Hello from Ha Noi!!

A quick recap of yesterday before I get into today's events:

Prior to meeting with my cousin Lee on Friday night, I headed into a travel agency to try and book a day tour to the Cu Chi tunnels for Saturday.  Unfortunately the agent who works on tours was gone for the day, but one of her co-workers took my information and said she would call me Saturday morning to organize.  Unfortunately, she called after the morning tour had already left, and there was nobody booked for the afternoon tour so I was out of luck.  Walking around the city too, travel agency after travel agency said the same thing.  So the Cu Chi tunnels were off the table... :(  I did manage to head to the Reunification Palace and the War Remnants Museum yesterday though.  The Reunification Palace, formerly known as the Independence Palace was where the President of South Vietnam lived until the VC forces overwhelmed the South Vietnamese and US armies in Saigon in 1975.  This is the same building where many of you may recall seeing video footage of a tank breaking down the front gates and a VC soldier running up the building to wave a VC flag from the rooftop.  The building has been perfectly preserved, and looks pretty much exactly as it did in 1975.  English speaking tour guides take you through the official conference rooms, Presidential, Vice-Presidential, and First Lady reception rooms, a Cinema, Games Room, as well as the Presidents bedroom and private restaurant.  In the 4th floor, you see where the helicopter launch pad is and in the basement is the war planning area, complete with communications rooms, and an extensive map room.

The War Remnants Museum was very thought provoking, disturbing and saddening.  It showcases primarily photographs taken by war journalists during the American War.  One gallery room was showing nothing but photo's of children and stillborn fetuses who had birth defects due to Agent Orange.  Enlarged craniums, children without eyelids or eyes, children with no limbs at all, or severe skeletal deformations were all here.  Quite sad and shocking.  Another hall showcased the atrocities committed by the US soldiers during the war.  Smiling faced GI's holding pieces of human bodies, captured soldiers being interrogated hung by their feet dangling from a tree, or entire families and villages murdered by American troops.  Out front of the building there were several US tanks, helicopters, and fighter jets all well preserved and on display with Vietnamese Agent Orange victims selling books walking around the courtyard.  It truly was a sobering experience, and reinforces the thought that was, no matter what its justification is an aberration.  I find it amazing how soldiers no matter what side they are fighting for, can become enslaved by their governments propaganda and become mindless killing machines.  So sad too it is that some mere 35 years later, we are in the midst of 2 wars and any lessons that could have been learned from Vietnam seem to have been left at the door.

Walking back to the hotel, I have with me several toys to hand out to kids on the street, all of whom are very happy and grateful to receive.  I finally track down a store selling SIM cards and airtime for my cell phone here.  The shopkeepers (husband and wife team) kindly help me get setup and fill up my phone number with the airtime I bought.  They have 2 kids a girl about 8 and a boy about 6 playing some game on the ground.  I have exactly two toys left, one hackey sack and a click-clack toy that I decide to give to the kids to thank their parents for helping me out.  Although with all the noise the toys make, maybe they regretted me doing so... :)

Well on to today's adventure:

Here I am at the Grand Gia Bao Hotel in the Old Quarter of Ha Noi.  I left HCMC this afternoon on a Vietnam Airlines domestic flight using a Boeing 777 airplane which was pretty much completely full.  Crazy how for a 2 hour domestic flight, an airline can fill up a 350 passenger plane!!! (Air Canada take note)
A few things I noted about Vietnam Airlines in-flight service:  They didn't have any movies or shows playing, even though every seat had an entertainment console.  Instead the overhead TV's simulcast a live feed of camera's that were mounted underneath the plane which you could watch live as the plane was taxiing away from the terminal and taking off as well.  Pretty cool to watch for sure.  Even on a 2 hour domestic flight, they did lunch service.  If you are like me and think that the wait for your luggage at YVR is insanely long, it's not!!!  I honestly ended up waiting for about 25 to 30 minutes for my luggage to come off the carousel and the baggage pickup was only 300 feet away from the plane!!!  When leaving baggage claim, you have to go through a checkpoint where they verify your luggage tags ensuring that nobody has made off with your luggage. 

