The Bond Family Adventure; Nanjing, China and Pattaya, Thailand: Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam!

As we conclude our final year in Asia Pacific our family had visiting Vietnam on our travel list. Our plan was to visit Hanoi, do a Junk Boat Cruise on Ha Long Bay and then conclude our trip in Ho Chi Minh City. We strategically placed the Junk Boat Cruise in the middle of our trip, providing some rest and relaxation which we knew in advance would be needed due to the City touring we planned to complete.

First stop was Hanoi City, the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Historically speaking this city was the capitol of North Vietnam and became the capital of a reunified Vietnam after the North's victory in the Vietnam War. We decided to stay in a boutique hotel located in the heart of the Old Quarter. This area has narrow streets where you see first hand the life of the city, people and motor scooters busily going about daily life.

Our first day was busy as we took full advantage of the free local guides, university students wishing to practice their English, setting off to explore the city in great detail. Our first stop was the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, serving as a large memorial and home of President Ho Chi Minh's embalmed body. You could feel the national reverence to this leader as many Vietnamese were in the crowd to visit the site. It is here where Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence on September 2, 1945 establishing Vietnam.

Leaving the Mausoleum we took a path to the Presidential Palace which was the former home of the French Indochina governor.

When Vietnam achieved independence Ho Chi Minh refused to live in this grand house for symbolic reasons and instead built a traditional Vietnamese home shown below.

Next within the complex we saw the One Pillar Pagoda, a historic Buddhist Temple.

After leaving the Mausoleum complex we stopped at the Temple of Literature. This was the site of Hanoi's first University. The Temple was built in 1070, dedicated to Confucius, Sages and Vietnam's first Scholars. I was able to get some great shots of some local University graduates visiting the temple on the day we visited.

Next we headed to Vietnam's Museum of Ethnology where we saw everyday objects gathered from all over Vietnam. In the grounds there were examples of traditional villages and we witnessed our first traditional water puppet show which was created around the end of the 10th century. The puppets are carved from wood and the performing stage is built on the water surface concealing the puppeteers.

Next we visited the Ngoc Son Temple which is located on a little island of Hoan Kiem Lake. The temple is dedicated to general Tran Hung Dao.

Our final stop of the day was after dinner to see the Thang Long Water Puppets Theater to see a professional performing arts production of Vietnam.

After exploring Hanoi for our first day the following three days and two nights we took a junk boat cruise in Ha Long Bay. Let me first begin by explaining that a "Junk" is a ancient Chinese ship design that is still in use today. Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage site and the bay features many beautiful limestone mountains. We traveled three hours by van to the Bay in order to board our boat at the Bay. Our choice for Junk Boat was a four star ship called Star Light.

As we board the ship we enjoyed a very nice lunch as we cruised to our first destination Sung Sot Cave (also called Amazing Cave) which lies on Bo Hon Island. The mouth of the cave is 25 meters above sea level and it was a fun time exploring the three compartments.

Our next stop was Titop Island where we got an opportunity to relax on the beach and the kids had a great time playing in the water.

The remainder of our first day/night on the ship was spent relaxing, karaoke and learning how to cook spring rolls.

Day two on the cruise began with a transfer to a day boat where we journeyed to Lan Ha Bay. This was a day spent visiting a pearl farm, relaxing, kayaking, and swimming off the boat. We had a blast!

Our final day on the cruise we traveled to Cua Van Fishing Village and saw first hand how an entire community of people live on the water in the Bay. It was truly an experience like nothing before..

After our Junk Boat Cruise we traveled back to Hanoi for one final day of sightseeing. We began our day by visiting Hoa Lo Prison. It was here that the French Colonist jailed political prisoners. It was later used by North Vietnam for prisoners of war during the Vietnam War, most notably where John McCain was a POW.

We moved on next to the Opera House built by the French in 1901.

Next we headed to Ngoc Son Temple located on a little island on the northern part of Hoan Kiem Lake.

We then continued our touring of the city by stopping briefly at the Flag Tower which is a World Heritage Site built in 1812.

Our very final stop in Hanoi was on the way to the airport to see Quan Thanh Temple which is dated back to the 11th century.

That was a wrap for visiting northern Vietnam, Hanoi City and also Ha Long Bay! Next we jetted off to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly named Saigon, in southern Vietnam for our last three days of vacation. First the city was the capital of a French Colony and then in 1976 after the defeat from Northern Vietnam the name changed to honor the communist revolutionary leader.

The first day was packed with sightseeing. Our first stop was the Jade Emperor. This pagoda was built by the Chinese community in 1909 and dedicated to various Gods.

Within this trip Natalie wanted to see some fine ceramics popular in Vietnam, resulting in a trip to Minh Long store.

Next we stopped to see the Saigon Opera House very briefly as there was no performances during the week.

We then went to see the City Hall built in 1908 under French architecture.

Lunchtime! On our first day in Ho Chi Minh we had to taste the local Pho, a traditional Vietnam Noodle Soup.

After lunch we moved just across the street to see the popular Ben Thanh Market to do a little handicraft and souvenir shopping. Next we traveled to the War Remnant's Museum. Upon entering the museum we quickly realized that it was better suited to be named the American War Crimes Museum, showing the brutality of war and definitely slanted to the Vietnamese victims. This was a good teaching point for the kids, despite the graphic nature of the museum reflecting the reality of wars.

Next we head to see the Saigon Central Post Office (constructed in the early 20th century) which was also across the street from Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica. Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica was built in 1880 by the French.

Following this short stop we visited the Reunification Palace serving as the home and workplace of the President of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. It was the sight of the end of the War during the fall of Saigon on April 30th, 1975. The is a popular picture you may have seen as a North Vietnamese Army tank crashed through the gates.

After a dinner at the hard Rock Cafe it was the end of day one. Day two was a walk back in time to experience the Vietnam War at the Cu Chi Tunnels. The tunnels of Cu Chi is an immense network of underground tunnels and part of a much larger network of tunnels that underlie much of the country. These were the base of the Viet Cong's operation during the Vietnam War. The tunnels were used as hiding spots during combat and also supply routes for the war. After seeing the tunnels and the techniques used during the war you comprehend how important this was to the Viet Cong and their American resistance. Shown below are some pics and display how entrances were hidden and very difficult to discover, serving as escape routes and surprise attacks.