D89 -- Saigon to Hanoi

Like Elva, my first impression of Vietnam was the swarm of motorbikes that filled the streets and alleyways. At first I was convinced that at any moment I would witness a collision. But then a few minutes passed and no collisions. And then a few hours. And then a few days. You realize that what you perceived as total chaos is actually quite orderly, with implicit rules that help manage the clogged roads. The most important rule, is never assume anything. Don't assume that mopeds won't travel in the wrong direction. Don't assume that a red light means you should stop, at least when there are no police around. Don't assume that mopeds won't go on sidewalks when necessary. And don't assume that being on a crosswalk gives you any special privileges. I was crossing the street looking in the direction of oncoming traffic when I came within a whisper of a moped traveling against the flow of traffic. So from then on, I always looked in both directions, even when I was on a one-way street.

One of the other things that jump out at you is that most of the women traveling on mopeds or on bicycles are completely covered. Those wearing short sleeves will wear long elbow-high gloves when they ride around. Why would they want to completely clothe themselves when the heat is suffocating? Dominique answered this questions for us, telling us that many Vietnamese women strive to keep their skin a light color, and avoid the sun like the plague because they don't want to tan. Light skin color is considered more beautiful than dark skin color.

We decided to sleep in today and so we got off to a slow start. Elva went to tour the convent where Dominique is living and volunteering (I wasn't allowed inside.) She said it was peaceful and tidy with a beautiful garden and that the nuns were very nice. The three of us headed off for lunch around 11. Elva and I typically don't eat Vietnamese food, so the menu at each restaurant we have been to so far has always seemed very exotic. We appreciate having Dominique with us to help us select some really great dishes. She said that this particular restaurant was known for its dessert options, so we all splurged and ordered something. Dominique ordered hot tofu (very mild and tasted like cream of wheat, so I liked it), Elva had lotus seeds (a mix between corn pops and beans, served in a glass filled with icy, sugary liquid), and I had drunken rice balls (very strange and not appetizing, plus the texture of the rice balls wierded me out).

After lunch we took a cab to Notre Dame Cathedral in downtown Saigon, but it was closed (bummer because it is supposed to be nice inside), so we stayed in the cab and went to Viet's to pick up a picture that Son had left for us (his hobby is photography). The picture was a nice B&W shot of a boy on a water buffalo in a rice paddy. We went back to the hotel and said our goodbyes to Dominique, then jumped in to a cab to the airport to catch our flight to Hanoi.

Our hotel in Hanoi was a pretty big disappointment. We were paying only $10 a night, half of what we paid in Saigon, but we would have gladly paid double if we could have gotten the same quality room we had in Saigon. The bathroom didn't have a tub, just a shower head sticking out of the wall near the toilet and the towels were stained. Of course, for only ten bucks, it seems silly to complain, but for some reason we had a different expectation of what it would be like. The biggest downside was that it was on the 5^th floor without an elevator.

After three straight days of Vietnamese food, we decided it was time to mix it up a little, so we dined at a recommended Italian restaurant. The food was fantastic but very pricey. The total bill was $26, which compares to the $10-$13 we were paying for 3 people when we ate in Saigon. It's funny how quickly your sense of cost can adjust – a meal like this in Australia would have cost us double the price, and yet after paying so little in Saigon, we had already acclimated to Vietnamese prices. We found ourselves willing to walk 6 blocks in the mid-day heat because we didn't want to pay $1.20 for a cab. Such is life when traveling in developing countries.

-Tom