The taxi ride into Ha Noi was a lot different than coming into HCMC.  The land around the airport is predominantly agricultural rice paddies.  Lots of Water Buffalo, and farmers in traditional coned hats.  The weather here is markedly colder.  Caro you were right, it is A LOT colder here!!!  A good amount of the locals are sporting scarfs and even puffy winter jackets.  Although I am still in my shorts and t-shirt.. hehe

I don't know if its the colder climes, thus allowing people more options with their attire, but I have noticed that people here are a lot more fashionable than their southern cousins.  Many ladies are sporting nice heels, many of the young people are wearing designer jeans and shirts too, in contrast to the sandals and generic t-shirts of the South.

The Grand Gia Bao Hotel is located in the Old Quarter, pretty much the main tourist area of Ha Noi.  My hotel room is pretty basic, although quite trendily decorated.  The funny part is that there's a window from the sleeping area into the bathroom.  The wierdest part is that the blinds are controlled in the bedroom area!!!

After checking into my room, i went out for a walk to check out the city as this is my only real chance to do so before starting my volunteering tomorrow morning.  As is my custom when traveling through SE Asia, I have brought with me a few things that have needed mending since my last trip to SE Asia.  Making my way to the Dong Xuan market area where everything from knockoff everything to tacky souvenirs are being hawked, I found a watch store who offered to do a battery replacement for 150,000 Dong, about $7.50 CDN.  Knowing this was a ripoff right away, I made it out of there and about 5 minutes later found another store offering the same for 80,000 Dong, about $4.00.  The owner was a very friendly man, who gave me directions to the fabric district of the market for the sewing repairs I needed done on some pants and shorts.  After finding where he told me to do, unfortunately none of the places would actually do any sewing repairs, they were just vendors of anything sewing related: buttons, needles, string, fabric, etc.  Thinking that my luck wasn't with me, I decided to head back to Hoan Kiem lake, pretty much the center of the Old Quarter.  Around this area are many restaurants and stores.  Looking through my Lonely Planet book, I do a quick search for a good restaurant recommendation before calling it a night.  Not being able to decide on anything in the book, I decide to do a walk around and see if I can find anything on the street, after walking for a couple of minutes, I stumble across a silk fabric store that advertises clothing alterations 24 hours a day!!!  Inside the store, was a pretty bored lady, so I decided to ask her if she could do the mending jobs of my 2 pants and pair of shorts.  She agrees, and says that she won't charge, she will do it for me as a favour!!  After about 15 minutes she sorted me out, and did a great job too!!  I couldn't let her not charge me, so I insisted she take 50,000 Dong for her troubles.  She refused until I literally had to shove the money in her hands!!  I really must say, that so far, my impression of Ha Noi is great.  The people here seem very friendly and nice... 
Walking out of the seamstress shop, just down the block, I find a French named restaurant, so I decide to have a look at the menu.  They serve both French and Vietnamese dishes, and with many foreigners inside, I decided it was worth a try.  Choosing one of their set menu's I get a beef and noodle with vegetable dish, beer and an iced coffee for 105,000 Dong about $5.25 CDN....

Back at the hotel now, after making my way through the Night Market on Dong Xuan St.  I'm going to take the rest of the night off as tomorrow will be a pretty busy day I'm sure...

With just 5 more days now until Christmas eve, it really doesn't seem like Christmas to me.  It's been a while I think since I've spent a Christmas in a warm weathered country, and it's also the first Christmas that I will spend away from family and friends.  Walking around both HCMC and Ha Noi seeing all the Christmas decorations in the stores, on the streets, people dressed up as Santa Claus, parents dressing their kids up as Santa Claus makes it an almost surreal feeling.  It's like you're on the outside, looking in on other people's celebrations without actually taking part yourself.  I've been covertly taking pictures of people getting photographed in front of store front Christmas displays or kids who've been dressed up as Santa by their parents as I find it quite comical and amusing to see how the Vietnamese people have taken to this Western holiday.