Songkran in Chiang Mai, Thailand (courtesy of Google Images)
Songkran in Bangkok (courtesy of Google Images)
Realizing they don't want their employees traipsing in and dripping water everywhere, most employers give holiday time on these days. We're hoping to be here for at least the next couple of years, and will likely experience Songkran many times over. For 2013 though, we hopped outta town.
Vietnam is the closest country in flying distance that does not celebrate Songkran, so our trip was planned to fly northeast to Hanoi. We took one day off work, so including Songkran holidays and the weekend, we had five days for travel. Bright and early Thursday morning, we took a taxi out to the "old airport" (now mostly used for domestic or regional travel, as opposed to the long distance international flights out of Suvarnabhumi airport). I'd been there once before, but might have misjudged how long it took me to get there...we pulled up with about 10 minutes to board. Oops. A frantic scramble to the boarding pass kiosk, immigration, security, and then a sprint down the terminal to the gate...and we still weren't the last ones on board! A win this time, but definitely will be leaving earlier next time. Husband gets honorable mention for carrying BOTH our bags and running while I bolted ahead to make sure they'd wait for us.
Landing in Hanoi was wild. It was so lush and green by the airport, with little villages and lakes dotting the surrounding area. It felt like we were landing in the mountain, not by a major city. After immigration, we spotted at ATM and then were on our way to find a cab to the city. We'd booked out hotel ahead of time and I heard there's quite a bit of scamming from taxis claiming a certain hotel is booked or closed or whatever, and then driving you to a different spot where they get a kick back. Our hotel was near the Old Quarter, by Hoan Kiem Lake - near attractions, cute area, and walkable. Despite arriving super early, they checked us in, and were on our way sightseeing pretty quick.
Hoan Kiem lake area
The lake
St. Joseph Cathedral
After walking around the lake a bit, we headed to the Ho Lao Prison. Built by the French in 1886, this prison was used by the French colonialist to house political prisoners and later overtaken by North Vietnam to hold prisoners of war from 1964-1973. Today it is a museum showing both periods of usage by French and Vietnamese. Pretty grim stuff.
Entrance to the prison:
A re-creation of the detention halls - note their feet are cuffed in shackles.
A relief focused on the harsh treatment during French colonial times:
Propaganda photos of U.S. prisoners of war having a grand ole' time:
We spent much of the rest of the day walking around the neighborhoods and markets, getting my watch fixed, and soaking up Hanoi.
Watch man!
MANY motos and scooters in Hanoi:
This is a neat painting, right?
WRONG! It's a hand-stitched piece of art..! Completely blew my mind. There were massive pieces in this shop and all of it was hand done. They said some of the floor to ceiling pieces took two years, with five artists working simultaneously. Incredible.
Veggies and more:
Mangos - yes please! Ripe or green =)
Outside the market walls
Washington Apples in Hanoi - represent!
Vietnam is known for bia hoi (literally means gas beer, but I think a more accurate translation is fresh beer). It's brewed daily with no preservatives, and comes out in this slightly green color. There are little stands and shops all around Hanoi with a giant silver tank and spout at the bottom, advertising bia hoi. It's very crisp and refreshing, and runs around 25 cents a glass.
View from the top of our hotel looking out over the lake. It was a bit misty/overcast, but escaping 100 degree weather in Bangkok for a few days was amazing...
Capping off the night with a bottle of Bellevue wine - perfect.
Breakfast of champions from outside the train station - a bag of pineapple chunks and rice with dried cuttle fish...mmmmm!
A picture on our ticket of the train
Letdown. So there go our plans to take beautiful scenery shots. Not only were the windows completely muddy and dirty, there was this thatched chicken wire on the outside as well. You win some, you lose some.
Our ride up north. A bit dilapidated, but functional. Not crowded at all, and carts came through with coffee, water, juice, snacks, etc.
The one pic I snapped from a tiny window opening from the bathroom. Must work on my camera settings...
From Lao Cai, we took a shared van an hour to Sapa, our final destination for the day. Our wish for this trip was to get trekking among lovely rice terraces in the mountain, and Sapa was the first stop. The higher we wound up in the mountains, the colder the van's windows felt and the shorter the visibility. By the time we arrived in Sapa, you could barely see 50 feet ahead. It was COLD! As in, 40-degrees cold, wool-hat-cold.
We arrived at our hotel, Sapa Rooms, and this adorable space greeted us - two space heaters were on, a mosquito net (which, when it drapes down, looks like a fairy bed from medieval times), a handmade quilt, and a bronze buddha outside our room in the hallway. On a cold day, it was the epitome of cozy.
Sapa Rooms has a sister property, The Village Noshery, a short walk away. We headed over to explore and find dinner. Such a feast - we've both decided Vietnamese food is the absolute best. Mushroom Pho (noodle/soup broth with masses of fresh herbs and veggies), grilled eggplant, fresh (not fried) spring rolls, chicken satay with peanut sauce (sorry Mom!), and Chilean wine...best meal ever!
How cute is this place?!?
Our walk home included a stroll through the town square. Some fog had lifted, but it was still pretty eery (and enchanting at the same time).
Saturday was hiking day! Our plan was to go to nearby Cat Cat Village first, and see how long the rain held up. It was pouring during breakfast, some sun poked through, then clouds threatened to come back JUST as we were heading out the door.
Hmong fabrics on the way down to Cat Cat
Bamboo forest
Terraces!
Cat Cat Village
It was a day of critters, small and big.
Piglets were all over the trail!
TEN chicks!
Along the way, there some markets set up and piglets did not differentiate if it was a market they were at or a lush mountain path.
"Waterfalls" - if you look close, especially to the upper left, you'll see these beautiful waterfalls MIGHT have been rigged to look a little more impressive via tubing and bamboo pipes.
Our hike continued back out of the village, and we stopped for some tea at the top.
This tiny tea shop plant was so bright and vibrant!
Fog rolls in again:
The tea shop was also an art gallery, and the paints were still fresh from creating a masterpiece. So, of course I bought one! My great grandmother said you always regret what you don't buy, and I'd like to feel pretty confident she was referring to art as opposed to knick knacks and other clutter.
The painting I bought is below (swirling mists and fog around a few lit village tents), while the artist's wife in the background saws a piece of PVC tubing to fit the length. The painting was on canvas, wrapped around a wood frame. To take it back to Thailand, she rolled the canvas, and put it in the PVC tube. So smart!
Various local wines
I'll pause here and go on with part two for another post.
Love it!!! I love the boy riding the buffalo!
ReplyDeleteTo echo - boy & buffalo is so great!
ReplyDelete