Monday, March 31
Monday, March 31 We got up early and were ready for departure at 7 am with small suitcases while our big suitcases were put into the trunk space in the hotel. There was a lot of traffic on our way out of Hanoi, where the first stop was at a silk factory. We were not there for long, but we did have time to buy some fine scarves! With us on this trip is one of Henning's many acquaintances - a young student called Anna Thao - a sweet girl who is very interested in hearing about Denmark and speaking English and learning the pronunciation of English words she does not know. After a few hours' drive the mountains began to appear, and somewhat later we began the climb up into the mountains. We are now in a valley which is in approx. 800 m altitude. Henning knows two sisters in this small village and we were received very friendly - we are staying with Hoa, and have already had both a lovely lunch and dinner here. Also very nice for me to revisit them after 6 years - they have not changed. It is very hot today – it started dull and without the sun, but on the way the sun came out and when we arrived here around noon it was very hot. So we have been very hot and have been drinking a lot of water. At 4 pm we took a long ride on our bikes along tiny roads. It was a wonderful trip among rice fields and through lots of little villages at a steady pace so we could enjoy the view. There are quite a lot of tourists in the village who come here to enjoy a meal or to have a drink or maybe they sleep in the village where there are many guest houses. We are not the only guests in this house tonight - some bikers from Italy are staying here too. We have established ourselves in a large room on the first floor and will be sleeping under mosquito nets.
Emerging from Hanoi to Mai Chau
Silk factory
At road to Mai Chau
Sale at road to Mai Chau
Bike ride
Tuesday, April 1
As the Internet connection to Mai Chau is quite poor, this is written early Wednesday morning before we go back to Hanoi. Spending the night on a bamboo floor that appears not to be bamboo but a plain wooden floor is not the best place for a good night's sleep. It’s very peaceful here, but very early dogs and roosters start to entertain, but we also had to get up rather early to be ready for a visit to a school. We drove the 10 km there in the car and were received by some of the younger pupils who discovered us at a distance and were wildly excited to see us. We started our visit in the staff room where there was translation to our questions about the school, which is a fairly small school with about 60 children divided in primary and secondary schools. We were offered rice wine and fruit, and Henning submitted pictures to the pupils from last time he was there and a small economic help. Back home it was time to have a look around in the small village which is filled with houses like the one we live in where you can stay overnight and there is also a shop attached where you can buy scarves and many other small items of handicraft. At 4 pm we all met to go on a trip - bikes and motorcycles as the day before. We started out along small roads with beautiful views to green rice fields, but unfortunately we also had to drive on bigger roads where there was a lot of traffic of large trucks, and of course motorcycles and other bicycles. We passed a school where the children were being picked up - just like at home - and as we are quite used to they waved and cried hello to us. The trip was quite long, but nevertheless we were at home in good time for dinner and at 8 pm there was a dancing performance by local young women and men who danced their graceful and powerful dances. Eventually they did the bamboo dance where the audience was invited to participate, and also this went well and was great fun. After that a rest - still outside and with good temperatures - and then off to bed in the attic.
School visit Mai Chau
School visit Mai Chau
Mai Chau
Cockroaches as dessert ?
Lunch in Mai Chau
Mai Chau
Dancers
Wednesday, April 2
After one more night in the attic in Hoa’s guest house in Mai Chau it was time to say goodbye to this beautiful valley. At 8 o’clock we waved goodbye to Hoa and her husband and headed for Hanoi. From the outward journey we knew that it would be noon before we got back to Hanoi and it took several hours before we were out of the mountains. It was a very misty morning - the clouds hung low so you could hardly see the mountains but along the way there was sometimes a fine glimpse of them. We made a stop after a couple of hours to look at the large power station in Hoa Binh where you can also see a large statue of Ho Chi Minh on a mountain on the other side of the power station. When we approached Hanoi we noticed the building of an elevated railway which is being built to avoid more traffic on the roads, but in spite of all the traffic you do get surprised to see how smoothly it runs. At the traffic light you get crowds waiting – nowhere else. On our return we made a stop to see Khoa’s apartment, located in a nice area near a lake. After seeing the apartment and having had a drink Khoa and his wife invited us to lunch at a restaurant located just off the lake. For the first time on this trip we had hot pot - different kinds of meat, shrimp, scallops and vegetables are prepared in a boiling soup. Everybody liked it! On returning to the hotel it was like coming home - Birgit and I even had the same room as last time. The rest of the afternoon had no program so we did different things. Anette has a swollen foot that has given her some problems after twisting it a few days ago and needed a rest while Gunver and Tom took a walk around the lake. Henning had business to do - including finding a suitable restaurant for tonight and Birgit and I had a rest and then went for a walk down to the lake. At 8 pm we went out to dine at a nice restaurant and the waiter told us the whole menu before we had it – just like they do at some fine restaurants at home. After dinner the others went somewhere nearby for a drink while Birgit and I returned to our hotel.
hydroelectric plant in Hoa Binh
See how animals are transported in Vietnam
Wizard Khoa and his wife and Bich
Thursday, April 3
We had a good night's sleep in our hotel in Hanoi after the pleasant stay in Mai Chau and today’s program was fairly easy. This morning we went to the Army Museum where we watched the very illustrative configurations of the battle against the French in the north in 1950 and the Battle of Saigon during the Vietnam War with great interest. While we walked around in there we saw a large group of Vietnam veterans also visiting and wearing uniforms and medals. The afternoon was free until 3 pm when we went to see the water puppet theatre, but when we got there, the performance had been cancelled due to too few spectators. However, it was not a disaster because we got tickets for the next show and went down to the lake to have a sit down while we were waiting. There we were repeatedly approached by students who wanted to practice their English by speaking to us and also to hear a little about our country, but they were also very anxious to know what we thought was the best thing about their country. The Water Theatre is an old Vietnamese tradition that tourists flock to see. We could also follow the action on the stage quite easily as there was a headline written for every section in the program. It was a funny and fine show to watch. After that it was time to have dinner and get ready for departure from Hanoi at 8.30 pm to travel to Sa Pa. This time Khoa came with us so we filled just two compartments. Birgit and I were both very tired, so we wanted to go to bed rather early while the others gathered in the other compartment. The railroad tracks leave much to be desired, for it was to put it nicely a very uneasy journey and therefore it was difficult to sleep. It was dark when we drove out of Hanoi, so we did not see much of the city.
Army Museum in Hanoi
Army Museum in Hanoi
Near Hoa Kiem Lake
Water Puppet
Video from Water Puppet Theatre in Hanoi.