Hanoi-day 1

Main observations for today:

1. It's hot & I didn't know I could sweat there

2. Traffic & Scooters (transportation)

3. Street food

4. Vietnam prison museum

5. Water puppets

(For those of you who don't want the details.)

We'll call today day 1 in Hanoi, given that we slept away yesterday. Yesterday as I laid in bed, all the self-talk couldn't convince me to go explore what appears to me to be a chaotic city-Hanoi. I thought I'd lost my sense of adventure, but later realized it was exhaustion & JetLag. 

Our goal was to sleep until 6am (keep in mind for this trip that we are 12 hours ahead of home-that means the exact opposite for our internal clocks). At 5am we lost the battle-given that it was already light outside. In case Chris hadn't already mentioned-this is the nicest inexpensive private room Hostel we've stayed at. Aside from some missing plaster from dents in the wall-this place is nice. The room includes a fridge and a safe. A safe!! 

We put back on our clothing from yesterday-and were downstairs promptly at 7am for our free breakfast. I ordered bacon, eggs and toast while Chris has a more local breakfast-sticky rice with pork (fancy Ramon noodles with sautéed onion & pork). It was our first food in 20 hours-delicious to say the least!! Their pork is AMAZING-salty. 

And we headed out, full of excitement to explore Hanoi: only to be blasted by the stiffeling heat. I'm not sure how to describe it adequately in words, but I'll try. The sun wasn't shining down-but the air was thick-mostly with exhaust and 84% humidity. Within our first few blocks, Chris' shirt turned darker green from the sweat-and water was running down the sides of his face. We both looked as though we got caught in the rain-but it was sweat. My feet are blistered from the added friction caused by the sweat. In a dress-the sweat has nothing to catch it-it just runs all the way down my back. There is no breeze. I was questioning our choice in destination. 

First stop: an ATM machines. Most have a 2 million dong limit-rumor had it some in Hanoi would let you withdraw up to 8 million dong. The first ATM couldn't read my card-but the ATM room was heavenly with AC. Then we found one that would let us withdraw 3 million-at this point we just needed cash. For future reference, most local machines have a 2 million dong limit ($50). We found you could withdraw 5 million from HSBC bank. You have select other & type in the amount-thank you Jesus for answering small prayers.

We were quickly exposed to Hanoi traffic. There are tons of scooters and sometimes they'll use the sidewalks if the one way street is in the opposite direction. Most women wear hoods & long sleeves and a face mask as they ride. I was happy to see many wearing helmets. I saw a family of 4 on a scooter this morning-child standing, dad driving, mom on back, and second child between mom & dad. What's also funny is to see bikes share the road with the scooters and cars. 

We were on a mission to see the embalmed Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum. I saw Lenin in Moscow & thought it was one of the most amazing things I've seen. HCM was #1 on my list for Hanoi. We arrived-saw the complex and the large field-and walked around to the right. BIG MISTAKE-you can only enter on the left side. We followed signs and began to pass lines of people. Blocks and blocks of people in line to see HCM. We never did make it to the end of the line before we decided it wasn't worth it to spend our entire day in line for the mausoleum. (You can see the start of the line in the lower left.)

And at this point I think it's fair to say we were both having internal meltdowns while our bodies physically were trying to adjust to the heat-and we'd finished the last of our water. We headed back to the hostel-when a voice called out "good morning" and this little coffee shop had water & AC-with wifi. We paid $1.30 for two tiny waters-but were able to spend the next hour cooling down & calming down. It was at this point that we realized why we were sweating: 

Feels like 115. I'm not going crazy-it's really HOT!! (How is it called a wind chill?)

We've had a slight change in our itinerary (I'm not leaving Hanoi until I see Ho Chi Minh's embalmed body) and were able to book our bus tickets and hotel for the next city. We needed the break from the heat, hydration, and a plan for the rest of the day (walk around & explore the city is no longer a plan when it's 115 outside).

(Laughing because what else can you do when you're dripping with sweat?)

