Why is it that communists have such an affinity for embalming their leaders and having them lay in state in perpetuity? Something to ponder...
Today, we visited the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex, and saw Uncle Ho himself. He looks pretty good for being 119. The mausoleum is guarded by at least a dozen uniformed guards with bayonettes, and we all agreed that those guys are really high up on our list of people we would never, under any circumstances want to %$!@ with. Sneaky was chastised for putting his hands in his pockets while in the mausoleum. Those dudes are hardcore.
After a quick tour of his former residence and office as well as the Ho Chi Minh museum, we treated ourselves to a fantastic buffet lunch at the fancy-schmancy Metropole Hotel. The prix fixe appetizer buffet, main course and dessert buffet lunch was a whopping USD $20 per person; Somewhat outrageous for Vietnam, but the place was packed with power lunchers.
And my oh my, was it ever worth the $20 bucks! Sashimi, fresh spring rolls, noodles, pancakes, all kinds of fried Vietnamese delicacies I'd never even heard of. It was just the thing we needed after skipping breakfast to make it to the mausoleum on time! [Last tour is admitted at 10:15 a.m., in case you are thinking of visiting.]
This afternoon, we hit up the infamous "Hanoi Hilton," now a museum that documents the horrors inflicted there, first on the Vietnamese by the French, and of course later by the Vietnamese on the American pilots they captured. The propaganda photos and fliers they had on display were really something else. If you didn't know any better, you'd think that all the pilots there did was play volleyball, prepare elaborate Christmas feasts, and have their wounds carefully attended to by Vietnamese doctors. Extremely interesting exhibit to see; Quite famously, it includes John McCain's flight suit and parachute from when he was shot down over
Truc Bach Lake.
All in all, a great day of sightseeing in charming Hanoi. Tomorrow we head for a two-day, one-night cruise in Halong Bay, which is supposed to be spectacular. I'll be sure to post photos from the boat.
Today, we visited the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum complex, and saw Uncle Ho himself. He looks pretty good for being 119. The mausoleum is guarded by at least a dozen uniformed guards with bayonettes, and we all agreed that those guys are really high up on our list of people we would never, under any circumstances want to %$!@ with. Sneaky was chastised for putting his hands in his pockets while in the mausoleum. Those dudes are hardcore.
After a quick tour of his former residence and office as well as the Ho Chi Minh museum, we treated ourselves to a fantastic buffet lunch at the fancy-schmancy Metropole Hotel. The prix fixe appetizer buffet, main course and dessert buffet lunch was a whopping USD $20 per person; Somewhat outrageous for Vietnam, but the place was packed with power lunchers.
And my oh my, was it ever worth the $20 bucks! Sashimi, fresh spring rolls, noodles, pancakes, all kinds of fried Vietnamese delicacies I'd never even heard of. It was just the thing we needed after skipping breakfast to make it to the mausoleum on time! [Last tour is admitted at 10:15 a.m., in case you are thinking of visiting.]
This afternoon, we hit up the infamous "Hanoi Hilton," now a museum that documents the horrors inflicted there, first on the Vietnamese by the French, and of course later by the Vietnamese on the American pilots they captured. The propaganda photos and fliers they had on display were really something else. If you didn't know any better, you'd think that all the pilots there did was play volleyball, prepare elaborate Christmas feasts, and have their wounds carefully attended to by Vietnamese doctors. Extremely interesting exhibit to see; Quite famously, it includes John McCain's flight suit and parachute from when he was shot down over
Truc Bach Lake.All in all, a great day of sightseeing in charming Hanoi. Tomorrow we head for a two-day, one-night cruise in Halong Bay, which is supposed to be spectacular. I'll be sure to post photos from the boat.
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