Vietnam tour: Hanoi, Halong Bay, Hue, Hue An and Ho Chi Minh City.

Off again on a long-haul flight can you believe it, gluttons for punishment! Hopefully it will be worth it as we are visiting Vietnam as part of an Exodus tour ("Vietnam Adventure"). We will start in the north of the country in Hanoi and then after a short overnight visit to the famous Halong Bay to the east of Hanoi, return to the city to get an overnight train to Hue to the south. From here it is a four hour bus journey to Da Nang on the coast and on to Hue An for a few days. After that we take an internal flight to Ho Chi Minh City (Siagon) for a short stay which also includes a bus trip to the Cu Chi tunnels used by the Viet Cong during the war.
Unfortunately we were not able to  finish the trip as we had to leave Vietnam because of family illness back home and so we missed  two days in the Mekong delta and the four days we had planned to stay in Hong Kong at the end of the holiday. The following just gives a flavour of the highlights of the journey.

Hanoi. 

We arrived on Hanoi via Hong Kong on 23rd November and had a couple of days to ourselves before joining the trip. This gave us some time to explore the city and old town on foot and get use to the very heavy traffic that made crossing the street something of a challenge. The secret is to walk slowly, not stopping and not going quickly, so that the scooters, motor bikes, rickshaws and cars can pass around you. It helps if you can get with a bunch of other pedestrians! No one stops for zebra crossings and a lot of the traffic completely ignored red traffic lights. Having said that, there was less use of the horn compared with India and there are a few places in the centre that allow some limited tranquility away from the roads, the Hoan Kiem lake being one of them.

Looking from the north of Hoan Kiem Lake to the Ngoc Son temple on the island. This is in the centre of  Hanoi and you can just see the red bridge (on the left hand side of the photo) that connects the temple to the lake shore path.

On Sunday, the authorities closed some of the roads around the lake so it was great to see children playing especially in the evening with card building games, some sport that involved kicking a shuttlecock between players, walking on stilts (reminding me of my own childhood!), group skipping just as we did at primary school, and playing instruments or singing, a real family and community atmosphere. As we sat in the park we had several groups of children and teenagers gather around to quiz us to improve their English language. Sometimes they had their parents and teacher with them as well so it was educational for us too.

With the traffic banned on Sunday, the children practiced their motor skills on the road bordering the south of the lake. We also found a very nice French style patisserie , "The Silk Path" also known as "S'Patisserie" along this very road near the lake.

We also visited the residence of Oh Chi Minh, the Vietnamese leader who more than any other person is responsible for the unification of Vietnam. He lived in the grounds of the French Presidential Palace refusing to live in the palace itself. He lived in what would have been servants quarters and later in a stilt house a few metres away at various periods between 1958 and 1969. I well recall Oh Chi Minh from my student protest days in the 60's.

The Stilt house where Oh Chi Minh lived after independence from the French. This is set near an avenue of Mango trees and ponds where he would stroll. The Presidential Palace is out of view but to the right of the photo.

We also visited the Oh Chi Minh Mausoleum which was closed to the public for repairs. Although Oh requested cremation, the Party thought it best he follow the example of Lenin and hence the Mausoleum. We were told that the site was busy at all times and there were generally long queues to enter the Mausoleum. 

We also visited other areas including the "Temple of Literature", Hoa Lo prison and the old quarter of the city (again) including a showing of "Water Puppets" in a theatre near the lake. The temple dates back to 1070 and houses the first national university, an alter to confucius, many statues, Turtle Steles (that commemorate the success of the university graduates) and bonsai trees.

A tranquil scene inside the temple of literature with an entrance through to a courtyard with dozens of students pretending to graduate or should I say, practicing to graduate. Also in the next courtyard was the alter to Confucius.

An alter to Confucius inside the temple, similar to many alters we encountered on the trip.

