When one of our friends declared late last year, shortly before leaving Hanoi that “the only thing she would miss about Hanoi was passion fruit juice”, she was set a challenge to come up with a list of 10 things she would miss. I think she actually got to 15 – but the idea of the “Top 10 things I will miss about Hanoi” list was born. I can’t remember if I did an actual list when we left– although I did tag quite a few Instagram posts #thingsiwillmissabouthanoi. So I thought I would put together a list of things I am missing two months after leaving and then add the things I’ve found to love about the Barossa so far.

My top 10 things I miss about Hanoi:

1. Food – especially street food like Bun cha (pork rissoles and noodles), Pho Bo (Beef noodle soup), banh tom Ho Tay (West Lake prawn cakes), Pho Tieu (cold noodle dish) from Dong Xuan market, Cha Ca (fish in turmeric with noodles)

   

2. Vietnamese Coffee – especially over ice, the yoghurt coffee at Café Duy Tri and Iced egg coffee (like Tiramisu in a drink) from Hidden café

   

3. Lakes around Hanoi especially morning runs around west lake and the Lotus ponds

   

4. Cheap fresh flowers
5. Cheap fruit and vegetables, especially amazing tropical fruit – pomelo (like grapefruit), mangosteen, limes, pineapples
6. The kaleidoscope of life in the streets – things stacked on motorbikes, street side cafes, and festivals in the street

   

7. Living amongst the varied cultures in an expat populations
8. Opportunities to travel around Vietnam and to neighbouring countries
9. Shopping – beautiful clothes especially from Chula, gorgeous home wares from Tan My, crazy t-shirts from Gingko and all the other lovely shops especially on Hang Gai and through the old quarter
10. Amazing friends and colleagues and great support staff

Of course there are also a few things I don’t miss:

– Crappy weather – grey skies, humidity, too hot or too cold

– Pollution

– Rubbish on the streets

– Crazy traffic and trying to cross the road

– Rats – especially those that insisted on sharing our home (and eating favourite pieces of clothing)!

Now, having been in the Barossa 3.5 weeks, here are the things I have found that I love so far:

1. Barossa Farmer’s Market – buying beautiful seasonal local fresh produce from the people that raised, grew or made it, great coffee, flowers and a fantastic atmosphere
2. Loads of great food and wine – of course
3. Great parks for the boys – including one a few minutes walk from home
4. Being 5-10 minutes to school, gym, shops etc
5. Having at least two cellar doors walking distance from home – one of which also happens to be Simon’s place of work
6. Fresh air, (mostly) blue skies and beautiful scenery – especially all the vineyards and beautiful old buildings, Mengler’s Hill Lookout and the sculpture park
7. Sense of community, history and place
8. Proximity to everything we need and great roads to drive on plus parking on the main street with no restrictions
9. Lovely school/childcare for the boys who have been welcomed by teachers and friends alike
10. Friendly welcoming people who love where they live and are excited about sharing that place with visitors and newcomers