hanoi to hong kong

hanoi was a blur. what a big, loud, active, incredible city. we stayed in a very nice hotel in the very center of downtown, and, thanks to new year's, we felt like we were living in a tornado. nica and i both developed healthy headaches soon after arriving- we think it was the incredible amount of smog and exhaust everywhere- the perpetual symphony of horn-honking could have something to do with it too!

 

we toured yesterday morning around the city by 'cyclos.' this is definitely the way to do it for people who want to keep a low tourist profile. nothing blends in better than a grand parade of 14 westerners each under a red-fringed canopy in front of their very own personal pedicab driver. it was a hair-rasing adventure, toodling around the city, facing down oncoming traffic, bumping elbows with motorcycles, and regarding pedestrians coolly from our thrones.

 

we didn't read the tour itinerary closely and all we knew about our first stop was that it was a mausoleum. we surrendered our bags and went double-file by dozens of rigid soldiers. inside, we encountered the pale, chemically-preserved body of ho chi minh. it was spooky, unsettling, and terrifically odd! it was exactly the experience i had purposefully avoided, what with the moscow art theatre's proximity to lenin's tomb during my stay in russia. the image of the body flanked by four soldiers certainly won't leave me for a very long time.

 

next we stopped at the hoa lo prison, known to most of us more affectionately as the 'hanoi hilton.' we enjoyed exhibits that consisted of leg irons, guillotines, and john mccain's flight suit. (you'll remember that he spent quite some time there) there was an odd photo gallery, including ones of POW's playing volleyball in the courtyard, and the americans getting souvenirs upon their release. souvenirs!

 

all in all, it was a strange tour! we ate an awesome lunch and spent the afternoon wandering the clogged streets and shops of hanoi.

 

i finally succumbed to stomach issues last night, suffering from severe cramps. i muddled through our new year's eve farewell feast with as much good humor as i could muster. (i skipped the slabs of fois gras and the piles of caviar, but enjoyed the vietnamese band with a male singer covering tracy chapman)

 

our hotel was only a quarter mile from the restaurant, but it took monica, her mom, and i a good thirty minutes to navigate through the throngs! we formed a human chain and literally squeezed ourselves through crowds of people, motorbikes, and stands, all the while ducking and avoiding these strange flaming parachutes revelers were setting off. they were mini-hot air balloons, complete with a baseball-sized flaming coal attached at the bottom. most soared into the sky, but some crashed into buildings, trees, and people. we saw a tree catch fire and we held our breath as we watched an apartment building decide whether it wanted to go up in flames or not when the fireball landed on a tar balcony roof.

 

i was asleep by 11:30, half an hour before 2009 in vietnam. when 2009 hit new york, i was reading newsweek on my plane from hanoi to hong kong.

 

all in all, it was an unforgettable trip. i learned so much and saw so many incredible things! (and ate a lot of amazing food!) i owe a debt of gratitude to mr. and mrs. raymund for welcoming me on this surreal journey!