The bus stopped about half way at a shop where they have clean restrooms and lots of things to buy. They also have about 20 young people doing embroidery work. They sit there for 8 hours working on the pictures that turn out beautiful. They really do great work. I thought about buying a jacket but then wondered where I would wear it in Florida. So no jacket.
These people work here at least 8 hours a day just sewing.
We arrived in Hanoi where the weather was misty with occasional rain. Not a great day. Our first stop was to Ho Chi Minh's Mousalium and the Stilt House. We could not go inside any of the building. The embalmed body of Ho Chi Minh is on display in this building which was built in 1975.
But it is closed on Monday's. Interesting, rules require that legs and shoulders are covered, hands may not be in pockets, and arms may not be crossed. This mausoleum is located at the center of Ba Dinh Square in central Hanoi.
This is the stilt house. Ho Chi Minh lived and worked here from 1958 to 1969.
The pond in front of the stilt house.
The inside of the stilt house. This is the living room/office and then there is a bedroom. That is it.
The One Pillar Pagoda was built in 1049 and is balanced on a single column in the pond a few feet from the stilt house.
Next stop was Temple of Literature.
The Temple of Literature is also known as Van Mieu in Vietnamese. It was built in 1070 by Emperor Ly Thanh Tong to honor the Chinese philosopher Confucius.
Finally, we went to the Ho Lou Prison. This is where the American Pilots were held during the "American" war. That is the way the local people refer to the Vietnam War. John McCann is one of the pilots held here. Most of the prison has been destroyed but there is still some remaining which turns out to be interesting. The original use of the prison was when the local people rose up agains the French. The French used it to keep the protesters captured. They were kept in chains and beheaded if they misbehaved. At least when the American pilots were held, they were not in chains but I do thing they were tortured.
Officially known as Hoa Lo Prison, this facility was satirically referred to as the "Hanoi Hilton" by American prisoners of war during the Vietnam conflict.
First used as a prison by the French, the site gained infamy as the spot where American servicemen were interrogated and tortured, including Senator John McCain and former ambassador Pete Peterson.
During the French, the men were chained to long tables.
Much of the prison was leveled in the 1990's, portions of the interrogations rooms remain.
Despite the display of times such as McCain's parachute and flight suit, the museum is somewhat controversial due to it depiction of the site as a benign prisoner barracks. There are pictures of the Americans playing volleyball and basketball like life here was great.
Then we stopped at a small restaurant for a lovely lunch. Started with soup, then a salad, and finally a chicken dish. Fruit for dessert.
This is a small local restaurant and the food was good.
I think this car could be David's next project. What do you think?
Back on the bus to head back to the ship. We stopped at the same place and this time I gave in and did buy some items for the grand girls. But I am not telling what.
We got back on the ship and the ship left port. Everyone welcomes you back on board. And it is great to be back.
We unpacked and then dressed for dinner. Cocktails up in Observation Lounge and then dinner in Compass Rose. Then back to suite and bed. We lost one hour tonight. But great to be in a comfortable bed.
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