Hanoi - March 25th & 26th

We anchored in Ha Long Bay in the Gulf of Tonkin, an amazing place in and of itself. Rock islands jutting up randomly all over the place. On some lists, one of the natural wonders of the world. Breath-taking and totally unexpected (for us).

We went ashore in the city of Ha Long Bay, 300,000 people and rapidly developing as a tourist destination. A major new suspension bridge was just completed.

We saw a new theme park under construction and a several mile-long tramway crossing the bay. You can see one of the tramway towers in front the suspension bridge tower on the right, and one gondola cable already strung across the bay.

On to Hanoi, the ancient, French Colonial, and current capital of Vietnam.

We had a fantastic tour guide. With everyone’s agreement, he dropped a superfluous temple and a superfluous museum and gave us lots of time in the Ancient Quarter, the best part of Hanoi.

Hanoi is divided into quarters. The Modern Quarter is the new city, a business center with hotels, condominiums and office buildings. The French Quarter consists of buildings built during the Colonial period. The Embassy Quarter is where the government buildings and the embassies are. The Russian Quarter consists of ugly and utilitarian buildings built during the time of major Russian influence. The Ancient Quarter is the tourist, shopping and restaurant center: pre-colonial buildings and temples, upscale and knock-off shopping, traditional restaurants, water-puppet theaters.

Friday night we saw a water-puppet show: marionettes that float and are controlled by tensioned strings running through bamboo poles under the surface of the water:

The best act was “Lê Lợi Returning the Sword.” Lê Lợi was a hero who fought foreign invaders in the 15th century. In legend he was granted a powerful sword by the deities. After victory he was boating on a lake in Hanoi when Kim Quy, the Golden Tortoise God, appeared to claim back the sword, which Lê Lợi graciously returned.

This lake, in the heart of the Ancient Quarter, is of course called Returned Sword Lake. Here it is at night with the monument in the middle:

Here is Joani in front of the monument the next day:

There is of course a Returned Sword Temple on an island in the lake. The bridge to the temple is called the Good Luck Bridge; if you make a wish on the bridge it may come true.

We visited the tomb of Ho Chi Minh and the “Hanoi Hilton” where John McCain was held prisoner.

Ho Chi Minh, like all great dead communist leaders, is preserved in a Plexiglas coffin in a mausoleum that is a prominent national monument. Lenin was such a trend-setter.

Couldn’t resist that last picture of Joani in front of Lenin’s tomb. We will be in Beijing April 4-7 and will add Chairman Mao to the collection for the trifecta. My nephew Scott will be jealous.

On a more sobering note, welcome to the Hanoi Hilton:

Here is the typical prison wear given to American POWs:

The facility was in fact the old French Colonial prison. Most of it has been torn town; a section has been preserved as a museum. There is a real guillotine left over from the Colonial Era

Tomorrow we visit Sanya Island off the coast of southern China, on our way to Hong Kong. It is a beach resort for Chinese mainlanders. After the Hanoi Hilton, we are ready for a simple day at the beach.