Frost covered the fields as the train whisked me to the airport, and mere 12 hours was all it took to take me to the muggy heat of Bangkok. I relished my tuk-tuk ride through the dusky streets - smoggy wind in my hair, honking horns, lights twinkling in the trees, and the feeling of adventure that only comes from riding in an open-air vehicle while your driver smokes, talks on his cell phone, and is probably only pretending to know where he is going.
Familiar faces spotted across the road, and it feels like it’s been a matter of days, not six months, since we last sat watching life go by, drinking beer and talking.
The foot massage and cheap PadThai of the next morning are excellent send-offs as we head back to the airport to wing our way to uncharted territory for all of us: Hanoi, Vietnam.
A beautiful lake lies not far from our door, a wonderful place to wander and watch. A temple adorns one island, a mystery building the other, and we explore before letting the chaos of the old town envelop us.
Motorbikes are everywhere. Crossing the road requires a steady pace and confidence, as the only way to do so is to step out and let the bikes go around you. They park on the sidewalk in gleaming rows, between the multitude of low tables and red and blue plastic stools that mark the presence of a place to sit and have tea, coffee, beer, noodles, meat on a stick… between that and the shops spilling their wares out beneath their awnings, the sidewalk is less an place to walk and more an extension of the building behind it.
Women in concial straw hats navigate the chaos with a two-basket balance on their shoulders, or wheel bikes laden with goods – leafy piles of greens, spiky kholorabi, bunches of bananas, blue plastic bags of cut pineapple, bright orange mandarins, strawberries, feather dusters, recyclables, plastic-ware, woven baskets..
The shops are clustered by type – pots-and-pans on one block, fake flowers on the next, antiques, silver jewelry, art, gaudy christmas decorations, clothes, handbags, shoes, leather jackets….
Trees and knots of telephone lines mix beautifully with the architecture – the french influence clear in the colors, the shutters, the narrow balconies and scrollwork, but worn down by the years and the exhaust in the air.
On the second day we wander into the newer part of town, to see the prison where Vietnamese prisoners were held by the French, and American pilots were held by the Vietnamese. The wide streets and embassy buildings made for a pleasant stroll to Ho Chi Min’s masoleum, the one-tier pagoda, and the Temple of Literature.The temple of literature was a pleasant surprise, a large complex of temples dedidated to Confucious and the study of his works.
That evening we went out for a bit of a wander before seeing the water puppets, which were controlled by sticks hidden under a shallow pool of water. Mildly entertaining and a great segue into our lovely evening playing cards at the kiosk by the lake.
On Day 3 we took a day trip down to an ancient capital of Vietnam, where we saw temples in the old city, took a little bike ride amidst the fields, and climbed to a cave-temple. The city is in an area our guide called the ‘dry halong bay’ as it has the same limestone cliffs that Halong Bay is famous for, rising out of the plains. We were able to get a closer look while cruiusing down a waterway in rowboats, enjoying the cool air and the quiet, the lady in the back rowing with her feet while the other paddled us around some lazy curves, through some caves, past some locals fishing in the shallow water.
At the turn-around we are set upon by ladies in boats, selling drinks and snacks, before setting off on the return journey.
The trip back was a swervy, bumpy nightmare, but the trip down was a good chance to check out life along the highway - the houses in bright hues, their large balconies adorned with twisted chunks of rock as decorations, dusty lanes leading into the fields both wet and dry, stone-carvers work with drills in clouds of white dust, dragons and scroll-work emerging.. cafes waiting for customers with empty red platic chairs…
Our last venture out was an overnight cruise on Halong Bay. Out the window: rice paddies, small villages, cows and buffalo, farmers tilling and hoeing in the empty fields; smokestacks of factories; larger towns with more of those ornate houses built along the road, large-leaved trees lining the streets, and the ever-present cafes with plastic chairs.
The tourist harbor is crowded with boats, all headed out to view the limestone cliffs of the bay. We enjoy a delicious lunch as we sail away into the ever-present haze, and eventually the green-covered islets start to appear. We visit Surprise Cave, which is surpisingly large, the ceiling a fascinating combination of stone smoothed by lapping waves and stalactities formed since the water receded. Junks are at anchor all around… it looks like a pirate cove.
We board kayaks from a jumble of boards and take a peaceful paddle around the nearby islands, before returning to the boat. I enjoy a quiet moment on the prow, legs dangling over the water as the stars appear, the lights of the other boats shining on the water, before spring-roll-making lessons, and a delicious dinner.
The next morning we row through a cave into an other-wise unaccaessible lagoon, where we see cute little monkeys playing on the cliffs, before heading back to the harbor.
We spend our last evening in Hanoi wandering through the night market, soaking up the chaos….
and taking a moment to relax!
