HANOI • THE STOIC CAPITAL

Though it's the Vietnam War that lingers with those who know Vietnam through film, television, and personal experience, it's the French presence that strikes those who actually visit, especially in the capital city, Hanoi. There are stately French-built mansions and tree-shaded boulevards in Hanoi, art galleries in the Old Quarter selling works heavily influenced by French styles, cafés in the lake area serving French bread and drip filter coffee, and massive French villas of the embassy quarter.

The origin of some customs are French, but the interpretation is purely Vietnamese. The people still move at bicycle pace. On the streets, schoolgirls in graceful white ao dais pedal by, and women with conical hats sit on top of loads of produce, being wheeled around in bicycle-powered contraptions.

Proud and Prudish

We may be biased since our headquarters has always been here, but if you can only visit one city in Vietnam, indeed Southeast Asia, it should be Hanoi. To visit Hanoi is to steep yourself in history, tradition, and legend in a capital that has been inhabited continuously for a millennium. Hanoi is cleaner, leafier, and quieter than other big cities in Vietnam — in a word, it's "cooler." There's cooler weather, more drizzle, less traffic, less hype; the streets seem quieter, with few large billboards. There's a cooler mentality here, too-prouder, more prudish. Hanoi is a magnet for intellectuals and artists, while Saigon seems to attract entrepreneurs and hustlers.

The beauty of the city's buildings is unmatched in Indochina if not Asia. Hanoi's present architecture is mainly from the 19th and 20th centuries, and the stately French-built section of town is largely intact. Hanoi street life is fascinating and in the morning, you may glimpse tai chi practitioners, martial arts exponents, badminton players, and joggers along Hoan Kiem Lake, while bicyclists wearing berets ride past with baguettes tucked into their baskets. Strolling through the old French sector, you can find a street occupied by outdoor barbers clipping their customers in front of mirrors hung off building walls. On Trang Tien Street there's a beautician at work: a woman with a flashlight mounted on her head, cleaning a customer's ears. At street corners in the Old Quarter, men with green pith helmets chat over steaming bowls of noodles. Farther along the street, women sell fresh-cut flowers from the backs of bicycles.

In 2010, Hanoi celebrated it 1,000th anniversary and there is no slowing down, the city is a lively, filled with energy that will easily catch you up in its whirl. Cars and scooters race about amid tall buildings, creating the impression that you are in the midst of a thoroughly modern capital. Then, you'll turn a corner and see a cyclo, or bicycle-powered rickshaw, resting in front of a French Colonial building next to a mule cart.

Nowhere is this juxtaposition more palpable than in the Old Quarter, in the northwest quadrant of the city off Hoan Kiem Lake. This fascinating maze of historic streets overflows with little shops selling all sorts of wares. As chaotic as it seems, there is an underlying order. In the early days, trade guilds were given control over certain streets, and only those shops dealing in affiliated goods could locate there. Thus, there is a cloth street, a bamboo street and so on. This tradition continues today, you will see in many cities a street devoted to more modern trades but still ordered by streets, including electronics and yet another to truck repair.

HALONG BAY

Halong Bay is a fascinating geological wonderland featuring nearly three thousand picturesque limestone peaks jutting up from placid waters, creating a sublime setting. Here the calm waters are wonderfully suited for easy kayaking close up to the limestone formations that offer fantasy water landscapes of exploration. The UNESCO World Heritage Site is dotted with large caves that once served as hidden bunkers for pirates, revolutionaries, and bandits that we will may explore on foot and kayak, or simply laze on deck watching the mesmerizing scenery drift by from your comfortbale mother ship.

If you want an idea of how beautiful Halong Bay is, watch the French film Indochine. Now imagine cruising or kayaking these same placid, emerald waters through caves into hidden lakes and white-sand beach coves, your small kayak gliding beneath towering limestone peaks.

There is no other place like this in the world, a cruising experience on par with the Blue Voyage along Turkey's coast. Indeed, the romantic setting of rugged island peaks and bays dotted with sailing junks has inspired a whole genre of Vietnamese painting.

Highlights of Halong Bay

Placid Waters
With over 2,000 karst peaks tame the South China Sea, settling it into a glassy smooth surface — perfect for beginning kayakers, swimming, and of course those who are sensitive to motion.<

Attentive Service

During the trip we dine and overnight on a clean, comfortable replica of a traditional wooden cruiser, the finest boat on Halong Bay — the Huong Hai. Private cabins have lavatories and twin beds. Spacious areas above deck and inside provide solitude when needed.

