It sounds like the beginning of a joke: How do you cross the street in Vietnam? (Possible punchlines: “You don’t,” “You start by taking out a life insurance policy,” or “You buy a motorbike.”) As any visitor who has been to Vietnam knows, the quickest way to spot the newbie traveler in town is to look for a timid and bewildered expression on a Westerner’s face as they attempt to cross the street.

Given the seemingly endless gridlock of motorbikes everywhere, the complete lack of stoplights (or adherence to their rules) and the cultural assumption that crossing the street by foot is not something to done in any logical (or safe) manner, crossing the street in Vietnam can initially seem like an impossible task.

The NY Times recently wrote about the average tourists’ plight with the task of crossing the busy streets, and how hotels are resorting to handing out tip sheets entitled “How to cross roads” to help visitors make their way through the city. The reason for this recent problem? The answer, in short, is rapid development.

A decade or so of capitalist fervor has transformed Hanoi’s once-quiet, tree-lined boulevards and side streets into roaring rivers of rubber and steel. Tourists, when they are not cowering in their hotel rooms, can be spotted standing by the side of the road wearing expressions that range from startled to stupefied . . .

“Life was easy and calm,” Mr. Thinh said. “Now everyone is stressed; people want to make money.” He attributes the traffic conditions in Hanoi to migrants from the countryside, who ride through the packed, narrow streets according to the traffic rules of their home villages, which is to say none at all.

My own experience leads me to offer the following advise as to the best way to cross the street in Vietnam.

1) Forget about looking for a break in traffic, chances are you’re not going to find one. Accept this fact and move on.

2) Look in the direction of the source of traffic and enter the street.

3) Keep you head up and eyes toward the coming traffic as you make your way forward.

4) Despite your overconfident spacial reasoning and logic skills, don’t bother trying to walk in a manner timed to avoid collision. Simply walk straight at a slow and measured pace. Do not stop, slow or increase your speed. The reality is, the other drivers don’t want to hit you, and they will simply slow down and move accordingly around you. Erratic direction or speed changes will increase the likelihood of disaster.

5) Finally, be confident. Though you may seem like the underdog in this cat and mouse scenario, the truth is drivers are dealing with pedestrians all day long and are used to slowing down and slightly changing their direction to accommodate them. Timidity will simply throw off their timing and may land you in a Vietnamese hospital room.

To help things out a bit, try to placate your fears with plenty of street food around town and remember, the best part of the experience is how natural you will look to newly arrived visitors after you’ve spent a few days practicing.

The post How To Cross The Street In Vietnam appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.

Fresh from the crop of travel videes from our “Travel Videos” Vimeo group comes Asiantrip TV’s mini-epic from the Ha Long Bay portion of their trip in Southeast Asia. Yes, that is dreary fall outside your window you’re looking at. Yes, these French students are having way more fun than you right now. Cruel, cruel world.

[Vimeo “Travel Videos” Group]

The post Setting Sail In Ha Long Bay [Video] appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.

A lesson I’ve yet to learn in my own videos is that sometimes, in travel videos, it’s best to just shut your trap and let the destination do the talking. I mean, let’s be honest, it’s not you the viewers are really looking to see, it’s the destination. Case in point, the above video of Hanoi shot by Matt Devir that utilizes some fancy camera work and ambient music to tell a story much richer and moving than any words could ever do.

From the juxtaposition of the iconic image of women carrying baskets strung on a pole across their shoulders against the backdrop of one of the fastest industrializing cities in the world, to the shots of the night market filled with teenagers having dinner while crowded around small tables, Hanoi seems to be telling a story at nearly every street corner within its bustling borders, and beckoning the eager listener to sit down for the tale.

[Matt Devir/Vimeo]

[The Expeditioner Travel Video Group/Vimeo]

The post How To Tell The Story Of Hanoi In Minutes [Video] appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.

Dear Hanoi, you can have your cacophony of unrelenting horns. Me? I’ll revel in the bliss that is your cuisine. This month’s photo contest winner, Jonathan Hall, did just that. In his own words:

Hanoi’s dining scene can be daunting at first as there are rarely any menus. You just walk along until you see something that looks good, sit down and communicate how many portions you want. At 67 Hang Dieu Street, Hanoi, Bun Bo Nam Bo is typical of Hanoi’s street eateries in that they only do one dish, and they do it well.

The restaurant itself is always busy and will test your ability to sit comfortably on Hanoi’s ubiquitous tiny plastic stools. It is a deep, narrow cave of a restaurant that somehow also manages to fit in a second, mezzanine level. As an accompaniment to what you see in the photo, they also serve Nem Chua, which is a pressed, cured pork sausage rolled up in a banana leaf, which explains the excess of green detritus on the restaurant floor. The clientele is young and hip and located right in the middle of Old Hanoi.

