Reflections from Asia

Tuesday, March 15.
I will do a picture essay on Ha Noi and make a number to theme postings. I will leave you now with some final thoughts.
Ha Noi is the grubbiest city we visited, but has a real vibrancy in the little we saw of it. We walked the Old Quarter, finding lanes too small for cars, but, as in Hoi An, motorbikes going in both directions amongst the bicycles and the pedestrians. Again, as in Hoi An, it is “drive-up” shopping on the streets around the market.
On the drives to the airport and out-of-town to Ha Long Bay, we see wooden-shacks often with small, but tidy, gardens beside three-story, double or triple lot luxury homes. Although the speed limit, governed by the traffic, is never more than 30 km/hr in the city, on the major highways, of which Ha Noi has many, the taxi manages 40 km/hr.
In our five days in the area, we never saw the sun - not even a disc attempting to penetrate the smog. Perhaps this is why we are left with an impression of filth.
Yet, in the north of Vietnam as apposed to the south, Cambodia, and Malaysia, we never have children attempting to sell us tourist junk. The vendors are always adults. I wonder why?
The only scam we come across are some smartly dressed women and men posing as Red Cross canvassers - they flash a laminated-identity card - who want your name and country in their scribbler and a minimum $5 donation! The lady is miffed when I scratch out the bit of my name I have written in her book. They hang out near the Hoa Lo prison, better known as the Hanoi Hilton of prisoner-of-war times. I assume they feel visitors to the prison will be soft touches. They do have lots of names in their books.

Reflections on Asia:

- We always felt safe, even in busy, crowded areas.
- Peter is right when he comments: people are just going about their business as we are in Canada, working to support their families so their children can do better than they have.
- The work is still labour intensive. Even in grubby Ha Noi, there are street sweepers, garbage collectors, recycling collectors, who are constantly working to clean the place.
- Rice fields are everywhere! In the city, on the edges, and throughout the country, there are paddies in various levels of wetness.
- Especially in Ha Noi, but also somewhat elsewhere, it is necessary to check the restaurant bill carefully as there are constant errors, and not in your favour! Also, again especially in Ha Noi, you must check the change of all purchases. I think the vendors, especially the younger girls, know most foreigners don’t understand the money and are an easy mark. I get the feeling that it happens too often to be just by chance. At 20,000 dong to $1, you can understand why some people don’t get it!

Kuala Lumpur is just plain rich in comparison with the other places we visited. Yet, we sat with office workers in the lean-to restaurant and were well fed for very little.

Siem Reap is quite small, very poor, but a lovely place. We hope that the money from the influx of tourists helps to raise the standard of living for the residents.

Hoi An, I think, is my favourite spot - if I have to pick one. Maybe because it is small with very few cars, lots of bicycles, lovely beaches, and many historical buildings. Only, the fabric market is too aggressive , so I simply leave when I may have bought some had I been left alone to look. Anyway the made-to-measure stores are numerous and excellent.

Na Trang, for a bigger place, left me with good feelings. Again, it is an easy city to walk around, day or night. Maybe, also, because of the wonderful development - still ongoing - of the waterfront so all the citizens can, and do, use it.

Ho Chi Minh city (Sai Gon is now used for the whole metropolitan area) is so wonderfully vibrant - like Southern California. Perhaps the temperate weather mixed with the freedom-loving people and the extensive parkland within the city make for an active lifestyle for both young and old. You can actually see old ladies in their pyjama outfits walking down the street purposefully swinging their arms or lifting their knees, twisting and stretching as they go - all with no embarrassment, but simply to keep limber.

After just four weeks, I feel we have no more than a taste of Asia. The cities are tiring but exhilarating. The small places are welcoming and relaxing. I could easily spend two or three months traveling in South East Asia, but I would stick to the luxury buses - they stop at the restaurants that have clean washrooms!