HANOI
The trip began in the airport when I was happily reunited with my one and only BFF and dependable travel buddy, Margaret!!! Our flights got in about 10 minutes apart - so it was a seamless meeting before heading out into Vietnam's capital city!
Jet-lag? What jet lag?
So...we forgot to get money at the airport and went for a beer. When it came time to pay for said beer (A whopping $2.50USD for 2), we had no way to pay.....oops. I did my best "ATM" charade and this gentleman let me hop on the back of his scooter to take me to a bank! Success!
This dog also can't pay for his beer
The first of much Pho (pronounced FUH...if you're like me and say FOE - you're actually saying hooker... So be careful what you order)
Scooters. Scooters everywhere. Think around 4-5 million in a population of 7 million in the city. And they don't give a damn about you. So crossing the street is a combination of prayer and luck
We can't look messy on vacation - so $10 gel mani's to last the trip it is! (Maybe not the most hygenic thing to do in Vietnam...but $10!!!!!)
Getting our first taste of Egg Coffee (a mixture of egg yolk, condensed milk, sugar, and coffee). Take-away: SUGAR OVERLOAD! 1 between the 2 of us was enough.
Community pipe, anyone? Smoke at your own risk
A big mural of Vietnam's beloved "Uncle Ho"
Our new boyfriends. Yes, they're brothers.
Fresh chicen and duck (dead on the table, still alive to the left. If you have trouble distinguishing)
And - nothing that USAers tend to enjoy seeing, but still a reality other parts of the world....fido.
What I really want to know is who on God's green Earth is buying the dog butt!?!?!
Hearts, livers, and intestines....yum!
I'll just have a small garden salad, thankyouverymuch
Street art time! Forget about that dog!
Here's an ugly street chicken! Poor guy. I'm sure he has a great personality
Priorities
We stayed at some pretty nice hotels, too.
Statue of an old king!
Masoleum of Uncle Ho! HoChiMinh was a communist revolutionary leader in Vietnam and is considered in part, as the father of the nation. After his death, he was quite well preserved and we stood in a long time to see him. No pics allowed! To give you a mental visual - looks like an old dude sleeping surrounded by a lot of stuffy guards who will yell at you for EVERYTHING.
After seeing Old Man Ho, we visited his presidental estate where he bunkered down during the Vietnam War
This house is on stilts....but it's hard to tell with all the people....
One Pillar Pagoda
This was a handy chart letting you know that if you act one way, the recurcussions are such. For example: If you "having a hot temper and being ferocious" in your next life you will "being ugly"
Into the Temple of Literature!
Wise stone tortoises carrying important tablets!
Not all of us are wise those....
My friend, Confuscious!
Next historical stop - The Hanoi Hilton! Originally used by the French colonists for prisoners of war....later came to fame by housing the American POWs during the Vietnam War.
Only a small portion of the prison is actually left
Ouch.
Memorial to the Vietnamese men who suffered in the prison and under the political power of all the countries who tried to colonize Vietnam (Poor Vietnam...the more I learned, the more I realized there isn't much of a history of autonomy)
Happier things now! A mini bus ride around town!
Opera House (Phantom not included)
Lotus roundabout that I am sure looks much prettier at night.
Mobile clothing store
Woop woop! Check out that historical juxtaposition! Let's end my Hanoi pics on this nugget!
I'm pretty sure carrying things like this will lead to massive shoulder issues one day...
HaLong BAY
In the Gulf of Tonkin is this stunning little bay dotted with limestone isles. A very gorgeous and ethereal site!
It was cloudy and foggy, which made the whole place seem more mysterious. My pictures don't do the gloom justice.
SO WINDY! Hard to take purty pictures
Making Meg model
If you hadn't infered yet....we got on a boat to explore the bay.
Our boat dropped us an one little islet that had a swanky cave!
Trees got better hair than me
The sails on all these boats are just for aesthetics. Like belly buttons - they are useless, but some of them are cute.
Be cute!
Try again!
HOW DID DIS DOGGO GET TO DIS ISLAND!?
