I will start with my weekend trip to Ha Long Bay with Dr. Allender, his wife Laurel, children Amanda and Chris, nurses Judy and Vicky. We left Sunday morning via bus for the 4 hr journey to Ha Long Bay. We crossed the Red River, saw the countryside and managed to get away from the noise of the city for awhile.
The journey took us through the countryside consisting of small towns along the way, many rice paddies, fields of banana trees, and corn. Water buffalo roamed to paddies, the roads and the cities. We also saw goats, horses and cattle. Lots of women with their bamboo hats were seen, working in the fields, spraying the DDT (which is sprayed everywhere to control the mosquitoes), sewing seeds in the fields, and loading their bicycles with their fruits, produce, and baquettes. I tried so hard to capture the scooters and bikes that were literally, loaded down with wares going to market. I saw bikes with crates of live pigs, some had live chickens, all going to market. It made me sad. I hated knowing they weren't out for a Sunday drive. Baquettes are served a lot for breakfast, instead of toast. You can see women with stands, one right after the other, with their bikes loaded with baquettes, fruits, veggies. Again, they are lined up on the side of the road, all with the same things. How they actually make a living, I couldn't say.
Through the towns, peoples yards were set up like produce stands. Again, one almost right after the other. There is no recycling, that I could tell. Garbage would be piled up in certain areas. They make these bricks out of clay, with holes in them. They are used as briquettes for cooking on the sides of the street. We actually saw people with a coal powder, mixing with water, to form the bricks. Lots of construction going on, with toiling manually. No cement trucks, just people with their wheelbarrows, making the mortar, laying bricks. Roads were pretty well, but in the city, lots of the sidewalks are in disrepair and you really have to watch your step or down you can go.
I understand that being a member of "the Party" (communist party) is one of the few ways to become prosperous. Any bad words flung their way, will banish you and stifle any financial advantage for you and your family. If you have money, the Party is the way to go, to advance. As a family, 2 children is the limit. If you have more than 2 children, you are taxed an extrodinary amount. It is very frowned upon. The population of Hanoi is 5 million, so I guess controls are the way to go. To buy vehicles, you pay the government 200% tax above the cost. A car that cost $25,000, will cost $50,000 there. That explains the number of scooters everywhere.
Here I go again, I start to talk about Ha Long, and I drift. OK, back on task. We arrived in Ha Long Bay, boarded a tender to our "junk" the Dragon Cruise Line. There were about 20 of us that were on the boat. I shared a room with Judy and Vicky and the family had 2 rooms. There were Chinese on board, one of which was living in Hanoi and starting up a new company here. A couple with an adorable 2 y.o. daughter. The dad was German, the mom Bulgarian and their daughter was learning both languages PLUS english. I'm jealous of all the multi-lingual people we have come across. We also met a man who is from Wyoming, but living in Hanoi for 3 years, teaching English. His Swedish friend met him for a trip to Ha Long. Also on board was a couple from Australia and they were filling us in on their country and all the beautiful things to see and do. We were a good group with lots of info to share.
We took off the the islands of Ha Long. The islands consist of mulitple limestone structures, covered with vegetation, jutting out of the water. There were a mulititude of "junks" with tourists, due to the holiday weekend. Along the way, were local fishing boats, and women with their boats filled with pringles, strawberry and blueberry filled oreo cookies, soda, water, candy. They would come up to the boat in hopes of selling their items. We came to a stop, and a tender brought us in to an area of a massive cave that was discovered in 1901 from the French. Lots of stalagtites and stalagmites so we walked through. It was incredible. My biggest complaint about my time here has been the heat and humidity. With any exertion, you are dripping with sweat and just feel grimey. So, after all the steps to get to the caves, I was ready for a shower, but instead, we went kayaking.
We were taken to a place to kayak. Here I am, kayaking in the Gulf of Tonkin. Unbelievable, as I was in the kayak, thinking about where I really was. We were then taken back to the boat for a shower, later we had dinner, and then, we just enjoyed the sunset on the upper deck of the boat. We attempted fishing for squid off the boat. We could see them, but no luck.
Time for bed and the mattress was rock hard, so not the best sleep. We awoke for breakfast, and a cruise to a fishing village. The locals actually set up small clapboard houses, and they fish for their livlihood. There was also a one room school house for the children (it will be the green structure that you see). We then headed back to shore, to the bus, and the journey back to our hotel.
Tomorrow, a visit back to the hospital to see our patients, some last minute shopping and then packing for home. The hotel here was so kind as to let us keep our rooms until we leave for the airport, which is 8pm. No charge. The people of Vietnam have been so welcoming, friendly and gracious. The vendors on the street are a bit agressive and will sneer if you don't buy anything, but that's capitalism for you.
So, below, I will post pictures of our junk (the Ha Long Dragon Cruise), other junks with their beautiful and colorful masts, the caves, the countryside, and our group.
I was so fortunate to be welcomed into a very tight-knit group. Everyone has been so kind and really welcoming to me and wanting me to feel like one of the team. They also were great in showing me around and telling me all they knew about this country.
I really want to thank Dr. Brian Allender, Dr. Richard Litchfield, Jim Hayfield, RN, Vicky Shook RN, Judy Peterson RN for all their knowledge and help in this journey. I also want to thank Mrs. Jacquie Litchfield and Mrs. Laurel Allender and their children, Amanda and Chris for their friendliness and kindness extended to me. You all make me want to come back again. Really!
So, to all my family and friends back home in USA and my extended family in Canada, thank you for going on this journey with me and I hope I could bring some insight into another culture for you. It was really a wonderful and fulfilling experience I will never forget.
Good night from Hanoi!
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