End-o-China, now In-do-china

August 2nd - 4th

Enter Vietnam.

We were both excited about Vietnam from the outset.  It was a mixture of the exotic and unique nature of the country and it was the one country we have both never been to.  In Allyson’s previous travel in Asia she had seen China, Mongolia, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia.  So barring a spontaneous excursion Vietnam would be the one mutually undiscovered country.  This is not to say we haven’t seen different parts of the same countries.  But Vietnam would be new and unexplored for both of us and that was intriguing in itself.

The travels into Vietnam from China does bear mentioning, before I dive into Indochina proper.  We had the intention of entering Vietnam overland border and go directly to a place in the Northern highlands called Sapa.  Sapa is known for its natural beauty and the presence of the minority hill tribes people and is highly travelled and recommended by backpackers.  Briefly, there was a very subtle but crucial error in the names of border towns on both sides (Nanning/Kunming and Hekkou/Haiko) on the internet and in our minds.  Both sounding very identical to our American ears would have brought us unintentionally to an island off the coast of Southern China instead of Vietnam.  That would have been a confusing train ride.  This added to a questionable train route between the aforementioned towns resulted in us going directly to Hanoi and skipping Sapa.  We shrugged this off as much of natural beauty was described as similar to what we saw in Southern China.

The border crossing was interesting as we passed innumerable check points each time thinking I was done I would have to bring out my passport again.  We had arrived to the China side via a four-hour bus ride that was actually quite comfortable after an literally unremarkable stay in Nanning (hence no remarks here).  It was not very crowded, but as you might imagine was very official.  We had to disembark the Chinese bus and make our way onto a Vietnamese bus, but between that was the many baggage and person checks.  Allyson had a run-in with a small stowaway in the form of a cockroach on her back.  Don’t worry Allyson thwarted its attempts to escape into Vietnam.

We arrived into Hanoi in the afternoon after the second four-hour leg of the bus trip and checked into our hotel called Little Hanoi.  We set down our bags and began a brief tour of the Old Quarter.  Our first impression of Hanoi was the craziness of the place, of which we had been warned.  Luckily for us, it was a chaos we came to really like and enjoy. The streets are packed with moto-bikes or scooters, bicycles, pedestrians and cars.  Everyone uses the horn here frequently and at first it was concerning because in the States we use it to warn of danger or express our road emotions, but here it is simply to state, “Hey I’m here.”  It is a indoctrinated vehicle culture in which one is only responsible for avoiding what is directly in front of them.  This leads to a constant organic almost writhing movement and honking objects throughout the roadways.  If a pedestrian (such as ourselves) were to wait until a road cleared to cross, you would not see much of Hanoi on foot.  One has to take a leap of faith and I was reminded of the climatic scene of Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and Last Crusade when he takes a similar leap from the Lion’s Head to “prove his worth” and reach the Holy Grail.  We found it was most successful if we didn’t even look, but walked directly out into traffic without a look either way. By some miracle the cars, trucks and scooters all worked their way around us. 

We “leaped” our way over to the center of the Old Quarter and intended on trying to catch the famed Water Puppet show.  At the ticket office we realized they have shows running almost every hour and caught the last one available that day, which happened to be starting right then.  I am not sure what I was expecting, but the show was brief, clocking in just under an hour.  It was a fairly touristy affair, but there we some moments that were hard to explain how it was accomplished. We were happy that we were able to walk right in and did waste any time trying to get in.

After the end of the show we wandered around the Old Quarter area to find what is known as “Bia Hoi Junction".  Bia Hoi is Vietnamese for draft beer and this particular corner was known for the phenomenon of small joints in Hanoi and abroad in Vietnam serving local draft beer.  Given my <ahem> enthusiasm for beer this was a must see and what better way of washing down a performance of high art than a cold brew.  In my dreams this junction was the Willa Wonka factory of Asian beer with several microbreweries and large frosty cold glasses of sweet amber goodness. 

