[RD] Backpacking Việt Nam (2019)

[warpus]

The Ho Chi Minh Museum, The National Assembly Building of Vietnam, and The Presidential Palace

I did not enter any one of these structures, but they are all nearby and I was able to photograph them from my walk around the Mausoleum grounds & Ba Đình Square.

I did consider paying the museum a visit.. but by the time I got here it was slowly approaching dinner time and from what I remember I would have only had about a half an hour to explore what looked to be a decently sized museum.

The National Assembly Building of Vietnam (constructed 2009-2014) is the largest and most complex structure built in Vietnam after reunification (1975). It stands across from the Mausoleum, all the way on the other side of Ba Đình Square. The construction of this building actually also lead to the largest archaeological excavation in Vietnam, due to the presence of an old imperial city and citadel, which was discovered under the site.

The constitution of Vietnam recognizes the assembly as the highest organ of state power. There are 483 seats, each occupied by a delegate elected to a 5-year long term. Currently 464 of these seats are represented by the Communist Party of Vietnam and the remaining 19 seats are represented by independent groups. The assembly appoints the President, the Prime Minister, several other high profile positions, and has the power to amend laws as well as the constitution.

The assembly is an example of a unicameral legislature, which means that there is only one legislative or parliamentary chamber. This is actually not so unusual; Norway, Peru, Turkey, New Zealand, and South Korea are some other countries which make use of a unicameral legislature.

The Presidential Palace is also nearby. It is not open to the public and was turned into a Historical Site in 1975.

It is said that Ho Chi Minh refused to live in the palace for symbolic reasons. It was built in a purely European style and used to be the residence of the Governor-General of French Indochina.

Instead of at this palace, Ho Chi Minh preferred to live and work at the nearby "House No. 54"

Spoiler :

 

[FriendlyFire]

^ Sorry Walprus but Communism sadly dose not function that way in reality, most of the parliament is just for show
The reality though is a kind of kleptocracy

 

[warpus]

^ Sorry Walprus but Communism sadly dose not function that way in reality, most of the parliament is just for show
The reality though is a kind of kleptocracy

I was trying to only state the way the parliament is structured more than anything, since it's tough to really judge any of this from the outside.

 

[warpus]

Ba Đình Square

The large square that the mausoleum sits right in the middle of is famous for being the place where Ho Chi Minh read the proclamation of Vietnamese independence back in 1945. The square, as well as the surrounding parks and green spaces are all regularly and meticulously cleaned and kept very well maintained by a crew of workers.

 

[warpus]

Chi Lăng Flower Garden

On my walk back to the Old Quarter I came across a small park that is named after the Chi Lăng pass, which is located about 100km north-east of Hanoi. Many parks, buildings, and stadiums in Vietnam are named after this pass. It is famous for being the location where Chinese and Mongolian invasions were repelled in 981, 1076, 1285, and 1427 CE.

What drew me to this park is the statue of Lenin I noticed from across the street. I took some pictures of Vietnamese youth skateboarding in front of it.

There was also a football match underway nearby.

 

[warpus]

Ngõ 224 Lê Duẩn
Hanoi's Train Street

On my walk back to the old quarter I inadvertently walked right up to the "Train Street", which at the time was a popular tourist destination.

It has since been shut down (as a tourist destination) by the authorities due to a number of recent near misses with selfie taking tourists.

The train comes twice a day and the train schedule is posted at pretty much every establishment there from what I saw..

The people who own and/or live on this street were at the time making the best of the situation, with many cafes, bars, and souvenir shops on both sides of the tracks.

Spoiler :

 

[warpus]

Cờ tướng

This board game is a popular pastime in Vietnam and one of the most popular board games in China, where it is known as Xiangqi. It is in the same family of games as chess.

It wasn't unusual to come across people playing this game huddled down on the sidewalk, usually with a group of onlookers glued to the action.

 

[FriendlyFire]

I normally dont add in any chili sauce into the Pho itself, but mix it with some Soy and use it to dip the meat in
Drinking the Pho beef soup is something I enjoy but thats for the very end.

Its weird seeing so much meat left in the bowl, and that you drank the beef soup stock instead.

