Hanoi Train Street @ the Capital City of Vietnam

As many of you are aware, Bangkok is top on my list whenever I need a breather outside of Singapore yet strangely; despite the hype of the Mae Klong Railway Market, I have never been keen to check it out. 

It's a somewhat different story at Hanoi. I still wasn't keen but since it was within walking distance from Bonsella Hotel; the pertinent question is, why not? 

We were immediately approached by one of the cafe owners and agreed to walk over to her cafe since we didn't have any specific cafe in mind. Wrong move in my opinion as the track was curved and more cafes can be found further down. p.s. having said that, owner was friendly and our coffee was decent. 

If you like cats, you can consider this cafe instead as there were four docile felines; one of which had very unique eye colors! Our friend, Lock, was obsessed with them! 

Train would be coming towards us from the picture above and most cafes would not be concentrated here. Anyway, I am wondering if the cafes can still operate as my visit was in April and I understand there were calls for the tracks to be closed to tourists due to numerous safety incidents. 

Looked like there was a natural tunnel for the train right ahead. I was too lazy to walk all the way and since this was a working train track; the risk was high that I would get myself killed. 

Walking back towards 'civilization'. 

And the prettier section with more cafes that flanked both sides of the train track. While trains do run daily, do note they run at night / early morning on weekdays. Do check the web for the latest schedule so that you wouldn't be disappointed. 

Someone took a sign and put it right in the middle of the train track! 

Does it mean the track would be closed?! 

Just a warning sign although it did beget the question; I am already on the other side and what should I do if I need to cross over to the other side? Remember, this is a long train track. 

Back of the sign. Hm.... although common sense, the last I heard was that someone was actually hit by a moving train recently and the driver had to do an emergency brake. While such train streets are interesting, for the sake of safety, I do agree that it's best to limit public access to the train tracks. 

Better picture of the train street. 

More cafes in the area, with wall murals, hanging lanterns that made it a prettier setting for photo-taking. Unlike Mae Klong Railway Market, this train street had a more chillax vibe. 

Those afraid of being hit by the trains can consider the upper levels that some cafes had. Just be mindful as there's no modesty panel.

Fridge magnets for the tourists.

Wall mural; what I would love to see would be antique photographs of the train street. The railway was built over a hundred years ago by the French and it would be nice to see contrast the differences from past and now.

Aside from Vietnamese coffee and drinks, you can also get food. Unfortunately for us, Bonsella Hotel provided breakfast and despite being drawn to the aroma, I needed to control my food intake!

Random photos for your viewing pleasure.

As we were waiting for the arrival of the train, there was suddenly a flurry of activity and we were asked to go into the shop instead! Similar to what we encountered at Hanoi beer street! Apparently, the setup was too near to the incoming train and I bet many cafes along the track were affected. 

Video of the incoming train! 

The aftermath of the train street. I would think it's nicer if I was in the train, instead of being outside the train. Frankly, I didn't think it was a big deal to check out the train street but if you have some time to spare; why not? 

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Address

3 P. Trần Phú, Hàng Bông, 

Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội 100000, Vietnam

Map

As above. 

Guidelines for Train Street

As above

Click here for my Week-Long Itinerary to Hanoi - City of Lakes @ Vietnam