Last day in Hanoi

Working out at a local gym

While many people find Hanoi to be too hectic, I like the energy of the city. It’s nice to see many people sitting on the sidewalks eating and drinking.

Many tourists and locals sit on the sidewalks drinking beer and eating.

When there isn’t enough room for everyone on the sidewalk, they set up tables and stools on the street. Motorbikes come inches from the patrons. This was my group sitting on the street.

I found a local gym in Hanoi, and worked out there a couple of times. It’s very hot, has no a/c, no cardio equipment, and only guys. The top of the gym is lined with pictures of body builders and girls in bikins. Most of the guys work out without their shirts because it’s so hot.

Local gym. Only weights, no cardio equipment. At the top you can see the pictures of body builders and girls in bikinis.

Everyone there was very friendly. It was my first experience interacting with locals who were not in the tourism industry. The barbells at this gym are very light, so you cannot add weight to one side without balancing the other side. I didn’t know this since I’m used to the heavier barbells in the US. Someone saw me removing weight, and ran over to remove weight from the other side. Whenever I added weight to one side, someone would come over and help by adding weight to the other side. Most people did not speak English, but hand signals was good enough.

I had a blast in Hanoi: eating local street food, drinking beer on the sidewalks, hanging out with people from my hostel, and working out.