Ba Dinh Square - consists of 168 (a very lucky number) pieces of grassland ...... where president Ho Chi Minh read the Proclamation of Independence of the Democratic republic of Vietnam on 2nd September 1945. When Ho Chi Minh passed away, the granite Ho Chi Minh mausoleum was built here to display his embalmed body, which is now a major site of tourism.
The One pillar Pagoda ....... check this out @ Wikipedia
University graduates taking photos at the Temple of Literature, aka Confucius Temple whch was the first University of Vietnam. Before taking their examination students will come and pay homage to Confucius for blessings and hope to pass with flying colours to gain entry into university.
Inside the grounds of the Temple of Literature. Read more about this @ Wikipedia
An image of Confucius on an altar.
Rickshaw ride ...... weaving in and out of the 36 streets at Old Quarter admist the hustle and bustle of the heavy and haphazard traffic ...... quite an experience, not recommended for those with a weak heart, ha, ha!
Hawkers along the pavement ..... only one male among the females!
Look how congested the cables are ...... the tour guide told us that each and everyone can differeniate which cable leads to their house, incredible! Notice the width of the houses, land is very expensive in Hanoi because of the huge population and scarcity of land, some can be 1.5m wide, so they build upwards, no lifts, only staircase, that's why Vietnamese both males and females are so slim and fit, due to a lot of exercise. Houses, cars, motorbikes are bought with Cash, they don't resort to hire purchase because of the high interest rate.
Houses on the left, below the road are much cheaper because they get flooded during the rainy season while the houses on the higher ground are much more expensive.
Opera House, Hanoi ....... check it out @ Wikipedia too.
Hilton Hanoi Opera , a 5 star hotel within walking distance of the Opera House
Inside the lobby of the Hilton Hotel ....... no, we didn't stay there, too expensive, we stayed in a 4 star hotel .... Perfect Hotel.
So many gorgeous pics. Now I want to take a trip!
ReplyDeleteAll the photos are very well taken and look very beautiful. Thanks for sharing. I think I have learned a lot about Hanoi from all your posts.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the beautiful pictures with us. I heard that many people visit Hanoi nowadays and if I have some extra time when I am back in KL I might make a trip there.
ReplyDeleteNow I need a holiday!
ReplyDeleteDear Friends
ReplyDeleteYes, all of you really need to go look see in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh city, it's much cheaper if it's a free and easy trip. I can give my tour guide contact if you want, he told me that he can get cheaper discounted rates for hotels and tours and he's good, at least can speak passable English.
Thanks for posting all the pics. Enjoy it a lot.
ReplyDeleteYou know, those streets food is my favourite place to visit wherever I go! So, how was the street food over at Hanoi? Have you tried out every single piece of them?
ReplyDeleteHi
ReplyDeleteDivina
Glad you enjoyed it.
Kristy
Didn't taste any street food. Not too hygienic and very dusty. We were advised not to try out the street food, lest our stomachs can't take it. They have a lot of French bread something like Baguette, with fillings of your choice and salad in them, by the road side, but most of the time they're not covered, even the jackfruit, it's cut open, displayed uncovered. That's why our tour guide said that they're full of 'pepper'. Think Taiwan should be a good place to try out street food.