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Vietnam Visit Onboard the Silversea Cloud in 2001Silversea Hong Kong/Singapore 2001 Hong Kong Looking over at Hong Kong Island skyline is stunning at night. Such firms as Philips, KAL, NEC, Thoshiba, Epsom and Panasonic display their names in bright lights. The changing colors of one building hypnotizing. However, I.M Pei's bank building, by far the most impressive design, is the only one not lit-but reflects the others in a very subtle manner. Peninsula Lobby. Nice music even at lunch. However, the lunch menu seemed more prosaic than we remembered. Went into Gaddis but only three tables were filled at lunch time. Vietnam From the port of Haiphong eighteen 14-passenger vans whisked all but the eight passengers, who stayed aboard the Silver Cloud, to Hanoi for a complimentary overnight at the Daewan. This was a very modern hotel with all the conveniences-and a great spa. I felt rather like an ugly, unsophisticated American when I told our cruise director that I was surprised that the hotel was so lovely; I had somehow expected something more modest. The drive to Hanoi was on a four-lane highway-about 80 miles. One rest stop (there seems to be only place between the port and Hanoi) but the rest room is not Western. The drive, which took slightly less than two hours, was through flat countryside with rice fields and water buffalo We were told that the Koreans and Japanese are helping pay for and helping construct the infrastructure of Vietnam such as the highway on which we traveled. In Hanoi, there were droves of motor scooters everywhere-just as there were droves of bicycles in Beijing in the '80s. It is perilous to cross the streets. Our guide told us: "You have to have confidence." In other words, just go, don't change your mind, keep walking. Terrifying. The National Arts Museum was lovely-both the old and new sections. But it is not a good place for those with trouble walking, for there are no elevators to the second floor. And there is no air conditioning--only fans and open windows. Old Quarter: A labyrinth of streets, each one dedicated to one art or product. Markets quite neat. Lots of shops and galleries-some nice ones. In Old Hanoi, they are not allowed to make changes to buildings or tear them down.
We went to the water puppet show not expecting too much. But it is very clever and humorous. The puppets are manipulated by puppeteers, who are standing in water up to their waists in back of a scrim. Definitely worthwhile and not overly long (an hour). But try to sit close. (No set seating.) We started the next day by visiting a Confucius Pagoda, which was lovely and beautifully maintained, like much of what we saw in this city. The locals still come here to worship-mostly women as in the churches in Spain. We then went on to Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum, where there was a very long line.and not at all appealing on an extremely hot day. We didn't know if there were more visitors because it was a Sunday or if this was true every day. There were groups of soldiers, children in uniform (looking like the young communist groups we have seen in China) families, a few old people. Women were mostly dressed in black pants with white over-blouses although some wore native dress, an attractive sight. Our guide broke into the line with us trailing obediently. We thought there would be indignation, harsh looks or words. Nothing. So we proceded in the line, which moved very quickly. Up the stairs and into the Mausoleum. Four soldiers guarded the tomb. We walked by silently with the rest. Ho Chi Minh looked almost too real to be that of an embalmed corpse. Was it really the leader? Then we moved onto the Palace, a short distance away. It is not lived in but is used on occasion for state visits. Then on a short distance past a lake to the home where Ho Chi Minh actually lived. It was very modest and spare but comfortable. Although we weren't allowed in, we could peak in the windows. (I understand others do go inside). I was impressed with the simplicity of this home just as I was when we visited the final resting place of Churchill in an apple orchard near his ancestral home of Blenheim. We didn't get to visit the lovely Opera House, which has been beautifully restored to its French glory. (Tickets for performances are incredibly reasonable by our standards and they do perform Western music.) Very close is the harmonious Hilton Hanoi Opera, carefully named this to differentiate it from the infamous Hanoi Hilton, which housed American POWs including John McCain. Da Nang Pretty harbor. Magnificent greeting with musicians and dancers. We saw very few ships in any of the harbors. This time Star Cruise's Leo was adjacent. She brings 2,000 Asian passengers a week-mostly for gambling rather than sightseeing. We can't figure out what they do in port however. We left for Hoi Am on a two-lane road (not like the one to Hanoi) but traffic was not bad. Hoi Am is a lovely town with very few tourists. We were invited into a private home and allowed to see how such a home is organized. Surprisingly, there was a smell of roasting coffee. Coffee? Not tea. (We later learned that Vietnam is the second largest producer of coffee in the world after Brazil.) Anything seemed to be available from the ever-present vendors. Anything seemed to be available for “one dollar.” One woman laughed and said: "One dollar because that is the number of your bus." I found myself haggling over perfectly beautiful note cards, for which the young woman wanted $1.50. I insisted on the $1.00 and she said couldn't I help her go to school. Then I remembered what one of the passenger said: “Give the bargained for amount.” Some of the passengers chose to be taken around the town by pedicabs, a great help in the intense heat. A number of cruise passengers opted for the full-day tour to Hoi, the most outstanding place to visit in the area. However, it is a long hard day. Not everyone felt it was worth the effort. Saigon Before we left home, we were convinced that to be p.c. we had to say Ho Chi Minh City. However, once in Vietnam, we found that the Vietnamese still say Saigon. Much easier and much lovelier.
