MissTtravels

Day 10

Th day we first arrived in Hanoi…

We were up very early to leave the hotel at 6.30. We caught a flight from Hue to Hanoi.

Hanoi has 10 million people, so it is large and sprawling. There doesn’t appear to be much zoning of land as there are market garden areas right into the city. There are separate lanes on the roads for the estimated 6 to 7 million motor scooters! We are still marvelling at the numbers of people and things that can fit on a scooter.

Our first stop in the city was the Temple of Literature, an 11th century complex of worship halls and other buildings. First built to honour Confucius, it became a university in the 13th century. Doctors and other intellectuals were trained here until the capital moved to Hue in the 19th century. It is believed to be the root of the Vietnamese people’s dedication to learning. Amazing place.

In addition there was a display of some amazing modern art.

For lunch we went to a social enterprise restaurant called KOTO ( know one, teach one). The restaurant trains young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and minority communities to work in hospitality. Really great food.

After lunch, it was planned that we would visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. However, one look at the length of the queue changed our minds. I was pleased, as I have no real desire to look at someone who has been dead since 1969.

Obviously HCM is very important to the Vietnamese. He is buried on the exact spot where he declared independence for them in 1955.

Instead our bus driver squeezed our bus through the tiny streets of the French Quarter of Hanoi, which was really interesting. Hundreds of tiny shops in tiny streets over 1000 years old. Hanoi was established in the year 1010.

We are staying in the Foreign Relations Hotel, a very grand establishment in among the embassies and posh shops. A bit upmarket compared to where we have been the last few days!

After a nana map, we went off to Old Hanoi and had a really nice dinner.

As a special treat, we also went down the famous Train Street and watched a train running down between the shops. Hilarious. They wheel out barriers to stop the traffic on the cross street. A sort of temporary DIY level crossing. Then the train rumbles down between the cafes.