Every busy corner of downtown Hanoi bursts with the intense aroma of ground and brewing coffee. My most favorite of vices! Against popular belief, even first to alcohol. Like in my favorite country (Turkey), it is popular to have a post meal cup and relax while digesting. It's refreshing to be in a country that appreciates this beautiful, eye opening cup of life like myself. China is more of tea drinker, and while I really love all the loose leaves China has to offer, I do need my multi daily cup because an IV drip might be weird.
The famous brand, Trung Nguyen, hails from Vietnam and bags of beans and grounds can be bought at almost every "7/11" and of course coffee shops. Drip machines and espresso makers are few, replaced by tiny tin manual drippers also sold everywhere. In this bustling city of a million motorbikes and a thousand tourists, it is nice and even crucial to sit and relax with an amazing cup of cafe noir.
