This time of the year, you may be thinking of wintry scenes of roaring fires and cozy cups of hot chocolate with cookies. But for folks like me, it’s the season to travel to Vietnam and other hot places in Asia.
I'm a wimp. Despite being born in Vietnam, I can’t endure the humid temperatures of Southeast Asia for long. I’ve lost my ability to weather the uncomfortable heat. I melt. I'd rather spend extra money on airfare to travel to the motherland in the drier, cooler months. Many people return to visit family for Tet (January 31 in 2014). I go just to touch base, check things out.
I’ve been fielding a number of emails lately about visiting Vietnam. The queries are coming in from first-time visitors to the country. I answered their questions but imagine that you have insights too. How about contributing your knowledge? Or posing a question yourself. I’ll share what I know below.
Where to go: Keep in mind the weather, and what you're willing to pack and carry. For example, during January, Hanoi (northern region) and Hue (central region) can be cold, damp, and dreary – like the Bay Area and Pacific Northwest. Saigon (southern region) is hot, just not super hot like say, in the summer months.
During this time of the year, I’d avoid visiting all three regions unless you want to pack for different climates. T-shirts and sandals are for Saigon and its environs. Go up to Hue and/or Hanoi and you’ll want to layer up; pack a sweater, jacket, and closed-toe shoes.
What to eat: I usually spot food that looks good and fresh, and go for it. I’m also looking at who is making the food. There are few restaurants or joints that I keep on my short list. Heck, I really don’t have a short list.
However, I keep a hit list of foods I want to try. For instance, if you can squeeze these three noodle soups into a visit to Vietnam, you’ll savor the regional differences: beef pho (northern), spicy beef and pork bun bo Hue (central), Phnom Penh-style hu tieu nam vang (southern). You may not get to the actual regions to savor dish in situ, but you’ll have a sense of the range of flavors in the Viet repertoire. For the ultimate, delectable mash-up, eat banh mi.
Prep your taste buds for parsing the Viet flavors with this by Saigon-based journalist Connla Stokes. Read travel guide books, historic novels like Camilla Gibb’s, and cookbooks to start wrapping your head around things.
Health precautions: Keep up your immune system before and during the trip to Vietnam. My friend, Dr. Mike, is an infectious disease expert. For tummy troubles, he recommended: Pepto Bismol as a first response, and if things get bad, try Imodium, but it can stop you up. How about Cipro? Only if things get really really bad, he said. Cipro is not as effective as it used to be because certain bacteria in Asia have learned to adapt to it. More on this post about safe eating tips in Vietnam.
Cooking classes in Vietnam: I have never taken a cooking class in Vietnam because I’m usually learning from things I eat and people I meet. That’s not for everyone. Increasingly you’ll find cooking classes in well-visited cities in Vietnam. Ask the hotel where you’re staying, look in English-language local papers, even check online before you go. The Hanoi Cooking Centre, owned and operated by Australian ex-pat Tracey Lister is terrific.
I just found this combo of hotel and cooking program from the Hue Tourism College at Villa Hue. There’s also this interesting offering from the Mai Home, which bills itself as the Saigon Culinary Art Center.
Street food tours in Vietnam: If you’re hankering for deep, food-savvy knowledge get a guide. In Hanoi, Van Cong Tu and Mark Lowerson make a great team for filtering the delicious finds in the nation’s capitol; details are on their Hanoi Street Food Tours site.
Saigon also has a similar Viet-Australian combination of tour guides in Saigon Street Eats. I kind of like the sound of these Back of the Bike tours because you get to zip around Saigon on the back of a motorbike, stop, then eat. If that’s not your speed, consider a walking food tour with Jodi Ettenberg’s just-launched Jodi Eats.
I liken Hoi An to be somewhat like the Santa Barbara of Vietnam. It’s pretty, hospitable, and easy. You can eat well by wandering the street, or hook up with Hoi An Food Tour.
Travel visas to Vietnam: You need a visa. It takes time to obtain. Note that overseas Vietnamese can get a 5-year exemption. I’ve written about the process in this post.
Be prepare, be flexible, and have a good time.
Do you have recommendations? Share them below. Thanks.
