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Published: November 14th 2005
Doorway to Asia?
Temple of LiteratureHoi An:
Hurtling towards my next stop on yet another bus of death (driving in Vietnam is an adrenalin sport) I had visions of silk dresses and custom-made suits dancing in my head, as tiny, beautiful Hoi An is THE place to get tailor-made clothes... However, I quickly discovered that I'm not a pressure-shopper, and being manhandled by little Vietnamese ladies trying to coerce me into their shop is the worst way to get my business. Rather than, like most, spending all my time in the city in one tailor shop or another, I enjoyed walking (well, wading, it is the rainy season and it was quite flooded) around the city, it was quite enchanting. (Though before you all go being all proud of me for resisting the inner shopping demon in me... I did get some faux-Pumas made. I NEEDED THEM DAMN IT!) I'd also managed to amass a nice group of Aussies to surround myself with, and the nights were spent drinking at various happy hours and general travel tale-swapping... They were all in vehement support of my going to Laos, so we shall see, we shall see.
Hue:
The next stop was Hue, a real
fly by night stopover as Marlo needed to be in China asap and I was just particularly feeling Vietnam, but it was a nice stop none-the-less. Hue is a bigger city than Hoi An, and felt infinitely less touristy despite having more 'tourist' attractions. We did a fantastic motorbike tour of the royal tombs, Japanese bridge, and various other sites just outside the city, and the driving itself may have been the highlight! I kind of want a little Honda Dream for myself, to jet around Vancouver in. I also managed to buy the most beautiful prints in this lovely little shop I found, the kind of typically Asian paintings that I've been wanting to buy for the last couple of months but been unable to find... These are original works done by a local artist on rice paper, and depict traditional Vietnamese scenes. Gorgeous.
One funny, less than stellar moment in Hue was when we went to a boat cruise performance of the (in?!)famous Hue folk singers, and were a little put off by how visibly unimpressed the female singers were at being there! Whenever they weren't at the forefront of the performance, they would be checking their
cell phones, or comparing makeup purchases. It was actually quite a succint recreation of my experinces with the Vietnamese... An only thinly-veiled disgruntlement at the hordes of tourists invading certain parts of their country, and an almost hostile approach to the tourist trade. I'm not saying that all the Vietnamese I've encountered have been like this, for most have truly been lovely, but there is an underlying current of hostility... Most of which is likely attributable to the "American War". The locals I've talked to about the aftermath of the war have mostly tried to deny any remaining anger, but you'd have to be blind to travel in this country and not realize that the war still casts its shadow over the people.
Hanoi:
Despite a scary arrival into Hanoi (our group - and luggage - got separated despite assurances that both taxis would go to the same "tourist office" and one group nearly got in fisty cuffs with a jerk of a hotel manager) the happy little family comprising of the Aussies, myself, and the two Americans set off for Ha Long Bay. The weather wasn't the best, but what an incredible experience... Cruising around a blue
bay dotted with limestone islands and cliffs; hanging out, drinking wine, and playing Texas Hold 'Em and Kings with new friends on an gorgeous, old-world boat; synchronized flips and dives into warm water surrounded by surreal beauty; exploring immence caves decorated with ludicrous neon lighting; bemoaning a 7 am wakeup call of pounding Thai dance music on full-blast, and finally, lamenting the inevitable return to 'reality' while lounging in the sun on the deck... This is the life.
Hanoi highlights included Melbourned Cup Day (my horse came in second), phenomenal ice cream, the beautiful Temple of Literature, and... leaving Vietnam for Thailand and Ko Phi Phi - now that is "paradise".
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