Vietnam - Day Two - Feb 3

We woke up the next morning and got ready to shower in the communal bathroom. Justin had gone on a scouting mission for towels, and managed to find a street vendor selling some. It was colder in the hostel than it was outside, and the bathroom was by far the coldest room. For some reason everyone else managed to shower without a problem but mine ran out of hot water halfway through, so I ran downstairs in a towel and with conditioner in my hair to the guys' room. The other fellas in the barracks weren't thrilled to see me use their hot water, but they didn't say anything so I went for it. We got dressed, ate a good breakfast, settled the bill ($8 per person) and headed to Handspan Adventure Travel, a company that had been recommended to us by friends.



Thanks to Justin's navigational expertise, we made it there with no problem and Ahn, the travel agent working that morning. She was incredibly helpful as we tried to solidify our plans. After much debate (and discouragement from her due the incredibly cold weather and fog/mist conditions) we decided to take a 3 day trip to Sapa including one night in a homestay. This turned out to be the best decision of our trip, but was a little daunting with her being such a realist about it.

The rest of the day was spent wandering around Hanoi, sightseeing and searching for warm clothes. Derek got a knock-off North Face pack and we ended up finding a store with loads of (possibly) real outdoor clothing.

We ate lunch at a hole-in-the-wall restaurant called Cha Ca La Vong which only serves one dish. It is a sort of stir-fried fish stew that is made at your table. It was delicious and authentically Vietnamese, evidenced by the mostly local clientele. It was $6 a person for all you could eat. Yum.

We also visited Hanoi Hilton, called Hoa Lo Prison, which was very interesting and moving. Built by the French in 1896 it once held over 2000 Vietnamese prisoners in the 1930's. This heritage is obvious when you see the enormous French guillotine which was used to behead Vietnamese revolutionaries during the colonial period. It is most famous (to Westerners at least) for holding US POW's during the Vietnam/American War. The museum has, what they claim to be, John McCain's jumpsuit and other gear as well as pictures of the Vietnamese pulling him out of the water after his plane went down. The Vietnamese have an interesting twist on history which depicts the Vietnamese being brutally tortured by the French, but the Vietnamese treating Americans quite humanely. There are pictures of the Americans playing basketball, laughing, being treated by medical staff, which are a little difficult to believe weren't posed. The overall feeling of the prison is a bit scary and very intimidating, though the actual structure and architecture is beautiful in it's own way.

We ate dinner at a restaurant called 69 Bar-Restaurant, which is in an old Vietnamese house, which has been perfectly restored. The food was again, wonderful, and the atmosphere was very unique as we sat on the balcony and listened to the city outside.

Following dinner we grabbed some snacks and went back to Handspan's office to meet a bus which would take us to the train. Our "guide" to the train station got on the bus with two dirty 1.5 liter water bottles. When we asked him about them, he told us they were filled with "Happy Water", which we finally realized was a homemade rice wine. It is strong stuff, and he was taking it home to celebrate Tet with his family. He took us to the train and dropped us off, then got on another train for his long trek home.

The four of us shared a small cabin with two sets of bunk beds which were about 18" wide and 5'6" long. A tough night's sleep for the guys. After downing a few beers and Oreos, we turned off the light. This was followed by about two hours of an acappella sing-a-long to 80's and 90's music, which I'm sure the people with the baby in the next cabin appreciated.