Linda Anusasananan
About 10 to 12 years ago I took a tour with the CIA (Culinary Institute of America) with Mai Pham (Sacramento author and restaurant owner) as the leader. She was a fabulous tour leader. We ate street food as well as eating in restaurants. She had an assistant who went to all our eating locations first to wash all the fresh raw herbs with clean water so we wouldn't get sick. Said we really couldn't experience the true taste of the cuisine if we skipped the raw herbs. Went from South to North. Don't think they still do this tour, but it was a great food trip.
Andrea Nguyen
Linda, that's a precious story. An assistant to wash raw veggies before I arrive to eat. Now that's service! Thanks for sharing. Very cool.
Jodi
Thanks for including me, Andrea! It was great to meet you this summer and hope we can do so again on Vietnamese soil one of these days. Congrats on the new book's cover -- it looks great.
Andrea Nguyen
My pleasure, Jodi. Hope to see you sooner than later and good luck with "Jodi Eats!"
Brendan Riddle
Angela, Merry Christmas to you and your family. This year my family decided to forgo our traditional Christmas lunch (usually we eat a selection of cured meats and cheeses at the table while opening stocking gifts) and decided to do something different that we all love but rarely get the chance to eat: Bahn Mi!
My family and I have lived throughout the US but are primarily from the Northern Virginia/Washington DC area and since an early age have been practically raised on cha gio, goi cuon and pho.
My mom and I tried out your bahn mi dough recipe a few weeks ago to make sure we got it right for Christmas and after two tries (and tweaks to help the recipe work with our kitchen) we absolutely nailed it. We paired the bread with your lemongrass pork and honestly it could not have been better. Your lemongrass pork marinade is just spot on.
I stumbled upon your website while looking for a good pork marinade about six weeks ago and have since returned more times than I could remember. So I wanted to pass along a sincere thank you for your contribution to our wonderful Christmas.
Vonny
My hubby is from Danang and we use to own one of the two Asian markets in Austin, TX. I have been to Vietnam many time over the last 15 years. I love it there. The food is exceptional. They have food there that you cannot find in the US. We eat Pho for breakfast and street food for lunch and then go to a restaurant for diner. My daughter and I went to the Caravelle hotel on one trip for lunch and she ended up with horrible food poisoning from a hamburger she ate, so even the nicer place can make you sick. I have also had food poisoning that was pretty bad and took me three days to recover from. It was bound to happen if you eat enough. We are always very careful about where we eat especially with the street vendors. Some of the things I see at the markets tells me why the Viet people have such strong stomachs. I miss the food when I come home and can't wait for my next trip back. It is a wonderful country.
Andre
Well, I visited Vietnam in last summer and it was an awesome experience for me so, I would love to see this wonderful destination again. Halong bay and Hoi an are the most fascinating places which I love the most. Moreover, food was the ultimate one.
Andrea Nguyen
Hi Brendan!
Thanks so much for taking the time to write. You made my day. I'm delighted to know that you're putting this site to good use and that I'm a small part of your kitchen.
Happy New Year.
Andrea Nguyen
Love your stories, Vonny. The time I had really bad stomach issues in Asia was eating a salad at a Pizza Hut in Hong Kong. Sometimes Western food isn't well handled in Asia as people aren't used to manipulating it for food safety. I guess I should have tried a McDonald's hamburger?
Andrea Nguyen
Cool, Andre. Great to hear that the Viet experience continues to be a positive one.
Marion
In Hoi An, Red Bridge Cooking School was great learning and great fun. And we will be joining Jodi on her walking tour of Saigon food in late January. So excited to go with her after following her blog for a couple of years, Legal Nomad.
Karen Himmer
Wow! What can I say about our trip to Vietnam? First, we found a wonderful travel agent, Mrs. Ha, who owns Vietland Discovery Tours in DaNang. She organized everything for us - hotels, flights, guides, drivers, city tours, street food tours, cooking class, everything went as planned. Can't recommend her enough.
We started in Hanoi, then to HaLong Bay for a three day cruise. So beautiful! Sea kayaking, visiting a floating fishing village, the ever-changing scenery.
After that, then the overnight train to Sapa. We trekked in the mountains with a guide and several hill tribe ladies who managed to keep me from sliding off the mountains. Spent the night with a family in TaVan and got to help make dinner. A highlight for me. Trekked back the next day through the beautiful terraced rice fields.
