Blogs from Hanoi, Red River Delta, Vietnam, Asia - page 244

I met up with Claire today to go pay a visit to Uncle Ho. We headed out to the Mausoleum mid-morning to be met by a long line-up. It seemed long because everybody had to check in their bags, walk through a metal detector and check in their cameras. There were a ton of tours there at the same time so it almost felt like we fit right in. Basically we were ushered (I was gonna say herded but ushered sounds so much better!) into the Mausoleum to be greeted by guards about every 10 to 15 paces. It was really quiet. The whole walking by Ho Chi Minh took no more than 20 seconds. All I could really think about when I was walking by his body was, "I'm looking at a dead guy!" I ... read more

Bye Bye to Sarah She flies to Perth today Just me and Claire left! Well, it is time to say farewell to Sarah today. Claire and I will still be in Ha Noi for a bit longer but tomorrow evening I go on tour to Sa Pa to check out the hilltribes etc. But I'll be back in time to spend some of Saturday with Claire before we part ways again..me off to Sai Gon and Claire back to Tam Ky for more Volunteering. If it wasn't such a hassle it would be neat to "pop" into Tam Ky and see the kids one last time... Geez it's been a long time since I've written in my blog I'm not sure where to start. I guess from more or less where I left off... Okay, let's ... read more

Ha Noi walking tour A little shopping and sun Lots of museums. That pretty much sums up Sunday. Claire, Sarah and myself checked out a few sights on Sarah's last full day in Ha Noi. First stop was a visit to the Woman's Museum. Quite an interesting display especially the role that Women had during the Revolution etc. The top floor was basically the "costumes" of the different areas of Viet Nam. To be honest I can't remember what the second floor was all about at this point in time. :) Then we headed towards the Temple of Literature. But not before having lunch at KOTO. I believe that stands for Know one, Teach one. Basically a place where young people are trained in the ways of the restaurant World among other things. I will have ... read more

Hi All.. Everyone OK? Hope So.. So here we are...we thought Bangkok was crazy for traffic but this place tops it by a long stretch.. Never have we seen so many bikes in such a small place, and somebody decided to do away with traffic lights and road markings just to up the stakes.. You literally took your life into your own hands when crossing the road, but it was this or just being satisfied with seeing one side of Hanoi! Somehow though we saw only one small bump in a city where there is no wrong side of the road and no correct direction to take - just hold your horn and go seemed to be the accepted way. If this was in the UK there would be a dozen road rage murders a day ... read more

Ethnography has long been the written form of choice for Sociologists, and so I was excited to learn that the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology was located in Hanoi. My penchant for nerdiness and adventure inspired me to begin my Bicycle Tour of Vietnam by renting a rickety bike and navigating my way to the museum. How tough could 7km be, even if the streets DID seem daunting as a pedestrian. Surely it would be easier to be among the dodgers than the dodged. The trip there took me a little over 2 hours. As it turns out, this tourist destination is more likely to be frequented by bus-boarding tour groups than Henry the Navigator types on bicycles, and marked very well on the map. At any rate, the museum was lovely, and I particularly enjoyed chatting ... read more