Hanoi

Yeah, I saw Ho Chi Minh's body

At the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex, even the most normal behaviors are against the rules. Take walking on the sidewalk, for example. Or carrying a bottle of water. Or crossing your arms in the chill of an air-conditioned building. Don't walk too fast or too slow or a guard will appear beside you to model the appropriate pace. Sunglasses must be removed before entering the building.

Infractions are met by the sternest of expressions of a guard and usually some theatrics similar to reprimanding a dog or telling it to sit. When I walked on the sidewalk, the guard made dramatic motions with his arms and asked me to stand still on the corner. I had to wait there while dozens of tourists filed past me. Then, with a solemn nod of his head, he let me keep going. When I reached the mausoleum, a crowd of us waited until the guards emerged and lined the red path, one of which jumped out and escorted the line when the first person walked too fast. Once inside the room with Ho Chi Minh's eerily preserved body, I was reprimanded for having my arms crossed and another person was ushered along when they stopped walking to look. We were all treated like bad children reluctantly allowed the privledge to be there.

I couldn't wait to get the hell out of there. But first, I had to pick up my camera from the mandatory camera-check office.

"Hanoi Hilton"- Hoa Lo Prison

I walked through the Hoa Lo prison, learning of the poor conditions, torture techniques and political resistence born there during French rule. Although not extremely detailed, it was clear the Vietnamese political prisoners endured horrible conditions. Prisoners' legs were shackled to the floor and during isolation they had to eat, sleep and shit shackled to the same spot. Here is some artwork from the prison, outlining their struggle.

The prison has received a lot of attention in recent years because John McCain was held there as an American POW during the American War (or Vietnam War depending on where you are). Many war pilots were kept and tortured there. The exhibit dedicated to the American captives makes no mention of the hardship they experienced. Rather, it makes their time out to seem like summer camp- showing pictures of American pilots laughing in the classroom, playing soccer, celebrating Christmas and receiving souvenirs as they were released from imprisonment. There are pictures of John McCain being retrieved from the water after his plane crashed, in a hospital bed receiving medical care and visiting the prison a few years ago. A sign explains that they made every effort to make the prisoners' stay comfortable, despite limited funds. A quick read on Wikipedia gives a different perspective. It states the prisoners were tortured into making false statements regarding the quality of conditions in the prison and their dissent for American involvement in the war. As you can imagine, POWs in Hoa Lo suffered extreme torture techniques and were often refused medical care.

Pedestrians never have the right of way

Many things are located within manageable walking distance to the Old Quarter where I stayed. But I can't say it's easy to walk anywhere in Hanoi. Even if you have a green pedestrian light, you have to navigate an onslaught of motorbikes coming from every direction. The only way to cross is to wait for a slight break in traffic and step out slowly. Motorbikes might honk at you to let you know where they are. Or it might appear they don't notice you at all. I don't know exactly how it works, but even if it looks like they're going to run right into you, they manage to swerve around, sometimes only missing by a few inches.

Motorbikes are the most common form of transport (Vespas are really popular). Entire families will crowd on to one, with children in the very front or back. Children never seem to wear helmets, even if their parents do. People carry stacks of boxes, unprotected panes of glass and huge sacks of vegetables. They drive on sidewalks, through crowded street markets and on the wrong side of the road. They run red lights and swerve around each other to get where they need to go. Often the sidewalks are blocked by parked motorbikes, making it necessary to walk in the street. And most annoyingly, every 100 meters or so, a motorbike taxi driver calls out "Hey, motorbike?" Sometimes they get aggressive ("Hey! Madam! HEY!"), grabbing your arm or riding beside you down the street.

mmmm, food

Popular breakfasts include pho (noodle soup), baguette sandwiches with omlets, and fried tofu with vermicelli cakes dipped in sauce. There are plenty of good restaurants here, most of them out of my budget. I enjoyed lovely meals at the vegetarian restaurant, that made things like ginger "chicken" and pepper "beef" and standards like tofu with tomato sauce and sauteed mustard greens. I've had yummy fresh spring rolls, snapper in white wine sauce and plenty of perfect pineapple and steamed sweet potatoes from the streets. A lady down the street from my guesthouse serves a delicious street buffet lunch and dinner for 50 cents.

Hoan Kiem Lake

In the heart of the Old Quarter...

Temple of Literature

At the Temple of Literature, I was treated to a free performance of traditional instruments, including a bamboo xylophone that's played by clapping the hands at the mouth of each tube. Below, the woman strikes a bamboo instrument with mallets.

Next stop is Hue. If you missed the first days in Vietnam, click HERE.