Meet and Greet with Uncle Ho

Wednesday is the first of three days to explore Hanoi without interruption. We've put together our list of must and may dos and a tentative "schedule" after consulting the weather man to make sure we don't miss anything important.  Our focus today is a visit to all things related to Hồ Chí Minh; his Museum, Mausoleum and former residence.  Hồ Chí Minh, or Uncle Hồ as he is known here,was the central figure in the expulsion of the French and US and the unification of the North and South.  He is treated more like a God (a saviour of sorts) than a political leader and seems to have a special place in the heart of his people, unlike anything I have ever seen or experienced. After a quick breakfast, Phở for me and eggs for Kền, we grabbed a cab to go to the Mausoleum.  Upon arrival we were absorbed by a larger group of locals off to see their hero that were pleased to see westerners that held Uncle Hồ in high esteem.  LOL, on our part it started out as more curiosity than respect but that changed during the day.

Security is tight and lines are usually long to see this iconic figure and Vietnamese hero so it was a fairly lengthy journey from the gate to the actual structure where Uncle Hồ is laid out.  There are lots of military folks along the route making sure that no one strays from the assigned route or take pictures/uses electronics in the restricted areas.  After 15 minutes or so, we enter the coolness of the Mausoleum, a gargantuan structure made entirely of marble (21.6 meters x 41.2 meters) and the crowd goes silent. The embalmed body of Uncle Hồ is displayed in a glass case with dim lights in the cooled, central hall of the mausoleum protected by a military honour guard.  He looks like he is asleep rather than deceased so the two month spa treatments he receives in Russia every year where he is sent on vacation to restore and preserve the body are really effective.  While in the main room, a respectful silence is maintained and soon we are back outside for the inevitable photo op.

Uncle Ho (looks a bit like Colonel Saunders of KFC fame)

Photo op!

Mausoleum

Off to the Presidential Palace and the smaller dwellings that were occupied by Uncle Hồ to see how this iconic hero had lived.  His cars, books, etc. are all on display.  The grounds and gardens are beautiful and tended by a host of women ensuring that there are no weeds in the lawn!!  The pond is brimming with fat, juicy carp that jump when fed by the guards.

Presidential Palace

A huge car; Zis provided by the Russians 

Ho's Office

Living Quarters

Hungry carp in the Fish Pond

View across the pond

Next, we did a quick tour of the One Pillar Pagoda and the surrounding temples.  The temple, built to resemble a lotus blossom, is an iconic symbol of Vietnam and couples wanting to have a son come here to pray.

One Pillar Pagoda

Now that's a lantern

Next, we are off to the HCM Museum which featured a collection of photos and such illustrating the history of Vietnam from the occupation of the French until reunification on the second floor and an interesting collection of artwork and sculptures related to the same timeframe.  Very cool.  Hard to believe that one man could make such a big difference in the world.

Breaking the chains of poverty

Next on our agenda is the Temple of Literature, Vietnam's first National University built in 1070.  The grounds and buildings here are spectacular as well so we linger for awhile but it's getting late and we are hungry so we head off on foot to the French Quarter.  

Touch heart of phoenix for wisdom and head of turtle for good health and longevity

Time to get some steps in as we hadn't done much walking the last couple of days between the cruise and the driving back and forth to Halong Bay.  After an hour or so, we are in the French Quarter and start seeing a number of embassies; the French embassy, of course but also Singapore, China and Argentina.  I asked on of the guards about the Canadian embassy and he pointed down the road.  LOL, we didn't run into it so maybe I was supposed to walk back to Canada.

We had selected a restaurant from Ken's tour book and sat down.  The menus appeared relatively quickly but the waiter never came back so we headed across the street to a little cafe and had a great lunch of fresh rolls and noodle bowls.  Ken was dying for a coffee so we located a Starbucks close by. I headed off to do some shopping and left Ken to enjoy his java.

After a couple hours, I headed back to the hotel with a few more packages. Ken had shifted from coffee to beer and was perched on one of the little blue stools at the Corner Bar across the street from the hotel.  Starting to wonder whether my treasures are going to fit into my suitcase so I start rearranging things in suitcases ...

Soon enough we are headed to the Siesta Hotel and the Red Bean Restaurant for dinner with Steve and Kay (The British couple from the Halong Bay Cruise). The food was fantastic and the company even better!  We shared some crispy spring rolls and veggie tempura for appetizers and had a variety of mains that were all spectacular.  Steve and I ordered a beef dish cooked in bamboo; something I will definitely try to recreate at home if I can find fresh bamboo. Ken had beef rolled in some type of leaf that he raved about and Kay had the Catch of the Day which featured a range of seafood.  Dinner was washed down with a couple bottles of Kiwi wine and a great deal of conversation.  After a longish break, we decided on desserts; a shared molten chocolate cake with ice cream for Kay and I, chocolate mousse for Ken and creme brule for Steve. 