This shot is a quality recipe of lighting, action, still, and delicious. However, for Luke, it was awful. Terrible. And never again should Team Expeditioner vote on a contest winner, as delicious as this shot, on a day that Luke skips breakfast. Sorry man, we’ll plan a little better in the future.

Congratulations to American Jon and his shot of Bun Bo Nam Bo from Hanoi. Take a phenomenal photo tour through his shots and experiences from London to Laos by clicking through to his Flickr page.

Our June Contest is ready to roll! There are those moments when you stand at the foot of the precipice, or on top of a mountain, and before you is a sight never to be forgotten. Those moments when our eyes make us stop and take it all in. So many places remind us of these moments. Our next photo contest, lasting throughout the month of June, TheExpeditioner.com asks, “Where’s your inspiration?” Is it a view to the horizon or a view into history? Whatever it may be, submit your shots of “Inspring Vistas” for a chance to win June’s travel photography contest at The Expeditioner’s Flickr group.
By Jon Wick

About the Author

Jon lives in Butte, Montana, spending most of his time on skis or bikes; sometimes both. He began travel writing while teaching in Korea and is currently pursuing his Master’s Degree in Technical Communication at Montana Tech. Jon has begun writing his first book, The Story of Will, whose movie rights are still (very) available. Catch more of Jon at TheJonWickproject.wordpress.com. (@ExpedJon)

The post The Expeditioner’s May Travel Photo Contest Winner: Hanoi Eatery appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.

I never saw the movie “Indochine.” According to its summary, the flick was released in 1992, and is about a French naval officer and his young Vietnamese lover who are escaping banishment. They seek refuge in the labyrinthine crags erupting from the sea in Ha Long Bay. Those of you that caught the flick were probably amazed at the beauty of floating amidst the thousands of broken pillars — and you were most likely smitten instantly.

At least I was. Just over a year ago, I walked the early morning streets of Hanoi’s Old Quarter to meet our mini-bus at a tour company’s office. At this point we were fully acclimatized to the madness of Hanoi: incessant honking from the never-ending onslaught of scooters ruling the seemingly lawless roads. In fact, even at that time in the morning, I took comfort in the craziness. The noise enveloped me like a puffy down blanket on a cold winter morning. It was like nowhere I had ever been.

The three-hour drive to Ha Long City was uneventful, and was mostly spent getting to know the other group members who’d all be spending the next three days together aboard a junk boat (my itinerary also included a night in a beach bungalow). We were then shepherded towards our unexpectedly nice boat of stained mahogany, sweet drinks in hand. I tossed a small bag onto the bed of my cabin, looked out a circular window as we passed other junks on their way to the open sea, and I instantly knew this had been money well spent.

The next couple of days consisted of reading Harry Potter (yes, you read that right, don’t judge) with my feet crossed on the railing of the boat, jumping off the top deck into bathtub-temperature water, kayaking caves and inlets of hidden islands, and eating exotic seafood caught from the waters beneath the boat. Sunsets were mesmerizing, drinks were cold, and the peace of this incredible beauty will be with me forever.

The Sydney Morning Herald’s recent article about Ha Long Bay, thankfully, brought these memories gushing back into my head. The UNESCO World Heritage Zone, labeled two years after the release of “Indochine,” is also rightly described in the piece as “a hanging garden of Eden.”

I haven’t seen this spellbinding movie, nor have I been to the Garden of Eden, but that doesn’t matter. I’ve been to Ha Long Bay, and that may be the next best thing.

[photo by jonwick04/Flickr via The Expeditioner Pool]

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I arrived in Hanoi airport after a white-knuckle roller coaster courtesy of the lingering typhoon in the area. I had no idea what to expect, really. My idea of Southeast Asia was something along the lines of a ramble through Cambodia and Laos. Like the good relationship maintainer that I am, I put those on the back burner for my fiance’s choice, Hanoi.

This article at the Financial Times reminded me of that wide-eyed taxi ride into the heart of the Old Quarter. My first surprise was the conglomeration of architecture that blindsided me. Traditional houses are flanked by ominously tall, brick and stucco French-influenced buildings, and the scattering of temples and churches makes the appearance of this energetic city mirror the chaotic roads that entangle it.

Our next few days were spent wandering the labyrinth of streets making up the Old Quarter. Everything was thrust into our faces; not the hawkers, but the life that makes up the streets. Everything takes on a worn, hard-working look to it.