I have to say that the streets and tracks are clean and rubbish free
Most of the time in some of the off tourist areas arent so great

 

[warpus]

Its weird seeing so much meat left in the bowl, and that you drank the beef soup stock instead.

The pho here was not the best. The broth was alright but the meat not so great.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Is that game a gambling game in that folks play for money?

 

[The_J]

The train comes twice a day and the train schedule is posted at pretty much every establishment there from what I saw..

[...]

The people who own and/or live on this street were at the time making the best of the situation, with many cafes, bars, and souvenir shops on both sides of the tracks.

Oh man... just imagine that.... living there sounds awful.
At least it's only twice, and the train can't be that big.
I was living for a while to train tracks in Germany, and yeah, in summer you couldn't sleep with open window. The situation there is clearly different, but wouldn't be my first choice either lol.

 

[warpus]

Is that game a gambling game in that folks play for money?

I think it's one of those "some people do, some people don't" sort of things. It doesn't seem to be viewed as a gambling game first and foremost, but I am pretty sure I saw money on the ground for some of these I walked past.

Oh man... just imagine that.... living there sounds awful.
At least it's only twice, and the train can't be that big.
I was living for a while to train tracks in Germany, and yeah, in summer you couldn't sleep with open window. The situation there is clearly different, but wouldn't be my first choice either lol.

I guess it's not so bad since the train doesn't run at night (from what I understand) and up until recently those who lived there could make some extra money from all the tourists passing through.

It wouldn't be my first choice either, but I bet there's many noisier parts of the city. I stayed at a hostel in Ho Chi Minh City where I barely slept due to all the noise outside..

 

[warpus]

Bánh mì

Bánh mì is the Vietnamese word for bread, but it is generally understood to refer to a Vietnamese style baguette or a sandwich made using one. In northern Vietnam it is also frequently spelled bánh mỳ.

French colonists introduced the baguette to Vietnam in the 1860s, although due to the price of imported wheat French baguettes were considered to be a luxury item at first. During World War 1 disruptions of wheat imports led bakers to begin mixing in inexpensive rice flour as a substitute, which made the bread fluffier.

Until the 1950s these sandwiches were mainly tailored to French tastes and included French toppings such as liver pâté spread. In 1954 Vietnam was split in two, which sent over a million migrants from the north to the south, who brought with them new culinary ideas, such as Bánh mì baguette sandwiches. These days these sandwiches are stuffed with a fusion of meats and vegetables from native Vietnamese cuisine, combined with condiments and other ingredients from French cuisine.

I was lucky enough to connect with somebody who lives in Hanoi and was able to take me to a Bánh mì restaurant favoured by the locals. I got a Bánh mì baguette stuffed with various meats, including pâté, as well as other ingredients I can't even remember right now. It was a somewhat messy ordeal, but it sure hit the spot.

What a delicious way to end my 2nd full day in the country.

 

[Birdjaguar]

But is it really a sandwich?

 

[warpus]

The English Bánh mì article on wikipedia uses the word "sandwich" a total of 69 times, for what it's worth.

 

[FriendlyFire]

But is it really a sandwich?

If Canada can put pineapple on a Pizza
I can add meats, pate, onions and pickled vegetables

 

[warpus]

Long Biên Bridge
Wednesday, March 6, 2019

When this bridge was completed in 1902 it stood as one of the great bridges of the world. Designed by Gustave Eiffel (of Eiffel Tower fame), it not only connected central Hanoi with the eastern bank of the Red River, but also became the only connection to the port of Haiphong. It was for this reason heavily bombarded during the conflict with the U.S.

The defence of the Long Biên Bridge has since those days contributed to a sort of resilient self-image of Hanoi. While American bombers were able to destroy a part of the bridge here and there over time, it did not really lead to any big disruptions until 1972, when the bridge was finally taken out of service for a year after one of the first ever coordinated uses of laser-guided missiles.

This bridge was fairly close to my hotel, so it seemed like the perfect first destination for my third full day in the country.

You might expect that to be some sort of patriotic message, but it's actually just a common road safety slogan meant to encourage safe driving.

The bridge was built by 3,000+ Vietnamese workers under the supervision of Daydé & Pillé.

