Home | Contact | Travel Tips | Epilogue | Terms of Use
Flight | Saigon | Mekong Delta | Dalat | Nha Trang | Hoi An | Hue | Hanoi | Halong Bay

Hanoi

When we were in Hue and Hoi An it rained all day and the wind whipped up to about 25 miles per hour. It got down to 40 degrees Fahrenheit (4 degrees Celsius) and all the buildings were not heated. Also they had an odd habit of leaving all the doors and windows open to let in the "fresh air." By the time we got to Hanoi Jeffrey insisted on staying at a really nice hotel. I had aslo developed a nasty cold. So we stayed at the Guoman, which like the Rex, is considered ridiculously expensive but is warm. They have heat, and every convenience. I felt warm for the first time since we left Nha Trang. I'm learning that everything can be gotten here as well, just at a certain price, like it is the US.

As it would happen the weather in Hanoi turned warm once we arrived, it's ten degrees warmer here than it was in Hue. We spent a beautiful spring-like day walking around Hoa Kiem Lake, the lake that is the symbol of Hanoi. Hanoi was first established as the town of Thang Long in the 11th century and expanded with the increasing trade guilds that settled here. Today the Old quarter of Hanoi is still split up in streets by trade and you can do your shopping by street name. For instance, all the silversmiths are on a specific street or all the paper goods on another. The 11th century buildings are still standing and in use.

The lake has a charming legend similar to the legend of King Arthur. It is legend that the Emperor Le Loi was given a special sword by heaven to fend off the Mongul hordes with. After defeating the hordes, the emperor was sailing the lake with the sword and a large turtle came up and took the sword back. The lake has since been called the lake of the returned sword or Hoa Kiem. They have found gigantic turtles in the lake known to be hundreds of years old.