The dog looks better on the beach than I do.
Like every trip we take together - kayaking!
Despite not signing a waiver (oh Asia) and never verifying we actually knew how to kayak....the guide let us go ahead of the group and get completely isolated in the bay from other kayakers.
Fashion statement after drying off from kayaking!
I love the nightlife....I love the BOOGIE!!!
Meg trying her hand at squid fishing. I tried too! And I half caught one! But I panicked, screamed, and accidentally released him. I'm a natural.
Not the squid I didn't catch....
Also....Why squid fish when you have other priorities (again)?
Arguably prettier during a sunrise.
Then we got to visit a local fishing village in the bay!
They took us out to see the community in little bamboo boats.
Rivals the floating homes of Seattle
This guy was incredible to watch! He was busy using his hands to fish so he was very dexterously rowing his boat with only this feet.
I think the dog is there to protect the fish that got caught? Or good company. He's gotta be itchin' for a long walk though!
Hoi An
Another gem of Vietnam is in the central portion. The lovely UNESCO town of Hoi An. A well preserved ancient town full of canals. Pitfall: heavily tourist. Perk: SO ADORABLE.
Just happened to stumble on about 10000 Vietnamese couples coming here to do wedding photos.
Another market! Clearly excited about the hot raw meat smell.
Oldest house in Hoi An. Gets flooded up to the second floor every.single.year. Still doing just fine! Made from ironwood (wish my old house in WI was made of ironwood.....)
Less scary street chicken. Just more cheeky.
Banana street pancake!!!
Ok.... we don't actually have a drinking problem. There just isn't much else to do at 2pm when it's hotter than balls outside! And look at this professional pour!
Bored? Why not risk your life by renting bicycles and riding 45 minutes to the beach along the main roads?
Riding a bike with Asian traffic not enough? Get your heart pumping by pissing off a water buffalo to get a selfie (buffalo got hella mad post photo op. I must have gotten his bad side. Sorry bro)
Good news - made it to the beach!
When in Rome....(or Hoi An)....you buy custom clothes! In my case - SHOES!
A not-pissed off water buffalo
Hoi An got magical af at night! Laterns lit up everywhere. An instagrammers dream.
Not to mention the lanterns lighting up the canals!
MAGIC!
HUE
OK! Not too far from Hoi An is Hue! Another charm of central Vietnam known for it's HUGE citadel once used by the old emperor's of Vietnam (We are talking moats, stone walls, canons and shit!) Also - the location of the longest and bloodiest battle during the Vietnam war, so quite historically interesting and significant.
First of all.....the drive from Hoi An to Hue didn't suck.
Exhibit A: China Beach
Shucking oysters
Ok! Now we are in Hue!
And while in Hue....we took these funny little pedi-cabs to dinner one night
Which promptly turned into Meg and I attempting to communicate to our cyclists we wanted to race.
\
They indulged us!
Meg won.
Once at dinner, we dressed up ridiculously to feast like the queens (ok...well, concubines) we are
How intricate is this food though? File under: things I will never make
Hue at night was also pretty cute
Except this dude. He isn't so cute
Lotus shaped restaurant
Night trinkets for sale!
Mystery street food! Some sort of fish shaped bean pancake?
NEXT! THE CITADEL!!!!!
Outside the forbidden palace gates (and where the main battle ground was)
Some of the city was so well preserved while others were destroyed by the war
Inside the opera house. Sometimes the kind would watch opera for days. DAYS. Ugh. No one like opera that much.
Hey look! Another market! Whatcha gonna do when there isn't quite a WalMart around?
Yum! Fermented shrimp! (Side note: don't say Yum in vietnam. It means "I'm horny". Learned that nugget after saying 'yum'in a monastery. Hi, my name is Hannah and I'm probably going to hell)
Buddhist temple!
Dragon boat ride time!
Shhhh.....I'm not drinking another beer. You are.
This establishment is the tomb of one of the kings. Khai Dinh. He apparently was full of himself (and had a gambling problem). Turd built 127 steps up to his resting place. You ever climb 127 stairs in 100F degree heat? Soooooo fun
I met so many eligible bachelors on this trip. They were just a bit stoney towards me though.
