Annoyed in Hanoi

Enjoying the park

Not sure why, but Ha Noi did not quite do it for me…it actually kind of annoyed me.  We walked the streets, enjoyed museums, visited the lakes and parks, went to the pottery village, watched water puppet shows, ate street food and at fine dining establishments, but at the end of each day I was left a bit unsatisfied, and I can't quite pinpoint why.  Maybe it was just the heat or the fact that a taxi driver tried to rip us off, something just didn't feel good about Ha Noi.  

Rosemary Enjoying the Rose Petals

We stayed at a lovely budget hotel, Hanoi GEM, situated on a street lined with backpacker hostels, cafes, and tour agencies.  This location may have contributed to the annoyance, as I felt like I was surrounded by Westerners, providing a less than authentic feel. 

Water puppets

Ha Noi wasn’t all bad and there were definitely some highlights which included: the Water Puppet Theater, Cho Dong Xuan wholesale market, and just walking the streets.  Rosemary adored the Water Puppet show, as did we, with the traditional wooden puppets, folk music, and fiery dragons.  The show lasted about 50 minutes and we had front row seats to enjoy the action.  Rosemary clapped her hands and danced along making for an even more spectacular show. 

The traditional band

A little "creacked out" but she loved the show

Another highlight was the Dong Xuan market.  We stumbled upon the Dong Xuan market by happenstance and decided to look around for a couple of hair bows that Rosemary "desperately needed". Here we were able to get a taste of local life.  Markets tend to be the best way to get a pulse of the city or town, and this one did just that.  Although it wasn’t too crazy and there weren't many shoppers, the stalls were filled with spices, nuts, cheap plastic items, knock-off clothing, and just about anything else a person could want.  Being a wholesale market, most stuff was only sold in bulk, but there was an interesting and exciting buzz in the air that we caught just by walking through.  The vendors seemed a little shocked to see the three of us perusing the aisles, and that is always a good sign for us.  Unfotunately, we didn't find the much desired bows, but a break from the tourist circut was just as good.

Some of the other attractions that we visited included: the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex, Fine ArtsMuseum,  Hoan Kiem Lake, West Lake, Tran Quoc Pagoda, St. Joseph’s Cathedral, and the Ethnology Museum.

Traditional ceremonial house - men only

Burial House Figurine

Although we chose not to buy the tickets to enter the mausoleum, the complex and sheer volume of people paying their respects was impressive.  We walked the grounds and tried to get a glimpse of the One Pillar Pagoda, but to no avail.  We weren’t too motivated by any of the sites at the Mausoleum Complex, so we called it quits and got some lunch.  

Afterwards, we visited the Fine Arts Museum, which had interesting exhibits of local modern and ancient artists.  My favorite exhibit was the ancient artifacts that showed various religious and cultural symbols.  The museum was modest and manageable and we enjoyed wandering the halls, but museums don’t typically leave a big impression and this one was no different.

Some huge vases

Factory work

Our most lasting memory of Hanoi however, came from our day trip to Bat Trang ceramic village about an hour outside of Hanoi.  We decided to try to escape the city one day, so we asked our hotel concierge how far to Bat Trang.  There is literally nothing in Bat Trang aside from a few restaurants and ceramic shops.  We wandered into a couple of pottery workshops and the workers were extremely inviting.  We were able to witness the different stages of pottery process, with each person responsible for a different part of each piece. The most impressive aspect, was watching two women create an intricate bird and tree seen on one of the pots freehand.  

So impressive!

However, seeing this process and the beautiful potter that resulted isn’t the lasting memory.  The thing that we’ll never forget about Hanoi, and Bat Trang specifically, is the tower of pots that Anna knocked over with Rosemary’s baby carrier.  There we were simply taking Rosemary out of the carrier, when Anna swung around and sent a tower of 10 pots crashing to their demise.  The falling pots seemed to gravitate toward the ground in slow motion, but our diving hands could do nothing to hold back the carnage.  There was nothing to do, but pay the shop and laugh.  

The next day, we finally made it out of Hanoi and headed for Ha Long Bay.  We left Ha Noi having experienced museums, parks, good food, and water puppets, but just a little bit annoyed!