As the FT puts it, “There’s hardly a sharp edge or sleek surface to be seen; everything has been worn down by human hands, pollution, rain, heat and floods.” People selling their goods everywhere, bia hoi’s being sold next to pho noodle stands, all while the gazillion horns seem to make a constant noise you learn to tune out. It’s a poetic pandemonium of energy and life within the city.

“Hanoi, Vietnam’s capitol, is a city in sepia.”

I was seduced by it all. So much, that I know I will walk those streets again. Maybe even before I get to those other places I want to get to.

The post The Sepia-Toned Pandemonium Of Hanoi, Vietnam appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.

The ‘09 is wrapping up, a phenomenal year for TheExpeditioner and, well, travel in general (when is it not?). I think my eyes are actually welling up. Reflection aside, we look to the future. Where are your top spots you’d like to get to in 2010?

Frommer’s offers their top ten destinations around the globe. Detailing what they call some “under the radar” spots, they list Tunisia since it’s usually bypassed for Morocco, Abu Dhabi rather than its neighbor Dubai, and changing attitudes about Cuba making it a great spot already taken advantage of by non-Americans. Also listed is the Salta Province, Argentina which Brittany can probably attest to.

Then there are a few that I can personally attest to. Hanoi, Vietnam is a buzzing hub of culture I will make every effort to visit soon (I hope). Denmark is so often rated the happiest place on earth, but it’s capital, Copenhagen, might never get the credit it deserves, no matter how much it gets. On the bottom of the list, they snuck in the Florida Panhandle — as if we wouldn’t notice.

Yes, the town of Seaside was the set of The Truman Show. Yes, it may not get the respect it deserves, but don’t describe it as the “Redneck Riviera” and expect us to think it’s one of the top spots to visit in the world.

Then I realized why I almost cried . . .

The post Frommer’s (Almost) Top Ten Destinations for 2010 appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.

Wandering the labyrinth of streets that makes up Hanoi’s Old Quarter district, by no other skill than dumb luck, I found myself on Hang Hanh Street, in other words, “Coffee Street.” I claim not to be a connoisseur in the way of the bean, but have always appreciated a quality cup of Joe, so the racks upon racks of coffee caught my eye.

I quickly accepted the shop keeper’s invitation to sample, what he called, “Weasel Coffee.” What met my lips was nearly heaven in coffee form; an effortless combination of richness and smooth flavor.

As if he made sure I had one drink under my belt, he placed a sheet of paper on the table explaining the coffee’s back story. As the name suggests, this coffee is eaten, and consequently regurgitated by rare Vietnamese weasels. According to a Vietnam travel guide, there is no explanation as to why the “evacuation” happens, but it is known the gastric process of the weasels alter the beans to provide a vastly unique and superior taste.

Thankfully, the process is now done through synthetic means, but the history of the cup is definitely worth noting. Perhaps with the newfound caffeine fix, you can try taking on the nearly ten million motorbikes on the roads of Vietnam. I decided not to, mainly because my backpack was exploding with newly purchased weasel coffee, and that would surely effect my mobility.

By Jon Wick

About the Author

Jon lives in Butte, Montana, spending most of his time on skis or bikes; sometimes both. He began travel writing while teaching in Korea and is currently pursuing his Master’s Degree in Technical Communication at Montana Tech. Jon has begun writing his first book, The Story of Will, whose movie rights are still (very) available. Catch more of Jon at TheJonWickproject.wordpress.com. (@ExpedJon)

The post Nothing Like A Nice Cup Of…Weasel Regurgitation? appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.

I’ve always wanted to learn how to fly, and now I really want to learn how to fly while in Hawaii. Highlight: Check out Akaka Falls at 3:16. Probably amazing on the ground, but even more so from a thousand feet in the air.

Colin something-or-rather (his mic somewhat blows) over at HostelWorld.com brings you “Dublin: 10 Things You Need To Know,” just in time for St. Patrick’s Day or for those of you taking advantage of $300 flights to the Irish capital in April – ahem, more about that to come. Highlight: 2:59 — All the city’s national museums and galleries are free. You had me at free.

This Lonely Planet video on Hanoi kind of works as a bookend to Anthony Bourdain’s trip there this week on “No Reservations” (see my post earlier this week). Both highlight Vietnam’s amazing food, but only one involves a grown man salivating at the sight of a baguette (I’ll let you guess which one). Highlight: 0:36 — “The best way to cross the road is to step into traffic . . .” Okay sounds suspicious but keep going . . .

The post Travel Video Wrap-Up: Learning To Fly in Hawaii, Learning To Drink In Dublin, Learning To Eat In Vietnam appeared first on The Expeditioner Travel Site.