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Halong Bay (and Hanoi before and after...)

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May 22nd 2009
Having arrived at 2.30am the previous night, our first day in Hanoi was spent wandering around the maze of streets in the old quarter (where we are staying). We found our way to the lake which is where a lot of action seems to be - the water puppet theatre is there, along with the more upmarket shopes such as Calvin Klein, Cartier and Clinique which we wistfully wandered past (well, I did anyway!) ... read more

Asia » Vietnam » Northeast » Quang Ninh » Halong Bay

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The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Independence was declared after World War II, but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by Communist forc... ... read more