Vietnam

Ken and Geraint were over visiting from the UK, so we all decided to head to Vietnam. We flew into Hanoi. Singapore is considered living in the tropics and it is very hot here. But Hanoi was a completely different story! We stayed in an beautiful boutique hotel, The Hanoi Elegance Diamond.  This was in a terrific location, right near the Hoan Kiem Lake and in the historic old quarter. Walking outside from our hotel was like walking into a bowl of soup. And the motorcycles! Everyone seems to have one and rides with no helmets and with their little children, zooming in and out of the city. Walking across the road can be a challenge. I started thinking I was in an the old Atari game, Frogger. Luckily taxis were relatively cheap. We went to the Water Puppet theatre, which was superb. This is a show showing puppets dancing on water. The puppets are made out of wood and then lacquered. The shows are performed in a waist deep pool, and a large rod supports the puppet under water and is used by the puppeteers who are normally hidden behind a screen to control them. This makes it look like the puppets are moving on water. Water puppet shows originated in the 11th century CE in Northern Vietnam, and when the rice fields would flood, the villagers would entertain each other with water puppets. (Via Wikipedia) 

We also went on a tour of Hanoi and the most interesting thing to me was visiting the Ho Chi Minh complex. Uncle Ho, as the Vietnamese people call him, wanted to be cremated and have his ashes buried on the hills of the North, the Center and the South of Vietnam. Too bad for him, as when he died in 1969, the Vietnamese government decided to place his body in a mausoleum, so that he could see how fantastic Vietnam was doing, and for future generations to visit him. So, the Soviet Union came to help, and they build a mausoleum for him and you can go and see his body. He is lying as if sleeping, in the simple clothes he wore when he died. You are not allowed to bring a camera (don't even dare!).  You can also see his house and even his car garage. On the outside of the Masoleum you can see his famous quote, "Khong co gi guy hon doc lap tu do" which means "Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom".  

Next we headed to Halong Bay. Its about a 4 hour drive from Hanoi and it was the bumpiest ride I've ever had! In Halong Bay, we did a three day trip with Paloma Cruises.  We stayed in an old style Chinese Junk Boat, which was lovely and cruised all around Halong Bay, stopping to swim and kayak. The food on the boat was great, fresh Vietnamese food with lots of local catches and local fruit and vegetables. All in all we had a wonderful time in Vietnam and I can't wait to visit again! Hope you enjoy the pictures.