Adventures in China: Hanoi, Vietnam

On Sunday, February 2nd, we flew from Guangzhou, China to Hanoi, Vietnam. Upon arrival, we had a short tour of the city. We spent some time at "The Hanoi Hilton," a prison complex in the heart of the city, where John McCain and other US pilots resided as POWs during the Vietnam War. We saw his flight suit and pictures of his capture, since he was shot down and crashed his plane in a nearby lake. The information presented was from the “Vietnam” point of view. As we walked around we had mixed emotions remembering a difficult time that we viewed on television in the 1960’s and 70's.

Nancy in front of the Hanoi Hilton.

During the afternoon, we attended a Water Puppet Show. It was interesting. Those who controlled the puppets were behind a screen and standing in the water themselves.

The figures on the stage are puppets in water.

On the way to the puppet show. Most Vietnamese ride motorcycles, not bicycles. You have to be constantly aware of your surroundings or you will be run over.

That evening we were on our own for dinner. We asked our guide, Johnson, if he could recommend a place. His eyes lit up as he described a restaurant he thought we would enjoy. Only a few of us decided to go but we were glad we did. He called ahead and made reservations. It was early, but they accommodated us. We had a private table in the "garden." It was very peaceful even though we were in the middle of the city and the food was excellent. (Quite different than Chinese fare). The eight of us were very pleased with the ambiance, the service and even the price. It was about $10 US each. What a deal!

From the left: Lynn Sorenson (just retired from BYU teacher development), the Paces, David and Zina Cox (SDU Central Campus in Jinan), Leahna (met some BYU teachers and came on this tour...teaches in Xian and left her husband at home in California doing construction), Ron and Marilyn Bjorkman (He was an attorney and she was a middle school teacher in Idaho).

After dinner, Nancy, Leahna and I walked back to the hotel through old town Hanoi. It was a pleasant evening and there were many people out wandering the streets, markets and parks. One thing we like about Asia is the evening time after dark when families and couples are all out walking, enjoying the weather and association with each other.

Monday, February 3, 2014 - After 3++ hours on a bus over a sometimes bumpy “freeway”, we spent several relaxing hours cruising Halong Bay. This place is a World Heritage Site. The scenes we observed there were amazing. We also visited a cave that was discovered in the 1990’s by a fisherman who saw a monkey enter a hole in the ground. (Reed Flute Cave)