Arrivals to Hanoi - Noi Bai International Airport, Hanoi, Vietnam

NOTE we will collect you from the airport whatever time you arrive

Our hotel is in the Old City not far from Hoàn Kiếm Lake, try and fit in at least one 6.30 am walk to the lake – this is optional, but it is the best time of the day at the Lake.

All the locals are doing Tai Chi, dancing and having fun, go the first day and you will be hooked.

Breakfast.

Intro session with Jo and time to work on a street scene near our hotel.

Polish off your design for the wood stamp carvers, we want to drop them off this afternoon to collect later in the trip. [ in the lead up to our journay we will send out instructions about size and what to consider, so you have time to think and draw up a design]

Visit the Temple of Literature and check out the resident calligraphy artist for inspiration

Welcome Dinner in the evening, let's celebrate our coming  journey.

B,L,D

We drive to the White Thai minority area of Mai Chou today via a papermaking village. Learn how paper is made and perhaps buy a few sheets to turn into a small book - Jo has some ideas.

Do bark (Rhamnoneuron balansae) paper is a traditional craft recorded back as far as 3rd Century but in modern times has had a small renaissance.

Mountain sides were cleared of forest to plant manioc/cassava - this lead to degredation and increased risk of landslides. A Governament initiative to encourage farmers to plant Do trees has improved the enviroment, lead to an increase in the production of ply wood and a revival of papermaking.

Arrive in Mai Chou in the afternoon, chill out by pool, walk in rice fields or work on your journals.

B,L,D

Early morning as the sunrises is a great time to catch the mood across the rice fields.

Jo will run a morning session with ideas and prompts for ways to develop a page that encompasses the whole day.

Then we are off to wander slowly along a path through a traditional village, taking time to stop and sketch and build up our journal.

B,L,D

We will reach Tam Coc in the afternoon after lunch at a friend’s house along the waterways – after a truly memorable feast if you can rouse yourself, you might find a spot along the river to draw boats and hills and water reflections.

Tam Coc is one of those places- it is quite touristy BUT if you know where to look it has some stunning little nooks and crannies, which is why everyone loves it.

Boating along the river late in the day offers a breathtaking experience. As the sun sets behind the Khasts, its golden hues reflect beautifully on the water, creating a serene and picturesque scene.

Imagine sitting in one, being rowed with your sketch book on your knee. 😊

B,L

In the morning let’s walk out through the rice fields to a beautiful temple and spend a while sketching before heading back up to Hanoi.

Along the way there are some amazing “Cement King” Mansions that might call us to stop and record them, let’s see.

B,L

Cultural day today, exploring some of the craft villages around Hanoi and taking time to record them.

Votive Offerings Sculptures – a fantasy world of giant paper mâché sculptures. 

Incense making village.

We’ll scope out Old City Hanoi by Cyclo this afternoon. A cyclo is a bicycle/rickshaw thingy and the driver is a wonder gliding through Hanoi traffic.

This is a day about street scenes, local foods and enjoying Old City Hanoi with masses of inspiration for your sketchbook.

We’ll also check out a shop that sells calligraphy brushes- although the old guy who runs it is often out the back asleep, and collect our wood stamps from the carver.

We will visit the famous Water Puppets Show tonight, it is delightful.

B,L

Stay on a Boat on Lan Ha Bay

Enchanting scenery of World Heritage listed Ha Long Bay, 

Time to work on your journals and chill out soaking up the view.

B,L,D

We are visiting a grotto this morning, you have a choice of paddle yourself kayaks or a bigger boat and be rowed, always a fun experience.

Return to Hanoi and a free afternoon, 

Final session with Jo before our Farewell Dinner.

B,L,D

We will drop you to the airport Noi Bai International Airport, Hanoi.

B

Suggested materials list

Sketchbooks

• If you have a favourite brand or type of sketchbook, that’s great - bring it 🙂
• I’d recommend using a sketchbook that is no smaller that A5 (14.8 x 21 cm) and I tend to use an A4 (21.0 x 29.7 cm) one. This will help you both fit more on the page and also work a little more boldly!
• Square sketchbooks provide an alternative format these days, which I quite like too. As we’ll be sketching on location, I’d recommend using a hardback sketchbook so that you can use it on your lap as well as on a table surface. 
• I have used ringbound and threadbound sketchbooks, and I think the choice comes down to personal preference. Bear in mind that if you want to sketch across two pages you’d have the ringbind in the way if you choose one of those.
•   I’d recommend choosing a sketchbook with a paper quality of 120-150 gsm providing versatility for various sketching techniques. 
•   As we’ll be using mostly pencils and pens, I’d recommend a smoother paper, rather than one with too much texture.
• These are some great sketchbook brands to have a look at...

Moleskin   Stillman and Birn   Hahnemuehle   Strathmore

Materials

•   A set of fine-liner pens with a range of three or more nib sizes, from fine to big. 0.05 is the finest size nib and 0.8 is the biggest. There are lots of price points to choose from, and I use all these brands: Derwent    Sta Marker  Staedtler
•   A range of coloured felt tips - I love using fine tipped ones such as these point 88 ones from Stabilo and these dual-ended ones from Manuscript called Callicreative Duotip which are great for doing some creative lettering with too.
• A set of coloured pencils. These range in price and colour density, and I have sets of each of these:  Derwent Coloursoft   Faber-Castell Polychromos  Stabilo 
• Any other coloured pencils you think might be fun to use, like these Koh-i-Noor ,Hardtmuth Jumbo Magic pencils 
• A range of lead pencils, for example HB, 2B, 4B, 6B.
• A pencil sharpener
• Any other types of pens, pencils and coloured pencils you might already have at home and/or like to use, such as biros, fountain pens, markers, highlighters and gel pens.
• A set of crayons for taking rubbings with might be handy. I love these bees wax crayons from Stockmar.
• A glue stick for sticking things into your sketchbook if you’d like to.

Physical Fitness for Sightseeing 

You need to have the fitness level required for our sightseeing activities.

Our itinerary involves frequent disembarking and boarding of the minibus throughout the day.

Some of the monuments and markets we will visit are extensive so you need to be capable of walking several kilometres at a gentle pace and managing occasional flights of stairs or hills.