How to pack lightly for a long trip

I arrived in Hanoi airport just after a white-knuckle roller coaster courtesy of the lingering typhoon in the location. I had no thought what to count on, seriously. My thought of Southeast Asia was something along the lines of a ramble by way of Cambodia and Laos. Like the good relationship maintainer that I am, I put these on the back burner for my fiance’s choice, Hanoi. This article at the Economic Times reminded me of that wide-eyed taxi ride into the heart of the Old Quarter. My very first surprise was the conglomeration of architecture that blindsided me. Traditional homes are flanked by ominously tall, brick and stucco French-influenced buildings, and the scattering of temples and churches tends to make the appearance of this energetic city mirror the chaotic roads that entangle it. Our next few days had been spent wandering the labyrinth of streets producing up the Old Quarter. Almost everything was thrust into our faces not the hawkers, but the life that tends to make up t...