Vietnam

Vietnam provided an amazing variety of experiences, as we travelled from North to South. This photograph captures the importance of water in their lives…as transportation, for food, for work, etc.

After arriving in Hanoi, we went to Ho Chi Minh’s tomb. The process of waiting in line to view the tomb was very structured and controlled. Soldiers marched outside and the visitors were carefully escorted and were kept moving through the building, so that each person could only briefly view his body. Amazing crowd control! We also visited the prison which the French had occupied to torture the Vietnamese. And, in turn, the Vietnamese used to house (and torture) American pilots, including John McCain. This was called the “Hanoi Hilton” (tongue-in-cheek) by the GIs who spent time there! The Vietnamese cleverly posed the soldiers for propaganda photos, to make it look as if they were well treated. Donald Trump obviously never visited this torture chamber, as he would have seen the sad photograph of John McCain lying in bed, severely injured.

Next, we had a street food stall tour by an American who has been living in Hanoi for the past 7 years. Daniel, who owns a restaurant and has written 5 cookbooks, arrived in Vietnam almost a decade earlier…married a Vietnamese woman and stayed. Daniel walked us through the various markets, pointing out the enterprising efforts of the food vendors, and their attention to carefully processing and displaying the fresh ingredients.

He then took us to eat at a few local street stalls aka restaurants, which we would never had done on our own, as we might have been concerned about the cleanliness of the preparation and utensils! And yes, those are live frogs for sale.

The next day we left for Halong Bay to catch a small boat cruise for two nights. The boat had more crew than guests! A two to one ratio! While not a luxury cruise, it was lots of fun. The boat travelled along the bay into the national park. Here we once again saw floating homes, only these were on platforms so the people could walk from one home to the other.

We went kayaking in the Bay and into some caves and out again… through clear green waters! Pristine, peaceful, and calming. And we even stopped by the local boat store. You can’t just get up and walk around; if you want to buy groceries or visit a neighbor, you have to get into a smaller boat or swim.

Our boat guide was energetic and offered an excursion each day. We went kayaking and hiking.

On one day, Ned and I agreed to bike to the sole village in the national park.

This is a commune, where the residents share the work to plant, tend and harvest the crops. These people are completely self-sufficient…water and electricity came to the village a few years ago. The central part of the village contain rice fields, and the edges are where they grow their herbs and vegetables.

We also went on a short hike to try and view the rare monkeys that only live here in Vietnam. We didn’t see the monkeys, but saw many goats and a woman chopping dead trees for wood, as well as bamboo!

The day after we left Halong Bay, another ship caught fire and the people had to be evacuated. Yet another Kurabi example of sidestepping an incident! It was good to have spent two nights away from the hustle and bustle of the cities, forcing us to adapt to what is available and already on the boat. Most of all, Ned and I were delighted to kayak, bike and hike in this lovely surroundings.

Then we took the long drive back to Hanoi to catch our flight to Danang. Along the way, we saw more vegetable fields…One thing that struck us throughout the journey was the abundance of food.

Our guide stopped outside a village to show us how they are building modern big houses with the money their children earn working in the big city, away from the families, except for weekend visits. As we were walking through the village, we saw rice being cleaned by a machine.

As we walked on, a man invited us in to meet his family and have tea. As is typical, several generations live together. Here is the grandmother, who took my elbow and escorted me into their living space! And insisted that Ned sit next to her on their bed.

From Danang we went to Hoi An. We walked through the old town…unfortunately, it has been discovered with all the old houses converted into shops and tourists in the bus loads.

After Hoi An, we travelled to Ho Chi Minh city (formerly Saigon). The best thing we did here was to take a Vespa tour of the city. Each of us sat on the back of the bike, like many do here, and we zipped through parts of the city which would be difficult to get to on foot or by car.

Our guide was recently married, and shared both wedding pictures and the traditions e.g., the woman is expected to live with the man’s parents.

She also walked us through the multiple levels of a Pagoda, explaining how each level was dedicated to different relatives and ancestors. The hanging incense baskets below are in lit in honor of a family member.

She was outspoken…and she took us to some unique places. We watched the “singing birds” daily activity. Here the men bring their singing birds to acclimate the birds to the city noises and the street environment, so that when the singing contest takes place, the bird is not frightened. Cages range from simple to elaborate. A local vendor sells grasshoppers for the men to feed their birds. Yes, the owners are all men!

She also took us through the flower market and tiny alley ways where people live, sleep, and eat in a room often no bigger than 8X10 feet. Several people may live in the same one room space, sleeping on one bed, head to foot.

As we rode on the Vespas, we learned that you can get fined if your horn doesn’t work. Even walking on the sidewalk is a challenge as bikes will often try to bypass the street traffic by riding on the sidewalk, thus causing pedestrians to yield to them, or stop as they whiz by. However, in spite of the thousands of bikes, cars and people, the flow of traffic is surprisingly non-aggressive, with individuals watching and slowing to allow others to pass.

By now, we were weary of traveling and the congestion of the cities. So we headed to a planned R&R on Con Dao island, for the next 3 days…a place almost completely void of tourists, in the very southern part of Vietnam. It was on this wind swept island, with crystal clear beaches of fine sand, that the French tortured the imprisoned Vietnamese in huge prisons…which were also used by the Americans during our Vietnam War.