Nandini's Tryst 2: A socialist republic

The Vietnam Story!!

‘’Hello Sir. Is my visa ready? I have been waiting for almost 1.5 hours now.’’
‘’We are checking. You have to wait.’’
My Vietjet Air from Siem-reap, Cambodia landed at Noi Bai International airport at 20:45 hrs. On 5th November. Just like hundred more passengers on board, I had filled up my Visa on Arrival and submitted the same along with passport & e-visa. Almost everyone got their respective e-visas I got mine after spending about one and half hours and about USD 25. I checked the time, it was about 22:50. Thankfully my airport pickup was waiting outside & I just threw my hungry tired body into it. Well to be mentioned as I didn’t have Vietnamese dong currency, he took $15 including waiting charge to drop me at Old-quarter. "Cabs are expensive!"
Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam is important for many international business houses. The city is a reminisce of authentic old Vietnam too and along with the business ventures, the houses in the Old-quarter location of the city has still maintained the old authentic vibes and aura of Vietnam which attracts most of the foreign tourists to this old yet amazing city. I booked at Trevi-Inn homestay through AirBNB, a private room with free breakfast hosted by Mr. Nguyen at Old-quarter for my Hanoi Stay which cost me around 4000 INR for 3 nights with all the in-room facilities. Accommodations are pretty budget friendly in Hanoi and so is the food. Tired and drained I had a cup noodle & slept. (Cup noodles come very handy in these trips)
Day 1.
‘’Hello Ma’m. This is Toan from Vietnam Open Tour Company. Are you ready?"
I somehow managed to wake myself up only to realize that my pickup for Halong Bay is on the way & I have hardly 15 minutes. By the time I got ready, my host uncle served me Pork Pho (Pork soup with rice noodles- Vietnamese dish) in breakfast. He was really nice to respond & had prepared quick after my call. This Ha Long tour of mine was pre-booked in a group from a local agency Proyojoni Traveldesk unlike my rest of the Cambodia-Vietnam trip where I had never been with a group. As our tour car picked us from different locations, on introduction to each other we became a group of 12 including Mr. Toan, our Vietnamese Guide. Before heading to Bay boat cruise, we stopped at a pearl farm where they demonstrated how they culture and cultivate pearl in the sea. Pearl ornaments were pretty expensive there so I just took a round of the showroom & left with the group.

Ha Long Bay, a UNESCO World heritage site in Pacific Ocean, is popular for its emerald water and limestone islands- islets & looked like something right out of a Hollywood movie. We checked in through Tuan Chau International Marina station & boarded our well-furnished boat cruise. There was a group of three friendly Tamilian guys with whom I  shared my  table, the remaining member of the group were one British couple, one  French couple, a Chinese family of four  and one Mr. Alexandra. The guys Krishna, Monish & Vijay are partners in a textile manufacturing & export business who came to Vietnam for business trip where they squeezed out a vacation in between. It was interesting to know about their experiences by the time the cruise started & we we're served with a big Fat Sea food meal in Vietnam cuisine which includes Octopus salad, fried chicken, sea-food mixture, prawn fry and a lot more (picture attached). The cruise left the shore and we slowly started witnessing the Bay, limestone pillars surged out of the calm waters, and a huge formation, it was all magical. The first view point was kissing island where two pillars were standing like a couple kissing each other. After some poses & clicks it was time to explore the water caves in the ocean in our Kayaks. I and Krishna went into one sailing through the island caves followed by Monish & Vijay. The route was to go straight under the two caves, sail for some time & back. But the explorer in me tried a different route & went onto wider ocean crossing the caves, took a round of an islet and came back to the cruise which took me a few extra minutes and a little chaos. The next was Thien Cung lime stone cave. Our Guide at the entrance detailed us about the story of the cave including both science and mythology like dragons came from the sky to protect Vietnam from enemies and created the bay wall etc. How wonderful nature can be! It was huge and heavenly. Seemed like a limestone architect designed it very carefully with some formations looked like Romeo Juliet, a mother breastfeeding a kid, some animal structures etc. Thanks to the guys for clicking beautiful pictures of mine in all these places. The cruise started to return. The Sun was setting down making the ocean golden shine. Sitting on the upper deck witnessing the surrealistic scenery, the only thing I was wondering is what could I ask more in life!
Day 2:
‘’AiNoi! Ainoi!’’
My host’s Myna was calling him for food. I Woke up with the call, freshen myself up & went upstairs for breakfast. The dinning space was decorated with nice small artifacts & plants. Aunty served filter coffee in a unique double pot coffee stand which is their traditional style along with toast. Well the day was to explore the capital of a socialist republic & what could be better than to begin with Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. The resting place of revolutionary leader & president Ho Chi Minh guarded with highest honor & respect & the gigantic structure with the embalmed body of Ho Chi minh standing as a pride of the country’s history. ‘’These people knows how to honour their heroes’’ I remembered this part of the world had a lot to do with Indian struggle for Independence as well ‘’Can we ever know the truth behind Netaji’s disappearance?’’   The presidential palace & Ho Chi Minh Museum bought me back to reality, these were adjacent structure and went a long way explaining the life history of the great warrior. The One pillar pagoda just behind the mausoleum was very pretty & peaceful with a small temple in it. After exploring the premises I took a bike ride to Temple of Literature & national university (Cabs were expensive and bikes are healthy!). It is the first educational institute in the country dedicated to Confucius, having the courtyards, ceremonial gates & monuments of the scholars over the years, & interesting calligraphy with beautiful architecture in traditional Vietnamese style. I  Met a Philippine middle aged couple in a local restaurant while having Goi Cuon (crab meet sprig roll with rice noodles at $5 only) at lunch and added them in my FB immediately knowing that they travel 8 months in a year & works for rest 4 months in their business!  
My next destination was Hoa La prison. Stepping there was like a time machine where you could go fifty years back instantly with the help of an audio guide. It was basically A presentation of the struggle of Freedom fighters prior to 1975 in Vietnam independence. What I found more interesting was the presentation of end & after war testimonies from different states with a poster of Diary of peace ‘The War is Over.’’ I smiled. After that I Took an  inside out round of St. Joseph Cathedral and checked into some old traditional house. I went back to Old quarter leaving behind the vibrant light & music of Hoan Kiem Lake one if the most popular tourist destination in the area.

