The above photo doesn’t do the whole scenario any justice. This was on a small side street. Typical hazy morning in Vietnam.
The view from our hotel was fabulous!
We stayed near the French Quarter. There was a lot of French influence in their architecture as well as in the way they sold wares. There weren’t any Wal-Mart or Best Buy type stores in the city. Each street sold one specific good. I know, this must be making absolutely no sense so let me try to explain. For example, one street for one whole block sold only padlocks. You could get any color, any size, any style you wanted but you could only get padlocks. Another street had only shoes. Any style, any size (except any size anyone over 5’5” would need), any color, any material, but all footwear. There were streets for: TVs, hot water heaters, mirrors, wigs, dishes, etc. The paper lantern street was one of my favorites.
During the day the city is busy, hot, sticky (yes, unfortunately), dirty, and smelly (also unfortunate). But at night it’s peaceful. Everyone walks everywhere and it’s much safer to cross the streets.
The Ho Chi Minh mausoleum is in Hanoi, also. The Vietnamese view Ho Chi Minh as a great prophet. He is entombed under glass in a room in the middle of this building:
It was a… shall we say, “Interesting” experience going through to see him. I love learning about the culture, the history, and traditions of the Vietnamese. I love learning those things about anyone really. I love to know why people are the way they are. (And yes, I'm all about the love!)
I had an amazing experience while we were on the grounds outside the mausoleum. A few seconds after I took the above photo a caravan of Vietnamese passed by right in front of me. At the lead was a very old woman being pushed in a wheelchair followed by a number of older gentlemen in uniforms. I asked our guide who they were and he explained that the woman was considered a “Hero Mother” because she had lost more than one son or a husband and a son in the war. She was followed by a number of veterans. We ran into them a little while later while walking around the grounds where Ho Chi Minh lived and worked. I was following a handful of students along one of the sidewalks as we passed the Hero Mother. I noticed that she was looking into the eyes of each one of the students as they passed by but none of the students were paying her any attention. As I passed by we caught each others eyes and a huge grin came over her face. I smiled back and nodded as she bowed her head towards me. I felt such a sense of peace and forgiveness coming from her. Our guide said the Vietnamese people are very forgiving and believe in living in the moment and looking toward the future. I longed for the opportunity to talk with her, to know her story. Unfortunately there was a massive language barrier and my group was on a schedule. To this day I am very touched by the thought of her and hope to be able to see her again whether in this life or the next.
And now, please wake up, it wasn't that long of a story... the above picture is of “One Pillar Pagoda”. It is on the grounds near the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum.
One last strange thing I’d like to share with you from my experience in Hanoi… the burial of the dead.
Referencing the above picture, the Vietnamese bury the bodies of the deceased directly in the ground (foreground) until the flesh and muscle decompose. I don’t recall how many years that takes. Then, once enough time has passed, they dig up the bones, wash and clean them, and place them in a concrete memorials as seen in the picture above. Isn’t that crazy? Acreage costs a lot in Hanoi. You don’t build out, you build up. And they do it in some very creative ways.
Next up from the Southeast Asia adventure series (sounds like a book, doesn’t it?): Halong Bay, Vietnam – You’re gonna love it!
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