The Hoa Lo prison or "Hanoi Hilton", as the American prisoners of war nicknamed it, was interesting but very saddening reflecting the futility of war. The prison dates back to colonial rule and has been mostly demolished with only the main front gate and cell/courtyards at the front remaining. The displays where informative and graphic mostly dwelling on the time of the "American War" as the Vietnamese call what we refer to as the Vietnam War. Happily it was time to move on and see the wonders of Ha Long Bay (in Vietnamese, all words are single syllable so words like Vietnam are actually Viet Nam or Halong is Ha Long).

Ha Long Bay.

This was a four hour bus ride east to the coast; on route we stopped for refreshments at a large pottery near Dong Trieu east of Hanoi and had some green tea refreshment and a chance to look around the pottery.

A line of kilns at the pottery near Dong Trieu. There was a very large pile of wood outside for the kilns and at the top of the building a hole in the wall to throw out the broken pots!

On reaching the bay (in fact an island to the west of the main port), everything went like clockwork moving off the bus to the boat and a welcome drink with the crew and assignment of cabins. In no time we joined an armada of vessels heading south-easterly out to the islands.

A glimpse of part of  Ha Long Bay with the limestone islets covered with tropical vegetation

The views were spectacular even though it was an overcast day. We didn't see much wildlife but did notice rubbish in the polluted water (I guess 500 boats in the bay will cause a lot of problems with sewage). The visit allowed us to cruise for a while and then climb to a large limestone cave, the largest we'd ever been in. After that I climbed to the top of one of the islets just to miss sunset but giving good views of the surrounding waters.

Looking out from the top of an islet across the myriad of tourist boats setting-up for a night.

The following morning we took an option to go by boat into a lagoon formed when the limestone eroded to such an extent that only the steep walls of a lagoon remained with a small entrance portal to the bay when the tide was low. We did spot some smaller birds and possible a Black Kite as we went around the perimeter. This wasn't a tranquil experience as we were accompanied by other boats full of Chinese tourist who were singing, shouting and rocking their boats amusing some of us!

A group of Chinese tourists entering the lagoon through a small portal from the main bay.

The vegetation clinging to the limestone buttresses inside the lagoon.

After this we made our way back to port to return to Hanoi and get an overnight train to Hue further south. However, before departing the chef showed us how he cut flowers from vegetables and made a carrot net. The food on board had been delicious so it was great to see how they added the final touches to the presentation.

Why not try this? It is cut from a single carrot and covers sea food when presented as a dish.

 Hue.

What can I say about the overnight train journey? Well we were lucky as we had a relatively quite part of the train; some of the others on the trip had a group of young australians next door who were determined to party all night. However, inspite of the noisy track and intermittent bumps, we did sleep for a few hours and the night seemed to pass quickly.

Hue is a city of two halves, the old quarters and citadel is north of the river whilst our hotel and the more recent developments is on the south side. The city was the old capital of Vietnam (1802-1945 through the Nguyen Dynasty) and was severely damaged in the Tet offensive in early 1968. The citadel was also severely damaged during the war but there is enough left to give a good impression of its' former glory. Unfortunately it rained very heavily during our visit to the extent that our waterproofs soaked and we bought some 1 dollar plastic ponchos that did prove effective!

Inside the citadel in Hue; we have many photos but all in the rain! There are many areas needing restoration, something for the future hopefully

We did do another visit to the Thien Mu Pagoda but I think with the rain and the train journey, we were ready to retire to the hotel and dry-off. 

The rain the following day had put some of the group off the planned cycle tour to a local market at the Thanh Toan bridge but soon after starting, the weather cleared to a bright day and a group of us had a pleasant ride through the city into the rice fields. Cycling on the roads seemed easier than walking, perhaps because we were moving as a group.

Beginning of our cycle ride all ready for the rain (Helen's at the rear) after getting away from the city traffic.

The area had recently been heavily flooded including the rice paddies.

The market was relatively small but included most fruit and vegetables that we'd seen as well as snails and snake fish. The old bridge (dating from 1776) with a tiled roof and alter is famous in the area. Near-by there was a water level marker indicating the depths of various floods over the last few years. Many of these floods would have covered the bridge and all of the village.

