Hanoi

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Sat June 2 2012

Stayed in Hanoi at Golden Wings II for $22 per night with aircon and breakfast. Booked tour to Halong with Vega Travel for $146 each. Toured Old Quarter which is full of streets with dedicated purposes such as silverware, clothes, headstones, paper money. Walked to Lake for lunch at Pho 24. Nice shady area around lake. Found St Josephs Cathedral in French Colonial Quarter. Elaborate altar but rest was peeling, patchy green paint. Dinner of sea bass in mushroom and soy sauce and Chicken and Mango on lettuce.

Went to Water Puppet performance which encapsulated some traditional music and stories.

Weather is very steamy.

Sun June 3 , 2012

Walked via little side streets and army citadel to Ho Chi Minh Mausolem. The queques stretched for blocks and blocks so we walked through a nearby market with heaps of wierd vegetables and edible creatures and got lost again. Had a drink in a little shop where no English was spoken but everyone was really nice. Sat on the steps and watched the passing parade.Went to the Temple of Literature which was Hanoi's first university and started in the 1400's. The names of people who passed their exams were on stone stellae on the backs of stone turtles. There was a Confusion Temple and lots of courtyards and formal gardens. It was graduation time and lots of students were having their photos taken.

Had lunch at Coco, a restaurant run to train street children....nice but a little pricy.

Visited the Womens Museum which was excellent. It covered marraige and birth customs, tribal customs, Mother Goddess worship, the life of street vendors and the role of women in the US War. Walked home via the lake with dinner of coconut fried prawns and sweet and sour pork.h

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Photos

Graduation
At Temple of Literature