Saturday, February 23rd: We were greeted with a heavy fog rain early in the morning at the Laos/Vietnam border crossing, which we passed through with relative ease and only two less dollars (damn the weekend overtime charge!). Back on the bus, it took us roughly eight hours to get Megan and I to Ninh Binh about two hours south of Hanoi. We decided to start here because I am truly intimidated by that city and did not want to start our Vietnam experience in its largest city. We hopped off the bus somewhere in the middle of Ninh Binh, lost but smiling. We had reservations in a small hotel near the train station; in order to find where to go, we had to mime and make train noises to quite a few locals to point us in the right direction. Tons of children ran up to us saying “Hello!”. Eventually, we made it to the station and into our hotel and were greeted by a seedy looking manager with thin, tobacco stained teeth. He told us he didn’t have our reservation but we could stay in his dorm rooms for $3 a night (which ended up being great because they were empty at the time). We ate dinner next door, explored the main produce market nearby and had a second meal later on at a much better smaller restaurant which served the best fried rice I have had so far on our trip. One thing we both noticed right away is the honking culture has changed here - it is now appropriate to honk whenever you are turning, changing lanes, speeding up, slowing down or if you just like to listen to your horn.
The next day, we rented a decent automatic motorbike from our hotel (with a working dashboard!) and set off to find the Tam Coc caves. We had fun getting lost and stares from locals in rural rice paddy countryside. Megan took her turn driving and she loved it, though with all my weight on the back the bike became a bit unstable. After some cunning navigation by Megan, we found the way to the cave boat ride center. We had brunch at Lotteria, a chain fast food spot, before hiring a boat and guide for our tour. The scenery is so impressive; the driver ferried us through some incredibly serene limestone karsts and rice paddies, and to top it off the driver operates the rowboat with his feet and legs! It was relaxing and scenic but the caves were drive through tunnels in the karsts only about 20 meters long, but it was great to view this area without the sounds of motorboats (I am assuming since that disturbs the nearby rice fields too much).
We drove further away from town to the second group of caves set in a very nice park. You could walk up about 600 stairs and see the boat tours at Tam Coc or just stroll around the beautiful park and caves like we did. We hopped back on the scooter and continued down the increasingly narrow and rural road looking for some ruins on another cryptic map given to us by the hotel manager. Deciding we were lost, we stopped for lunch at a crowded local spot out in the middle of nowhere right off a highway. No English was spoken and we were handed a menu translated extremely roughly into English. One of the only things we could recognize was noodle soup so we ordered one (the other items on the menu included finances, baked goat platform, easy to apply pan, year to appeal, goat cooked plum plastic, to ev ade and soluble mind he saved one of). It was easily the best pho I’ve ever had so far but it did cost us $5. I guess you do get what you pay for.
We came back to our hotel to drop off the bike and buy train tickets and were disappointed when all we could find were sleeper cars for a two hour journey, so we decided on the bus which left for Hanoi every 15 minutes. We had dinner and drinks around the corner from our hotel at a newer cafe which starting filling up abruptly when the Chelsea vs Manchester United football match began. We were joined in the dorms that evening by a nice Swiss girl who had also just gotten into Vietnam from Laos. Other than her, we saw only a handful of white people in this city which was kind of refreshing.
We came back to our hotel to drop off the bike and buy train tickets and were disappointed when all we could find were sleeper cars for a two hour journey, so we decided on the bus which left for Hanoi every 15 minutes. We had dinner and drinks around the corner from our hotel at a newer cafe which starting filling up abruptly when the Chelsea vs Manchester United football match began. We were joined in the dorms that evening by a nice Swiss girl who had also just gotten into Vietnam from Laos. Other than her, we saw only a handful of white people in this city which was kind of refreshing.
The next morning we got our things together, paid the man for our two nights and hopped on the local bus to Hanoi (we were the only whites on board). The only development outside the city is along the highway, otherwise its rice fields and gardens as far as you can see. We stopped frequently to drop off and pick up passengers until the bus was full. The bus station in Hanoi was a circus and we seemed to be the main attraction. We had many offers to shuttle us but settled on a car taxi after we negotiated the price and destination. Not having a reservation, we got ourselves oriented in the new neighborhood on the edge of Hanoi’s old town and started walking from hotel to hotel, bargaining for the best price. After four hotels, landed on a decent one (we have a habit now of testing the mattress and pillows before agreeing to the room) for $10 a night. After a quick break, we set out on foot to the old Literature University (the oldest university in Vietnam built in 710 A.D.), one of the top recommended sights in Hanoi. The Literature University (no longer active, now simply an attraction) was stunning, and, situated in the midst of a bustling metropolis, a real rose in a garden of urban weeds. We entered through an open side gate (possibly illegally since we later learned that there is a fee to enter...) and stumbled upon a large event being staged in a large courtyard in front of the main university building where they were testing audio equipment. We toured the elegant two story (teak?) house filled with historic information, ancient garments, and, of course, a gift shop. Spread out among this campus were gardens, old trees, ponds and bonsai plants that donned courtyards with a zen feel all surrounded by a short brick wall about two city blocks long by one wide.