The Thanh Toan Bridge on a wet day; inside there are seats and an alter.

The afternoon was a "free" one so we took a walk for lunch at the "Golden Rice" (traditional Vietnamese food and very good) and then alongside the Perfume River to the pedestrian bridge (Trang Tien Bridge) and into a pleasant parkland strip along the northern boundary of the river. From there, we crossed to the citadel (now in sunshine) and visited the Museum of Royal Antiquities.

Parkland by the Huong (Perfume) River. This is near the citadel. You can see the pedestrian bridge on the right in the distance. What you can't see is the hundreds of scooters on the centre lane of the bridge!

Hoi An

On the road again, this time to cross the mountains via the Hai Van pass (490 m) to Da Nang, an important sea port and beach tourist development and then onto Hoi An. On route we passed the largest lagoon in south-east Asia, the Dam Cau Hai, and stopped for a break at another lagoon, Lang Co, before starting the climb to the pass. Although the pass isn't a great height it does seem more because it is a straight rise from sea level. The pass has been an important passage and has defensive structures dating from the Nguyen dynasty and more recently during the american war.

View from the Hai Van Gate looking east to the ocean. Note another misty and rainy day and I couldn't find a view without electric cables!...I did try.

The forts are a popular stop for the tourist buses so it was impossible to get a photo without including lots of people! Unfortunately, the area has been neglected and I felt a large viewing platform over the ridge would have been sufficient, particularly on a clear day.
We stopped in Da Nang at the Cham Museum which is dedicated to relics from all over Vietnam of the Champa Empire which thrived in southern and central Vietnam from the second century until its' eventual absorption into Vietnam.

There were many examples of Champa art and statues. This is one of Aspara (singer and dancer) and on the right, Saraswati a Hindu goddess.

After this we had a picnic lunch in the recreational area of Marble Mountain enjoying some fresh coconuts. The mountains are a cluster of five limestone/marble hills overlooking Da Nang. We visited Mount Thuy which has large Buddhist grottos and great views from the peak (it is easy to climb with plenty of steps). The grotto we visited was made from a large limestone cave and was reportedly used by the Viet Kong as a field hospital in sight of the american airfield base in Da Nang.

Taken from the top of Mount Thuy with a view over "China" beach and the modern city of Da Nang. Da Nang was a major supply port and airfield base in the american war. Because of the political differences with China about ownership of islands, the Vietnamese have renamed the beach.

A guardian of the Buddhist grotto on Mount Thuy.

Of course in Vietnam you have to expect dragons everywhere and the temples and statues on the mountain had an adequate population:

Lots of Dragons!

It was then a short bus journey to Hoi An and our hotel near the old town. We spent the next morning doing a walking tour of the old town visiting temples, shops and the market. Mostly we were encouraged to buy things, apparently through the power of "Lonely Planet" tourist come to the city to buy clothes and leather goods etc. We bucked the trend and bought a chopping knife and coconut kitchen spatulas from the massive daily market. Of the cities we'd visited so far this was the most tourist orientated and judging by the numbers, very successful.

What a relief, a pedestrian (and cycle) street in the old centre of Hoi An. This street leads south to the Hoai river.

The following day we did an extra cycle tour to a "poor" island as our guide explained it. This island is east of Cam Kim, a larger island in the Thu Bon River and now connected to the mainland by a bridge. We took our cycles on an old barge across to the island and then set-off cycling on footpaths and walkways through the island visiting mat weavers, a rice wine maker and then made our own noodles for lunch.

A low bridge over  a river channel as we cycled to the north end of the island. The bridge was under repair after the recent bad weather.

The production of rice wine (the distilled version called Ruou gao) is something like 40% alcohol and is made from white rice which is first cooked, drained and fermented first without water added and then with water. It is eventually distilled to produce a clear liquid ready for consumption. The special things about the production we saw was the old war veteran running the operation, the pigs next door feeding off the left-over mash and the fact that their effluent was used to produce methane which was used to burn and heat the still.