We bought 3L of water for $1.34 (yes, the cute little coffee shop was overpriced but that's life) and headed back to the hotel. We came back to drop off water & to sit in the AC. For those of you who don't know, I take after my grandma and have about a 2 degree temperature range that I'm comfortable. Too cold & I need a blanket. Too hot & I melt. This is me after our morning out. Basking in the AC & trying to dry. 

Thankfully a recommended street food stand was around the corner-we headed out for lunch. I felt adventurous, confident-and glad we came to Vietnam. This place was in both of our guidebooks & said "under the banyan tree." 

We had a sampler platter-which was one of each. They were fried deliciousness-including deep fried spring rolls and bang ghoi-deep fried savory pastries. It was full of locals-which is always a good sign! 

The salad was bitter greens and a lot of mint leaves. The cold yellow soup was fermented something sweet & delicious that was used as a dipping sause. Chris watched the locals eat. 

We sat on tiny red floor stools. Definitely not made for sitting while wearing a dress. 

Chris was floored by the price-it was 89,000 dong!! I said pay the $4 and let's go. We found our lovely ATM, made another trip back to the hotel to drop off our loot & went to Hoan Kiem Lake- the soul of Hanoi located in the old quarter. We visited the Den Ngoc Son temple (30k each) and took a kitch photo. 

Before crossing the red lacquered bridge. First selfie stick photo of the trip!! (I love the selfie stick!! I'm new to it & will eventually learn not to include the stick in photos.)

We visited the temple and saw the giant taxidermy turtle. (Photo not worth including.)

The lake & foliage really was beautiful.

Chris wanted to see Hoa Lo Prison museum. I'm glad we went for many reasons. About 90% of the way through the museum I pulled out my notebook to write observations: I'm surprised by the praise for the comrades-they are celebrated to such an extend that who was held captive in which solitary confinement cell was labeled. Comments about prisoners often included "revealing spirits of optimism." 

I wondered where were the stories about the American prisoners held here? The only mention we'd had were photos from around the world, protesting the American presence. And I realized this is Vietnam's story. They are proud of the communist leaders who survived or who perished for the cause within these walls. There are always two sides to a story. 

And then I read their side: 

 And for the first time I realized why every baby boomer cringed when I mentioned a trip to Vietnam. The video of POW said they were "lucky to have been a guest of Vietnam" and showed them exchanging gifts with local guards before returning to the States. The whole time I thought-how would a POW feel if they saw Hoa Lo today? And like a good museum, they answered that question for us:

I'm thankful we went to the Hoa Lo museum. First, it was well done. Second, it had AirCon. Third, I gained more insight into the country of Vietnam-more than the timeline of history printed in each guidebook. Fourth-it's hard to hear a story from the other side-and we need to recognize that. 

We headed back to the hotel, at which point I was limping due to the blisters on my feet. I LOVE my Chacos and a large part is that they don't ever cause blisters or pain-I can do anything in them and my feet are fine-but this is the second trip that my feet have blistered. I will spare you the photos. Chris took an afternoon nap, I worked on this blog post. 

My #2 "must see in Hanoi" was the water puppets. Yes, puppets dancing on the water-a Vietnamese art form that is over 1000 years old while traditional music is played. 

We bought tickets earlier in the afternoon (100k each) and the lady at the ticket counter gave us front row, center seats. They were perfect. We could see every detail-even the underwater poles used to manipulate the puppets. 

https://instagram.com/p/BGhKFqrhc2rJ8uPKzGVsQMiBAj-CqQ8eMwiN7E0/

(Thanks Betsy for the "how to" on the video!!)

I am so sad to learn I cannot imbed my video into the blog. You need the music & watching the puppets dance to fully appreciate them. The puppets were just delightful-a positive reminder of the rich culture after the prison museum. 

We saw the lake again-all lit up. 

 

And headed back towards the hotel in search of dinner. I wanted to try a food stand right around the hotel, Chris was afraid they would be closed. So we went to an actual restaurant and had a budget blowing $9 dinner!! Chris had mango chicken & I had vegetable fried rice. 

We came back to the hotel, showered off the day & are going to bed at 9:30p. We're climbing in bed with our guide books-planning the next adventure-or place to eat.