18/07/2026
# One Night in Hanoi – When 8 Strangers Became Friends
Some meetings begin with a simple hello.
Some begin with a meal.
And some… begin with a bowl of Hanoi Bún Chả and continue until the next morning. 😄
That night, there were eight of us.
Vietnamese friends.
International friends.
People in their thirties.
People in their fifties.
We were all meeting for the first time.
There were language differences.
Cultural differences.
Age differences.
And, of course… a little awkwardness at the beginning.
But then we shared Bún Chả.
We laughed.
We shook hands.
We hugged.
We congratulated one another.
And somehow, those distances began to disappear.
🏡 **OUR FIRST STOP: BA DINH SQUARE**
At around 8 p.m., we walked around Ba Dinh Square.
And then, I had an idea.
“Take off your shoes!”
Everyone looked at me.
Perhaps they were thinking:
“What is Phước Hỷ planning to do now?” 😄
I explained that walking barefoot on the pebbles was good for our health — like a natural massage.
And so…
First came surprise.
Then:
“Ouch!!!”
Then laughter.
And finally:
“Oh… this is actually wonderful!” 😂
Around 9 p.m., we stood respectfully in front of Ba Dinh Square to witness the flag-lowering ceremony.
It was a special moment.
People from different countries, standing together in silence and respect.
🚲 **WEST LAKE AT NIGHT**
From Ba Dinh, we walked toward West Lake.
We rented bicycles.
Tandem bikes.
Single bikes.
Everyone chose whatever suited them best.
And then we cycled around West Lake at night.
Some people cycled like professionals.
Some were… slightly concerning. 😄
But everyone laughed a lot.
We stopped at Cối Xay Gió Café to enjoy some very Vietnamese flavors:
☕ Coconut coffee.
☕ Salt coffee.
And, of course, the inevitable question came:
“Wait… there is actually salt in the coffee?”
Yes.
And it is delicious. 😄
🌸 **1 A.M. – QUẢNG BÁ FLOWER MARKET**
If you think Hanoi is asleep at 1 a.m…
You haven't been to Quảng Bá Flower Market.
In the middle of the night, the market was still full of color.
Fresh flowers.
Motorbikes.
Voices.
Trading.
People packing flowers.
A completely different Hanoi.
A lively Hanoi.
A very real Hanoi.
Our international friends started learning Vietnamese.
They tried buying flowers.
They tried bargaining.
And, of course, sometimes nobody knew who was actually winning — the buyer or the seller. 😂
🍚 **4–5 A.M. – THE AROMA OF STICKY RICE LEADS US ON**
The smell of freshly made sticky rice brought us to Phú Thượng Village.
There, we met people who had already been working since very early in the morning.
Their sticky rice would soon be carried all over the city.
We talked.
We watched.
We bought sticky rice.
And we couldn't help admiring the skill, dedication, hard work and love these people put into what they do.
Each of us held a warm package of sticky rice.
And once again, we got back on our bicycles.
🚲
Back to Bách Thảo.
We parked the bikes.
Then walked back toward Ba Dinh Square.
🇻🇳 **SUNRISE – THE FLAG-RAISING CEREMONY**
After a night of almost no sleep, we stood respectfully together for the morning flag-raising ceremony.
Perhaps this was the moment when everyone started wondering:
“Did we really stay awake all night to do all this?” 😄
The answer was:
Yes.
And it was absolutely wonderful.
After that, we returned to Bách Thảo.
We danced.
We exercised.
We joined the music and energy of Hanoi welcoming a new day.
And finally…
Each of us had a package of sticky rice.
A glass of iced tea.
And we sat together for breakfast.
Nothing luxurious.
Nothing fancy.
Just very Vietnamese.
And very memorable.
Then we returned the bicycles.
And our journey came to an end.
Eight people.
Different countries.
Different ages.
Different languages.
One almost sleepless night.
But so much laughter.
And perhaps the most beautiful part of the journey was not how many places we visited.
It was that…
Eight strangers began the journey together.
And ended it feeling like friends.
🤍
I am grateful that Blessed Home gives me the opportunity to create experiences like this.
Grateful for the wonderful people I get to meet.
Grateful to be able to show people a Hanoi that is more than its famous landmarks.
A bowl of Bún Chả.
A road at night.
A bicycle ride around West Lake.
A cup of salt coffee.
A flower market at 1 a.m.
A warm package of sticky rice at dawn.
A flag-raising ceremony.
A dance in the park.
And ordinary Hanoians beginning another day.
This is the Hanoi I love.
And this is the Hanoi I want to explore with you.
🏡 **Blessed Home – Where Hearts Return to Peace**
See you on a different kind of Hanoi journey.
And if you ever want to join an experience like this…
Be prepared:
You may not sleep.
Your feet may hurt.
You may have to walk barefoot on pebbles.
You may learn a few Vietnamese words.
But one thing is certain…
You will have many more stories to tell. 😄🤍
