Antics in Asia

Episode 1
Out of Hanoi

Today we left Hanoi and the Hilton Opera Hotel. I could have used one more day to explore this vibrant city. Two things stand out in my mind. The French inspired architecture and the traffic! Initially, the traffic seemed chaotic and wild, without rules. But the more you observe it and become a part of the flow - it takes on a spiritual quality- like a weaving of fine tapestry.

Very early into the pouring rain, we ventured to the airport. We saw our first rice paddies and water buffalo plows. We herded onto Vietnam Airlines flight 311 to Danang. It was a short 1-hour flight and thank goodness we were fed again. It had been a whole 2 hours since our last feeding frenzy.

Episode 2
Into Danang

Danang is the 4th largest city in Vietnam with a population of about one million people. Our first stop was the Museum of Cham Sculpture. This collection of Cham sculpture is the finest in the world. The artifacts date from the 7th to 15th centuries and were originally found in the Quang Nam and Danang provinces. Uncle Luie was our guide and he displayed much passion while retelling the stories depicted in stone.

Episode 3
China Beach

The sand was fine grained and hot. The water was cool and refreshing - for the most part. We did observe several brown cylindrical objects rolling in and out with the waves. We spent one hour relaxing under the umbrellas drinking sodas and yielding to the gentle persuasion of vendor with sweet thin breads. We photographed various Vietnamese boats including the really cool circular ones called coracles (basket boats). One of us had a very exciting jet ski adventure and got a little wet.

Episode 4
Apsara Restaurant

The highlight of this meal had to be the flaming coconuts containing grilled beef poached in coconut juice. Now, one of the coconuts was not like the others. Someone decided to sample the substance used to make fire. Is it ice? Could it be jell-o? No - it's flammable and not at all tasty. The real menu was:

Episode 5
Marble Mountain

The many caverns and shrines were wonderful. The 5 rock outcrops that comprise Marble Mountain each represent a natural element: Thuy San (water), Moe Son (wood), Hao Son (fire), Kim Son (metal or gold) and Tho San (earth). The heat, drenching sweat that poured off our body in sheets and the one million not exactly level steps were a significant part of this experience. Second to that were the vendors. They were so expensive that it made it impossible for me to shop. At one point I felt surrounded by about 15 of them, no were to go but the safety of the bus. But then again, some of us got great deals.

Episode 6
To Hue

This was my favorite part of the day. We saw the most beautiful countryside. We climbed through a 20km (16mi) steeply graded mountain pass with ocean on one side. The submerged coastline was ringed by beaches, which then turned green as the gently eroded mountains rose up and met the sky. As we climbed the pass, conifers began to intermingle with deciduous tress; aspens, etc.. Lots of vines were growing over the trees. I also enjoyed the architecture of the houses along the way. Many of the homes were very narrow and multi-story. Most of the front doors were open so you could see inside and I noticed that no furniture was visible in that front room. We saw a lot of water buffalos, dogs, chickens, roosters and a turkey. Numerous soccer games were being played by barefooted boys and men. Work was being done in the rice paddies. I saw rice paddies in many stages of construction and rice in many stages of growth.

Episode 7

The Huang Giang Hotel in Hue was like walking into another dimension of reality. Lots of heavy wood furniture with red and yellow color all over the lobby made a grand impression. Cocktails on the patio by the Perfume River was peaceful until someone locked themselves out on their balcony and also skillfully managed to lock the room so no one could get in. So, one of the hotel workers had to walk a ledge from the adjacent balcony with a kit and remove the window. He has quite a story to tell his grandchildren!