Pictures to follow - technical difficulties 

The others wanted coffee to top off the night but were told it was too late for that at 10:00 pm.  LOL, that all changed when Ken and Kay filled out the survey provided by the hotel and identified good as the rating for beverages. The food and beverage manager said they would make (and comp) the coffee and asked that the survey be changed.  They really take that stuff seriously. Hospitality staff in Canada wouldn't have given a rat's ass about much other than the size of their tip.

Soon enough, the lovely evening came to an end though email addresses and invites to look each other up if ever in the other's vicinity so you never know. More tomorrow.

Next Stop - Hanoi

Another early morning as Ken had set his alarm to get cleaned up, have coffee and go to monkey island.  Still not sunny here but it's stopped raining and the cloud/fog mix give Halong Bay an ethereal feel.  Lying in bed watching the activity was great but soon it will be time for breakfast and bidding farewell to new friends as they head out on their day two excursions to a floating village and pearl farm (doubtless both will provide opportunities for them to buy things they don't need). 

When I finally dragged my butt to the dining room, I was surprised to see Ken sitting at the table with Vickie and Bruce.  Apparently, the French contingent had commandeered the boat to go to monkey island, leaving before the scheduled time and the crew didn't come up with a strategy to rectify things so Ken could go on the promised excursion as well.  Oh well, at least he had coffee and the two croissants left after the French locusts devoured all the pastries before anyone else was out of bed.  LOL, it seems they think that every meal might be their last. 

After a hearty breakfast, Ken and I bid adieu to last night's dinner companions though we have tentative plans to meet both couples separately tomorrow and Thursday for a few laughs so we hope to see them all again.  They headed off on the launch with a young English couple and their baby while we were on the "big" boat with the Latvians and the French contingent as we were all on the one-night plan. 

"Check-out" was a 9:30 am to give the crew a chance to sort the cabins out before the next group of passengers so we left out luggage outside the cabin, paid our bar tab and headed to the "sun" deck to soak in the sights on our way back to the dock.

 

 

Too soon, we were back on shore and headed to the Paradise Hotel to wait two hours for our van back to Hanoi.  They threw in a light lunch to dull the pain of the wait but it seemed long nonetheless.  The hotel is very new (not quite finished probably) and eerily quiet with lots of staff servicing the twelve or so guests that we saw while we were there.  It's a nice place but I don't think I would stay there as there is too much boat traffic and the garbage floating in the Bay would make swimming an impossibility for most folks.  We did see a few hardy souls swimming this morning on a little beach close to where we had over-nighted so who knows?

Lunch was a small Chicken Caesar Salad and a Beef Noodle Bowl with fresh fruit for dessert.  A weird combo but it was filling and killed a bit of time, lol.  While we had lunch there was a lounge singer and piano man playing a player-piano.  LOL, bit strange for 11:30 am but maybe they were practising for Vietnam Has Talent!!  They were both pretty good singers but it seemed out of place with just us in the restaurant.

The van for our return trip was not as luxurious as the one we had for the trip up but the routine was the same with a "rest" stop at a big shopping place.  Our drive back was interesting as the little plots of land along the side of the road were a beehive of activity most of the way.  We had found out that each couple is given 20 square meters of land to crop on a 20-year lease from the government.  They can crop it themselves or lease it to someone else as long as it is not left untended.  If that happens, the government takes it back and gives it to someone else.  Assuming things go well, the family applies to get their plot back after the 20 years is up.  Anyway, rice planting seemed to be in full swing today.  Not every plot is planted with rice though.  There are banana trees, vegetables of all sorts, grazing cattle, ducks, you name it.  The common denominator is the hard working folks (mainly woman) working their small plots to help feed their families.  The plots butt right up to the edge of little towns and even the fringes of Hanoi so its a sea of green disturbed by intermittent towns and villages.

Back to our hotel and our haven for the next three days/four nights.  We have been popping in and out of Hanoi so looking forward to staying put for a couple of days and doing some major sightseeing here before we head off to Thailand and the beaches of Phuket. 

Tonight, we ventured into new territory in search of dinner and found a cute little BBQ place on one of the less crowded streets.  The bars and restaurants of the Old Quarter spill into the streets as the clientele continues to arrive.  All it takes is a stack of little blue stools, hot food and lots of cold beer.  This area of Hanoi is so much more alive than District One in HCMC which is where we stayed there.  I suspect all the hostels and budget hotels sprinkled
throughout the Old Quarter, attract the young and young at heart in a way the stodgier more expensive western hotels in the area of HCMC we stayed in didn't.  I wonder what the chi chi areas of Hanoi are like at night.  Might have to try the French Quarter for dinner one night.

More tomorrow.  We're off to see Ho Chi Minh himself.  Sadly no pictures for you as neither of us is willing to risk prison to share but I'll try to come up with a good description.  Good night from Vietnam.

Excursion around the Bay ...