Today the bridge is used by trains, motorcycles, bicycles, and pedestrians. Other traffic has been diverted to other bridges that now also span the Red River.

 

[Birdjaguar]

A new coat of red paint might be nice!

 

[Valka D'Ur]

The Presidential Palace is also nearby. It is not open to the public and was turned into a Historical Site in 1975.

It is said that Ho Chi Minh refused to live in the palace for symbolic reasons. It was built in a purely European style and used to be the residence of the Governor-General of French Indochina.

Instead of at this palace, Ho Chi Minh preferred to live and work at the nearby "House No. 54"

Spoiler :

Houses, and any other building for that matter, should never be painted yellow.

Ngõ 224 Lê Duẩn
Hanoi's Train Street

On my walk back to the old quarter I inadvertently walked right up to the "Train Street", which at the time was a popular tourist destination.

Note the woman in the foreground, casually crossing her legs and holding on to her papers, rather than the driver or the scooter. I'm guessing these things either don't go very fast, or she's got a fantastic sense of balance.

The train comes twice a day and the train schedule is posted at pretty much every establishment there from what I saw..

The people who own and/or live on this street were at the time making the best of the situation, with many cafes, bars, and souvenir shops on both sides of the tracks.

Spoiler :

I could not live there. Even without mobility issues. The noise and crowding would be horrible.

Oh man... just imagine that.... living there sounds awful.
At least it's only twice, and the train can't be that big.
I was living for a while to train tracks in Germany, and yeah, in summer you couldn't sleep with open window. The situation there is clearly different, but wouldn't be my first choice either lol.

I lived a couple of years in a neighborhood close to the train tracks, and had to get used to not only the rumbling, but the horn, since there was a crossing just across the alley and up an embankment from the house. Prior to that I lived on my grandparents' acreage, far from any trains.

After my dad and I no longer lived at that house, I was able to go back to the acreage. We moved into town less than a year later, but thankfully nowhere near the tracks.

That wasn't the first time of having to sleep through train sounds, though. We spent one summer at Shuswap Lake, near Salmon Arm, BC. I have no idea what possessed my grandfather to sell the Okanagan Lake cabin and buy one on a different lake, especially that one. The beach was nearly all rocks, and the water stank. And right across from us in the back - just a narrow road and line of outhouses and an embankment - was a train track. The train came through multiple times a day and night. We had to get used to that, as well.

My parents came to stay for a few days, and set up a tent in front of the cabin. But one night of hearing the train and feeling the vibrations made my mother decide that was it, they were going to leave (this was the last year my parents were married, in 1970).

Thank goodness that was the one and only year of Shuswap Lake. My grandfather bought a cabin back on Okanagan Lake, next to the one he'd sold. No more trains, and we had a fantastic beach there - soft black sand that felt wonderful.

 

[warpus]

A new coat of red paint might be nice!

This is just my own personal observation, but I got the sense that the symbolism of the bridge fits better with the current look.

Note the woman in the foreground, casually crossing her legs and holding on to her papers, rather than the driver or the scooter. I'm guessing these things either don't go very fast, or she's got a fantastic sense of balance.

It does not look safe to me either, but I saw much crazier things done on motorcycles in Vietnam. This particular scene is fairly tame in that context, if you can believe that. You are onto something with your comment about balance, though. It is said that in Vietnam a motorcycle is not only a way to get around, but also an extension of who you are. That sort of extends to it also being an extension of one's body. Vietnam has one of the highest rates of motorcycle ownership in the world (1 motorcycle for every 2 people, or 2.4 per household), so you're basically either steering one or riding in the back, and have been most of your life.

When you are crossing a street in Vietnam, the rule is that the motorcycles will go around you, but the cars might very well keep going wherever they're going. If you don't make any sudden unexpected movements and just casually walk into traffic, all the motorcycles will go around you without complaining, provided that you pay attention to any cars and stay out of their path. At first it seems a bit reckless, but I can vouch for the fact that most Vietnamese feel very comfortable on a motorcycle. I have even seen people sleeping on motorcycles. If you can't picture how that might be possible, I am pretty sure I have a picture (but it's from one of the last days of the trip, so it won't be showing up for a while)