The Halong Bay boats we charter are well maintained, comfortable, with an attentive crew. In addition to the crew, you are accompanied by an experienced guide from our Hanoi office to ensure your cruise is perfect and to provide escort by kayak.

Newer boats are launched each season, often replacing some of the charter boats below. We do not recommend the larger cruise boats, such as the 36-cabin Emeraude or Halong Ginger, being also constructed of wood can be crowded and noisy not to mention cruising a rote itinerary through the bay. All charters include an option for kayaking with our experienced guide in tandem or single kayaks. On board dining is wonderful, with an array of Vietnamese, seafood and Western dishes, and any dietary requirements can be arranged, as well as special occasions celebrations, such as birthdays or anniversaries.

HUE • THE IMPERIAL CAPITAL

Hue has largely been bypassed by the wave of development that has washed over Saigon and Hanoi, remaining a pleasant outpost on the central coast. Located roughly halfway between Hanoi and Saigon, Hue is arguably (but in our opinion) Vietnam's most picturesque and pleasant city. The landscape here-with its misty Perfume River and pagodas is inspiration for poetry and painting. While Danang, only an hour to the south, succumbs to over development of industry, resorts, shipping, and into air transport gateway, Hue remains the religious and academic heart of the country.

A highlight of visiting Hue are the imperial tombs are scattered in the countryside four to eight miles south of Hue, but we will start our visit in Hue on the south bank, passing where the old French quarter was once located. The tree-lined avenues around Le Loi Boulevard are great places to appreciate the history of the city. Along the waterfront was prime French real estate: in the north, the Customs House; between the two bridges, the Circle Sportif, official residences, and colonial villas; to the south, the French-constructed railroad bridge. The tombs themselves are relatively modern but one should visit at least the most impressive pair, Khai Dinh and Tu Duc.

HOI AN • Ancient Port of Trade

A small jewel on the central coast, Hoi An is an ancient port town on the Thu Bon River, just three miles inland from white sand beaches fronting the South China Sea. In the past, it was one of the most important trading ports in Southeast Asia before its port silted and influence ebbed. Although it is no longer bustling with international trade nor hosting sailors and merchants from China, Japan, and Portugal, it is certainly getting a new lease on life by attracting tourists in its uniquely charming way, with chunks of its Old Quarter given over to restored hotels, cafes, restaurants, and galleries and, in 1999, Hoi An became a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its efforts.

Hoi An is the quintessential Vietnamese town of the imagination with idyllic location, traditional architecture, great cuisine and small town vibe have made it a favorite for travelers. Despite success, the town for the most part has grown its tourist trade tastefully and even rationally, closing off the central area to motorized traffic (no small feat in Asia and which you will witness in Hanoi).

Although the main industry in town is now tourism, replacing fine furniture crafting in the 90s, with chunks of its Old Quarter given over to hotels, cafes, restaurants, and souvenir shop, this should not dissuade a visit or longer stay—the unique and picturesque setting of the small town makes it typically a favorite stop for most travelers. The natural and cultural sites around the town make it a must visit and indeed the charming town is typically cited as past traveler's favorite place in the country.

Hoi An is a rare place in Vietnam where you'll find genuine Vietnamese architecture. The Old Quarter, though heavily influenced by Chinese and lined with French row houses, still has vestiges of native architecture which survived the American war untouched though aged by periodic flooding which may rise up over the first floors some years.

Crafts Crawl

A focus of our touring in Hoi An will be viewing the variety of sophisticated crafts, design and fashion produced in Hoi An, visiting prominent shops, galleries, and studio, meeting with top artists, curators, and producers in the small town which has a long history of fine craftsmanship. We’ll also enjoy Hoi An’s well preserved French architecture along the Thu Bon River which fronts the town.

Bamboo Bikes

Vo Tan Tan in Hoi An
Vo Tan Tan is one of Hoi An's more fascinating craftsmen. An engineer, Vo is making biking even more eco-friendly making custom, hand-made bikes, mostly from bamboo. Vo's bikes are premium frames, made for European and Australian clients costing from 10-40 million dong (US$446-$1,786), with special customized ones costing over $4,500. Tan makes around 50 of his unique bikes a year. During a visit, we'll learn about Vo's special eco-friendly craft and philosophy.

