Hanoi can be a little Anoi
Now I will do my touristic duty and I will pound the streets of Hanoi, soaking up its history through my soles and making sure I don't get hit by anything. Hanoi is the first place I have come across in Vietnam with truly mental traffic. I visited the night markets last night and witnessed the madness of motor scooters that seemed not to care for pedestrians, even if the pedestrian is on the pavement.
THE NIGHT MARKETS
If I was in charge of a hotel instead of a country I would tell my people this...The information in our guests passports is confidential..that means if you do look do NOT say anything and especially do not say anything at breakfast very early in the morning like:
"When will you have to retire from your job? You are 51 already."
That will not make your guests happy, nor will ill formed questions such as
"What are you doing in my country?"
Mind you trying on a guest's shoulder bag and posing with it until your mother comes and tells the guest you like to wear high heels and jewelry will win you love and admiration always!
Then, if I were in charge of a taxi company I would tell my drivers:
"Do not take people where they do not want to go. If you do not know where they want to go, or are secretly anti-communist and don't want to go to the mausoleum of your great Uncle Ho then just say "I am busy" Do not drive them to the western suburbs of Hanoi and pretend you don't know your own city..Why? Because if you do that they won't, even though you think they might, pay the huge taxi fare you have clocked up by driving them to the wrong place, even though they showed you a map and showed you the street name in Vietnamese..It won't work!
The small things that make tripping out alone so much fun!
Hanoi is a very beautiful city and I forgive its inhabitants for their strange behavior, including closing the museums on Mondays and riding bikes onto footpaths and even into shops because the city is just so pleasant to look at, even the outer Western suburbs, and I did pay the majority of the cab fare for my impromptu tour.
I made a four-hour excursion today, the highlight was the Lake, the genius tortoise story, and all the little streets. The area around the mausoleum is breathtaking in its architecture and wide avenues, and the colonial houses contrast elegantly with the stark monuments and museums. I'll go back after my trip to Sapa and visit Uncle Ho and his old house. There's a chunky big statue of Lenin too but he didn't inspire me to take photos.
However kind, smiling, real people who take care of their hair..I'll photograph you anytime...
Oh yes and if you are getting married, I'll get you too!
He called her "Honey" ..a lot
BUT I wanted to marry the other one!
Hanoi also smells good, it is leafy and green, although boiling hot in the sun, the scents that float around are of lemon and tamarind, of spicy curries and sweet flowers, and talcum powder...
THE NIGHT MARKETS
If I was in charge of a hotel instead of a country I would tell my people this...The information in our guests passports is confidential..that means if you do look do NOT say anything and especially do not say anything at breakfast very early in the morning like:
"When will you have to retire from your job? You are 51 already."
That will not make your guests happy, nor will ill formed questions such as
"What are you doing in my country?"
Mind you trying on a guest's shoulder bag and posing with it until your mother comes and tells the guest you like to wear high heels and jewelry will win you love and admiration always!
Then, if I were in charge of a taxi company I would tell my drivers:
"Do not take people where they do not want to go. If you do not know where they want to go, or are secretly anti-communist and don't want to go to the mausoleum of your great Uncle Ho then just say "I am busy" Do not drive them to the western suburbs of Hanoi and pretend you don't know your own city..Why? Because if you do that they won't, even though you think they might, pay the huge taxi fare you have clocked up by driving them to the wrong place, even though they showed you a map and showed you the street name in Vietnamese..It won't work!
The small things that make tripping out alone so much fun!
Hanoi is a very beautiful city and I forgive its inhabitants for their strange behavior, including closing the museums on Mondays and riding bikes onto footpaths and even into shops because the city is just so pleasant to look at, even the outer Western suburbs, and I did pay the majority of the cab fare for my impromptu tour.
I made a four-hour excursion today, the highlight was the Lake, the genius tortoise story, and all the little streets. The area around the mausoleum is breathtaking in its architecture and wide avenues, and the colonial houses contrast elegantly with the stark monuments and museums. I'll go back after my trip to Sapa and visit Uncle Ho and his old house. There's a chunky big statue of Lenin too but he didn't inspire me to take photos.
However kind, smiling, real people who take care of their hair..I'll photograph you anytime...
Oh yes and if you are getting married, I'll get you too!
He called her "Honey" ..a lot
BUT I wanted to marry the other one!
Hanoi also smells good, it is leafy and green, although boiling hot in the sun, the scents that float around are of lemon and tamarind, of spicy curries and sweet flowers, and talcum powder...
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