Then a flight to Hue which was a bit of a disappointment for us.
But on to Hoi An, my favorite city. Such a lovely, quaint village. One of the few places that was not bombed during the "American War". Got to have a day-long private class with Ms. Vy of the Morning Glory Cooking School. She has been called the "Julia Child of Vietnam". Her cookbook is a work of art.
Then on to Saigon where we had a driver take us to the jungle lodge at Cat Tien. Stayed in a terrific tent in the jungle and bushwhacked for a day through the jungle looking for gibbons. Never did see much of the wildlife that was mentioned in the guide books. Our lodge manager said the locals ate them all. Anyway it was nice to spend time in nature and we did see a lot of interesting birds.
Back to Saigon but then off to the Mekong Delta where we stayed with a family along the river. Fascinating to see how people live along the river. Had a great time with our family, cooking dinner, and playing with the kids.
Back to Saigon for some major shopping at the Ben Thanh market which was 1 block from our hotel.
As far as food - we ate it all, everywhere. Restaurants, street stalls, back alleys, and private homes. It was all amazing and safe. I did have a bit of a stomach problem once in Saigon after eating com hen (tiny little clams) at a street stall. Probably not a good idea but Kim Faye in her book "Communion" said it was her favorite dish, so I had to give it a try. It tasted good but did not agree with me.
We were in Vietnam for over a month and still don't feel like we really saw everything. I think next time I would like to go to DaLat. Everyone says it's very beautiful there.
When people asked me why I wanted to go to Vietnam, I find myself mostly at a loss for words. I think it had a lot to do with an old Anthony Bourdain episode where he said he wanted to retire there. He has seen most of the world and Vietnam is where he wants to spend the rest of his life. That sounded like a good enough reason to go check it out.
I must say I am totally enchanted by this beautiful country with its amazing food. Can't wait to go back .
Thanks Andrea for your books. They really help me when I teach (I am a culinary instructor) because I can really visualize your train of thought. And I feel like I am getting the real story from a Vietnamese chef.
Bruce McLeod
Andrea,
How timely your comments are on traveling in SE Asia.
Five of us (retired or nearly so) took a month long trip to Thailand & Vietnam via Hong Kong from mid November to early December.
This wasn't an organized/escorted tour, but one we planned ourselves. Our first evening meal in Hong Kong Was at a local street market.
Although my wife and I have frequently eaten street food in Mexico, with occasional GI issues, our approach in Asia was acceptance of the greater role played by fresh herbs/vegetables in both Thai & Vietnamese cuisine. We were careful about where we ate on the street and none of us had any GI problems whatsoever.
I'd stumbled across Mark Weins' "Migrationology" website while preparing for the trip and was determined to visit this street food vendor.
http://www.eatingthaifood.com/2013/07/thai-seafood-somsak-pu-ob-bangkok/
When we arrived at the location, a bit before 5:00pm, he was just beginning to set up, and my skeptical companions gave me that..."Are you kidding?" look. We took a short tour of this interesting, vibrant neighbourhood, then returned to the corner and ordered. When the food arrived, sizzling and intensely aromatic, Mark's assessment was confirmed. This turned out to be our most memorable street meal of the whole trip.
We spent 16 fabulous days on Phu Quoc, eating seafood at the night market every day.
What were your thoughts on the food on Phi Quoc?
Jane Doe Nguyen
Hallelujah Vonny! Thank you for the warning about food poisoning. My family also had a pretty bad food poisoning recently while eating some grilled porks at an entertainment park near Cu Chi, Sai Gon. My 5 and 8-year-old sons were rushed to the local private hospital and luckily recovered in 2 days. I got a horrible diarrhea that lasted 5 days and had to hurry back to be admitted to Kaiser in Santa Clara, California for some stronger prescribed medicines.
Other than food and drink safety including ice and veggies, I love to travel to Viet Nam! Most people there are friendly and hospitable with some really beautiful natural sites like Ha Long Bay, several breath-taking waterfalls in Da Lat and Sapa, Nha Trang shores and romantic rural Mekong Delta.
Watch out for robbery and pickpocketing. I would not wear any valuable jewelry if you value your life.