FLORENCE MUSSOU

Visit with the co-founder of high-end fashion shops in Hanoi, Saigon, and Hoi An (here or in Saigon by availability), Metisekois Florence’s latest project, featuring women’s clothing and homeware. Situated in the heart of the UNESCO heritage site, the brand is imbued with Hoi An’s silk traditions and Japanese, French and Chinese influences. Meiseko follows environmentally friendly manufacturing processes and utilizes only organic cottons by working with GOTS certified cotton producers, and 100% natural silk sourced from Vietnam’s highlands. Inspired by travels and Vietnamese iconic symbols, Florence and her designers merge the two by applying vibrant, colorful and chic designed prints on their fashion and home products.

Ancient Ceramics
During the 15th century, off the Hoi An coast of Vietnam in the South China Sea, a trading vessel filled with porcelain vanished without a trace. Five hundred years later, in 1999, archaeological excavation bought the collection back up. Altogether 244,000 artifacts were retrieved, with a miraculous 150,000 of these pieces still intact. A subsequent Butterfield auction event grossed more than $2.8 million, and represented the largest consignment from a single source ever handled by the firm’s Asian art department.

FLASH FASHION
What Hoi An tailors lack in quality (compared with those Bangkok and Hong Kong), it more than makes up with drama. "Flash fashion," the ability to create or duplicate clothes just overnight, is a feature and amusing experience of the town. The quality nor textiles are not on par with that found in Hong Kong or Bangkok, but the instant gratification and ability to duplicate a favored article of clothing with charming staff is part of the show or reason to have something made here. We will visit Yaly Couture, the largest, for a private tour of their large production space.

SIEM REAP • Legacy of an Empire

"Here then are those temples which for so long seemed like visions... Here are the foundations, the plinths, the galleries, the extraordinary domes resembling multi-ringed tiaras" —Claude Farrere, L'illustration, 1931

If you've come this far to the region, you will certainly not want to miss the "Prize of Southeast Asia" — the Temples of Angkor — short one-hour flight from Danang or Bangkok or ninety minutes from Hanoi or Luang Prabang. Angkor what? Many people have heard of the main temple Angkor Wat, but Angkor consists of over 70 discovered ruins spread over 200 square kilometers. Angkor Wat itself is a kilometer-wide and the greatest Buddhist monument ever constructed. There are astounding structures of equal impact surrounding it. This density of ruins is unparalleled anywhere else in the world, and has been aptly called the "Nile Valley of Asia."

No longer is a visit to Siem Reap limited to simply a place to stay while visiting nearby Angkor—the small town has come unto its own and is now one of the most delightful small-town destinations in Asia. Gone are the seedy casinos, brothels, and characters out of a John le Carre novel, replaced by chic boutiques, outstanding expat-chef founded restaurants, street shopping, and a local vibe that is upbeat and friendly. Expats have discovered the charms and along with overseas Cambodians are buying property, seeting up businesses and retiring there.

With a delightful collection of the country's best cafes and restaurants, the busy and restless nature of its inhabitants, or the abundance of great shopping, Siem Reap is an invigorating and intoxicating place. It is no surprise that Siem Reap, exudes a youthful, inventive energy — after all, most of its dwellers are younger than 35.

A dynamic spirit shines through in quirky cafes, innovative and rising cuisine, and boutiques selling homegrown fashion. And when you need a breather from all that’s new and fabulous, it is easy to steal quiet moments in rustic colonial hotels, contemplative art spaces, and pleasant cafes.

As for the temples, although the crowds have grown exponentially in recent years, we have adjusted our trips to access the temples that you may enjoy them during blissfully tranquil times with few, if any, others around.

Arts in Siem Reap

For more than 20 years well-known artist Lim Muy Theam ("Theam") has sought to revive the Cambodian fine arts and craft sector, including founding of a art cooperative which provides for apprentices internships in art. Learn of Theam’s vision as he shares his deep artistic and technical knowledge of Khmer art and local culture, and about Cambodia's artistic legacy. We will visit Theam’s house gallery to experience and view his art pieces firsthand, including paintings, sculptures, or lacquer ware.