By Adeline Woon

There is something about a body of water that makes it alluring as a holiday destination. It doesn't even matter if you don't actually go in to get wet - the sheer unspoilt view is enough to recharge your spirit and rejuvenate your soul. Which really is what a holiday is all about. And the reason why you're in Hanoi - the City of Lakes.

InterContinental Hanoi Westlake Hotel

You can count them - at least three large ones in the form of Hoan Kiem Lake, West Lake and Hale Lake. Then there are numerous smaller ones, mostly ox-bow lakes, formed from the rivers over centuries as the city sprung up across the Red River.

There are lakes that are famous for their scenery or their landmarks, such as a pagoda or two. And then there is at least one minor lake, Truc Bach Lake, which is famous for nothing else other than being the spot where US presidential candidate John McCain was shot down and fished out during the Vietnam War.

West Lake, or Tay Ho, is the largest of Hanoi's lakes, with a perimeter of 17 km. And it is on its north-eastern bank that the InterContinental Hanoi Westlake opened in December 2007.

It is the only hotel in Vietnam that made it to Conde Nast's 2008 Hot List. It's easy to see why. Its 359 rooms showcase contemporary Vietnamese design - the bedside lamps for instance, are inspired by local fishermen's baskets - and are spread across four low-rise buildings, which includes three pavilions built over the waters of the lake (they had to drain the lake for the construction) and interconnected by a series of bridges. All rooms have private balconies with views - of the lake, the Hanoi skyline or the pool.

Unlike most establishments by warm tropical waters, this one doesn't offer boating or water sports. The lake's grey waters hardly invite you to jump in. Instead, West Lake is best enjoyed as a scenic view - its tranquil waters disturbed only by an occasional passing rowboat, its occupant casting a hopeful net. Fishing in the lake is largely a leisure activity requiring plenty of luck, according to a local hotel staff member. The grey waters evidently don't support commercial fishing.

Sunset bar

But it's pretty to look at. The hotel has decorated the water surfaces between its pavilions with huge, round floating baskets tied to stilts - receptacles traditionally used by local fishermen to contain their catch in the water before bringing it to market.

Right in the centre of the pavilions, on its own island, is the Sunset Bar. With tables and a canopy bed by the edge of the water, it is the perfect place to catch the sunset. The only problem is that sunset comes early, at about 5.30pm, and there is no lingering dusk but fast-falling darkness descends almost immediately. Conversely, sunrise is just as early, at 5.30am. By 6am, Hanoi's streets are bustling as shopkeepers set up their wares and restaurants open for breakfast.

It takes nerves of steel to cross a Hanoi street. Traffic lights are few and far between and they may as well not be there. Cars aren't so much the problem. A never ending river of motorcycles is.

Hollywood has done severe injustice to Vietnam by giving us an impression of blue skies set against a 70s rock 'n' roll soundtrack. Firstly, the skies of Hanoi are as grey as its lakes. Secondly, the sounds of Hanoi are a cacophony of blaring car horns. Forget the Rolling Stones, the city rocks to the discordant counterpoint of a Philip Glass piece.

One Pillar Pagoda in Hanoi, Vietnam

The trick to crossing a road is to focus on a fixed point across the street and walk determinedly. Leave it to the motorbikers to avoid you, they will do a better job of steering round you than of you dodging them. They've had more practice. And look at the bright side - the good point about heavy voluminous traffic is that they're going slow enough to make sudden stops.

If you're not up to braving the traffic and moving around on your own (buses are almost non-existent and taxi drivers claim to understand English when you get in but lose their linguistic ability when they've delivered you to where they think you want to go), the InterContinental offers unique Insider packages, each offering a glimpse of Hanoi, some with hard-to-find secrets that only the locals know. These packages are also available to non-hotel guests who want to join up at the concierge for the day trips.

Insider Culture (US$126++) is a showcase of the city's architectural gems. Take in Eastern style pagodas (One Pillar Pagoda), European churches (Hanoi Cathedral), Russian influenced architecture (Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and Ba Dinh Square) and French style mansions (Presidential Palace).

Insider Shopping (US$105++) offers haute couture, Vietnamese style. You negotiate the narrow walkways between the stalls at Hom Market. And if you're not distracted by the stalls of fresh seafood (crabs, squid) cooked food (whole-roasted pigeons) and fruit (dragonfruit the size of rugby balls), make your way up to the second level where warrens of narrow fabric stalls, each as big as a cupboard, offer varieties of textiles, including the country's famed silk. And if you fall prey to the charms of the national ao dai dress that is famously said to 'cover everything but hide nothing', you will be taken to a recommended tailor who, after measuring you up, will deliver your hand-sewn clothes to your hotel room the next day. Tailoring services plus fabric can cost anything between US$20 to US$200.

Vietnamese local fare-Goi Cuon

Insider Leisure (US$126++) offers an experience of everyday Vietnamese life including shopping and local food. Menus give English explanations of what to expect and wait staff understand some English and are extraordinarily patient to the point of demonstrating how to roll your own goi cuon (rice flour wrap), layering vermicelli with meat and the myriad fresh herbs set out before you. Sometimes, it does pay to point at the next table and that was how we discovered com tam - broken rice with pork chops and shavings of pig skin (the chop was nicely grilled, the cracked rice reminded us of couscous and the pig skin, well, we left it) and che choui hap (a dessert that looked like chendol and was almost like it, with gelatinous strips - only the green bits turned out to be water chestnut).

Insider Occasion (US$121++) is an evening out and quite possibly the thing to do if you have time for just the one thing. Wander through the city's Old Quarter and enjoy strong, sweet Vietnamese coffee at a local coffee shop that is four floors up and with no visible street frontage. This in itself is one reason to depend on a local guide. No Starbucks can offer a panoramic view of the city from the rooftops. Not that Starbucks exists in Hanoi, despite its coffee culture - there are some small mercies in developing nations. Follow the coffee up with bia hoi, light local draft beer that is brewed fresh daily, at a street-side tavern. You'll be sitting by the side of the road on low, plastic chairs but brushing with traffic is a small price to pay for beer - which at 20 US cents a glass, comes cheaper than mineral water.

You can also buy snacks from passing vendors. However, the grilled dried octopus, having been prepared on the roadside, tasted not unlike roadkill. Best to leave your appetite for dinner at Cha Ca La Vong where there is only one item on the menu - sizzling cha ca fish. The dish originated by the Doan family restaurant has become a traditional Vietnamese cuisine that the street the restaurant is on has been named Cha Ca Street and its recipe has been copyrighted by the government. In other words, don't expect this dish anywhere else.

Top picture: InterContinental Hanoi Westlake hotel decorated the water surface between its pavilions with huge floating baskets tied to stilts.

wooncja@sph.com.sg

Fabric Stalls at Hom Market

The writer was a guest of The InterContinental Hanoi Westlake (www.intercontinental.com/hanoi)

This article was first published in The Business Times on Nov 15, 2008.