Entertainment in Hanoi

Evening entertainment in Hanoi has older roots than the nightclub. Water puppetry grew out of flooded rice paddies in the Red River delta around the eleventh century, and the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre on Hoan Kiem Lake stages it daily: puppeteers stand waist-deep behind a bamboo screen while a small live orchestra plays Vietnamese instruments for about fifty minutes. The Opera House, finished in 1911 in the French style, gives concerts. The Old Quarter takes over after dark, with fresh bia hoi at the corner of Ta Hien street and a night market on Friday to Sunday evenings.

Our two options sit at the quieter end. One is a private three-hour food walk through the Old Quarter with five to eight dishes and one or two drinks, picked up from a hotel or meeting point in the quarter. The other is a four-hour night photography walk with a professional photographer, for up to five people, with hotel pickup and drop-off. It starts at O Quan Chuong, the last surviving gate of the old citadel, with a lesson in night settings and long exposures, then moves to Long Bien market to practise shutter speeds on traders unloading and the fish stalls.

Practical. Hanoi nights run about 14C in January and stay near 26C in July, with heavy rain from May to September, so bring a thin rain jacket and wear closed shoes for the wet floors of the market. The photography walk is free to cancel; the food walk charges in full within 48 hours of the start. Water puppet shows run several times a day, mostly in the evening.