Walking back to our room, we stopped at the water puppet theater to buy tickets to a show that evening. It was neat to hear the legends surrounding the creations of the different Vietnamese peoples and was accompanied by traditional music as well, and we got very lucky since we got front and center seating which was great since these were puppets afterall.
We toured a good chunk of the old quarter’s many streets full of small shops selling some of the same junk stuff we’ve seen before but also some unique boutique and artisan goods. There are stores that sell only musical instruments, some that sell just safes and locks and some that only sell just milk and yogurt. A woman pulled an obvious scam on Megan and we both let it happen both for the picture and the fact that we were looking for what she was selling bananas and pineapple. We ate dinner at a second story restaurant overlooking the lake where we paid a service tax for the first time since we left home.
Hanoi itself is really beautiful for a such a big city. There are gorgeous remnants of french colonial architecture everywhere dispersed upon modern high rises and simple concrete structures. It is so alive - people running around making deliveries, buying goods in specialized markets and men relieving themselves in the gutters, there is certainly a type of charm to Hanoi that you must see for yourself to believe.
Hanoi itself is really beautiful for a such a big city. There are gorgeous remnants of french colonial architecture everywhere dispersed upon modern high rises and simple concrete structures. It is so alive - people running around making deliveries, buying goods in specialized markets and men relieving themselves in the gutters, there is certainly a type of charm to Hanoi that you must see for yourself to believe.
The next day, February 26th, we bought tickets to Halong Bay for three days and two nights! Before our first museum, I dragged Megan into a cafe across the street where nobody spoke any English or had English menus. Megan ordered chicken pho and I pointed to something on the menu that I knew included chicken. It turned out to be the best dish I had in Hanoi: fried chicken with rice and an amazing cooked cabbage plate with sweet and sour dipping sauce. Lucky me! We walked to the womens museum of Vietnam which is extraordinary. We both left with new found respect for the many women street vendors (and didn’t feel so bad about getting ripped off a bit now and then), many of whom work 12-16 hour days and don’t see their families for days or weeks on end. We also learned about marriage and the beliefs about birth and how spirits are involved, and also learned about how fashion has changed over time (Megan really liked that part, especially with the jewelry on display). Ambitiously, we also covered the military museum that afternoon, learning even more about the sad, violent modern history of Vietnam. Lots of American war machine wreckage on display throughout the museum - mixed emotions about that.
We spent much of the next morning at the national history museum and were pumped full of even more history of Vietnamese independence struggles with France. I was hoping for a bit more early Vietnamese history but it was still insightful to fill in the gaps of my knowledge about modern Vietnam. We ate lunch at a local pho spot and were treated very well! Even served us the weak tea that everyone in Vietnam seems to be drinking throughout the day. So far, we have not seen the sun in this country but we are optimistic as we are heading to Halong bay tomorrow for two nights.
A bit about Vietnam:
Every. Man. Smokes.
Buses are always late
Hotels in the big cities want to rip you off by booking travel packages for you
Tips are actually included in some places
You can keep your shoes on in houses and businesses
The toilets are less squatty and more sitty, and generally have toilet paper
Much less spicy food so far
Cheapest beer by far
Very few monks and temples
People get up very early
Seafood is a big deal
More sidewalks
No familiar chain stores..except KFC
We spent much of the next morning at the national history museum and were pumped full of even more history of Vietnamese independence struggles with France. I was hoping for a bit more early Vietnamese history but it was still insightful to fill in the gaps of my knowledge about modern Vietnam. We ate lunch at a local pho spot and were treated very well! Even served us the weak tea that everyone in Vietnam seems to be drinking throughout the day. So far, we have not seen the sun in this country but we are optimistic as we are heading to Halong bay tomorrow for two nights.
A bit about Vietnam:
Every. Man. Smokes.
Buses are always late
Hotels in the big cities want to rip you off by booking travel packages for you
Tips are actually included in some places
You can keep your shoes on in houses and businesses
The toilets are less squatty and more sitty, and generally have toilet paper
Much less spicy food so far
Cheapest beer by far
Very few monks and temples
People get up very early
Seafood is a big deal
More sidewalks
No familiar chain stores..except KFC