Gooooooood Morning Vietnam

We arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam the same day President Bush was leaving. We were sorry to miss him!

With only a day and a half in Hanoi before heading to Halong Bay, we headed to Hoa Lo Prison or Hanoi Hilton as it was referred to by the American soldiers who were inprisoned there during the Vietnam War (if from USA) or American War (if from Vietnam). Although only a small portion of the orginal buildings remain (2/3 has been torn down for apartments), it was fascinating to see how it was used by the French to imprison Vietnamese then used by the Vietnamese for the American Pilots shot down in Hanoi. They have many pictures portraying a camp like atmosphere at the prison. They also display the uniform of Senator John McCain that he wore when he arrived at the prison. We were shocked the prison is RIGHT in the middle of Hanoi. We also walked around the Hoan Kiem Lake and tried to take the city living.

Today we were out of luck because most museums etc were closed as it is Monday. So we saw the Ho Chi Minh Museum from the outside, his Mausoleum, the Palace, a few monuments. The most interesting sights were the "carcasses" or remains of B52's that were shot in the Hanoi area. We stumbled upon a bonsai garden/military memorabilia area where they had large pieces from American B52's, artiallary used, missile launch-pad amoung others. We also walked through the alleys to see the remains of a B52 in a tiny lake in the middle of a neighborhood (see picture). They just left it where it landed and it is very eerie and sad to think the war and how many lives it disrupted and ended.

We had a great lunch at, Seasons of Hanoi, then walked to the largest market in Hanoi. A well deserved nap followed during the heat of the day.

Observations-
Hanoi is an excellent walking city (abundant road signs and everything seems close). We were able to walk to almost everything we saw. English has not proven to be a problem. The Dong is about 16,000 to 1 USD which is also fun to convert. There are bikes and motorcycles everywhere (see pictures). We are guessing they outnumber cars 10 to 1. The roads seemed to have no rules with lots of stopping and weaving at intersections. Although the temperatures are around mid 80's the humity is killer. The people seem not to notice you unless they ask if you want a "Moto" ride. A ton of women park themselves on the sidewalk all day selling all sorts of fruits, veggies (see pictures) and prepared foods although the "health standards" on the street seem to be low. Compared to the only other communist country we have visited, China, this country is much more open to capitalism and western influence.








Kristy's peaceful demonstration at the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum