Corinna (Corn), Uki (and June) finally made it to Vietnam! We need to cram all of the tourist attractions in in 5 days!
Stop #1 2 hour full body massages! Most people would think that sounds awesome. They obviously have never had a massage in Vietnam. One word: painful. I knew what to expect because Shin and I had already been multiple times, but it was a surprise to all of the new arrivals. After the massage we started seeing the sights...
Temple of Literature
I'm not sure what this says, but I think its important.
I love all of the details of the buildings here.
Look! The animals are on a walk (Shin, Corn and Uki)
Another entrance inside the grounds
Internal courtyard
Turtles!
More Turtles!!!
An Uki!!!
Corn and I rubbing the turtles head so we do well in school. It's a smart turtle.
Turtle butts
The ceiling over the turtles
Cool stamped bricks
Uki and I rubbing the turtle's head to wish for knowledge. I need all the help I can get.
Too bad the gates closed, we could really go for a dip.
AH! MONSTERS!
Cute statues playing in the water and plants.
Pretty roof tiles
GRRR! Dragon!
More dragons! Guarding the incense.
I think these two might be related.
Beautiful ceiling in the temple.
More interior details
Traditional water puppets
They're a little bit scary actually
Pretty tree...
with beautiful flowers
Pavilion in the temple grounds
"Her cellulite is mad"
Animals out for a morning walk
Lilly pads
Back of the entrance gate.
Awesome tree
Close up
My favorite column...
because of this guy!!!
Hoan Kiem Lake
Proof that I was there!
Animals out on an afternoon walk. It's important they get they're exercise.
One of my favorite buildings with some awesome scooters.
1000 year celebration...coming soon!
Check out that hair...insanity.
Scooters!
More scooters!!
Parked scooters...things are getting crazy.
St. Joseph's Cathedral
Getting ready for the night market
Things in full swing
The most amazing cards - and they only cost $1
There is soooooo much stuff
I mean, how many cell phone covers are actually needed?
Market
Hanoi at night!
Could he be any cuter?
The band of the traditional water puppet show -
we were in the 3rd row so they could definitely see when Uki, Corn and Shin all fell asleep.
Not the best picture, but check out that lady's shirt.
She is pulling a Regina George. Vietnam knows whats up.
Traditional Water Puppet Show
So many puppets. It's kind of scary.
Such a cute group!
Traditional pottery town
Huge vases
Little Sluks loves it here
Look at that vase! (I left Corn and Uks in for scale)
Not just tea sets. Lots of trinkets too.
I like these
There's some crazy building going on
Awesome-ness
AH! Rainy season!
Anyone want some paint for breakfast?
Ho Chi Minh Complex
This is the day we learned about ridiculous regulations and rules...
We weren't allowed to bring our cameras into the Mausoleum. They had to be checked into the camera kiosk at the beginning of the line and would be returned to us "at the end." Too bad nobody specified what "the end" was. We went through the mausoleum and saw the really creepy body of Uncle Ho. Throughout the whole walk into and through, the path was marked by a red mat on the ground and white lines that said "do not cross." When we entered the next part of the complex we realized that a lot of people had their cameras. Thinking that we had missed "the end" pick up spot we asked the guard at the gate if we could go get the cameras and come back. He mimed running and said "hurry!" We left June inside the complex "to go bathroom."
Shin, Corn, Uki and I tried to back track, but the white "do not enter" lines were now in our way and all of the guards took their jobs too seriously, so we were not allowed to go back the way we came. After about 20 minutes of trying to walk back to the beginning without crossing the white lines, we ended up where we started but the camera kiosk was no longer in sight. A random (crazy) guy asked if we needed help, but we chose to power through and figure things out on our own. Eventually we realized that what had been the camera kiosk only 30 minutes before was now a disguised as a souvenir shop. Tricky business.
Relieved that we all had our cameras back, we ran past the mausoleum to the complex gate which was now magically closed and locked. Apparently there is a 2 hour break from 11:30-1:30 that was not posted anywhere. Surprise! Unfortunately, June was now locked inside and no one had a cell phone. Luckily, she is a smart lady and we all met up where we had started. In addition to everyone being cranky from the heat and ridiculousness of the situation we were greeted by our crazy Vietnamese friend from earlier who started pointing and laughing at us and yelling "STUPIDS!"
Unnecessary.
Ho Chi Minh Masoleum
One Pillar Pagoda
Ho Chi Minh Museum
Communism
Check out the light fixtures
Awesome wire management
Hoa Lo Prison's equivalent of barbed wire
Sluks on the inside...where he belongs
Super creepy statues
A building duct where 100 prisoners escaped through. Not all at once.
One of the original doors - AH!
Courtyard mural
Mural
Hanoi Opera House
Detail of the Opera House
Detail of the Opera House
Monster!
Ice cream fondue
Typical intersection in Hanoi
I don't know what these basket carriers are called, but they're awesome.
More cool buildings and scooters
Buying Na!
Our favorite fruit in Vietnam but no one knows the English name.
I love the buildings here!
Pretty mural
From the bridge
From the bridge...this is where Shin's camera got stolen...we think
From the bridge
Pagoda
More proof that I was actually there!
(It's only believable if you're in the picture)
No wear the short to the pagoda
More pagoda from behind the entrance gate...which we couldn't go through.
We had an amazing knack for only going to things when they're closed.
Cool beans - check out the statues in all the windows
Fishing in West Lake
Fishing in West Lake
What the Shin?!
Watching all the swan boats from our resting spot on West Lake.
I mean, the perfect shirt for this guy.
No explanation needed.
Swan boats
On our walk
More West Lake
Pretty tree along our walk
No comments:
Post a Comment