When our stewardess came in the suite with our coffee, she exclaimed: “The sun's so sharp.” And so it was-every day. When we got to Saigon, we found that none of the modern buildings added to the look of the city but rather detracted from the still wonderfully handsome French colonial buildings. We were pleased that the colonial buildings had been lovingly restored. We visited one of the most amazing of the French-era buildings--the Post Office. It is a very organized place with windows for every kind of transaction, from wiring flowers to an international telegraph window to the more modern DHL. In the center were long tables at which scribes sat writing letters for those who were unable to write. Town Square, Notre Dame Cathedral and Reunification Hall (we were unable to visit either of the last two), are all fine reminders of the French days in Vietnam. The Museum of Vietnam History was not nearly as interesting as the one in Hanoi. Another stop was in Chinatown (Cholon). To those from San Francisco or familiar with other Chinese cities like Hong Kong, this visit was not worthwhile. The only appealing sight for us was the Thien Hau Temple. Pickpockets are very much at work in this area. Other stops on our tour included a lacquer workshop, which was mostly a shopping “opportunity,” the kind of stop that causes friction between the shoppers who want to linger and the non-shoppers who want to move on. Shopping was much better at the myriad shops near the Rex Hotel, where we had a drink on the rooftop and thought of the Viet Nam war correspondents, and at Binh Tay Market, built to resemble Les Halles. The ship offered tours to the Cu chi Tunnels and the Mekong Delta but these sounded too strenuous so we opted to explore the city on our own, which is very easy. And we enjoyed a lunch at what is considered one of the better Vietnamese restaurants, Lemon Grass. Our Virtuoso group dinner was at Le Caprice, a French restaurant in the Landmark Building. Drinks were on the terrace overlooking the harbour. Dinner was an elegant affair with 11 people serving 16 of us. No fusion French here, as we are used to in San Francisco, but rather old-time French fare. Singapore After the softness of our guides in Vietnam, the hard edges of the guide in Singapore stood out. She was deceitful and lied to us. What a surprising person to encounter in Southeast Asia. This guide, Helen, was totally offensive to us. She really ticked me off by saying: “You are all retired but I need my job. I have a contract to fulfill.” These words after passengers asked her to cut out stops. This was the only tour we went on that had no water on the bus (we had to buy our own at a stop) Dinner at an Indian restaurant on Boat Quay. We sat outside looking at the boats plying the river (just sightseeing boats) and high rises in the distance. Across the river we saw a lion dance. The sky was reddish; the moon was full. There are a number of small restaurants along the river with a diversity of cuisines. |
The
marvelous French-era opera house has been beautifully restored as has the nearby
traditional Sofitel Metropole. It is the place to stay for convenience and French
colonial atmosphere. However, the Hilton Hanoi Opera across from the Opera House
is amazingly harmonious. It has been carefully named to differentiate it from
the infamous Hanoi Hilton, which housed American POWs including John McCain. On
our cruise there was a group of former POWs, who did visit the Hanoi Hilton and
were also entertained by the American Ambassador.
Our
ship started up the Saigon River, with its many twists and turns, early in the
morning. When we opened the door to our balcony, we could hear the song of birds
in the marshes close to the ship and the put-put of the motors of small boats.
The thick, low foliage took us back to our cruise up the Amazon. There were even
similar tin-roofed buildings on the shores. We saw a great number of ships of
all types-- mainly freighters with names like “Morning Star Cement”--
sailing up and down the river. Then in the distance, beyond the marshes, we saw
the startling high-rises of modern Saigon.| Taha'a Pearl Beach Resort “It's a very special place. The Taha'a Pearl Beach Resort is a real gem. It's the closest to a five-star facility we visited and head and shoulders above the other Pearl Beach resorts we visited and heard about. It's very secluded, so there's not a lot to do outside of the resort, but Bora Bora is only 20 miles away. Taha'a would be a great first stop for honeymooners before moving on to Bora Bora, which was my favorite island.” M.W., Jacksonville, FL |