Monday morning was another early one as we were being picked up for our excursion to Halong Bay, another UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the world's new Severn Natural Wonders.  We grabbed a quick breakfast, hopped into the luxurious min bus that Paradise Cruises had sent to pick us up, picked up a couple young ladies from Chicago and set out on the 4-hour drive to our destination.  About halfway there we had our obligatory shopping (rest) stop.  Prices were outrageous so even I wasn't interested in shopping, lol.  We arrived around noon and waited for the boarding process.  The Chicago girls were on Luxury Boat 4 while we were on Luxury Boat 3 so we wouldn't be seeing them until tomorrow morning.  We did meet a couple from St Louis, Missouri that were going to be sailing with us; Vickie and Bruce and struck up a conversation.

Paradise Cruises has there own wharf so there would be none of the craziness and jumping over boats dragging our luggage to get to our junk that marked the start of my Halong Bay cruise in 2008.  Our luggage was whisked from the van to our stateroom and we had a leisurely walk down the gangplank.  That's the difference some extra money makes I guess.

Our "home" for the next 24 hours

We had a quick "briefing" in the dining room and then headed to check out our room before lunch.  We were pleasantly surprised that we had a balcony cabin and the room was very comfortable.

Small but luxurious

Back in the dining room, we joined Vickie and Bruce for lunch.  Bruce has recently retired so he is bopping around the world on a three-month tour and Vickie has joined him for some of the fun bits including Vietnam.  Lunch was great.  Each of us picked a main dish and there was buffet accoutrements and dessert.  Ken and I had the beef tenderloin and the Missourians opted for the sea bass.  When it came time for dessert, the group of 16 ladies and 2 gentlemen from France had gotten there before us and luck a plague of locusts devoured pretty much everything in sight.  LOL, need to be better prepared for next pastry caper.  Sated, folks prepared for a visit to the largest cave in the Bay.  As I'd already been through the cave and it wasn't raining yet, I opted to hang around on deck and get some fresh air.  Ken and most of the others headed to the cave so I had the boat mainly to myself for an hour.

Views on Halong Bay

I wasn't up there too long, when I heard the sound of someone trying to sell me something.  Did I say salespeople here are very industrious and persistent?  Well, a body of water is no deterrent to capitalism.  There were a number of ladies, laden with goodies including snacks, wine and pearls no less, cruising the bay hawking their wares.  They use the long pole with the net to deliver the "ordered" goods and receive their cash payment.  I managed to resist, yet again.  Maybe Ken's lack of consumerism is rubbing off on me though I doubt it!!

Boat-to boat saleslady

Soon enough, the spelunkers returned and we went for a "spin" around the bay looking at the spectacular islands.  Vietnam is home to some 4000 islands and almost half of them are here in Halong Bay.  Halong translates to "where the dragon descends" and legend claims that the islands were created by a great dragon from the mountains.  Many of the islands have names but, of course, I had a hard time keeping them straight (lol) so I can only identify one for you.

 

Head Island

After a bit of island watching, it was time for a coffee and tea demonstration followed by a session learning how to make fried spring rolls.  After the chef put together a spring roll, folks were asked to try their hand at it.  Ken, of course, with chatting with a new friend from Britain, Steve, so didn't have a clue when he got up (I guess beer really is liquid courage!!) so the French lady that he was paired with, helped him along. 

Bruce and Latvian lady making spring rolls

Ken (under the watchful eye of the chef) and Christiane

Next, was a shot of rice wine infused with old socks I think!!  LOL, we learned a new toast and gave it a go anyway.  Soon enought it was time for Happy Hour (2 for 1 drinks) something that all the English-speaking folks could get into.  There were now six of us; the Missourians, Ken and I and a lovely couple from outside London; Steve and Kay.  Well lubricated, we changed for dinner and arranged to eat as a group.  The ship had provided traditional garb to wear to dinner which worked for most folks; not so much for Vickie and I as our bustlines and/or butts were not in Vietnamese proportions!!  Bruce decided to spruce his traditional head-wear up with a cap he had purchased in Thailand much to the horror/amusement of the crew.

The dinner was a seven-course set menu featuring seafood in numerous guises (some good/some not so much) plus a random chicken dish.  The consensus was that lunch had been better food-wise but the wine was flowing, the company was great and the conversation non-stop so a great time was held by all.  After dinner, certificates of participation in the spring roll workshop we handed out.  Here is Ken receiving his along with photographic evidence of his cooking prowess.

Spring Roll Diploma

After dinner, the choices were: a French movie with English sub-titles, squid fishing or sitting outside for another drink and a bit more conversation.  Ken and Vickie opted for squid fishing while the rest of us chatted for a bit until the blaring of the movie over the loudspeakers sent us in search for the fishermen.  While sitting on the deck, we noted a steady stream of garbage passing by the boat on a current of some sort and that was all the fishermen were managing to catch.  I tried a couple verses of The Squid Jigging Grounds to see if that would attract our prey but I guess the squid in Halong Bay don't understand English.  Back to our rooms for a good night's sleep.  Ken and I are heading back to Hanoi tomorrow but the other four are staying on-board for a second night and excursions tomorrow.