Perfume PagodaA few of us went up to the Perfume Pagoda. It's a sort of pilgrimage site for many Vietnamese people. After taking a bus from Old Quarter we arrived at a river full of boats . . . and I mean FULL (see pic below). According to our guide there are ~4000 boats in the river and it's normal to see tens of thousands of people there on a busy weekend. After our boat trip, we walk through a market area to the first temple area. We're told that there are two options to get to the top of the mountain where the actual Perfume Pagoda is. Option 1: sky tram. Option 2: walk ~ 1.5 miles up stairs to the top. He said people who choose to walk always regret it and many of them have to give up. He doesn't know us like that. We chose option 2. He looked skeptical. We laughed to ourselves. 6 avid hikers, 3 of which have done half marathons in the last 6 months. Pft. We got this. The walk up is 98% stairs with very few "flat" sections. The entire way is lined on both sides with vendors. Some sell clothes, some sell food, some have areas where you can nap, some have ice cream, some have mia da (sugar cane juice). All of them stare at us and/or talk about us (we know enough Vietnamese to know when they're talking about the foreigners). For reference, we saw maybe 6 other white/non-Asian people while we were there. We make it to the top and enter the cave of the Perfume Pagoda. On the way down the steps into the cave, we pass another member of our tour group who had taken the sky tram. We get into the cave and see our guide. He seems surprised to see us and expresses how impressed he is by our ability to climb a mountain . . . to be fair, it was difficult and really frickin' humid. We were disgusting by the time we finished. LidecoMy housemate Clare had read about a development a little bit outside of Hanoi. The project had been started in the early 2000's maybe and for some reason (funding or market crash ...) construction had to stop. So basically, there was this whole development of abandoned houses to explore. As we arrive, we find the place busier than expected. Apparently construction has restarted but there are still loads of unfinished projects to explore. Some houses are lived in - we see a family unloading groceries. Some small shops and dining are on the main street through the development. We drive around finding the undeveloped areas and eventually stop at a house we don't think the workers will see us enter. It was super interesting to see the juxtaposition of the finished projects right next door to totally abandoned houses. In the center, is a lake where they have a brand new playground and outdoor gym area (not pictured). Children are playing. A few adults are exercising. In the background is construction and empty homes. Girls' TripDuring the 5 day weekend for a Vietnamese holiday, most of our house went on a trip to Hoi An and Qui Nhon (both central-ish Vietnam). Spent a lot of time on the beach. Did some clothes shopping and a lot of reading. Ate a lot of delicous food. Absolutely gorgeous locations to relax for a few days. The only non-relaxing part was the 5 hour bus ride from Hoi An to Qui Nhon. It was supposed to take 6 hours but our driver had a need for speed. I think I prayed more on that car trip than I have in a long time. Who doesn't love going 150-200 km per hour in the passing lane with oncoming traffic? Assorted Hanoi AdventuresWent for a run with Justin, Steven, and Liz in Soc Son, just outside of Hanoi. Beautiful area but so frickin' humid that day. I feel like Justin and I almost died (mostly because we were both already a little injured from other stuff) but on the plus side, the reservoir was actually clean enough to go for a swim afterwards. Totally worth it but probably won't go back until it cools down again.
The summer storms are back. It took us two weeks to actually make it to 5 star rice! First time we tried, we didn't even make it half way to the end of our main road when it started raining. On the plus side, we just hopped from cafe to bia hoi during lulls until we made it home. Traffic is terrible as always but seems like it's really picked up on Doi Can (my street). Glad I wasn't taking my bike out when this picture was taken. On that note, I finally bought a motorbike of my own. Honda Vision 2015. Rides like a dream. Been bowling a few times, I still suck but it's fun anyways.
1 Comment
anh le
14/6/2019 06:20:33 pm
I am glad you Hoi An, M glad you look so happy in all pics.
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ShannonMath Teacher living and working in Hanoi, Vietnam Archives
February 2022
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