Hanoi, Vietnam

Hanoi is a hectic city in the north of Vietnam and an obligatory stopping point for anyone wishing to see Ha Long Bay. Although there isn't much to see, it is an interesting city to wander around in, with its hole-in-the-wall shops selling Pho, a rice noodle soup, Bia Hoi, home brewed beer with barely any alcohol in it, sold on every street corner, fruit stands each with a plethera of odd-looking fruit, pushy motorcycle drivers, and people on a constant mission to rip foreigners off, making good bargaining skills a necessity for everything here. In wandering around with some people I met at the hostel, we first saw the prison where John McCain was imprisoned, now an unbeleivable peice of Vietnamese propaganda. After portraying the prison as a hell on earth for the Vietnamese prisoners while in control of the French, they have a section devoted to showing how good life was for American prisoners during the Vietnam War, pictured below is the rendition of the cell when it was under French Colonial rule. For a little blurb on the real experience of John McCain, click here. Since my video won't upload, I'll give you a transcript of the subtitles that play while showing scenes of happy Americans enjoying life in the "Hanoi Hilton". Here is what they say (starts in the middle of the video): "Moreover, the American pilot prisoners enjoyed their freedom of religion, they were also given any possible opportunities to meet with international journalists and visitors/representatives of international humanitarian organizations. The 1973 Paris Peace Accords finally brought peace to the North of Viet Nam. Their shorts of stay in the Hanoi Hilton 'Hoa Lo' varied from one to another but all of them had experienced and deeply appreciated the humane treatment of the Government of Viet Nam. 'Uninvited Guests' coming here by fully loaded fighter aircrafts and bombers, it's time for you to go home! And you should consciously understand that you were still so lucky being prisoners of Vietnamese people!' They probably turned the video off when John McCain came back to visit.

After that, we headed over to the Temple of Literature, an old Confucian temple. Vietnam is sill a Communist country and they still revere their hero Ho Chi Minh and his body is on display in Hanoi, though the museum and masoleum were both closed the day I was there. For a snack we went to Fruit Shake Street, which was a disappointing for the name it had, but nonetheless the "fruit shakes" were really good; basically, they were diced tropical fruit covered with a sweet yogurt sauce and topped with tapioca balls (like the ones in bubble tea). It was quite good, even though I normally don't go for the odd types of fruit.

With nothing else left to do, we went to the water puppet show, possibly the most bizzare thing I've seen in awhile. Not a word of English was spoken throughout the performance, as little puppets emerged from the water to dance around to a Vietanmese band and story, apparently the history of Vietnam, though no one would know it without being told (again, I'll post a video of it when I am able). As someone at my hostel happily informed me, Hanoi has more motorbikes that people, which comes as little surprise after walking around there dodging the motorcycles. I had stories of Hanoi being a mind-boggling nightmare, but I found it a fun and crazy little city that.

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Details:
I flew from Luang Prabang to Hanoi on Lao Airlines ($120, departing 16:45). There's a shuttle into town for $2 that takes you to Vietnam Airlines' main office which is pretty close to the main hostel area, though you'll have to print out a good map with your hostel on it to make sure you know where you are going, otherwise the motorcycle drivers will attack you like starving crows, speaking of, don't pay them more than 10,000D for going anywhere in the center. I stayed at Hanoi Backpackers Hostel ($7.5 for a dorm) and it is the center of backpacker life in Hanoi as well as being conveniently located. Here is the Hanoi Backpacker's Hostel map for your convenience.