The rice after boiling and now starting to ferment. In the background you can see where the pigs are kept.

The noodle making operation was equally enthralling and I'm sure we could do it at home having been shown. The first stage is to make a sheet from rice water which could be made into rice paper if dried. If not a double sheet can be shredded and made into noodles.

Cloudy but no rain we wait for the barge to load our cycles and get back to Hoi An. Our landing spot was under water as the river rose so we had to cycle a little further to get a good spot for the barge to land.

Later we went to My Son and the relics of a major site of Hindu temples from the Champa Kingdom dating back to the 4 th century and extending to the 14 th century. There was major damage by american bombs during the Vietnamese War. The temples were rediscovered by the French and some attempts to restore them were made.

Some of the best examples of the Hindu temples at My Son. This had reverted to forest when the French rediscovered them. 

Oh Chi Minh City (Siagon).

The last leg of the tour for us was Oh Chi Minh City the former capital of South Vietnam. Rather than experience another train journey, we flew to the city and immediately started a tour to see the Presidential Palace,  War Museum, Notre Dam cathedral and the old french post office building. The War Museum was very big, very graphic in places; we didn't get time to see everything although the bits we missed to do with the tanks and ammunition wasn't of particular interest. I didn't think the posters did much justice to the"South Vietnamese Puppet" forces that amounted to 897,000 compared with 549,000 Americans in 1969. 

The visit to the Palace was like stepping back in time and seeing the affluence of the ruling class at that time, in stark contrast to the majority of people in the city or surrounding countryside. No wonder they were doomed to failure. 

Our last visit was to the Cu Chi tunnel complex to the north-west of the city. This was a salient reminder of the old saying "necessity is the mother of invention". With no where else to go the Viet Kong went underground and lived in tunnels scooped from the earth. The complex gives a vivid impression of their lives and also the devilish means they invented to trap or kill the enemy. 

No standing room, the tunnels had restrictions in size to prevent the larger enemy troops entering. The soil in this area is amazingly compact, almost like sandstone but softer.

Some Viet Kong models sawing a bomb in half to get the explosives for their devices.

There were exhibitions to show areas for cooking, clothes and footwear fabrication, weapon making  and larger areas underground for recreation and planning. There was also an excellent historical film and a model of the tunnel network. I did manage to squeeze into the top of an original tunnel and close the disguise hatch but maneuvering beyond that was impossible because of my height.

A monument to Thich Quang Duc a Buddhist monk who burned himself to death in June 1963 protesting about the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese Government.

We also had some "free time" in the city so explored the local streets (probably more hazardous than Hanoi because of the volume and speed of the traffic, again mainly scooters and motor bikes) and a central park and in the evening we went to a show at the Siagon Opera House in the city and meal afterwards. The "A O Show" was acrobatics done in a very Vietnamese style involving a lot of bamboo poles and coracles, very clever and entertaining.

A view of part of Oh Chi Minh City at night; lots of high rise buildings, we could have been in any large city in the world. There is no doubt that the  Chinese, South Koreans and Japanese are investing on a large scale in Vietnam.

We've never been to Vietnam before so it is difficult to judge how quickly it has developed after the last war but for me, it was surprising how modern the cities were, for example the coastline around Da Nang could have been mistaken for the Costa Blanca. We were surprised, given that it is a communist state, that public transport wasn't evident and depended on individual scooters etc. Even the rail system, although state owned is run by private companies, the people have to pay for their education and health care and as in the west, have little regard for their politicians. It seemed to be a full-on market economy, a nation of shop keepers and traders with a massive potential for further development. There is no doubt that it has a very complex history intertwined with Champa, Chinese, Japanese, French cultures (and now more recently western culture in general, e.g. English is the second language) to mention only the bits we came across in our two week stay.