Hanoi is popular for its night life too & there is a great vibe emanating out of the old quarter. After trying some local delicacies I ended up at Beer2k 4u to cheer on the last night of my first Solo trip and as a cherry on the top there was a "on the house" drink for the ladies of the evening (Lucky Me!!).  I literally fell in love with the ‘I love you’ cocktail and a chicken stick to wonder about this whole trip of Cambodia-Vietnam & how it changed me. Exposure to new places, people, culture, food & beauty may not change us as a person but it changes the soul within! The musical night started & they rocked the floor simply making me dance a little.
Day3:
‘’how much for the coffee pot set?’’
‘’$10’’
‘’Make it at $5.’’
‘’No. $6 last.’’
‘’Ok!’’
My bargaining skills were put to test and my talent popped out. It is that time of the trip where you need to fill your travel bag with souvenirs & trust me Vietnam Old quarter is one of a kind for this.
The Morning started with a visit to Hoan Kiem Lake & Ngoc Son temple via red bridge in the lake. I paced myself for some time in the peaceful and calm surrounding, there were a number of artists around making portraits which further enhanced the aura of the place. After spending some time I went to the signature coffee places where I got to try the special coconut coffee (the iced coffee with coconut flavor is a must try!). I Spent a pretty long time in hopping around the old quarter, checked some local musical instruments in an outlet & shopping everything small I could find in budget & easy to carry as a representation of Vietnam. To mention a few pointers
1. Garments are no different but Bags & home decors are really good & cost effective when bought from stalls a bit inside the Bazaar of course tourist corners to be avoided at all cost.
2  Language is a mess there except the currency in numeric & the tourist spots.
3. VND currency notes are really confusing as the denomination and values are difficult to differentiate and transact with, it is advisable to use USD however on rounding off to the nearest value, you would generally end up paying more then the exact blue of the item purchased.
My airport pickup was scheduled i asn some time so I had my lunch with Bun Hue (not a beef person so with pork) in a street side stall before coming back to my room. One of the biggest reason why Hanoi will be in my heart forever is my Super hosts, super polite and cute. I took my leave from them and headed to airport via a route to long Bien Bridge- standing tall for 100 years with the survival history of the war, one interesting fact I learnt on my way to the airport was the structure was actually built by the one of the French architect who designed the great Eiffel tower. My Flight got delayed by an hour and it seemed the country just didn't want me to leave. I had a Vietnamese signature drink egg coffee at airport, a final goodbye drink certifying the end of my much waited solo trip.  I bid adieu to Vietnam as my Indigo Airlines 6E-1397 took off from Noi Bai International Airport.
"Welcome to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose international Airport Kolkata......"
Kolkata, India was raining to pamper the new yet vastly matured and experienced girl in me with its every droplets.

Until Next Time...