He obviously chose the modest burial package
HoChiMinh CITY
The final city in our Vietnam adventure! Also known by it's pre-war name, Saigon, is the largest city in Vietnam and felt most Westernized to me.
The Independence Palace aka Vietnam's White House
Vietnam's "Notre Dame"
The post office! Tre Chic!
It was an old converted train station!
The old phone booths are now ATMs
See this building with the funny flat disc thingy on it? We went up there for panoramic views of the city (on a disappointingly cloudy/smoggy day)
But you get the idea. Big city!
Oh hey again, Uncle Ho!
Uber Scooter!
Some ancient war hero. Now he just stares at you as you attempt to cross the street without death
At night, Meg and I wandered to what felt like a shady part of town
And we went down this back alley
And up these creepy stairs!
AND WE FOUND THIS FREAKING AWESOME SPEAKEASY!!!!!!
Legit! Coolest Bar EVER!!! Even the bar staff was baffled with how we found the place not being from Saigon. WIN!
Just outside Saigon is the Mekong River Delta which we spent a day exploring
Lotus
Me with one of our lovely local guides through the country side
Brick factory - as this area is laden with clay
Vicious brick guard dog
The best way to explore the river delta is obviously by boat....
...with a fresh coconut.....
....or two
Sometimes we take pictures where my arms look chubby and Meg's arms look terrifyingly ripped. 🤣 Don't mess with me....I'll get my best friend to beat you up.
Speaking of coconuts! Watching the time consuming process of husking these puppies
This trip is bananas..B.A.N.A.N.A.S!
Meg's arm looking more normal....but her face looking terrifies as we traveled via narrow and bumby roads between small artisan huts
Learning how to weave mats!
The ladies patiently waiting for me to figure it the F out....
Me also trying to figure out how to eat an entire deep fried fish served whole. Excuse me sir...this isn't in fish stick form, I don't know what to do. And why is he looking at me?
Cu Chi Tunnels: The most humbling history lesson of the trip. These tunnels are just outside Saigon (though the tunnel system is throughout the country) and are an immense circuit of tunnels that became famous during the Vietnam war. They were essential to the VietCong during the war in resisting Americans and the especially during the Tet Offensive of 1968. While I remember learning about the war during school, it wasn't until my trip to Vietnam that the history here really set in.
Map and diagrams about what we were about to explore
Recreations of some of the booby traps set around the area
An entrance to the tunnels hidden by termite hill
Guide showing us another secret entrance
Travelling through Asian countries always makes me feel like Sasquatch.
The entrance to the tunnels that were made "wider and taller" for tourists. I can't imagine crawling through their original size and "wider and taller" still meant you had to essentially crawl.
Bunker roofing
Hidden kitchen
Not well hidden lizard
In happier times! We took a cooking class!
They let me use a knife!
I made dis!
We will open our restaurant any day now.
We also took ourselves on a craft beer tour of the city!
Where we got realllllllly drunk....
And ended up in a hair salon!
Cause drunk Hannah wanted her hair to match her purple pedicure she had! Four people descended upon my head to start foiling. I was unsure what was happening. I just wanted purple.....
Still quite drunk..... but now with bleach!
Hannah likes beer and looking attractive
Sober and not regretting the results! It actually matched my toes! And Meg got blue
After hair, we booked a FANTASTIC street food tour with these cool gals. We jumped on the back of their scooters and they took us to the good stuff!
Bun Cha!
and green papaya salad
HANNAH! Why are you drinking on that scooter?! Did you learn nothing after the hair salon? For what it's worth...I had to drink. In order to get brave enough to try this. Balut, which is a duck embyro egg. I only made it through half. But I can say I did!
Cooking our own prawn pancakes
Crab and "vietnam cheeto" soup
We were soooo full. But it was great way to end our last night in Vietnam!
Phew! Make it? Thanks for looking and travelling to Vietnam via photos with me! Until my next adventure....photo blog out!
