VICARIOUS | Featured Region: Vietnam

Story and Photography | Jim Kerr

Vietnam is a land of contrasts. History going back centuries can be found, but many buildings only date back to the 1970’s, when rebuilding much of the country took place after the Vietnam war, which locals call the “American” war. In rural areas people live simple lives, while in the cities life can be busy and crowded. Regardless of where you go, the Vietnamese are friendly and helpful. Debra and I started our journey with a flight into the northern city of Hanoi.

With temperatures in the low 20’s in January, locals were mostly wearing down-filled parkas while tourists basked in shorts and t-shirts. Taxi was the best way to get to the hotel although you could hire a motor scooter driver if you were adventurous. Hanoi is a city of 11 million people with 6 million motor scooters (mostly 125 CC) that transport everything from families to large trees. Walking across the street through an endless flow of traffic took confidence and courage but walk steadily and traffic magically flows around you. Traffic lights seem to be only a suggestion!

Despite the crowded streets, I only saw one motor scooter accident and it was minor, with both riders on their way in a few seconds. There are lots of scooter rentals if you are brave but if you don’t have a Vietnamese driver’s licence you can be stopped and fined or jailed by the police. You probably also don’t have health insurance and the rules of the road seemingly don’t exist at first so walking and public transportation are the way to go.

Buildings in old Hanoi are narrow to reduce taxes and many are only 4 metres in width. This makes for interesting accommodations, where our hotel had 3 floors, three elevators and two rooms off each floor from each elevator. There is no room for hallways and our small room was the full width of the hotel.

The old city has a different street name on every block that often describes the main commerce on that street but it makes finding your way around challenging. I used offline Google maps and set the hotel as my parking spot, making it much easier to find our way home after wandering the city. Ho Chi Minh’s mausoleum sits in the beautiful park of the Presidential Palace and is a must to visit. The Hoa Lo prison, better known here as the Hanoi Hilton when it contained American POW’s, was actually built by the French in 1896 when they occupied the country and the French influence is still found in language, architecture and churches. Now the prison is a museum depicting a long history of oppression and hope for the future. Reading the stories of incarcerated political prisoners touches the soul.

While in Hanoi, take in the water puppet show at the Thang Long Puppet Theatre. Puppeteers skilfully control the puppets using sticks beneath the surface of the water and the show is both interesting and entertaining. The night market is huge and because we were there in the days leading up to the Vietnamese lunar New Year, there were yellow flowers decorating everywhere.

Many tour companies are found in Vietnam cites and from Hanoi it is an easy side trip to Ha Long Bay. Day trips are possible but overnight excursions with a night or two on a boat are the best way to experience this UNESCO World heritage site. It takes a couple hours to motor out to 1600 small islands in the bay and it is a truly romantic location. The cabins are small but comfortable, the top deck perfect for relaxing and the food was exceptional.

Back in Hanoi, we boarded the 13 hour overnight LiviTrans Express train for the 700 kilometre trip to Hue. While many locals will book a seat for the trip, the $80 US “Deluxe” accommodation ticket gives you a compartment with bunk beds for four, a sheet, blanket and pillow. This isn’t for the shy, as you most likely be bunking with strangers and there are no privacy curtains on the bunks. Each train car has one communal wash basin and two washrooms – one with a flush toilet and the other with the more traditional hole in the floor so their idea of Deluxe and yours might differ but it certainly is an experience to remember! Food for sale is available on the train but its better to pick up something to eat and drink before boarding for the overnight journey.

Hue is located in central Vietnam on the shores of the Perfume river and during the last Nguyen Royal Dynasty it was the capital of Vietnam. Surrounded by a moat and the high stone walls of the Forbidden City, much of the royal residences were destroyed during the Tet Offensive when the North Vietnamese and then the Americans fought for control of the city in 1968. Bullet and cannon holes can still be seen in the outside walls. Since then, several of the structures have been restored and it is a beautiful and peaceful place to visit.

A city of contrasts, Downtown Hue has many small streetfront shops and restaurants, with modern electronics and appliance stores mixed in to keep you guessing what is around the corner. Our hotel had a rooftop swimming pool where you could look over the city and see rooftops with gardens and laundry hanging to dry. Saturday night, the main street closed to traffic and street entertainment and vendors brought hundreds out to enjoy the cooler night air. Open air sidewalk bars with food and beer (VND15,000 for a litre beer – about 0.85 Canadian) made the evening pass far too quickly.

The bus ride from Hue to Hoi Ann takes you along the twisty coastline of the South China Sea on the Deo Hai Van highway, one of the most scenic drives in the world. With 3260 kilometres of coastline, water is an important part of Vietnam’s transportation and commerce system, but travelling by land lets you experience the Hải Vân Pass, where you find ruins of the American post that monitored traffic between North and South Vietnam during the war. Looking down from the summit, the city of Da Nang lies to the south and the China sea to the east with rugged mountain ranges to the west. It’s a slow trip and worth every minute!

About half an hour south of Da Nang, the incredibly beautiful city of Hoi An rests on the shores of the Thu Bon river just a few kilometres from the ocean. Boutique hotels, museums, tailor shops and numerous restaurants cater to tourists from across the world but it is the old world charm of the marketplace where you can find everything from live chickens to fresh shrimp to vegetables of every description for sale. Walking is the easiest way to get around Hoi An’s old town with its colourful lanterns and busy narrow streets but a bicycle tour of the countryside will take you through rice paddies, immaculate vegetable and spice gardens and real Vietnamese life that hasn’t changed much in decades.

132A bus ride back to Da Nang airport gets us on the flight to Ho Chi Minh city. Internal Vietnam flights are economical and even in the back of the plane you are treated like business class.

Ho Chi Minh city is contrast of modern skyscrapers and compact buildings. Here there are lots of cars to match the scooters. Luxury cars and taxis were common, but a peddle bike rickshaw ride is a good way to visit many attractions.

With daytime temperatures in the high 30’s and nighttime the high 20’s, our hotel’s air conditioning was appreciated. The city is alive at night and the 52 story high SkyBar is a great way to view the downtown city and the ever-changing LED lights that flow up and down the skyscrapers.

While in Ho Chi Minh city, book a tour to the Mekong Delta. The rich soil and dense vegetation of the delta is home to over 17 million people with many of them fishing and farming for a living. From the delta’s My Tho City, a short river boat ride took us to Turtle island where you can find locally grown fruit, crafts and even candy. For the brave, sample a glass of Snake liquor at one of the vendors.

January and February are the best times to visit Vietnam, with its lower temperatures and humidity, and the country has much to see. Tours are numerous and varied and it is easy to get around. It’s an adventure to long remember.