Last June I was so lucky to make a wonderful trip through Vietnam. Most people who are traveling through Vietnam travel from north to south or vice versa. From Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City it's approximately 1780km. I want to share the highlights of our journey with you, which we started in Northern Vietnam.

Hanoi

This city is the capital of Vietnam. This is the place where we started our journey and also returned several times. It is an ideal base for discovering Northern Vietnam. We stayed in Paradise boutique hotel, with nice rooms and where excellent service was provided. Hanoi is overwhelming at first, there are motorbikes everywhere! After some time you get used to it. The Vietnamese food is amazing and also try some egg coffee.

• Hoan Kiem Lake This peaceful lake has a central location near the old quarter of Hanoi. Stroll around the lake and get an impression of the life of the Vietnamese. You are approached by students who want to practice their English and you will see people playing badminton or doing some exercises. Bring also a visit to Ngoc Son Temple, a pagoda sitting in the centre on a small island.

• Ho Chi Minh mausoleum There is a long queue for the mausoleum every day. Visitors must be silent and walk in two lines. When you finally enter the building you will see the embalmed body of Ho Chi Minh, which is a bizarre experience.

Sapa trekking

You will reach Sapa by night train. We arrived in the early morning, had a quick shower and breakfast and we were ready for the two-day trekking. Both days we had to walk about 16km. Very soon we were surrounded by the rice fields. What an amazing scenery! Some parts of the trekking were though, but wat was it worth it! I loved every second of it. We spend the night with a very sweet Vietnamese family in a homestay. Here we learned how to make real vietnamese spring rolls. The next day we continued our trek with even more beautiful views.

Ha Long Bay

This is a UNESCO world heritage site and features thousands of limestone karsts and isles in various shapes and sizes. We took a 2-day boat trip to discover this very beautiful place. The breathtaking view changed every minute.

Tam Coc

Located in the Ninh Binh province, this place is surrounded by karstic rock formations and limestone caves. You can discover this place easily by bike.

Enter the (almost) 500 steps from the Mua Caves and enjoy the great panoramic view.

Take a boat trip and enjoy your surroundings.

In my next post I will continue the journey to central Vietnam!