky grin. The hour’s drive to District 1 and the elegant Lam Son Square was a journey through naked highways, dusty roads, low-rise buildings and – materialising suddenly out of nowhere – hives of mopeds and their alarming, handkerchief-masked drivers. Speed was matched by discipline. Seeing them all slow down and halt at the traffic lights was like watching a military formation.

The contemporary five-star Caravelle Hotel, which was celebrating its tenth anniversary, is GM John Gardner’s temple of temptation, and a haven to go back to. Especially since the view from our generous rooms overlooking the Saigon River reminded us of a real and all too lively world outside. The hotel is surrounded by stylish boutiques and offers the most sumptuous buffet breakfasts at Restaurant Nineteen (oysters in the morning!). Had it not been so crowded at night, we could have stayed at the rooftop Saigon Saigon Bar, enjoyed a – what else? -- Miss Saigon cocktail of vodka, rum, orange and cranberry juice and drank in the spectacular city views.

I would class myself as fairly slim, but the blade-like silhouettes of The Caravelle’s front-of-house and waiting staff in their lovely silk aoi dais – the traditional Vietnamese women’s costume worn everywhere – made me feel as though I should be spending more time in the gym. Certainly not indulging my ‘foodie-self’ as I was. Still, it couldn’t be helped!

Food to die for

Vietnamese food is exquisite, its presentation flawless. After spending five hours one afternoon shopping in the fabled Ben Thanh Market -- despite a total electricity black-out caused by flash monsoon rains – we spent whatever money we had left on a dinner of delicate coconut milk and lemon grass strewn prawn, crab and beef delicacies at the aptly named Lemon Grass restaurant on Nguyen Thiep Street. After another similarly elegant feast the following night at the Temple Club (you must try their fragrant house rose tea, which you can buy in foil pouches from reception), I knew that Vietnamese cuisine was now near the top of the list for me. Before flying north to Hanoi, I made a last trip down Ho Chi Minh City’s wide open boulevards to buy a book of local recipes for my favourite London chef.

Welcome to Hanoi

Imagine the experience of stuffing suitcases into the windows of a small, curtained shuttle bus. The two men operating our airport pick-up service in Hanoi were great sports, not seeming to mind the crushing weight of countless lacquer trays, ceramic tea sets, silk suits, linen table cloths and assorted handicrafts. We chugged into Hanoi – the name means ‘hinterland between the rivers’ -- passing rice paddies and monuments, rolling past tall, pagoda-like structures, either shops or homes. Once in central Hanoi, it was like deja vu, only amidst less grand, smaller streets – out came the swarms of motorcycles and mopeds. Pedestrians navigating Hang Bong Street or shopping at Hang Gai beware – traffic takes no prisoners in Hanoi.

An Asian masterpiece

But oh, to be a prisoner forever at the marvellous and romantic Sofitel Metropole. This is a real Asian masterpiece and home away from home to Jane Fonda in her ‘Hanoi Jane’ days.

We had the choice of staying in the classical wing, with its traditional colonial style rooms – all handsome dark wood – or else in the newer, neo-classical Opera wing, bright, airy, very red and white and French. We chose the Opera Wing, where from the lift we only had to walk a few steps to enjoy Executive Chef Boris Cuzon’s innovative haute cuisine in the airy Spices Garden Restaurant. There, I enjoyed my first Hanoi cha ca dish, an inviting assemble of fried chopped fish, ground spices including dill, shrimp paste, ground nuts, rice vermicelli and scented greens such as coriander and basil. After dinner, we‘d ask for our dessert to be taken at the adjacent Le Beaulieu restaurant before enjoying a nightcap at the Bamboo Bar. What a good life. I haven’t even begun to describe the breakfast menu, but eating several bowls of exquisitely scented pho before tucking into a cooked breakfast seemed sinful even then.

No problems

I found the Vietnamese people graceful and sweet, with their fluttering gestures and soft nasal voices. Yet I sensed underlying steel. Except for having to dodge mopeds, we never encountered any problems – not with public transport, the language or local currency. But I found it interesting that almost everyone, from street vendors to art dealers, quoted you the price in US dollars before revealing the equivalent in Vietnamese dong.

True, having a chic residence in Vietnam like The Caravelle and the Sofitel Metropole may have made all the difference, but so far, they’re all I know. Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are two more Asian cities that deserve a second or even third visit. Manila and Hong Kong, watch out.

If you would like to learn more about Gina McAdam's visit to Vietnam, you can contact her at gina@stratemarco.com