8th April 2023

Hi,

Time to visit another new country! I believe this will be number thirty six. A number of people asked me prior to going…why Vietnam? My honest answer is that I had never heard of anyone going who did not think it was a great experience for a variety of reasons and in fact had never heard any negative remarks made. Combine this with the stunning landscapes I had seen in various brochures and it wasn't difficult to sell to me. As mentioned in my previous blog from Croatia last September I explored using The Travel Department as a company to travel with and found their offering more than satisfactory. I also met a couple on the Croatia trip who had taken the Travel Department tour of Vietnam and they were singing its praises. A few days after getting back from Croatia I booked this trip.

By way of introduction this trip was a tour, not a holiday. It was very intensive and therefore I have a lot if information and photos to impart. I therefore intend to break the tour into four bite size chunks to make it more digestible! I'm starting in the north of Vietnam initially and will cover Hanoi and Halong Bay.

This is my first visit back to South East Asia since 2006, when I spent time in India, China and Thailand. I left Glasgow 21st March and flew via Dubai to Hanoi using Emirates Airline. It was a bit of a gruelling journey. Seven hours or so to Dubai with a three hour wait for connections to Hanoi and then seven hours more flying. However I can endorse other's high opinions of Emirates. I got aisle seats and the service is very good. Dubai Airport must be the biggest I've come across. It took the best part of an hour to walk to the next gate, although this was welcome activity after sitting for seven hours.

Hanoi

Arriving in Vietnam, Immigration was a painful 40 minute queue. Eventually I headed out to the concourse to meet our friendly guide Jimmy who was trying to round up the Dublin contingent of our group. Eventually the group assembled for the 40 minute drive to the Silk Path Hotel in Hanoi. There were thirty of us in total: 28 Irish, one Australian and yours truly. A perfect match!

In Hanoi the first thing you notice is the driving. 'Organised chaos' sums it up well. In a city of eight million there are 5 million scooters which interweave with cars and larger vehicles in a manner that seems to indicate that a crash is likely every 30 seconds. However we only saw one crash in the two weeks. I hope to post a video of the driving.

We had a meeting with Jimmy at the hotel with information given and a Q&A session on the group's queries. We then headed out to dinner and stopped briefly to see a traditional water puppet show depicting ancient tales. Quite unlike anything I'd seen before. Dinner was in a converted old French villa. The group was bonding well but it was a struggle staying awake so I was glad to get back to the Hotel. I would recommend the Silk Path Hotel to anyone staying in Hanoi. The location is great and the service first class.

Wednesday 22nd March

A full days sightseeing in Hanoi was on the cards. We left the hotel at 0800 and headed for the Ho Chi Min (HCM) Mausoleum. HCM is really the father of the modern nation and often referred to as 'Uncle Ho.' There was a massive queue full of excited school kids who wanted to high five us. Judging by some of their expressions to each other I don't think they were used to being so close to tall people like me and others in the group! We eventually filed past the body of the national hero who did look a bit more lifelike than the waxy looking Chairman Mao I had seen in Beijing. Apparently HCM wanted to be cremated but the powers that existed at that time thought otherwise. Certainly a pilgrimage to pay respects seemed popular.

The Mausoleum is within a larger complex which includes a humble traditional Stilt House where Ho Chi Min lived intermittently. This sits near the much more opulent Presidential Palace used by the previous Governor-General of Indo China. Another feature is the One Pillar Pagoda built in 1049 by the Emperor Ly Thai Tong. It is an unusual structure as you'll see from the photo.

We then visited the Temple of Literature (founded 1070) which honours Vietnamese scholars. It has five courts and a Confucian Temple. It is considered to be a rare example of traditional Vietnamese architecture.

The temperature was rising and we were constantly looking for the shade. Our next activity was a bicycle ride around the Old Quarter. We all had our individual bicycle with driver and thankfully some shade over our heads. The French influence on the buildings in many parts of Hanoi is very strong and similar to what you would see in many major European cities. I think it was an activity which all of the group enjoyed: a quirky exception to regular sightseeing.

I wasn't aware that Vietnam is the second largest producer of coffee in the world after Brazil. We had a stop to try one of their specialities called Egg Coffee. This is made by beating an egg yolk with condensed milk and pouring it on top of a hot or cold espresso. I can't say it was ideal for the lactose intolerant such as me but I did try one and found it to be unremarkable! I gave it 5/10 on the day but forgot to take a photo of it. Doh!

A final visit of the day was to the Hoa Lo Prison, sarcastically name the 'Hanoi Hilton' by US POWs. I think the most startling thing about this place for me was that there was a guillotine which was used into the 20th Century. I associate this implement with Charles 1st and the French Revolution but am now aware that the French were using it for capital punishment until the 1970s in their own country and as colonialists in Vietnam until their departure.

Our ten hour tour of Hanoi was complete as we headed back to the hotel. A great action packed start to the trip!

Halong Bay

Thursday 23rd March

We moved off from the hotel and the chaotic traffic of Hanoi into the countryside, heading east. The motorway traffic was relatively light and you gain an impression of the agrarian nature of the country with rice fields. However industry seems to be developing very fast with a lot of construction underway.

We stopped at an Oyster farm and were taken though the process by which the pearls are harvested. I found this fascinating and would recommend a visit if you get the chance. The shop was littered with photos of famous people wearing pearls.

Halong Bay is North Vietnam's number one tourist destination. It comprises numerous limestone islands emerging from emerald waters in the Gulf of Tonkin and is a UNESCO site. The photos of these phenomena in brochures were one of the reasons for attracting me to this part of the world.

As we approached the area you could see the islands appearing out of the mist in what was not a totally clear day. You can check out the photos. To be honest it's almost impossible not to take too many photos. I have tried to pare them down and would have preferred a clearer sky to get better light on the waters but as with Ayers Rock and other places you will likely only get one shot at it and need to make the most of it. We went onto a boat heading into the bay and had lunch before getting on deck for a photo fest. One disappointing aspect was the obvious pollution in the waters. China gets the blame for that according to local opinion!

After sailing through the sunny islets for a while we got into small rowing boats and were taken into a number of caves. Part of our group broke out briefly into the Irish rugby anthem. Prior to completing our activities for the day we were taken on a walk through a cave this amazing stalactites and light shafts flooding in. Had a lot of fun with the camera!

The Novotel Halong Bay where we spent the night unfortunately cannot be recommended. Not that there was anything particularly wrong with the hotel itself. The food was good and there was a large swimming pool. Unfortunately right across the road was a large and seemingly completely empty amusement park which blared out music at a very high volume until 0100. It was like having a very large loudspeaker in your room playing dance music at a high volume. Fortunately I was able to move rooms to the back of the hotel. Anyway we had a very pleasant banquet. There will be more about food later in the blogs.

This is the first of four blogs and photos. Following on will be

Part 2: Hoi An and Hue

Part 3: Saigon

Part 4: Mekong Delta (including reflections on the country and the tour overall).

If I have made any mistakes, please keep me right. There was a lot of information to absorb, including 29 names. Please be gentle!

Enjoy the photos and watch for the next set.

All the best

Murdo