Hallo Moto?!

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Geo: 21.0243, 105.855

Very early start this morning to get the 6.45 plane to Hanoi. We figured we would have plenty of time so early in the morning and left ourselves about a hour and a half to check in and get to the gate. Next time, we will check in online....! We had 5 minutes to spare (I'm beginning to wonder how we could be so organised before the trip and then have 2 occasions of nearly missing a flight in the first 3 days?) but managed to get to the gate as the final boarding calls were being made.

Withdrew a cool million at the airport. It was dong sadly, and not pounds. It was worth about 35 quid. Might be flashy and take out 2 million tommorrow!!

When we arrived in Hanoi, we were redirected from our hotel to the sister hotel round the corner, being assured that it had nicer rooms. Weeeeeeel, they're ok. Good air-con and a window so can't complain! Had a little snooze (otherwise I would have been a total grumpy bum all day) and then headed out to explore Hanoi.

It is crazy! You just have to march determinedly across the road and assume that the crazy kamikaze motorbike drivers will move around you. In all fairness, they do, but there is no regard for pedestrian crossings, for the direction of traffic, for the appropriate side of the road - the traffic here just goes: around you, past you, stopping suddenly just before hitting your toes. 11,000 people are killed on the roads every year in Vietnam, and to be honest it's easy to see why. BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP..... That is the sound of Hanoi (accompanied by, "hello? moto? moto? cyclo? moto? moto? cyclo?"😉 Keeping an eye out for crazy amounts of people and stuff on the back of bikes. Only counted a family of 4 so far... and a woman with a shed-load of feather dusters on hers...

Onto more happy things (hmmm) we then wandered down to the Musem of Vietnamese Women. There should have been some "engaging displays and exhibits" on the womens' movement in the revolution in Vietnam, but it was closed. We did, however, see an exhibition of paintings by a fomer female soldier who had driven from South to North on a moped, with her bags and a canopy strapped on, meeting and painting the former female revolutionaries. It was only a temporary display and it was quite a moving experience. The paintings were exquisite and really captured the features of the women.

Then, just to lighten the tone, we headed to the prison. This was used to house, torture, try and execute the revolutionaries from the late 1800s to the 1950s. Once the revolution was over, and the Vietnam War was in full throw, it was used to house American Pilots who had been gunned down and captured. There were some great representations of the conditions the prisoners would have been kept in, as well as some disturbing images relating to the French Guillotine housed in the main hall. We saw the uniform worn by John McCain, the US politician who was gunned down during the war. The Vietnamese obviously still feel antagnostic towards the Americans as the displays and commentaries were a little, one-sided should we say?

Then it was time for a late lunch. Pork and noodle soup with chillies and coriander, mango and pineapple juice and lashings of water. All in the pleasant surroundings of a roof-top cafe overlooking St. Joseph's Cathedral. Gorgeous and for the bargain price of 5 pounds for both of us. Aaaaah I love Asia...

Home to change out of the sweatiest clothes in the world. Did I mention the heat? It appears that our fears of Hanoi in the midst of a typhoon were unfounded. This place is BAKING!!! We have both changed clothes 3 times today, it is insane. Then off to another rooftop restaurant for dinner to watch the crazy traffic below and feel relieved to not be in the middle of it. Off to the Water puppets after that... it was.... interesting. We had First Class seats, although I could see no difference between 1st class and 2nd class - the theatre was the size of a school hall at biggest. All of the puppets took place on the water, accompanied by Chinese Opera (not my favourite sound, it has to be said... very twangy and whiny, but that's just my professional Simon Cowell opinion....) I fell asleep 5 times, but yeah, it was good....

And then through the streets, someone dipping their hand into my front pocket of my bag, which was nice! When I felt the tug (she wasn't very good obviously) I turned round and shouted but she became very intersted in the motor bikes.Realising that there was nothing in the front to take (I'd moved it all into the back in a fit of,admittedly fortunate, paranoia) I just wandered off, my bag now firmly on my front.

Back to the hotel and BED. LOOOOOOOOOONG day today.

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