City in the Bend of a River

This place is mad!!!  We all know it better as Hanoi, which translates as the title to this blog. As we came from the airport to the city centre by bus, all of us were absolutely agog with disbelief. Think of Piccadilly Circus, in terms of the volume of traffic, noise, dust, fumes, add in some heat and humidity, and multiply it at least by 50. Buses, lorries, rick-shaws, taxis, mini-buses and millions and millions of small motorbikes, all swarm through the tangled web of streets, many actually driving INTO oncoming traffic on either side of the road, doing U-turns at will, joining the traffic at oblique angles to each other, and/or turning into the main drag from side-roads or from the kerbside without checking what is coming at them.   It seems that it's the job of the traffic already on the road to, somehow, accommodate those joining whenever and however they feel like it.   And in all of this mayhem, pedestrians walk slowly from one side of the road to another, or even going along the road in either direction, intermingling with the traffic with amazing nonchalance. At first sight, there seem to be absolutely no rules of the road at all. However, on more careful observation, it becomes obvious that all this madness actually seems to work quite well. The important thing, as a pedestrian, is to walk slowly, calmly, and at an even pace, and do your best not to lose your nerve. And that's important, as the pavements here are absolutely no place for pedestrians! They're there for these millions of motorbikes to park in never-ending rows, traders to hawk their wares, people to squat on corners eating their bowls of food and drinking tea.   But Hanoi is also exciting, vibrant, manic,and really pulsating with life. After a fairly boring wait at the airport in Vientiane, it really made our whole party come alive with laughter, amazement, and jaw-dropping disbelief.

This month, October 2010, Hanoi (more often shown here as Ha Noi), celebrates 1,000 years of existence, and there are many red banners, murals, lanterns and decorations adorning the streets. Just before we arrived here, there'd been huge celebrations and firework displays to mark the occasion.    The city used to be caled Thang Long, or 'City of the Rising Dragon', after a new king looking for somewhere to settle claimed to haved seen a golden dragon rising up from here towards the heavens. (Must have been some good opium in those days!).

Our first night here, we walked from our hotel to a local restaurant, keeping VERY close to our guide, Nak, every time we crossed the road. The food here is very good, but far less spicy than we've been used to in Thailand and Laos, and we often ask for some additional chopped chillies, just to get our 'fix'.
The following morning, we set off by bus for a 2-hour journey to Halong Bay in the Gulf of Tonkin. Here, if you want to 'pick a flower' or 'shoot a rabbit', you ask the driver to stop at the 'Happy Room'.  Well, we stopped at a Happy Room half-way to the Bay, which was in another handicraft complex set up by a not-for-profit organisation to make employment for people who are victims of 'Agent Orange', the US chemical-warfare of choice during the Vietnam war years. (It was here, in the Gulf of Tonkin in 1964, as some of you may remember, that the US alleged that one of its destroyers had been attacked by the North Vietnamese.   After a second such allegation by the US, President Johnson sought and got Congress approval to 'take any measures necessary to repel further attacks', and thus began the bombing of North Vietnam).  On our journey, we saw loads of motor-bikes loaded up with perhaps 6 or 7 large bird-cages full of birds, half a hedgerow of crops, massive basket panniers with market produce, and even one with a full-sized cow strapped to the pillion, one with three large pigs, and one really massive water buffalo!  Yes, on the back of a small motorbike!! Judging by the way they were strapped on the backs of these vehicles, we can only hope that these animals were already dead (though our guide thinks not...) 

Halong Bay, a UNESCO world heritage site, currently vying to be listed as one of the new '7 Wonders of the World' apparently (quite how that works, we're not sure, but there's apparently a website where you can vote for this), is GORGEOUS. It consists of nearly 2,000 limestone monolithic islands, each topped with thick jungle vegetation, which rise spectacularly from the ocean. Several of the islands are hollow, with emormous grottos or caves - one of which we visited - with huge, weirdly shaped stalagtites.   (I kept expecting either another James Bond-style water-chase, or at the very least a Thunderbirds jet-ski, to energe suddenly into the waters from somewhere hidden inside this massive cave complex).   Several of the Halong Bay islands support whole floating villages of fisher-folk, whio apparently ply the local waters for over 200 types of fish and around 450 kinds of molluscs.   After floating around the islands on our very luxurious sailing junk for an hour or two, and following our visit to the cave, the sailing junk dropped anchor and we swam for some time in the warm, milky-green sea - so relaxing and buoyant, just wonderful - before getting back onto the still-anchored boat for some sunbathing and photography.    There was a bit of a mist all around as the sun started to go down, which seemed to add a dream-like quality to the whole place.   Just as the sun set, we enjoyed a cocktail each, before tucking into just about the most wonderful seafood dinner we've had this trip.   We know several of you who would have just loved this whole experience.   As the moon and stars rose in the sky, all of the couple of dozen other boats also staying the night nearby started to put their lights on, and the scene turned into something hugely romantic, calming, and peaceful (except for some thankfully-distant karaoke noises from one or two of them.)   We had a lovely room on board, complete with en-suite bathroom, and king-sized bed, and we were lulled gently to sleep in the calm waters of Halong Bay.   We can certainly recommend it!

The following morning, after a lovely breakfast on board, we sailed back to the harbour and returned by bus to the madness of Hanoi - quite a contrast!   It's amazing really, given that it remains a communist country, just how strong is the Vietnamese people's entrepreneurial/commercial spirit.   Every inch of space here is a trading opportunity - including the mainly female street vendors who roam around the traffic wearing their 'coolie-hats', and carrying over one shoulder a large bamboo pole, with huge round baskets tied on either end of the pole, replete with perhaps several dozen melons, ugly-fruit, kilos of grapes or sweets in both.

After an afternoon walking, by now brazenly, around the City centre, and around and over the beautiful Hoan Kiem lake (with a bright red bridge leading to a temple in the centre of the lake, which is a favourite gathering place for couples to have their official photographs taken before their wedding - the official photographers encourage passers-by to take photos too, so we did!),  Andy and I had a leg and foot massage - in the weirdest back-alley imagineable, and with one of the two masseuses sniffing loudly for the duration, and, at one point, making text-calls with one hand whilst continuing the massage single-handed!  Not the  best massage ever, and nothing like as good as the two in Ventiane - but there'll be some more! Then it was off to the airport for another flight, to Hue (sadly, in lieu of a planned overnight train trip on the Reunification Express, which was cancelled because of the flooding - 167 people have apparently lost their lives in floods in Vietnam in the last week).

On that happy note, we'll post this blog - and hope to get some photos up shortly.  But we're really, really busy having lots of fun, and blogging has to take its turn!

1000-Year Celebrations in Hanoi

Many Hanoi Street Scenes

Hanoi's Lake Hoan Kiem at Night

Several Scenes of Halong Bay

Halong Bay at Night