Turns out the junction was a street corner identical to any other in Hanoi save for the mass of people sitting on tiny plastic chairs in large fractured groups and spilling into the intersection.  The beer was served in half-pint plastic glasses of “don’t think about it” cleanliness and served warm (beer hate crime).  So we found ourselves drinking some beer at squat-like levels next to the din of traffic and vehicles only feet away, but this ended up being a very nice experience despite the above beercasm (beer sarcasm).  We chatted it up with a nice Irish fellow who let his wife go to the puppet show alone, shame shame.  And I ordered bottles from there which were cold and did not require glasses.

After one or two too many bia hoi’s, we wandered back towards our hotel and to a authentic Vietnam food joint recommended by our concierge for its Pho.  Pho is one of the most recognizably Vietnamese foods and is traditionally a noodle and soup dish with spices and various meats and sprout greens.  Allyson had the traditional dish and I opted for a dish I cannot remember (darn you bia hoi) but it was basically the dry version of Pho without the soup.  We both loved it.  It was a inconspicuous place among many near identical ones.  It was an undecorated halogen lamp lighted place packed with Vietnamese eating at improvised tables and chairs interrupting the sidewalk. What was best is that the local “taught” us the proper way to eat things, adding the lime, fresh herbs and hot sauce as we went. As a side, this actually happens at most eateries where locals outweigh the tourists. It seems they want us to have the jinkin experience. You should know that word if you have been reading these blogs. Ha!

I describe this place because I had an odyssey there that helps one visualize some of the more alien parts of Vietnam and Asia.  With the bia hoi in the system, nature was calling more persistently than the usual urge to wait for a more strategic relief spot.  So I stumbled into the back inquiring for the facilities with my normal mixture of one-word English and unfortunate pantomime.  They answered by pointing to the back.  I went past the cramped and hot kitchen and continued further into a dark crawl space behind a set of stairs into yet a more narrow and darker space.  I passed a dog (alive and well…ish) and had to carefully maneuver inches past several large pots on the ground that were actively being heated and boiling under open flame.  Even further back I was met with a brick wall with a small urinal set in the wall and an adjacent squatter (a hole in the ground).  There were no doors or other concealment from the passage way behind, save for the obstacles.  While enjoying the relief, I noticed it was brighter and cooler in this small space and I looked up to discover…the night sky.  Somehow this area led directly to a roofless alley.  I promised myself in that “bia hoi” haze, I would write about this because I forgot to bring the camera to the bathroom (not a habit really).

The next day we had a planned self walking tour of the Old Quarter and some other sites.  We started early with a Ngoc Son Temple in the middle of Hoan Kien lake.  It was a quiet and serene oasis amidst the buzz of Hanoi.  We made our way in a zig-zag pattern among the streets.  Most of them are named Hang something and the latter historically referred to the common item sold on that road.  Now there are still some preserved craft-themed roads, including a metal works and silk area, but most are combinations of tourist junk.  Imagine a renaming: Hang Crap.  The streets themselves are very pretty with some interesting green space and much preserved French colonial architecture.  We wrapped up the morning tour of the Old Quarter with St. Joseph’s Cathedral.

We then went to the Temple of Literature, an ancient Pre- and Confucian school that now is open to tourists with its pretty courtyards and gardens.  We then went to the disappointingly small One-Pillar Pagoda, but this led us inadvertently to the changing of the guard for the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum.  We then ate at nearby restaurant called Koto, featured in our guide, that doubles as a training center for disadvantaged youth.  The meal was delicious and self-righteous.  Bonus.

That evening, after a rest from the heat, we went to Spanish restaurant called La Salsa that we had spied earlier.  We ate on the upper terrace and had several tapas and enjoyed some nice imported red wine.  It was a nice capper on Hanoi.  We had heard bad things about the city from others which left us with little expectation.  What we found was a city that has all the trappings that might make a non-city person cringe: traffic, noise, hustle and some bustle, but it was also a city with a very specific identity and flavor.  Everyone has opinions and moods that affect their impression, so for us maybe it was the right time, the right place and the right mood. We loved it.