Off to Hanoi

After a short night we had an early start into day 3 in Saigon. While waiting for the taxi downstairs, a few people who were just sitting around on the edge of the walkway started to involve me in a conversation. Apparently the entire street already heard about the people from the States including one white, which is still fairly rare to see here in the Chinese part of the city. I was offered tea with a sincere smile (although that wasn’t exactly the smile you will find in a toothpaste commercial) and seconds later we had about 10 people joining this early but exciting encounter.

 The flight to Hanoi was supposed to leave at 8 am, so we calculated 45 minutes to get there and 60 minutes for the check in. Rush-hour in Saigon is not any different to the traffic you will experience throughout the day. Lucky us - Vietnam Airlines took us although the flight was supposed to leave in 30 minutes. Eva - I was thinking of you once more… ;-)
The national airline of Vietnam is in fact Vietnam Airlines and they operate 90% of the domestic flights. They are flying hourly between Saigon and the capital of Vietnam Hanoi, moving each hour about 270 people from the south to the north and vice versa. Ticket prices range from $50 to $150 each way and depend on the time you book, your nationality and the mood of the ticketing agent. We found 3 different prices for that flight - online, phone in and talking to a travel agent.
Hanoi is the more traditional city and certainly more quiet than its southern counterpart. Pride and political orientation is more visible and that not only in the buildings and streets, but also in the interaction with the ‘Nguoi Bac’ - the people from the north. There is a certain reservation sensible and even though I do not peak the language, I can feel that when one of us talks with the locals.








We took a tour of the highlights of Ha Noi (Vietnamese spelling) including the grounds, mausoleum and working spaces of Ho Chi Minh (uncle Ho) - the man Jason and the other have heard of all along during their school time and which was pounded into their brains. Obviously it did not create much of an interest for them, but they told me later that it was still a good thing to see in person what they have learned for so many years in school.

Coming along are Jason, his sisters Trish and Krystal as well as Erik.