Arrived in Hanoi, Veitnam on July 24th. Leaving the plane via the tarmak always makes me feel like one of the Beatles or a politician for some reason. I actually did a little wave to no one as I left the plane.
The ride into town showed Vietnam on the rise as there was a lot of corporate advertising and development along the highway. A lot of manufacturing contracts are coming into the country.
Everything worked out well upon arrival, staff at the hotel were fabulous helping get my plans for the week here together. Vietnam is a much more dense, chaotic place than Taiwan. Many tribal indigenous people on the streets with the two baskets full of a huge variety of goods suspended between a slice of bamboo. The Old Quarter is a packed burrough where everything in the lives of the people here happens on the street, eating, socializing, siestas, business etc. And everything is for for sale. The whole district is basically one big bazaar or medina. It is hot, loud and intense.
A mini typhoon rolled thru town the first night I got here, wind blowing hard seemingly from every direction, lightning and rain. I decided to grab my recorder and get some field recording of streets sound and the rain. As I was walking around with my mic, everyone around me started yelling, I had no idea why. Then out of nowhere a tree fell right in front of me and blocked the street causing a massive traffic jam. Close call...
Second day, heading out for three days sailing and exploring on Halong Bay and Cat Ba island. Halong Bay is in the China Sea and is an amazing natural wonder of gigantic rock spires jutting up out of the emerald sea. A UNESCO World Heritage site.
The ride out was a long 4 hour drive thru agricultural landscapes of rice patties, water buffalo, small roadside towns and crazy traffic.
The level of poverty here is still very high although it is a different ilk than we have in the US. Here family cohesion is strong and people manage together. There are no homeless individuals here, everyone has a place. Still though it was hard to see so much struggle. I realized on this trip I had chosen destinations and had not considered the journey.
We navigated the harbor/tourist trap and boarded our very well appointed Chinese junk and set off into the blue sea.
We navigated the harbor/tourist trap and boarded our very well appointed Chinese junk and set off into the blue sea.
Photographs cannot do Halong Bay justice. The widescreen cinematic experience of moving thru these massive shapes was deeply spiritual for me. The majesty and scale of it was amazing. I sat front row center, with my feet hanging over the bow of the ship for hours and hours just taking it all in. We spent the day going from cove to cove, exploring beaches, caves and swimming. The meals were excellent and me and the other 12 or so guests on board were quite happy.
After a great night sleep on the boat, I happened to awake just before dawn and silently slipped into the warm water, gently swimming into the Bay. It was silent still and beautiful. As the sun rose the pillars of rocks, I buoyed myself on the rope of the anchor and watched the sun rise from the surface of the water. I had the whole of Halong Bay to myself until people began to gradually rise and begin the day. I am grateful for this experience as I will most likely remember it for the rest of my life.
Spent the next day kayaking, trekking thru tribal villages on the islands and ended up at Cat Ba island, a resort sort of riviera Vietnamese style. Had a great room and decent meal and went to bed.
Heading back to the mainland another storm caught up with us and it became a bit sketchy for a little while, lightning hitting the water, heavy wind and rain. There were many other vessels in the water and we were really in no danger, but it was pretty dramatic. All ended well and we arrived safely.
Spent the last two days seeing the main sights of Hanoi, Ethnology Museum, Ho Chi Min Mausoleum, ancient Confucian temples and Universities.
Picked up a few very nice old Communist propaganda posters in the Old Quarter.
Heading off to another town tonight via overnight train. I will arrive in Hoi An tomorrow. Another World Heritage Site, Hoi An is the silk capital of Vietnam and nearly every building in the town is a historical landmark.
Will write again once we get settled in Saigon.
thanks for reading this, I apologize for the length of the entry but so much happens when you are out on the road.
caio for now
Jef
Ipod playlist-
Gaudi-Dub Qawwali
Steve Roach-Dream Cycle
John Hassell-Possible Musics
Adrian Sherwood-Never Trust a Hippy
Six Degrees- Asian Travels
Ishq-Orchid
photos at
http://flickr.com/photos/jefstott/sets/
1 comments:
sounds absolutely beautiful. glad to hear you're having a good time. love the wave to no one from the airplane. and the near miss from the falling tree! do you have the yelling and the tree recorded??
swimming in the halong bay at dawn reminds of an experience i had swimming in the ocean in the italian riviera before sunrise ten years ago. there's something about being in water as the sun rises in a beautiful new place. you're right you probably will never forget it.
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