Wrapping up Vietnam

We probably have enough Vietnam material to keep posting for the next two months, but we've already been in Japan for almost two weeks. It's time to wrap up Vietnam and move on to more up-to-date posts. Here's a photographic overview of our last couple of weeks in Vietnam.

Hue offered beautiful countryside and lots of historic buildings and temples. In one day of sightseeing we took a taxi, cyclo, moto, and boat. Many tourists skip Hue in their Vietnam tour, but we'd highly recommend a stop. Here's a building from an Emperor's estate:


You've already heard Charlie talk a little about Hanoi. There was a lot of traffic and noise, but we did take a scenic day trip outside the city with Richard and Debbie. Also, we found one thing that made Hanoi tolerable:

Fanny's ice cream was hands-down the best ice cream we've had since we left our dear Bi-Rite in San Francisco. We were here every day.

The parts of Vietnam that aren't overrun with motos are really pretty.

Beautiful people in a beautiful place :)

Of course, we also took a trip to Halong Bay. Halong Bay has a lot in common with Phang Nga in Thailand, but has many more karsts and is widely considered to be more magnificent. Unfortunately, we had terrible weather during our visit and didn't get to experience the scenery quite like we wanted to. Still, the mists and grey skies provided a quiet, eerie atmosphere that was quite spectacular in its own way.

Our trip to Halong Bay included an overnight stay on this private island. After spending several hours on the boat deck in the wind and rain, we were thrilled to discover that our room was equipped with an electric blanket. This island was beautiful and we would have loved to spend more time here had it been sunny.

We left Vietnam a bit disappointed with Hanoi and some of our experiences in the north. However, we loved everything we saw in southern Vietnam and in the highlands. It's definitely a place that will see a lot of change in the next ten years, so get there before everyone else does. I miss pho already.