2/1 Hanoi.
After breakfast the group went to a local park where a Tai Chi Master conducted a class. I wandered off with my camera to see what I could find. I sat on a bench and watched a group of ladies dancing. Their moves were elegant and a joy to watch. I did take a couple pictures of them and others in the park.
Soon I was joined by a gentleman and we enjoyed the dancing and applauded when they finished. The ladies were trying to take a group photo and I jumped in and offered to assist. The next thing I know is they have me in the picture and are offering me snacks. I asked if they would send me some of the photos I took for them and one of me taken with the group. It was a fun time and a warm personal exchange, with a great language barrier.
Back to the hotel where we soon boarded an electric cart for tour for 45 minutes. We had a great time driving around the city seeing the hustle and bustle of the city. Fun to get some good street photos. I guess I will never tire of scooter, bicycle and people photos.
We then loaded the bus for a trip to The Temple of Literature.
Temple of Literature
The Temple of Literature is often cited as one of Hanoi’s most picturesque attractions. Originally built as a university in 1070 dedicated to Confucius, scholars and sages, the building is extremely well preserved and is a superb example of traditional-style Vietnamese architecture. This ancient site offers a lake of literature, the Well of Heavenly Clarity, turtle steles, pavilions, courtyards and passageways that were once used by royalty. Visiting the Temple of Literature you will discover historic buildings from the Ly and Tran dynasties in a revered place that has seen thousands of doctors’ graduate in what has now become a memorial to education and literature. Originally the university only accepted aristocrats, the elite and royal family members as students before eventually opening its doors to brighter commoners.
The layout of the temple is based upon the birthplace of Confucius with a magnificent main entrance and a path, once reserved solely for the king, running through the centre. The immaculate gardens are rich in ancient trees and are considered a serene place in which students can relax. There are stone statues and inscriptions dotted throughout the temple which has retained many of its original features as the most renowned landmark of academia in Vietnam.
Senator McCain's Flight Suit
Next we visited Hoa Lo Prison
Maison Centrale in Hanoi, also known as Hoa Lo Prison and the ‘Hanoi Hilton’ housed Vietnamese revolutionaries and American POW during the Vietnam War. The fortress was once a vast colonial-style prison, most of which was torn down in the 1990s. The prison is still a popular tourist attraction for those on the war history trail. Official records claim inmates numbered in their hundreds although it was not unknown for up to 2,000 prisoners to be crammed into a space reserved for 600 inmates. Around 200-300 inmates were captured American pilots brought to Maison Centrale for interrogation and torture, it was the American prisoners who sarcastically gave the jail its nickname ‘Hanoi Hilton’.
Hoa Lo Prison today portrays a different side of the horror stories told by former inmates despite the prominently displayed shackles hanging on the walls. Much of the emphasis is on the Vietnamese revolutionaries some of whom were executed at the prison. The American POWs have well documented their own experiences, little of which is available at Maison Centrale today.
We returned to the hotel and we are on our own for lunch and dinner. We ate at the Bamboo Pool Bar. Very nice but priced a bit higher than the street food we have experienced, but this is a classy place.
This afternoon we were given a tour of the hotel’s bomb shelter. This shelter had been forgotten and was only discovered recently when they were building a swimming pool.
Tonight our plan is tor venture out on foot to find the night market.
That is exactly what we did. Per our Vivofits we walked a bit over three miles to the night market. It was very very busy and crazy. We ate some street food for our evening meal. First was a Bánh mì - a street food Vietnamese sandwich. Basically a baguette filled with a meat (ours was pork) and some various vegetables. All for about a US dollar. The night market seems to have various sections and we found ourselves on candy street. Here we bought 500 grams of various candy. Next we found a mini mart selling pork steam buns and got one of those. Then a nice lady took pity on us as we did not want to buy a whole bag of fresh sliced mango. She kindly gave us a slice. I offered to pay her, but she refused. Next there was a lady selling doughnuts so we had to have a bit of dessert.
We continued our walk around Hoan Kiem Lake making our way back to the hotel.
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